<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-426114" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2.jpg 960w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Ingots of 99.99 percent pure gold are placed in a workroom at Krastsvetmet precious metals plant in the Siberian city of Krasnoyarsk, Russia, January 31, 2023. REUTERS/Alexander Manzyuk/File photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, July 10 (Reuters) &#8211; An increasing number of countries are repatriating gold reserves as protection against the sort of sanctions imposed by the West on Russia, according to an Invesco survey of central bank and sovereign wealth funds published on Monday.



The financial market rout last year caused widespread losses for sovereign money managers who are &#8220;fundamentally&#8221; rethinking their strategies on the belief that higher inflation and geopolitical tensions are here to stay.



Over 85% of the 85 sovereign wealth funds and 57 central banks that took part in the annual Invesco Global Sovereign Asset Management Study believe that inflation will now be higher in the coming decade than in the last.



Gold and emerging market bonds are seen as good bets in that environment, but last year&#8217;s freezing of almost half of Russia&#8217;s $640 billion of gold and forex reserves by the West in response to the invasion of Ukraine also appears to have triggered a shift.



The survey showed a &#8220;substantial share&#8221; of central banks were concerned by the precedent that had been set. Almost 60% of respondents said it had made gold more attractive, while 68% were keeping reserves at home compared to 50% in 2020.



One central bank, quoted anonymously, said: &#8220;We did have it (gold) held in London… but now we&#8217;ve transferred it back to own country to hold as a safe haven asset and to keep it safe.&#8221;



Rod Ringrow, Invesco&#8217;s head of official institutions, who oversaw the report, said that is a broadly-held view.



&#8220;&#8216;If it&#8217;s my gold then I want it in my country&#8217; (has) been the mantra we have seen in the last year or so,&#8221; he said.



DIVERSIFY



Geopolitical concerns, combined with opportunities in emerging markets, are also encouraging some central banks to diversify away from the dollar.



A growing 7% believe rising U.S. debt is also a negative for the greenback, although most still see no alternative to it as the world&#8217;s reserve currency. Those that see China&#8217;s yuan as a potential contender fell to 18%, from 29% last year.



Nearly 80% of the 142 institutions surveyed see geopolitical tensions as the biggest risk over the next decade, while 83% cited inflation as a concern over the next 12 months.



Infrastructure is now seen as the most attractive asset class, particularly those projects involving renewable energy generation.



Concerns over China mean India remains one of the most attractive countries for investment for a second year running, while the &#8220;near-shoring&#8221; trend, where companies build factories closer to where they sell their products, is boosting the likes of Mexico, Indonesia and Brazil.



As well as China, Britain and Italy are seen as less attractive, while rising interest rates coupled with work-from-home and online shopping habits which became embedded during the COVID-19 outbreak meant property is now the least attractive private asset.



Ringrow said the wealth funds that performed better last year were those that recognised the risks posed by inflated asset prices and were willing to make substantial portfolio changes. It would be the same going forward.



&#8220;The funds and the central banks are now trying to get to grips with higher inflation,&#8221; he said. &#8220;It&#8217;s a big sea change.&#8221;



(Reporting by Marc Jones; Editing by Mike Harrison)

Countries-repatriating-gold-in-wake-of-sanctions-against-Russia-study-2

Countries repatriating gold in wake of sanctions against Russia – study

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Goldman-Sachs-says-India-will-overtake-the-U.S.-to-become-the-worlds-second-largest-economy-by-2075.png" alt="" class="wp-image-426106" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Goldman-Sachs-says-India-will-overtake-the-U.S.-to-become-the-worlds-second-largest-economy-by-2075.png 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Goldman-Sachs-says-India-will-overtake-the-U.S.-to-become-the-worlds-second-largest-economy-by-2075-300x169.png 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Goldman-Sachs-says-India-will-overtake-the-U.S.-to-become-the-worlds-second-largest-economy-by-2075-160x90.png 160w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">India’s Taj Mahal At Sunrise. Wolfgang Kaehler | Lightrocket | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



India is poised to become the world’s second-largest economy by 2075, leapfrogging not just Japan and Germany, but the U.S. too, says Goldman Sachs.



Currently, India is the world’s fifth-largest economy, behind Germany, Japan, China and the U.S.



On top of a burgeoning population, driving the forecast is the country’s progress in innovation and technology, higher capital investment and rising worker productivity, the investment bank wrote in a recent report.



“Over the next two decades, the dependency ratio of India will be one of the lowest among regional economies,” said Goldman Sachs Research’s India economist, Santanu Sengupta.



A country’s dependency ratio is measured by the number of dependents against the total working-age population. A low dependency ratio indicates that there are proportionally more working age adults who are able to support the youth and elderly.



Sengupta added that the key to drawing out the potential of India’s rapidly growing population is to boost the participation of its labor force. And Sengupta forecasts that India will have one of the lowest dependency ratios among large economies for the next 20 years.



“So that really is the window for India to get it right in terms of setting up manufacturing capacity, continuing to grow services, continuing the growth of infrastructure,” he said.



India’s government has placed a priority on infrastructure creation, especially in the setting up of roads and railways. The country’s recent budget aims to continue the 50-year interest free loan programs to state governments in order to spur investments in infrastructure.



Goldman Sachs believes that this is an appropriate time for the private sector to scale up on creating capacity in manufacturing and services in order to generate more jobs and absorb the large labor force.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-tech-and-investments">Tech and investments</h2>



Spearheading India’s economic trajectory is also its progress in technology and innovation, the investment bank said.



India’s technology industry revenue is <a href="https://nasscom.in/sites/default/files/sr-2023-press-release.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">expected to increase by $245 billion</a> by the end of 2023, according to Nasscom, India’s non-governmental trade association. That growth will come from across the IT, business process management and software product streams, Nasscom’s report indicated.



<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="740" height="416" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Employees-at-work-inside-the-Realme-factory-in-Greater-Noida-India.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-426107" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Employees-at-work-inside-the-Realme-factory-in-Greater-Noida-India.jpg 740w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Employees-at-work-inside-the-Realme-factory-in-Greater-Noida-India-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Employees-at-work-inside-the-Realme-factory-in-Greater-Noida-India-160x90.jpg 160w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Employees at work inside the Realme factory in Greater Noida, India. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Additionally, Goldman predicted capital investment will be another significant driver of India’s growth.



“India’s savings rate is likely to increase with falling dependency ratios, rising incomes, and deeper financial sector development, which is likely to make the pool of capital available to drive further investment,” Goldman’s report stated.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Downside risks?</h2>



The Achilles heel to the bank’s projection is the labor force participation rate — and whether it increases at the rate which Goldman projects.



“The labor force participation rate in India has declined over the last 15 years,” the report noted, underlining that women’s participation rate in the labor force is “significantly lower” than men’s.



“A mere 20% of all working-age women in India are in employment,” the investment bank wrote in a separate report in June, citing that the low figure could be due to women being primarily engaged in piecework, which is not accounted for by the economic measures of formal employment.



