MACROECONOMICS
ECB Plans July Rate Increase first time in a decade as Inflation Problem Deepens. (WSJ)
- ECB said it intends to raise its key rate by a quarter percentage point at its next policy meeting in July to minus 0.25%, and increase it again in September, possibly by more than 0.25 percentage point. It said it would end its large-scale bond-buying program on July 1.
- The bank published its new staff inflation forecasts in its policy statement. They show eurozone inflation of 3.5% in 2023 and 2.1% in 2024, both above the ECB’s target rate.
CONSUMER INDUSTRY
McDonald’s Russian exit with 15-year buyback clause. (Reuters)
- After more than three decades in Russia, McDonald in May said it was selling its restaurants in Russia to one of its local licensees, which will rebrand them.
- McDonald’s Russia’s new owner Alexander Govor aims to reopen all restaurants in two months and to expand to 1,000 locations from around 850 now.
- According to Russia’s anti-monopoly service, which approved the takeover, McDonald’s retains the right to buy its Russia restaurants back within 15 years.
EV INDUSTRY
U.S. to propose standards for government funded EV charging projects. (Reuters)
- The U.S. Transportation Department (USDOT) is proposing minimum standards and requirements for electric vehicle (EV) charging projects funded under a $5 billion government program. By 2030, Biden wants 50% of all new vehicles sold to be electric or plug-in hybrid electric models and 500,000 new EV charging stations.
FINTECH
Ant IPO plans in Shanghai revival” (Reuters)
- China’s central leadership has given a tentative green light to Jack Ma’s Ant Group to revive its initial public offering in Shanghai and Hong Kong. Still needs to wait for guidance from China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) on the specific timing of the prospectus filing.
- ANT’s IPO, which was hastily shelved at the behest of Beijing in November 2020. At the time, it was slated to be valued at around $315 billion and planned to raise $37 billion, a world record.