IBT Staff Reporter

Britain is considering changing the law to make it easier to impose sanctions on Russian oligarchs, a government source said, amid criticism that it was taking too long to target individuals with links to President Vladimir Putin.

Foreign minister Liz Truss said on Thursday legal threats would not deter Britain from imposing sanctions on Russian oligarchs, amid criticism the government was taking too long to target individuals with links to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

South Korean presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol got a boost on Thursday when a rival dropped out, but if the conservative former prosecutor wins next week, it may also be thanks to "deepfake" avatars and viral short videos.

The threat to wheat supplies from Russia's invasion of Ukraine has been exacerbated by a shift in global stocks away from major exporters such as the United States and European Union, undermining their effectiveness as a cushion in times of crisis.

Disruptions to automotive supply chains in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine could impact demand for platinum group metals (PGMs), the chief executive of South African miner Sibanye-Stillwater said on Thursday.

A missile or bomb hit a Bangladeshi-owned cargo ship in the Ukrainian Black Sea port of Olvia, killing one of its crew members, and efforts were underway to rescue the others from the vessel, its owner said on Thursday.

An Estonian-owned cargo ship sank on Thursday off Ukraine's major Black Sea port of Odessa, hours after a Bangladeshi vessel was hit by a missile or bomb at another port, underlining the growing peril to merchant shipping following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Russian stocks and bonds are now "in the realms of utterly uninvestable," the chief executive of Schroders Peter Harrison told Reuters on Thursday, as Western sanctions squeeze Russia's economy after its invasion of Ukraine.

On a tree-lined, unpaved road in Somalia's capital, people duck out of their homes to stare in awe at an unusual sight: two young men atop white horses, racing neck and neck, in training for what would be the city's first horse races in decades.

The European Union is waiting to see the impact of a slew of sanctions on Russia before imposing any more, but it is working on further steps that could include targeting crypto-assets, officials said on Thursday.

The U.N. nuclear watchdog's Board of Governors backed a resolution on Thursday that "deplores" Russia's invasion of Ukraine and urges it to let Ukraine control all its nuclear facilities, diplomats said.

European Union interior ministers gave unanimous backing on Thursday to a plan to grant temporary residency to Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion, which should come into force within days.

At least 18 people were killed when an informal gold mine collapsed this week in western Guinea, the government spokesman said on Thursday.

Top Chinese banks are rushing to ensure they can maintain business ties with Russian clients without running afoul of a barrage of Western sanctions, people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Russia's invasion of Ukraine is likely to threaten one of China's most discreet but important strategic relationships in recent years: its use of Ukraine as a source of technology for the expanding Chinese military.

The Moscow branch of a Chinese state bank has seen a surge in enquiries from Russian firms wanting to open new accounts, a person familiar with the matter said, as the country's businesses struggle with international sanctions after its invasion of Ukraine.

A Russia-exposed ETF rose by more than 100% in London on Thursday in a sign that some investors see current distressed levels as a potentially cheap entry point for Russian assets, even as the Ukraine crisis intensifies.

India's trade and current account deficits are likely to widen, putting pressure on the rupee, as global oil prices surge and the domestic economy reopens from a third wave of the pandemic, economists and analysts said.

W.M. Seneviratne sat watching a mechanised harvester slice through the jade green fields around him in eastern Sri Lanka's Agbopura village one recent morning, aware that this year's harvest would be only a fraction of what he was used to.

Telecom Italia's (TIM) new boss said all shareholders stood to benefit from his standalone plan, setting it out as an alternative to a 10.8 billion euro ($12 billion) approach from U.S.

The new boss of Telecom Italia set out the virtues of his standalone plan as an alternative to a takeover approach from KKR but shares in the company plunged on Thursday after a record loss and a gloomy forecast for this year.

The new boss of Telecom Italia set out the virtues of his standalone plan as an alternative to a takeover approach from KKR but shares in the company plunged on Thursday after a record loss and a gloomy forecast for this year.

Societe Generale can see an "extreme scenario" where Russia strips the bank of its local operations, it said on Thursday, in one of the starkest warnings yet from a Western company about the potential fallout from the war in Ukraine.

Societe Generale on Thursday warned of the possibility that Russia could strip the bank of its local operations, in one of the starkest warnings yet from a Western company about the potential impact of the war in Ukraine.

Societe Generale said it could cope if stripped of its business in Russia, saying it had more than 18 billion euros ($19.97 billion) of exposure, in one of the starkest indications yet by a global bank of the potential impact of fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Western banks.

Societe Generale warned it could be stripped of its business in Russia, where it has more than 18 billion euros ($19.97 billion) of exposure, in one of the starkest indications yet by a global bank of the potential impact of fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Western banks.

Britain will ban Russian companies from the multi-billion dollar aviation and space insurance market in London, the world's largest commercial and speciality insurance centre, the finance ministry said on Thursday.

Norway's $1.3 trillion wealth fund, the world's largest, said on Thursday it held investments in Russia worth some 27 billion crowns ($3.03 billion) at the end of 2021, equivalent to 0.2% of its total value and down from 30 billion crowns a year earlier.

The Russian assets of Norway's $1.3 trillion wealth fund, the world's largest, have become worthless following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and selling them as instructed by the government will take time, the fund's CEO said on Thursday.