Net exports have also been a drag on India’s growth, because India runs a current account deficit, Goldman said. The bank highlighted, however, that services exports have been cushioning current account balances.



India’s economy is driven by domestic demand, unlike many more export-dependent economies in the region, with up to 60% of its growth mainly attributed to domestic consumption and investments, according to Goldman’s report.



<a href="https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/mi/research-analysis/outlook-for-indias-economic-growth-and-policy-platforms.html" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">S&amp;P Global</a>&nbsp;and Morgan Stanley have also predicted that India is on course to become the third-largest economy by 2030.



India’s&nbsp;<a href="https://www.mospi.gov.in/sites/default/files/press_release/PressNoteQ4_FY2022-23_31may23.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">first-quarter GDP</a>&nbsp;expanded 6.1% year-on-year, handily beating Reuters’ expectations of 5% growth. The&nbsp;<a href="https://pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID=1928682" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">country’s full-year growth</a>&nbsp;is estimated to come in at 7.2%, compared with 9.1% growth in the 2021-2022 fiscal year.

Goldman-Sachs-says-India-will-overtake-the-U.S.-to-become-the-worlds-second-largest-economy-by-2075

Goldman Sachs says India will overtake the U.S. to become the world’s second-largest economy by 2075

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-424734" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/Investment-management.jpg 1200w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /></figure>



July 7 (Reuters) &#8211; Emerging market stocks hit a one-month low on Friday as bets of a higher U.S. rate regime lasting for longer stifled risk appetite, while Hungary&#8217;s forint dwindled ahead of an S&amp;P debt rating review and on expectations of continued rate cuts.



With the heavily-weighted Hong Kong&#8217;s Hang Seng index losing 0.9% amid a wait for substantial economic support and cues on Sino-U.S. relations, the MSCI index of emerging market (EM) stocks shed 0.7% and was on track for a third straight weekly decline.



Traders monitored developments around U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen&#8217;s visit to China, where she criticised the world&#8217;s No. 2 economy on Friday for its recent &#8220;punitive&#8221; actions against U.S. companies and new export controls on some critical minerals.



After resilient U.S. jobs data aggravated bets that the Federal Reserve has more ground to cover in monetary policy tightening, the focus has shifted to the more comprehensive U.S. non-farms payroll data during the day.



The MSCI index for EM currencies slipped 0.2%, and was on track for its steepest three-week percentage drop since late February.



The Hungarian forint lost 0.5% against the euro on expectations of continued gradual rate cuts sparked by a slowdown in headline and core inflation in June.



Traders awaited a scheduled review of the country&#8217;s debt rating by S&amp;P later in the day, with mounting risks over the 2023 budget and a threat to consumption-linked tax revenues also pressuring the forint.



&#8220;After experiencing one of the most severe inflation shocks globally in 2022 and sinking into recession, Hungary&#8217;s economy now seems to be turning a corner,&#8221; said Gareth Leather, senior emerging markets economist at Capital Economics.



&#8220;We still think that rates will need to stay firm for longer than most expect and that expectations for a strong recovery in activity are overdone.&#8221;



Hungary&#8217;s central bank began easing monetary policy in May by reducing its one-day deposit rate to 16% in June. Its base rate of 13% still remains the highest in the EU.



Traders will monitor a press conference from Poland&#8217;s central bank after it left its interest rate on hold on Thursday and reinforced expectations of rate cuts after summer, a day after the Romanian central bank kept interest rate unchanged.



The polish zloty was unchanged following a 0.4% fall the previous day.



Given the zloty&#8217;s high-beta relationship to the euro, Commerzbank analysts see the former rising towards 4.75 as inflation disappoints once again in 2024.



Meanwhile, data showed Romania&#8217;s economy grew 2.4% year-on-year in the first quarter, revising a preliminary estimate, while domestic consumption grew 6.9%. The leu was marginally down.



Further, Czech Republic&#8217;s industrial output rose by a higher-than-expected 1.4% year-on-year in May. The crown was flat.



Russia&#8217;s rouble bounced back after Thursday&#8217;s slump to a more than 15-month low with the currency under pressure from domestic political concerns and strong FX demand.



Elsewhere, Sri Lankan shares continued their upward movement, up 1% on Friday, following the island nation&#8217;s rate cut for the second month the prior day.

Investment-management

EMERGING MARKETS – Stocks touch 1-month low; Hungary’s forint falls ahead of S&P ratings review

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-426078" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen (R) shakes hands with U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns (L) on her arrival in Beijing on July 6, 2023, as Yang Yingming, Director General of the Department of International Economic Relations of China’s Ministry of Finance, looks on. Mark Schiefelbein | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Friday she is “concerned” about the export controls China announced this week.



China’s Ministry of Commerce announced Monday that starting Aug. 1, companies in China that want to export two metals used in semiconductor manufacturing would need to apply for licenses.



“I am also concerned about new export controls recently announced by China on two critical minerals used in technologies like semiconductors,” Yellen said in prepared remarks for a meeting with U.S. businesses in Beijing.



“We are still evaluating the impact of these actions, but they remind us of the importance of building resilient and diversified supply chains.”



The Biden administration has announced measures aimed at bolstering American tech capabilities and limiting China’s access to advanced tech. Those include sweeping export controls that took effect in October and restrict the ability of U.S. businesses to sell certain advanced computing semiconductors or related manufacturing equipment to China.



Yellen said that in her meetings with the Chinese government, she “made clear that actions we take to protect our national security are designed to be narrowly targeted.”



“They are premised on straightforward national security considerations and not undertaken to gain economic advantage over China.”



Beijing has so far taken relatively few actions. In May, China said U.S. chipmaker Micron had failed a security review and banned operators of critical infrastructure from buying from the company.



And this week, China’s Commerce Ministry announced its forthcoming export ban on the metals gallium and germanium. The ministry said Thursday its new rules did not target a specific country.



China has meanwhile doubled-down on efforts to attract foreign investment and engage businesses. The Commerce Ministry said Wednesday it met with 12 foreign pharmaceutical companies to understand their business challenges.



Yellen said Friday in her meeting with American businesses that she’s “been particularly troubled by punitive actions that have been taken against U.S. firms in recent months.”



Her visit to China, Yellen’s first under the Biden administration, follows U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s high-stakes trip to Beijing last month. Blinken also met with U.S. businesses in China during his trip.



Yellen, a former head of the U.S. Federal Reserve, has generally emphasized the economic importance of the U.S.-China relationship. Mainland China is the second-largest holder of U.S. Treasurys, behind Japan.



She said Friday the U.S. “does not seek” to separate its economy from China’s, and that “healthy economic competition” benefits both sides, according to her prepared remarks to businesses.



“In the economic realm, regular exchanges with our Chinese counterparts can help us monitor economic and financial risks, and it can help create the conditions for a healthy economic relationship between our two countries,” she said.

