ECONOMY & MARKETS

The pound plunged to a record low against the dollar early on Monday and British bonds were slammed on concerns over the government's fiscal plan, unleashing calls for the Bank of England to deliver an immediate rate hike to restore investor confidence.

The Pakistani rupee opened slightly stronger on Monday as market participants awaited the announcement of a new finance minister, at a time when the country grapples with economic turmoil worsened by devastating floods.

The fight against inflation is the biggest priority, France's finance minister said on Monday as he delivered a 2023 budget subject to what he called unprecedented uncertainty due to the fallout from Russia's war against Ukraine.

Euro zone government bond yields jumped to new multi-year highs amid expectations that central banks will keep tightening their monetary policy and a fresh sell-off in Britain gilts.

Italian shares jumped nearly 1% on Monday, outperforming their regional peers as Telecom Italia and financial stocks advanced after the right-wing coalition led by Georgia Meloni looked set to win the country's general election.

Global economic growth is slowing more than was forecast a few months ago in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as energy and inflation crises risk snowballing into recessions in major economies, the OECD said on Monday.

China's central bank on Monday announced fresh steps to slow the pace of the yuan's recent depreciation by making it more expensive to bet against the currency, as global policymakers grappled with the economic effects of a broad dollar rally.

Sterling tumbled nearly 5% to an all-time low on Monday as investors ran for the exits after the new government's fiscal plan threatened to stretch Britain's finances to their limits.

The Bank of Thailand will deliver another 25 basis-point rate hike on Wednesday, its second in a row, even as many of its peers opt for larger increases to fight high inflation, a Reuters poll showed on Monday.

Sterling tumbled to a record low on Monday as traders scampered for the exits on speculation the new government's economic plan will stretch its finances to the limit.

Japan likely won't intervene in the currency market to defend a line-in-the-sand such as 145 yen versus the dollar, and instead limit any further action to smoothing operations aimed at taming volatility, former top currency diplomat Naoyuki Shinohara said.

Hedge funds went into the Fed's Sept. 20-21 policy meeting betting on a sign that a dovish pivot is looming onto the horizon.

Asian stocks were set to start the final week of the quarter on the slide on Monday, while the dollar stood ascendant, as the prospect of high interest rates and poor growth shakes markets.

Britain's Labour Party will unveil on Monday its plans to set up a national wealth fund to invest in green projects which will benefit the public, part of the opposition party's answer to the Conservative government's tax-cutting approach.

Grace Melt made her first visit to the Nourishing Hope food pantry on Chicago's North Side in August.

Britain's new economic agenda represents the biggest gamble for growth in a major Western democracy in at least 40 years, for which the chance of success fell instantly as investors ditched sterling assets.

A week of heavy selling has brought U.S. stocks and bonds to fresh bear market lows, with many investors bracing for more pain ahead.

Mario Draghi's outgoing Italian government is preparing to cut its growth estimate for 2023 to just above 0.5% as the energy crisis weighs on the euro zone's third largest economy, sources said ahead of official publication of the new economic forecasts next week.

Oil prices plunged about 5% to an eight-month low on Friday as the U.S.

U.S. high-yield corporate debt markets may be underpricing for the risk of a recession even as Treasuries and macroeconomic indicators reflect rising growth fears, but that may be tested soon with corporate earnings projected to worsen.

As central banks hike interest rates at a pace not seen in decades to control inflation, the alarm among bond investors over looming recession risks is spreading fast.

The National Bank of Hungary is likely to raise its base rate by another 100 basis points to 12.75% next Tuesday, a Reuters poll showed, with further hikes seen by the end of the year despite the bank flagging a possible halt to its increases.

A downturn in business activity across the euro zone deepened in September, according to a survey which showed the economy was likely entering a recession as consumers rein in spending amid a cost of living crisis.

Capital controls and currency intervention are among tools emerging Asian policymakers can use if rapid U.S.

Southeast Asian startups are enjoying a boom in fundraising exercises by venture and buyout funds that are chasing bigger returns and turning away from regulatory turmoil in Chinese markets, even at the risk of slower growth.

As the Bank of Japan steps into currency markets for the first time in decades to defend a battered yen, it is running into numerous obstacles, chiefly its own stubborn commitment to ultra-easy monetary settings.

The Reserve Bank of India is set to raise interest rates again next week with a slim majority of economists in a Reuters poll expecting a half-point hike and some others expecting a smaller 35 basis point rise.

A temporary brake on gas and electricity derivatives when prices spike could improve the overall functioning of the energy market, the European Union's securities watchdog proposed on Thursday.

The Bank of Japan's intervention to prop up a freefalling yen has currency investors speculating about which central bank could move next in the face of a soaring dollar.