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A threat to the US economy biggest: experts name unexpected factor

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a threat to the u s economy are important

The conflict between China and Taiwan is a threat to the U.S. economy largest and can deal a blow to the U.S. economy due to the U.S. dependence on the main supplier of microchips on the island and the high rate of development of semiconductor manufacturers in China, experts say.

Washington’s current policy on the island carries significant risks if the situation develops into an armed conflict, and affects semiconductor production in Taiwan, supplied to the American market. The island’s high-tech products are used in many U.S. goods, including computers, automobiles, medical equipment, artificial intelligence software, and communications equipment.

A threat to the U.S. economy is important. The U.S. lost $240 billion last year due to a shortage of microchips, and possible military action in Taiwan could hit the U.S. economy even harder because of its reliance on supplies from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s largest.

U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration in the 2021 review of the supply chain has already recognized the country’s significant dependence on TSMC products, and, according to research group Capital Economics, it is TSMC that produces more than 90% of the most advanced microchips in the world.

Major US technology corporations, including Apple, Intel, Nvidia, Qualcomm, AMD and Broadcom, buy microchips from TSMC, while the US government depends on Taiwanese microchips to produce some of its most important and sophisticated systems, including weapons.

Representatives of Taiwan`s authorities also pointed to threats related to a possible escalation of the situation around the island. For example, Taiwan’s official representative to France, Francois Chin-Chun Wu, said on BFM Business that escalating tensions in the Taiwan Strait could lead to complications in the global semiconductor market.

In July, Zach Nunn, former director of cybersecurity at the White House National Security Council, called the shortage of semiconductors and the lack of capacity for their production a “direct threat” to the U.S. economy and national security.

In addition to military action, the threat to the production and additional exports of microchips from Taiwan is a high dependence of the island on raw materials from China. In response to a visit to Taiwan by U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Beijing has taken steps to curb the supply to the island of silica sand, which is used in developing semiconductors.

Earlier we reported that U.S. Congress agrees to allocate $430 billion for climate and inflation.

Economy

US monetary policy “appropriate”, should remain at current levels to reduce inflation -IMF

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US monetary policy
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: The Federal Reserve headquarters in Washington September 16 2015. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo

(Reuters) – Monetary policy in the United States continues to be appropriate, and interest rates will need to remain at current levels in order to “durably” reduce inflation, the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday.

The US economy has proven to be “quite resilient,” said IMF spokesperson Julie Kozack in a scheduled press briefing.

“Interest rates will likely need to stay at current levels well into 2024,” Kozack added.

U.S. benchmark bond yields edged up from three month lows on Thursday ahead of key payrolls data expected on Friday.

Futures markets are pricing in a 25 basis point rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve in March.

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Economy

Exclusive-Coffee trader Mercon runs out of credit, files for bankruptcy protection

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Exclusive-Coffee trader Mercon runs out of credit, files for bankruptcy protection

By Marcelo Teixeira

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Mercon Coffee Group, one of the world’s largest coffee traders, has filled for bankruptcy protection in the United States due to what it defined as “exceptionally challenging operating environment”, according to a document seen by Reuters.

Mercon, which has operations in all the major producing regions including Brazil, Vietnam and Central America, said in a letter sent to clients that problems in recent years such as the logistical disruption during the pandemic, frost and drought in Brazil, sustained price volatility and rising interest rates all combined to hurt the company’s financial situation.

In the letter, signed by Mercon’s Chief Executive Oscar Sevilla, the company said that lenders have elected “not to extend credit agreements, resulting in extremely tight working capital conditions”.

Rumors of financial problems at the coffee trader, which has sales operations in Europe, Asia and the United States, circulated among some market participants in the last hours.

The comments followed news from Nicaragua that the country’s largest coffee exporter, CISA Exportadora, had closed doors. CISA was a subsidiary of Mercon until few weeks ago.

One broker, who asked not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, told Reuters that Mercon was in a difficult financial situation after failing to extend credit lines for its trading operations, particularly with Dutch bank Rabobank.

Rabobank confirmed Mercon was a client, but declined to comment further on the situation.

Mercon said in the letter that it will work with clients to “ensure a seamless process concerning open contracts”.

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Economy

US regulators clamp down in bid to prevent more bank failures

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US regulators clamp down in bid to prevent more bank failures
© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A man puts a sign on the door of the Silicon Valley Bank as an onlooker watches at the bank?s headquarters in Santa Clara, California, U.S. March 10, 2023. REUTERS/Nathan Frandino/File Photo

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By Pete Schroeder and Nupur Anand

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. bank supervisors are increasing scrutiny of lenders’ risk management practices and taking disciplinary action as they try to fix problems that could lead to more bank failures, banking industry sources said.