107267995-1688706745501-gettyimages-1507520005-AFP_33MV92W

Yellen says she’s ‘concerned’ about China’s new export controls in her first public remarks in Beijing

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing-820x462.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-426063" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing-820x462.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing.jpg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Emin Sansar | Anadolu Agency | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Just sixteen hours after launch, Instagram’s text-based social network Threads has already surpassed 30 million signups,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/quotes/META/">Meta</a>&nbsp;CEO Mark Zuckerberg&nbsp;<a href="https://www.threads.net/t/CuXCjGVrd6R/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">said</a>&nbsp;early Thursday. It was also the top free app in Apple’s App Store as of Thursday morning.



The app is Meta’s answer to Twitter, which has seen some of its users and advertisers flee since billionaire Elon Musk acquired the social media platform. On Saturday, Twitter&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/01/thousands-of-users-report-problems-accessing-twitter.html">began limiting</a>&nbsp;the number of posts users can read per day to address “extreme levels of data scraping,” which only served to further frustrate users.



A number of Twitter alternatives have emerged in recent months, including decentralized messaging app <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/15/how-to-use-mastodon-twitter-alternative.html">Mastodon</a> and <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/03/users-flock-to-twitter-competitor-bluesky-after-elon-musk-imposes-rate-limits.html">Bluesky</a>, which is backed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey. But neither platform has been able to match Twitter’s user base and popularity.



Threads may have an easier time attracting users. It’s built on top of Instagram and is automatically linked to a user’s account on the photo-sharing app. Initially, users could only access the service through a&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/05/how-to-sign-up-for-threads-metas-new-twitter-competitor.html">roundabout way in the Instagram app</a>. But as of Thursday, the app is available for download from Apple’s App Store, and it’s free to use.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-use-threads"><a></a>How to use Threads</h2>



Users are required to have an Instagram account in order to use Threads. Once you download the app, it will prompt you to login using your Instagram account. From there, Threads will automatically port over your Instagram username, but you can still customize your profile.



Threads gives you the option to automatically follow all of the same accounts you follow on Instagram, or just a few of them, so that you don’t have to painstakingly locate all your friends and followers on Threads.



Meta&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/05/meta-launches-instagram-threads-messaging-app-challenging-twitter.html">is pitching Threads</a>&nbsp;as Instagram’s “text-based conversation app.” And in many ways, Threads looks very similar to Twitter.



Users primarily post text-based messages, or “threads,” that are limited to 500 characters each. You can tag specific users in a thread by using the @ symbol in front of their username. Users can limit replies on their thread to only their followers, or people they’ve tagged in the post. You can also include photos or videos in a thread.



Threads appear in a scrolling feed, where users can like, reply, repost or quote other users’ threads.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>What it’s missing</h2>



Threads may look a lot like its rival, but it’s missing some critical features.



The most glaring omission is direct messaging, or DMs. One-on-one, private messaging is a hallmark of nearly every other major social media network, including Twitter and Meta’s own Instagram and Facebook. Threads didn’t launch with direct messaging, which can pose a problem for journalists, who often receive messages from potential sources, or for brands, which can offer customer service through social media messaging.



The Threads feed pulls in posts from all users, not just the ones you follow. It can be hard to find the content posted by the users or brands that you’ve followed, and as of now, there’s no way to change the way the feed loads.



Like Instagram, Threads isn’t serving up posts in a chronological order. Content is apparently algorithmically ranked and served up to users no matter what time it’s posted.



There are also no paid ads in Threads, yet. Many brands have already joined up, though. Instagram head Adam Mosseri, who oversees the new app, told&nbsp;<a href="https://www.theverge.com/2023/7/5/23784870/instagram-threads-adam-mosseri-interview-twitter-competitor" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">the Verge</a>&nbsp;that advertising would be a “champagne problem” if Threads is able to scale.



Threads also lacks the ability to include hashtags in posts. Hashtags are a core feature of Twitter, and have made it easy for users to discover posts under a certain topic, as well as surface trending content in one place. Similarly, Threads doesn’t have a feature that allows users to search for specific text or phrases.



Another key differentiator is that Threads doesn’t have a desktop website, so you can only access the service via iOS or Android apps.



There’s also one significant downside to Threads being linked to Instagram. For now, Meta&nbsp;<a href="https://help.instagram.com/515230437301944" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">says</a>&nbsp;there’s no way to delete your Threads account without also deleting your Instagram account.

Mark-Zuckerbergs-Twitter-rival-passed-30-million-signups-overnight-—-heres-how-to-use-Metas-Threads-app-and-whats-missing

Mark Zuckerberg’s Twitter rival passed 30 million signups overnight — here’s how to use Meta’s Threads app and what’s missing

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter-820x462.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-426030" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter-820x462.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter-300x169.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter.jpg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Tech titans Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk are in a fierce business rivalry that has spilt over into a playground spat, with the two men offering to fight each other in a cage. Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Meta has officially debuted its Twitter-like messaging app Threads, which the company is pitching as Instagram’s “text-based conversation app.”



Mark Zuckerberg, Meta’s CEO and co-founder, announced the debut of Threads on Wednesday, marking the official release of the social networking giant’s new text-focused messaging app. Threads represents Meta’s attempt to capture the wave of users who have left Twitter amid the often unpredictable ownership of Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.



The Threads app is now available to download for free on the Apple App Store and Google Play online store in over 100 countries, Meta said in a blog post. Threads shares Twitter’s visual aesthetic as a text-based social messaging app in which users can post short messages that others can like, share, and comment upon, according to screenshots of Threads that are available on Apple’s App Store.



People will be able to follow the same Threads accounts that they follow on Instagram and reply to other public posts in a way akin to how people use Twitter.



Zuckerberg said Threads had crossed 5 million sign ups within the first four hours.



The official release comes after Instagram released on Monday a pre-order for Threads on the Apple App Store, which said that at the time that the app was expected to debut on July 6. Many Instagram users were also recently able to obtain invitations to access Threads from within their Instagram accounts.



Although Threads is linked to Instagram, with users able to use their existing Instagram usernames, the messaging service is a separate app that people will need to download.



“Threads is where communities come together to discuss everything from the topics you care about today to what’ll be trending tomorrow,” Instagram said in a description of Threads on the Apple App Store. “Whatever it is you’re interested in, you can follow and connect directly with your favorite creators and others who love the same things — or build a loyal following of your own to share your ideas, opinions and creativity with the world.”



Meta said in the blog post that people’s individual feeds on the new messaging app will include “threads” that were posted by other users that they follow, in addition to recommended content shared from creators who users may not know.



People will be able to publish Threads posts that are up to 500 characters long, and while the app is geared toward text, people will also be able so share links, photos and videos that can be as long as 5 minutes. Instagram users will also be able to share their Threads posts via the app’s story feature in addition to “any other platform you choose,” the blog post said.



Meta said that it developed Threads “with tools to enable positive, productive conversations,” and people will be able to manage who is mentioning or is replying to them within the app.



“Like on Instagram, you can add hidden words to filter out replies to your threads that contain specific words,” the blog post said. “You can unfollow, block, restrict or report a profile on Threads by tapping the three-dot menu, and any accounts you’ve blocked on Instagram will automatically be blocked on Threads.”



