By Reuters Staff
(Adds Scholz, background)
BERLIN, March 1 (Reuters) - Germany is likely to suspend constitutionally enshrined limits on new borrowing again next year to finance more rescue and stimulus measures to help the economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, Finance Minister Olaf Scholz said on Monday.
Speaking at a news conference to present the election manifesto of his centre-left Social Democrats (SPD), Scholz said one of the main goals was to keep public investments high in infrastructure, climate protection and digitalisation.
Asked whether he was planning to suspend the so-called debt brake, which limits new borrowing to a tiny fraction of economic output, for a third year in a row in 2022, Scholz said he would present next year’s draft budget on March 24.
By Reuters Staff
1 Min Read
WASHINGTON, March 1 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund said its executive board approved a three-year, $1.79 billion Extended Fund Facility Arrangement for Costa Rica on Monday to help the tourism-dependent Central American country recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
The board’s approval allows for an immediate disbursement of about $296.5 million, the IMF said. The full IMF loan program follows emergency IMF financing of $521.7 million granted to Costa Rica in April 2020. (Reporting by David Lawder Editing by Chris Reese)
Foreigners were net sellers of Asian equities for a second consecutive month in February, hit by a jump in U.S. Treasury yields, which prompted investors to book profits in regional equities.
By Reuters Staff
2 Min Read
NEW YORK, March 1 (Reuters) - S&P Global Ratings upgraded Argentine state energy giant YPF’s credit rating to “CCC+” from “Selective Default” following its completion of a debt exchange, the ratings agency said on Monday.
S&P raised its issuer credit ratings on YPF to “CCC+” from “SD” and assigned a stable outlook “reflecting more balanced cash flow and normalizing business conditions.”
The rating is limited by Argentina’s score, though the stand-alone rating of YPF was raised to “b-,” S&P said.
The company, which leads development of the huge Vaca Muerta shale formation in the South American nation, extended debt maturities and lowered interest and principal payments through 2023.
The number of jobless people in Spain rose above 4 million for the first time in five years in February, official data showed on Tuesday, as COVID-19 restrictions ravage the ailing economy.