The changes follow the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank (OTC:) and First Republic Bank (OTC:) earlier this year after depositor runs sparked, in part, by worries that high interest rates would hurt bank balance sheets. After official reviews found frontline examiners failed to act quickly upon spotting problems, they are taking a tougher, more proactive approach.

Interviews with a dozen industry executives, lawyers and regulatory officials show examiners are executing surprise reviews of a key confidential supervisory bank health rating and in some cases have issued downgrades. They are increasingly warning big banks they will be placed under an order restricting a range of activities if they don’t fix lapses; and are pressing top executives to take personal accountability for addressing the banks’ problems.

While regulators including the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) have pledged to get tough on supervision, the process is confidential and officials have not released details. The activity, which Reuters is reporting for the first time, sheds light on how the agencies are making good on that promise, and suggests they continue to have concerns about some lenders’ health amid high interest rates and a slowing economy.

Supervisors are targeting small, mid-size and larger banks, the people said. Reuters could not ascertain exactly how many banks overall were targeted, but eight of the sources said they each had knowledge of multiple cases or banks affected.

“This is not unlike some of the more enhanced monitoring we saw during the Great Recession, where there was concern over all the banks’ financial health,” said John Geiringer, a Partner and banking attorney at Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP.

The FDIC and other regulators wrote in recent months to regional and community banks in a number of states notifying them they had launched surprise reviews of their “CAMELS” rating, five of the people said. The confidential rating measures bank safety and soundness on metrics including capital adequacy, asset quality, management competence and liquidity.

Examiners typically review small banks’ ratings every 12 to 18 months via an analysis of financial and loan data banks report quarterly, onsite exams, and discussions with executives.

Anne Balcer, a senior executive vice president at the Independent Community Bankers (NASDAQ:) of America (ICBA), said members of the Washington trade group in different regions had received letters around October notifying them of the off-cycle reviews.

In some cases, banks were advised components of their CAMELS rating had been downgraded. The reviews were based on regulators’ analysis of the quarterly data, she and three other people with knowledge of several other cases said.

The implications “are pretty far reaching,” said Balcer. CAMELS ratings contribute to banks’ deposit insurance premiums and affect their audits. Downgraded lenders can be barred from doing deals, and could be denied emergency Fed liquidity.

Reasons regulators cited for downgrades included insufficient capital, management issues, and in many cases, exposure to commercial real estate, a sector struggling amid high rates and lingering office vacancies, the people said.

The ICBA, which represent banks with up to $50 billion in assets, declined to name the banks concerned.

“Off-cycle downgrades are a touchy thing,” said Michael Tierney, CEO of the Community Bankers of Michigan, who said he had been briefed on some off-cycle reviews. “What I’ve been told by regulators is that this will be used sparingly, they will only downgrade CAMEL components, not the overall CAMELs rating.”

In those conversations, officials said they are looking much harder at liquidity and interest rate risk management. “They’ve been very clear…those are their top priorities,” said Tierney.

‘PAINFUL’

A spokesperson for the FDIC said the agency has long used off-site monitoring to supplement and guide examinations, and has developed tools using quarterly data reports to do so.

“Off-site monitoring programs can provide an early indication that an institution’s risk profile may be changing,” he said.

“CAMELS ratings, including those that are changed on an interim basis are confidential, but as a general matter, ratings trends tend to deteriorate as macroeconomic conditions worsen,” he continued, citing inflation and high rates as key headwinds.

Two small banks have failed since First Republic, and the FDIC recently added another to its list of problem banks. Many lenders are holding onto piles of cash as insurance against a slowing economy, Reuters has reported.

Spokespeople for the Fed and Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, another federal regulator, declined to comment.

Bigger banks are monitored continuously but they are still feeling increased pressure, said five other sources that work with multiple big lenders. Their supervisors are more frequently warning top management that failing to fix problems could result in a confidential “4(m)” sanction, the people said.

Supervisors typically impose a 4(m) for weak capital, poor management, or following a CAMELS downgrade. Banks under a 4(m) must get regulatory approval to engage in some new business, such as securities underwriting, or to make nonbank investments.

Exiting a 4(m) can take years. It can involve hiring new people and reorganizing businesses. “It’s really painful,” said one source who asked not to be identified discussing confidential supervisory issues.

Supervisors are also pressing big bank bosses to take more personal accountability for problems, in some cases seeking briefings with C-suite executives or board members to secure assurances that they are personally on top of the problems, two of the people said.

They said this had raised concerns for some senior executives worried about personal liability.

“As risks increase, supervisors are going to react appropriately,” said Karen Lawson, executive vice president for policy and supervision at the Conference of State Bank Supervisors, the national organization representing state regulators, which supervise 79% of U.S. banks alongside federal agencies.

State regulators are discussing ways to be more responsive, including by moving independently to quickly address problems without waiting for a consensus with federal regulators, she said.

“Certainly, we all learned things earlier this year.”

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