Racing into the gap as Twitter implodes



The release of Threads comes as Twitter has suffered a wave of mishaps under the ownership of Tesla CEO Elon Musk, leaving the popular social messaging app vulnerable to competing apps.



Most recently, Musk said that Twitter users will only be able to see a certain number of Tweets per day in an attempt to deal with “extreme levels of data scraping” and “system manipulation” on the messaging service.



Numerous Twitter users publicly complained about Musk imposing a temporary so-called “rate limit” on Twitter, saying that the Tweet limits make the app a less engaging experience.



BlueSky, a rival social messaging app that is backed by Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey, said that it recorded “record-high traffic” after Musk announced the Twitter rate limit, and it temporarily paused sign-ups to deal with the influx of new users, who must currently be invited to use the app.



Like BlueSky, Threads will use decentralized technology that theoretically lets users control and manage their data across other apps that incorporate the same underlying software.



Whereas BlueSky is built on the decentralized networking technology dubbed the AT Protocol, Threads will eventually incorporate another decentralized technology called ActivityPub, Instagram head Adam Mosseri said in a Threads post on Wednesday that was briefly available to the public. The ActivityPub software also powers another Twitter-like messaging app called Mastadon, which has also experienced an influx of new users seeking an alternative to Twitter.



Mosseri said that his team wasn’t able to include support for ActivityPub in time for Threads’ official release because of “a number of complications that come along with a decentralized network.” But he reiterated that support is coming.



“If you’re wondering why this matters, here’s a reason: you may one day end up leaving Threads, or, hopefully not, end up de-platformed,” Mosseri said. “If that ever happens, you should be able to take your audience with you to another server. Being open can enable that.”



Meta added in its blog post that ActivityPub will enable people without Threads accounts to view Threads and interact with Threads users who have public profiles via other social apps that incorporate the same decentralized technology.



“If you have a public profile on Threads, this means your posts would be accessible from other apps, allowing you to reach new people with no added effort,” Meta said in the blog post. “If you have a private profile, you’d be able to approve users on Threads who want to follow you and interact with your content, similar to your experience on Instagram.”



Meta said that Threads is the company’s first app “envisioned to be compatible with an open social networking protocol,” which it believes could usher “in a new era of diverse and interconnected networks.”



In 2019, Meta, then known as Facebook, debuted a messaging app for Instagram users that was also called Threads. Unlike the current iteration of Threads that caters to text-based messages, the previous Threads app was instead centered around people sending short video and photo messages to their friends like they were using Snapchat.



Meta eventually shuttered Threads in 2021, and redirected people to use Instagram to see all their previous Threads messages.

Meta-launches-Instagram-Threads-in-a-direct-challenge-to-Twitter

Meta launches Instagram Threads in a direct challenge to Twitter

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-820x547.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425995" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-820x547.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-135x90.jpeg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD-scaled.jpeg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Saudi Minister of Energy Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman al-Saud speaks during a panel discussion at the 10th Arab-China Business Conference in Riyadh, on June 11, 2023. Fayez Nureldine | Afp | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



The latest round of voluntary crude oil output cuts evidence the cooperation between heavyweight producers and allies Russia and Saudi Arabia, the kingdom’s Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said on Wednesday.



On Monday, Saudi Arabia said it would extend the 1-million-barrel-per-day production cut it had initially flagged for July into August, while Russia announced a 500,000 barrel-per-day decline in exports next month.



This adds to the just over 1.66 million-barrels-per-day of voluntary drops that some members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies — known as OPEC+ — had first declared in April, then agreed to stretch until the end of 2024 during the coalition’s ministerial meeting of June.



Unlike alliance-wide OPEC+ policy decisions, voluntary production declines do not require unanimous approval and need not be implemented by all group members.



Addressing the latest Riyadh-Moscow drops agreed for August at an OPEC+ seminar in Vienna Wednesday, Prince Abdulaziz said: “In the last move this week, yes, we are all continuing with our voluntary cut, but again, part of what we have had done with our colleagues from Russia was also to mitigate the cynical side of spectators about what was going on with Saudi Arabia and Russia.”



Some questions had surfaced over the extent to which Russia will be honoring its voluntary crude production decline pledges, given ongoing opacity over its refinery consumption and seaborne exports — which are no longer accepted in Europe since December and have been rerouted to Asia. The Russian administration has suspended publishing official statistics for oil, natural gas and gas condensate production until April 2024, according to Russian state news agency Tass.



Implementing a cut on exports, rather than on output, will allow market participants who rely on independent third-party tracking data to verify the extent to which Russia stands by its commitments.



“It was a voluntary cut that was not imposed on them … including delivering, that they will do it from their exports, because it is more meaningful,” Abdulaziz said Wednesday.



In a previous June interview with CNBC’s Dan Murphy, the Saudi energy minister had said that OPEC+ can “absolutely” trust Russia.



“But I always like [the] President [Ronald] Reagan line, ‘Trust but verify,’” he said at the time, stressing the instrumental role of independent sources in assessing production. The OPEC+ group takes guidance from seven independent so-called secondary sources, when investigating the compliance of individual country members with their output commitments.



An OPEC+ delegate, who could only speak on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the discussions, told CNBC that OPEC+ relations between Moscow and Riyadh appeared good.



Brent prices have so far lingered just above the $75 per barrel threshold, drawing scant support from the voluntary decline announcements, amid a broader focus on demand and macroeconomic concerns over a potential global recession. Brent futures with September expiry were trading at $76.06 per barrel at 12:57 p.m. Vienna time, down 19 cents per barrel from the previous settlement price.



Abdulaziz stressed the producers’ alliance will continue to closely support the market.



“I will tweak what [former European Central Bank President Mario] Draghi was saying, we will do whatever is necessary. Not whatever it takes, whatever is necessary,” he said Wednesday.

107254748-1686530516805-gettyimages-1258607049-AFP_33J46HD

Saudi energy minister says latest Riyadh-Moscow oil cuts showed unity with Russia

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership-820x547.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425963" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership-820x547.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership-135x90.jpeg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership.jpeg 1905w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Chinese President Xi Jinping waves after his speech as the new Politburo Standing Committee members meet the media following the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China October 23, 2022. Tingshu Wang | Reuters</figcaption></figure>



BEIJING — Chinese President Xi Jinping said Tuesday that Beijing opposes “decoupling and breaking links,” according to a CNBC translation of a Chinese-language state media readout.



Promoting economic growth is the shared responsibility of countries in the region, Xi said, per the report of his remarks at a virtual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization.



The SCO is a political, security and trade alliance whose members are China, India, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. The group also has “observer states” and “dialogue partners,” which Saudi Arabia was promoted to in March.



China is willing to work with all parties to implement the Global Development Initiative, and make the “cake” bigger so that people in different countries can benefit, the state media report of Xi’s remarks said. Xi proposed the Global Development Initiative to the United Nations in 2021. It claims to include efforts to support U.N. goals for sustainable development.



