This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The role of the management committee of Wang Fuk Court owners’ corporation is expected to be a key focus on Friday of a hearing by an independent panel investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades, with a former chairman of the body and a construction wo...
This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. The role of the management committee of Wang Fuk Court owners’ corporation is expected to be a key focus on Friday of a hearing by an independent panel investigating Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades, with a former chairman of the body and a construction worker set to testify. In an earlier session, residents accused Tai Po district councillor Peggy Wong...
India's Central Bank Tells Oil Refiners To Stop Buying Dollars On Spot Market By Julianne Geiger of OilPrice.com India’s central bank has told state-run oil refiners to stop buying dollars in the spot market and instead use a government-backed credit line. That matters because oil is priced in dollars, and refiners are some of the biggest buyers of dollars in the country. When they all go into the...
India's Central Bank Tells Oil Refiners To Stop Buying Dollars On Spot Market By Julianne Geiger of OilPrice.com India’s central bank has told state-run oil refiners to stop buying dollars in the spot market and instead use a government-backed credit line. That matters because oil is priced in dollars, and refiners are some of the biggest buyers of dollars in the country. When they all go into the market at once to pay for crude, it puts direct pressure on the rupee. That pressure has been building for weeks. The Reserve Bank of India is now stepping in to manage the demand. State refiners, including Indian Oil Corporation, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, and Bharat Petroleum Corporation, have been asked to draw dollars through a special credit facility routed via State Bank of India. Together, these companies account for about half of India’s 5.2 million barrels per day of refining capacity. Instead of going into the open market to buy dollars on the spot—meaning immediate purchase at current exchange rates—they can either access this credit line or buy dollars at a reference rate set by the central bank—potentially adding costs to India’s oil refiners. The goal is simple: reduce visible demand for dollars in the market. India’s currency has been under pressure. The rupee has fallen more than 3% this year and hit a record low past 95 per dollar in March, driven by higher oil prices and foreign capital outflows. Oil imports are a major factor. India imports the bulk of its crude, and every cargo requires dollar payments. By centralizing those flows through SBI and shifting demand off the spot market, the RBI is trying to smooth out volatility and limit sharp moves in the currency. The measures have been in place for about two weeks. Traders say activity from oil companies in the spot market has already slowed. The move follows additional direction from India’s government in February, which asked refiners to consider buying more crude oil cargoes from the US and Ven...
Certain companies are so powerful in their niches that they can lift entire other sectors with a single initiative. That was the dynamic behind the sharp and sudden rise of quantum stocks this week, with the company that bears the name of the sector -- Quantum Computing (NASDAQ: QUBT) -- being one of the titles leading the way. According to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence , the com...
Certain companies are so powerful in their niches that they can lift entire other sectors with a single initiative. That was the dynamic behind the sharp and sudden rise of quantum stocks this week, with the company that bears the name of the sector -- Quantum Computing (NASDAQ: QUBT) -- being one of the titles leading the way. According to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence , the company's shares were defying gravity by almost 34% week to date as of early Friday morning. The monster company providing a lift to quantum computing developers was graphics processor titan Nvidia . On Tuesday, it formally rolled out a series of new artificial intelligence (AI) models known as Ising. Continue reading