Bank Indonesia (BI), Indonesia’s central bank, are increasingly worried over how some large depositors are currently holding banks “hostage” over interest rates, reported the Jakarta Post on Tuesday, with 99 percent of the country’s banks believed to be unable to lower their lending rates for businesses.
The United States produced 6 million barrels of oil per day in the first quarter of 2012, the highest production rate since 1998. According to an energy official, the US could overtake some of the world’s biggest producers in the next decade.
According to the data recently released by the United States Energy Information Administration, the 6 percent oil production growth is the primary result of increases in output in North Dakota, Texas and the Gulf of Mexico.
Europe’s woes are worse than previously believed and could have long term repercussions for the global economy. As a result, developing countries should strengthen their domestic fundamentals by re-emphasising medium-term development strategies, said the World Bank.
Despite the rebound in economic activity in the first four months of this year, the recent resurgence of tensions in the eurozone is a timely reminder that the aftershocks of the 2008/09 financial crisis have not played out fully and that volatility and uncertainty are here to stay.
Last year, EconomyWatch took a look at the world’s most expensive home: a 27-storey high building located in South Mumbai named Antilia, which was built by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani. The Antilia today is valued at close to $1 billion, highlighting the gap in wealth between the elite and the rest.
Greece will release 40 million euros ($50 million) in emergency funds to avert the possibility of rolling blackouts, told a Greek court official to Reuters on Tuesday, with the country’s top electricity producer, Public Power Corp (PPC), likely to default on payments due to foreign gas exporters.
India could be the first BRIC nation to lose its investment grade, said credit ratings agency Standards and Poor who cited disappointing growth, policy paralysis and corruption as the main risk factors.
In the report Will India be the First BRIC Fallen Angel, S&P said the Indian government’s reaction to potentially slower growth and greater vulnerability to economic shocks will largely determine whether the Asia’s third largest economy remains within the investment band, or becomes the first “fallen angel” of the BRIC nations.
The European Union will begin drafting new rules that will allow for trace amounts of unapproved genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to be present in food imports to the region, reported Reuters on Monday, in a move they claim is necessary in order to avoid disruptions in global food supply chains.
Bank of America has become the latest U.S.-based bank to commit to new environmental investments, reported Reuters on Monday, after the company announced a 10-year, $50 billion Environmental Business Initiative, which will provide loans and other financing for environmentally friendly energy projects.
Tough Western financial sanctions aimed at forcing Iran to abandon its nuclear programme have already taken its toll on Tehran’s state finances. Iran’s crude exports are down by about 600,000 barrels per day, and estimates suggest that Iran have lost more than $10 billion in oil revenues this year.
In an indication of how successful the Western blockade has been, Iran’s oil output has sunk to its lowest levels in 20 years with crude shipments expected to drop further when a European Union oil embargo takes effect on July 1.
It looks set to be an important week for meetings and events, especially for the oil industry. The OPEC meets in Vienna and releases its monthly oil market report this week, while BP publishes its annual statistical review of world energy markets.
Monday, June 11