The country opposes protectionism, unilateral sanctions and generalizing the concept of national security, the report also said Tuesday.



Xi’s remarks come ahead of U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen’s scheduled visit to China this coming Thursday to Sunday. Yellen’s visit follows U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s high-stakes trip to Beijing last month.



Tensions between the U.S. and China, the world’s two largest economies, have escalated in recent years. Recent measures by both governments have centered on technology.



China’s Ministry of Commerce said late Monday it is restricting the exports of two metals used for semiconductor manufacturing.



The U.S. announced export controls in October that sought to limit China’s development of advanced semiconductors.

107140189-16667014702022-10-23t070716z_5164924_rc2s6x9f6dpf_rtrmadp_0_china-congress-leadership

China’s Xi says countries share responsibility to promote growth, opposes decoupling

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="546" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-820x546.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-425955" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-820x546.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-768x511.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Central-bank-surprises-see-June-become-bumper-2023-rate-hike-month-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: People walk outside the Bank of England in the City of London financial district in London, Britain May 11, 2023. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, July 4 (Reuters) &#8211; The world&#8217;s major central banks delivered in June the biggest number of monthly interest rate hikes year-to-date, surprising markets and flagging more tightening ahead as policy makers grapple to get the upper hand in their battle against inflation.



Seven of the nine central banks overseeing the 10 most heavily traded currencies that met in June hiked rates, while two opted for no change, Reuters data showed.



Both Norway and the Bank of England surprised markets last month with a larger-than-expected 50 basis points move, while Canada and Australia resumed their rate hiking cycles. Sweden, Switzerland and the European Central Bank also tightened policy, taking the total monthly tally of hikes to 225 basis points last month. May had seen six rate hikes across six meetings.



&#8220;While some central banks are seeing initial progress toward lower inflation, central bankers overall continue to face a tough balancing act,&#8221; said Tiffany Wilding, economist at PIMCO.



&#8220;Without fiscal policy ready to save the day, we see a more uncertain growth environment with downside risks building over the cyclical horizon.&#8221;



The latest G10 moves bring the total 2023 rate hike tally among G10 central banks to 950 bps across 28 hikes. Looking at moves since Norway kicked off the rate hiking cycle in September 2021, major central banks have hiked interest rates so far by 3,765 bps.



While the U.S. Federal Reserve&#8217;s pause at its June meeting did not come as a surprise, the hawkish outlook from the world&#8217;s top central bank sent tremors through markets.



&#8220;We believe central banks have more work to do,&#8221; said Vanguard analysts in their mid-year outlook. &#8220;The last leg of inflation reduction to central bank targets may be the most challenging, in our view.&#8221;



Across emerging markets there was more evidence that the tightening cycle was running out of steam.



Thirteen out of 18 central banks in the Reuters sample of developing economies had interest rate setting meetings last month. However, 11 central banks opted to keep policy unchanged.



Having been a stark outlier in the emerging market tightening cycle that kicked off in spring 2021, Turkey&#8217;s central bank under new governor Hafize Gaye Erkan played catch up with a 650 bps rate hike, signalling a return to more orthodox policy making. This was the second biggest rate hike in recent times since Russia was forced to deliver an emergency 1,050 bps rate hike following its invasion of Ukraine. Meanwhile, China&#8217;s central bank eased interest rates by 10 bps.



The total rate hike tally for the year across emerging markets is 1,375 bps through 22 hikes &#8211; less than a fifth of the 7,425 bps of tightening delivered in 2022. The total amount of cuts is 60 bps across two moves.



(Reporting by Karin Strohecker and Vincent Flasseur, Editing by William Maclean)

FILE PHOTO: Bank of England poised to raise interest rates to tackle inflation

Central bank surprises see June become bumper 2023 rate hike month

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="522" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-820x522.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-425601" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-820x522.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-300x191.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-141x90.jpg 141w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-768x489.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-1536x978.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/TVOTPOX2NFJWJPHV5MIHYHZL5Y-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">A man crosses Westminster Bridge as the Houses of Parliament are partially illuminated in purple to commemorate Holocaust Memorial Day, London, Britain, January 27, 2022. REUTERS/Toby Melville/FILE PHOTO</figcaption></figure>



LONDON, June 21 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Britain&#8217;s public sector net debt surpassed 100% of gross domestic product in May as borrowing came in higher than expected, the Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday.



Public sector net debt, excluding that of state-controlled banks, hit 2.567 trillion pounds ($3.28 trillion), equivalent to 100.1% of gross domestic product.



That represented the first time that debt stood above 100% of GDP since 1961 although it was temporarily recorded as passing that threshold during the COVID-19 pandemic before being revised lower.



The ONS said government borrowing in May stood at 20.045 billion pounds. A Reuters poll of economists had pointed to public sector net borrowing, excluding state-owned banks, of 19.5 billion pounds.



($1 = 0.7819 pounds)



(Reporting by William Schomberg; editing by David Milliken)

Landmark buildings lit purple to mark Holocaust Memorial Day, in United Kingdom

UK net debt passes 100% of GDP for first time since 1961

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425576" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Dollar, yuan, yen and euro notes. Ullstein Bild Dtl. | Ullstein Bild | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



From hawkish pauses to rate hikes and dovish tones, the world’s biggest central banks last week struck very different tones on monetary policy.



The European Central Bank on Thursday hiked rates and surprised markets with a worsening inflation outlook, which led investors to price in even more rate increases in the euro zone.



This followed a Federal Reserve meeting where the central bank decided to pause rate hikes. Just days before that, China’s central bank lowered its key medium-term lending rates to stimulate the economy. In Japan, where inflation is above target, the central bank has left its ultra-loose policy unchanged.



“Taking all these different approaches together shows that not only seems there to be a new divergence on the right approach for monetary policy but it also illustrates that the global economy is no longer synchronized but rather a collection of very different cycles,” Carsten Brzeski, global head of macro at ING Germany, told CNBC via email.



In Europe, inflation has come down in the bloc which uses the euro but remains well above the ECB target. This is also the case in the U.K., where the Bank of England is expected to raise rates Thursday after very strong labor data.



The Fed, which started its hiking cycle before the ECB, decided to take a break in June — but said there would be another two rate increases later this year, meaning its hiking cycle is not yet complete.



The picture is different in Asia, however. China’s economic recovery is stalling, with falls in both domestic and external demand leading policymakers to step up support measures in an effort to revive activity.



In Japan — which has battled a deflationary&nbsp;environment for many years — the central bank said it expects inflation to come down later this year and opted not to normalize policy yet.



“Each central bank [tries] to solve for its own economy, which obviously includes considerations for changes in financial conditions imposed from abroad,” Erik Nielsen, group chief economics advisor at UniCredit said via email.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-market-impact"><a></a>Market impact</h2>



The euro rose to a 15-year high against the Japanese yen on Friday, according to Reuters, off the back of the divergent monetary policy decisions. The euro also broke above the $1.09 threshold as investors digested the ECB’s hawkish tone last Thursday.



In bond markets, the yield on the German 2-year bond hit a fresh 3-month higher Friday, given expectations that the ECB will continue with its approach in the short term.



