CIT Announces Rescue Plan Details
CIT Group Inc. – a major provider of loans to small and medium-sized businesses – announced that the company’s board has approved a deal with a group of bondholders that will help the company stave off bankruptcy. The deal will provide $3 billion in emergency funding and allow CIT to complete a debt exchange replacing current outstanding bonds with new bonds that mature at a later date. More
Stock Market Gains Hurt Dollar
A surging stock market has increased risk appetite in the markets enticing investors to seek higher-yielding currencies at the expense of the dollar and the yen.
“The emergency loan for CIT obviously helped all risky assets, pushing up stock markets and risky currencies,†said Philipp Nimmermann, a currency strategist at BHF-Bank AG in Frankfurt. “It’s all stock-market driven.†More
Oil Rally Triggered by Better-Than-Expected Corporate Results
Oil prices rebounded in Europe this morning as a string of corporate earnings reports exceeding expectations helped lift investor optimism. Crude for August delivery rose more than a dollar by mid-day in Europe to $64.63 a barrel. More
Iceland Struggles to Save Banks
Iceland’s government is committing more than $2.1 billion to provide financial support to resurrect its banking system. In October of last year, Iceland’s three largest commercial banks collapsed owing $60bn to foreign lenders. More