“Makes sense we start seeing this divergence. In the past, it was clear there was a lot of room to cover for pretty much all the major central banks, while now, given the different stages the jurisdictions are in the cycle, there will be more nuanced decisions to be made,” Konstantin Veit, portfolio manager at PIMCO, told CNBC’s Street Signs Europe on Friday.



“This indeed will create opportunities for the investors.”



ECB President Christine Lagarde was asked during a press conference to compare her team’s decision to increase rates, versus the Federal Reserve’s decision to pause.



“We are not thinking about pausing,” she said. “Are we done? Have we finished the journey? No, we are not at [the] destination,” she said, pointing to at least another potential rate hike in July.



For some economists, it is only a matter of time before the ECB finds itself in a similar position to that of the Fed.



“The Fed is leading the ECB [as] the U.S. economy is leading the eurozone economy by a few quarters. This means that, at the latest after the September meeting, the ECB will also be confronted with the debate on whether or not to pause,” Brzeski said.

107258817-1687154306568-gettyimages-883202480-14339170

Rate cuts, hikes and pauses: The world’s central banks just made very different decisions

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-820x547.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425484" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-820x547.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-135x90.jpeg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR-scaled.jpeg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: via CNBC</figcaption></figure>



WASHINGTON &#8212; &nbsp;The Federal Reserve on Wednesday decided against what would have been an 11th consecutive interest rate increase as it measures what the impacts have been from the previous 10.



But the decision by the Federal Open Market Committee to hold off on a hike at this two-day meeting came with a projection that another two quarter percentage point moves are on the way before the end of the year.



“We have raised our policy interest rate by five percentage points, and we’ve continued to reduce our security holdings at a brisk pace. We’ve covered a lot of ground and the full effects of our tightening have yet to be felt,” said Fed Chair Jerome Powell at a news conference following the central bank decision.



The possibility of further rate increases put pressure on stocks immediately after the news broke, but encouraging talk on the fight against inflation allowed the market to rebound briefly.



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-a-hawkish-pause"><a></a>A ‘hawkish pause’</h2>



The central bankers said they will take another six weeks to see the impacts of policy moves as the Fed fights an inflation battle that lately has shown some promising if uneven signs. The decision left the Fed’s key borrowing rate in a target range of 5%-5.25%. “Holding the target range steady at this meeting allows the Committee to assess additional information and its implications for monetary policy,” the post-meeting statement said. The Fed next meets July 25-26.



Markets had widely been anticipating the Fed to “skip” this meeting – officials generally prefer the term to a “pause,” which implies a longer-range plan to keep rates where they are. The expectation leaned heavily against an increase after policymakers, particularly Powell and Vice Chair Philip Jefferson, had indicated that some change in approach could be in order. The surprising aspect of the decision came with the “dot plot” in which the individual members of the FOMC indicate their expectations for rates further out. The dots moved decidedly upward, pushing the median expectation to a funds rate of 5.6% by the end of 2023. Assuming the committee moves in quarter-point increments, that would imply two more hikes over the remaining four meetings this year. Bank of America said in a note after the meeting that it expects the Fed to move in July and September.



During the press conference, Powell said the FOMC hadn’t yet made a decision about whether another increase would be likely in July.



“People expected a hawkish pause and they got a very hawkish pause,” said David Russell, vice president of market intelligence at TradeStation. “Given the strong labor market, the Fed has room to crush inflation and they don’t want to miss their chance.”



“Still, policymakers skipped hiking rates so they can monitor the data,” he continuned. “This increases the importance of each incremental economic report. More good news like this week’s CPI and PPI could let traders look past the Fed’s tough talk and see a dovish turn later in the year. Jerome Powell is still a barking dog, but he may be losing his bite.”



<h2 class="wp-block-heading"><a></a>Opinions vary on future hikes</h2>



FOMC members approved Wednesday’s move unanimously, though there remained considerable disagreement among members. Two members indicated they don’t see hikes this year while four saw one increase and nine, or half the committee, expect two. Two more members added a third hike while one saw four more, again assuming quarter-point moves. Members also moved up their forecasts for future years, now anticipating a fed funds rate of 4.6% in 2024 and 3.4% in 2025. That’s up from respective forecasts of 4.3% and 3.1% in March, when the Summary of Economic Projections was last updated. The future-year readings, though, do imply the Fed will start cutting rates – by a full percentage point in 2024, if this year’s outlook holds. The long-run expectation for the fed funds rate held at 2.5%. Those changes to the rate outlook occurred as members raised their expectations for economic growth for 2023, now anticipating a 1% gain in GDP as compared to the 0.4% estimate in March. Officials also were more optimistic about unemployment this year, now seeing a 4.1% rate by year’s end compared with 4.5% in March’s prediction. On inflation, they raised their collective projection to 3.9% for core (excluding food and energy) and lowered it slightly to 3.2% for headline. Those numbers had been 3.6% and 3.3% respectively for the personal consumption expenditures price index, the central bank’s preferred inflation gauge. The outlooks for subsequent years in GDP, unemployment and inflation were little changed. Fed officials believe that policy moves work with “long and variable lags,” meaning it takes time for rate hikes to work their way through the economy. The Fed began raising rates in March 2022, about a year after inflation started a dramatic climb to its highest level in some 41 years. Those rate hikes have amounted to 5 percentage points on the Fed’s benchmark to a level not seen since 2007. The increases have helped push 30-year mortgage rates over 7% and also spiked borrowing costs for other consumer items such as auto loans and credit cards. Recent data points such as the consumer and producer price indexes have shown the rate of inflation slowing, though consumers still face high costs for many items. The FOMC statement continued to note that “inflation remains elevated.“ Inflation hit the U.S. economy due to multiple Covid pandemic-related factors – clogged supply chains, unusually strong demand for high-priced goods over services, and trillions in stimulus from both Congress and the Fed that had an abundance of money chasing a dearth of goods. At the same, the supply-demand mismatches in the labor market had pushed both wages and prices higher, a situation the Fed has sought to correct through policy tightening that has included both rate increases and a reduction of more than half a trillion dollars from the assets it holds on its balance sheet.



—CNBC’s Sarah Min contributed to this report.

107235096-1683140309448-gettyimages-1252572424-AFP_33ED2AR

Fed holds off on rate hike, but says two more are coming later this year

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-820x547.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425451" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-820x547.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-300x200.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-135x90.jpeg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-768x512.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-1536x1024.jpeg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj-scaled.jpeg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo via CNBC</figcaption></figure>



The inflation rate cooled in May to its lowest annual rate in more than two years, likely taking pressure off the Federal Reserve to continue raising interest rates, the Labor Department reported Tuesday.



The consumer price index, which measures changes in a multitude of goods and services, increased just 0.1% for the month, bringing the annual level down to 4% from 4.9% in April. That 12-month increase was the smallest since March 2021, when inflation was just beginning to rise to what would become the highest in 41 years.



Excluding volatile food and energy prices, the picture wasn’t as optimistic.



So-called core inflation rose 0.4% on the month and was still up 5.3% from a year ago, indicating that while price pressures have eased somewhat, consumers are still under fire.



All of those numbers were exactly in line with the Dow Jones consensus estimates.



A 3.6% slide in energy prices helped keep the CPI gain in check for the month. Food prices rose just 0.2%.



However, a 0.6% increase in shelter prices was the biggest contributor to the increase for the all-items, or headline, CPI reading. Housing-related costs make up about one-third of the index’s weighting.



Elsewhere, used vehicle prices increased 4.4%, the same as in April, while transportation services were up 0.8%.



Markets showed little reaction to the release, despite its expected prominence in the decision the Federal Reserve will make at this week’s meeting regarding interest rates. Stock market futures were slightly positive, though Treasury yields fell sharply.



Pricing did shift notably in the fed funds market, with traders pricing in a 93% chance the Fed will not raise benchmark rates when its meeting concludes Wednesday.



“The encouraging trend in consumer prices will provide the Fed some leeway to keep rates unchanged this month and if the trend continues, the Fed will not likely hike for the rest of the year,” said Jeffrey Roach, chief economist at LPL Financial.



The tame CPI reading was good news for workers. Average hourly earnings adjusted for inflation rose 0.3% on the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said in a separate release. On an annual basis, real earnings are up 0.2% after running negative for much of the inflation surge that began about two years ago.



The consumer price index report featured a growing discrepancy between the core and headline numbers. The all-items index usually runs ahead of the ex-food and energy measure, but that hasn’t been the case lately.



The year-over-year discrepancy between the two measures stems from gas prices that were surging at this time in 2022. Ultimately, prices at the pump would exceed $5 a gallon, which had never happened before in the U.S. Gasoline prices have fallen 19.7% over the past year, Tuesday’s BLS report showed.



Food prices, however, were still up 6.7% from a year ago, though eggs fell 13.8% in May and are now slightly negative on a 12-month basis after surging in previous months. Shelter prices have risen 8% and transportation services are up 10.2%. Airline fares also have been in retreat, declining 13.4% year over year.

107255342-1686604821177-gettyimages-1497959122-0f5a9922_bmfn0dbj

Inflation rose at a 4% annual rate in May, the lowest in 2 years

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="547" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-820x547.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-425350" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-820x547.jpg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-300x200.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-135x90.jpg 135w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/EU-ministers-seal-historic-migration-deal-scaled.jpg 2048w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">FILE PHOTO: A member of the Red Cross assists a migrant after disembarking from a Spanish coast guard vessel, at the port of Arguineguin, in the island of Gran Canaria, Spain, May 30, 2023. REUTERS/Borja Suarez</figcaption></figure>



BRUSSELS, June 8 (Reuters) &#8211; European Union ministers agreed on Thursday on how to share out the responsibility for looking after migrants and refugees, after 12 hours of negotiations got Italy and Greece to sign up to a deal that has eluded the bloc for nearly a decade.



Home affairs ministers from the 27-member bloc sealed the deal, hoping to end years of division dating back to 2015 when more than a million people &#8211; mostly fleeing war in Syria &#8211; reached the EU across the Mediterranean.



Germany&#8217;s Nancy Faeser hailed the agreement as &#8220;historic&#8221;. The bloc&#8217;s top migration official said it amounted to &#8220;a win-win&#8221; situation for all EU member states.



&#8220;This is a great, great achievement, showing that it&#8217;s possible to work together on migration. We are so much stronger when we work together,&#8221; home affairs commissioner Ylva Johansson said.



Hosting immigrants has become an increasingly divisive issue in the bloc since 2015.



Unable to agree how to share the responsibility, EU countries mostly focused on bringing down arrivals, with U.N. data showing fewer than 160,000 people made it across the sea last year to the bloc of half a billion people.



Nearly 2,500 people died or went missing in the dangerous crossing over the same period.



Countries on the EU&#8217;s southern edge, including Italy and Greece, have long demanded more help to cope with the numbers of people arriving on their shores. Richer countries, including Germany and Sweden, have balked at how many head on to their soil.



Eastern EU countries such as Poland and Hungary refused to host anyone from the mainly-Muslim Middle East and North Africa, while right-wing and populist parties across the bloc have fuelled the debate with anti-immigration rhetoric.



&#8220;You can still win and lose any election in any member state on migration. It is an illustration of how contentious this issue is,&#8221; said an EU diplomat involved in the negotiations.



DEAL



As the ministers talked, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, her Dutch peer Mark Rutte and the head of EU executive announced a visit to Tunisia to discuss economic and energy ties with the country, a gateway for African migration to Europe.



Earlier on Thursday, Italy and Greece demanded last-minute changes to the proposed agreement, pushing for a cut in the number of people each state would take on and laxer rules to send people back to countries outside of the EU.



Under the deal that eventually came together and is to be finalised ahead of a 2024 EU election, each country would be responsible for a set number of people, but would not necessarily have to take them in.



Countries unwilling to receive irregular migrants and refugees arriving ad hoc to the EU would be able to help their hosting peers through cash &#8211; around 20,000 euros per person &#8211; equipment or personnel.



The agreement would introduce a new expedited border procedure for those deemed unlikely to win asylum to prevent them from lingering inside the bloc for years.



Poland and Hungary &#8211; among the EU&#8217;s loudest voices against accepting sea immigrants &#8211; opposed the deal, saying the bloc&#8217;s national leaders should return to the matter when they meet later in June. That, however, did not scupper the majority deal.



Liberal critics of the agreement said the rapid border procedure risked reviving tragic scenes that played out on the Greek islands several years ago by creating even more overcrowded and inadequate migration camps on EU periphery. (Additional reporting by Benoit van Overstraeten, Bart Meijer, Alexander Ratz, Kristina Than; Writing by Gabriela Baczynska; Editing by Mark Potter and Andrew Heavens)

FILE PHOTO: A member of the Red Cross assists a migrant after disembarking from a Spanish coast guard vessel, at the port of Arguineguin

EU ministers seal ‘historic’ migration deal

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425343" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">President Joe Biden and Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Rishi Sunak arrive for a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House on June 08, 2023 in Washington, DC. Kevin Dietsch | Getty Images News | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Despite a U.S.-U.K. trade deal remaining very much elusive, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and President Joe Biden signed a new “Atlantic Declaration” aiming to bolster economic security in the face of threats coming from Russia and China.



The agreement, announced Thursday at a joint press conference in the East Room of the White House, is a series of mini deals looking artificial intelligence, critical minerals, clean energy and security.



Sunak, coming to the end of his U.S. trip this week, lauded the deal as a “new economic partnership for a new age, of a kind that has never been agreed before.” He highlighted £14 billion ($17.5 billion) of new U.S. investment that has been committed into the U.K., with the two sides also undertaking joint research in areas like quantum, semiconductors and AI.



A document outlining the deal on the U.K. government website said that Britain and the U.S. would start talks on an agreement that would allow electric vehicle minerals mined in the U.K. to receive the tax benefits under Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act. The same document said Biden would ask Congress to label Britain as a “domestic source” within the U.S. Defense Production Act, giving suppliers in the country more favorable terms.



“We face new challenges to international stability — from authoritarian states such as Russia and the People’s Republic of China (PRC); disruptive technologies; non-state actors; and transnational challenges like climate change,” the document read.



Sunak, still fairly new in the role after being installed following the market turmoil of his predecessor Liz Truss, was quizzed on a possible U.K.-U.S. trade deal that was promised to his Conservative Party under Donald Trump’s tenure.



Britain left the European Union on Jan. 31, 2020, and a recent cost-of-living crisis in Britain as well as current opinion polls suggest that public sentiment has turned against Brexit amid a cost of living crisis accentuated by supply chain issues.



“I know some people have wondered what kind of partner Britain would be after we left the EU,” Sunak said Thursday. “I’d say: judge us by our actions. We’re as committed to our values as ever, as reliable an ally as ever, as attractive an investment destination as ever.”

107253873-1686269612716-gettyimages-1497002008-kd_29327_flbbuz6s

Biden and UK’s Sunak sign ‘Atlantic Declaration,’ pledging agreements on A.I. and critical minerals

<figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="820" height="462" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF-820x462.jpeg" alt="" class="wp-image-425316" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF-820x462.jpeg 820w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF-300x169.jpeg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF-160x90.jpeg 160w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF-768x432.jpeg 768w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF.jpeg 929w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 820px) 100vw, 820px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet, speaks during an event in New Delhi, December 19, 2022. Sajjad Hussain | AFP | Getty Images</figcaption></figure>



Google plans to crack down on employees who haven’t been coming into its offices consistently, CNBC has found.



The company updated its hybrid work policy Wednesday and it includes tracking office badge attendance, confronting workers who aren’t coming in when they’re supposed to and including the attendance in employees’ performance reviews, according to internal memos viewed by CNBC. Most employees are expected in physical offices at least three days a week.



Google’s chief people officer Fiona Cicconi wrote an email to employees at the end of the day on Wednesday, which included doubling down on office attendance, reasoning that “there’s just no substitute for coming together in person.”



“Of course, not everyone believes in ‘magical hallway conversations,’ but there’s no question that working together in the same room makes a positive difference,” Cicconi’s email read. “Many of the products we unveiled at I/O and Google Marketing Live last month were conceived, developed and built by teams working side by side.”



Her note said the company will start including their three days per week as a part of their performance reviews and teams will start sending reminders to workers “who are consistently absent from the office.”



Cicconi even asked already-approved remote workers to reconsider. “For those who are remote and who live near a Google office, we hope you’ll consider switching to a hybrid work schedule. Our offices are where you’ll be most connected to Google’s community.”



A separate internal document showed that already-approved remote workers may be subject to re-evaluation if the company determines “material changes in business need, role, team, structure or location.”



In the U.S., the company will periodically track whether employees are adhering to the office attendance using badge data and executives are currently reviewing local requirements to implement in other countries, one of the documents states. If workers don’t follow the policy after an extended period of time, HR will reach out about “next steps.”



Going forward, Cicconi said, new fully remote work will only be granted “by exception only.”



Google did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.



These policy updates represent the company’s most stringent attempt to bring employees back into physical offices.



In 2021, after facing backlash for returning to offices, the company relaxed remote work plans and said it expected to let 20% of employees telecommute. However, most employees have been expected in physical offices at least three days a week as of April 2022 and at the time, the company tried to woo workers by throwing a private Lizzo concert, hiring marching bands and bringing in city mayors to celebrate the returns.



In April, CNBC reported Google dropped its Covid vaccine requirement to enter buildings.



The crackdown comes as the company is in the middle of an AI arms race by which the company has at times called all hands on deck to rapidly position itself against rivals like Microsoft and its backed ChatGPT, whose success has grown in recent months. The company has also made more attempts in recent weeks to crack down on leaks coming from within the company.



However, the crackdown also comes as the company downsizes its real estate footprint amid broader cost-cutting. In April, CNBC first reported the company’s cloud unit in March told employees that it will transition to a desk-sharing workspace in its five largest locations. CNBC also reported the company indefinitely paused construction on its massive San Jose campus.

107183744-1674657315783-gettyimages-1245722337-AFP_334U4DF

Google to crack down on office attendance, asks remote workers to reconsider

<figure class="wp-block-image size-full"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" width="800" height="559" src="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/download-66.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-425261" srcset="https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/download-66.jpg 800w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/download-66-300x210.jpg 300w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/download-66-129x90.jpg 129w, https://cms.cnbcafrica.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/06/download-66-768x537.jpg 768w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Workers from Mondi paper mill stand behind a fence in the town of Stamboliyski, Bulgaria. File photo. REUTERS/Stoyan Nenov</figcaption></figure>



June 5 (Reuters)&nbsp;&#8211;&nbsp;Must saMondi Plc&nbsp;MNDI.L&nbsp;on Monday said it terminated a 95 billion rouble ($1.17 billion) deal to sell its largest plant in Russia to an investment vehicle owned by Russian billionaire Viktor Kharitonin due to a &#8220;lack of progress&#8221; in getting approvals.



London-listed shares in Mondi, a British paper and packaging firm, were down 1.6% at 1,270 pence by 1200 GMT.



This marks a rare example of a company scrapping a deal to sell assets in Russia, where the Kremlin has put pressure on Western companies to sell to local investors or companies from countries friendly to Russia.



The company had agreed to sell Mondi Syktyvkar, a pulp, packaging paper and uncoated fine paper mill located in the capital of the Komi Republic in Russia, to Augment Investments in August last year.



While the deal with Augment Investments was off, Mondi said it &#8220;remained committed to divest the plant and will continue to assess all alternative divestment options.&#8221;



Many companies suspended or halted operations in Russia last year as Western governments imposed sanctions following Moscow&#8217;s invasion of Ukraine.



Some managed to negotiate swift exits, often selling at huge discounts or handing the keys to local management.



The pace of exits has now slowed substantially but the rules are even harder to navigate for those remaining.



The government in December demanded that companies leaving Russia sell their operations for at least half price and claimed 10% of the sale for the federal budget, termed an &#8220;exit tax&#8221; by the U.S. Treasury.



It also seized assets owned by Finland&#8217;s Fortum FORTUM.HE and Germany&#8217;s Uniper UN01.DE in April.



Executives have said gaining government commission approval is a lengthy and difficult process.



Separately, Mondi had agreed to sell three of its Russian packaging converting operations to Moscow-based Gotek Group for 1.6 billion roubles in December.



That deal remains in progress, the firm said.



Augment and Kharitonin, who has not been sanctioned, could not be immediately reached for comment.



($1 = 81.3975 roubles)



(Reporting by Eva Mathews in Bengaluru; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee, Sharon Singleton and Louise Heavens)

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International

Countries repatriating gold in wake of sanctions against Russia – study

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UK’s Mondi scraps $1.17 bln deal to sell largest Russian plant

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