European Banks With Russian Units Help Keep Natural Gas Flowing
Western banks including Raiffeisen Bank International AG that still operate units in Russia are helping some of the last European buyers of Russian pipeline gas pay for purchases after the US sanctioned Gazprombank.
Turkey and Slovakia are both using the services of Vienna-based Raiffeisen, which runs a unit in Russia, according to people familiar with the matter. Clients broadly are using either the Russian units of Western lenders, or smaller, non-sanctioned Russian banks to pay for gas, said a person familiar with the situation at fuel supplier Gazprom.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Wall Street Journal
33 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
Oil Prices Jump After Israel's Attack
Benchmark U.S. crude futures rose by more than 10% to trade above $75 a barrel, the highest price since January and before President Trump's April tariff announcements had energy traders penciling in slower economic growth and lower fuel demand. Optimism over an Iran nuclear deal and the prospect of eased sanctions on the country's oil exports added pressure to prices earlier this spring. But now traders are showing they don't see much chance that the U.S. will lift restrictions on Iranian barrels any time soon, and that there may be additional disruptions to the region's oil output.
Forbes
4 hours ago
- Forbes
How Gold Overtook The Euro As A Global Reserve Asset
Gold bars getty It's official - gold is now the world's second-most held reserve asset for central banks. That's after the European Central Bank confirmed the yellow metal had overtaken the euro on the back of feverish buying sprees over the last 12 months that have pushed its price to record highs. In a report published earlier this week, the ECB acknowledged that gold bullion accounted for 20% of global official reserves in 2024 versus the euro's 16% share. The uptick in holdings implies that gold is now second only to the U.S. dollar, which commands around half (46%) of world's reserve holding share. It seems the reason behind it all can be attributed to the ECB's own central banking peers. It noted in its report that: 'Central banks continued to accumulate gold at a record pace.' Among these, the top three buyers in 2024 were the central banks of Poland, India and Turkey. Russia and China also picked up the pace of their gold purchases too, among many other. In total, central banks acquired more than 1,000 tonnes of gold in 2024 or a fifth of the total global annual production. The said level of purchasing - of more than a 1,000 tonnes - has also been broadly similar for the third year in a row. What's more, while buying by central banks has continued at pace, their gold sales volumes have remained relatively 'modest', according to the World Gold Council. It also implies that major Western holders of gold - i.e. the U.S., U.K., Germany, France and Italy largely held on to the yellow metal. Overall, central bank gold reserves reached 36,000 tonnes in 2024, according to the ECB. The figure is tantalizingly close to the 38,000 tonnes in reserves recorded in the mid-1960s and the historic highs of the post-World War II Bretton Woods era. There are several reasons why the precious metals market is seeing the rising allure of gold among central banks while the ECB is having to confront the euro's diminished status among its peers. For starters, gold prices have hit record highs in recent years. In 2024 alone, gold rose by 26%. Last year's rally has continued unabated well in to the second quarter of this year, to the point that the yellow metal posted a record high of $3,500 per troy ounce, having surged by another 25% so far this year. Naturally, central banks are not just taking note of the gold price spike but also proactively partaking in keeping it higher. For gold is neither exposed to counterparty risk nor to international sanctions some central banks (e.g. Russia) ought to fret over. In fact, buying levels of more than 1,000 tonnes per year three years in a row are reminiscent of central banks' moves during the global financial crisis of 2008-09, and the subsequent transition to a low interest rate climate. Retail investors are playing their part too, by flocking to the yellow metal and gold exchange traded funds, seeking a safe haven in a volatile world that's having to contend with anxieties ranging geopolitical tension to trade wars. That's despite gold being a non-yielding asset, but admittedly one that is indeed highly liquid.
Fox News
7 hours ago
- Fox News
White House takes interest in proposed Russian sanctions as Ukraine War peace talks drag on
The White House is in ongoing discussions with Capitol Hill to amend a proposed sanctions bill targeting Russia, Fox News Digital has learned, and prefers that route over sanctions led by the executive branch. Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., introduced the legislation months ago and garnered 82 co-sponsors, but the Senate has delayed a vote to give President Donald Trump room to pursue a diplomatic settlement between Russia and Ukraine. Now, with Trump increasingly skeptical of Vladimir Putin's intentions to end the war, the bill could soon come to the floor. According to three sources familiar with the matter, talks between lawmakers and the White House are active, though no firm timeline has been set. "The House has appetite to move it, too," said one congressional source. Companion legislation has 70 House co-sponsors. State Department policy planner Michael Anton has privately indicated to allies that the White House isn't interested in imposing unilateral sanctions, but also won't stand in the way of the Graham–Blumenthal legislation. Behind the scenes, the White House is pushing for revisions that would grant the president greater discretion in enforcement. Specifically, officials are seeking to replace any "shall" with "may" in the bill's text — a subtle but significant shift that would weaken mandatory enforcement. "The White House, no matter who is there, always wants the bill watered down — it's normal," the source said. "Whenever any committee, congressman or senator wants to do a sanctions bill, career officials always email back and say, 'Change the 'shall' to 'may.'" The legislation would impose sweeping economic penalties, including 500% tariffs on any country that does business with Moscow, and sanctions on key Russian officials and entities. Graham has acknowledged that revisions are likely, including potential carve-outs from the tariff provision for nations providing aid to Ukraine. The exception would offer relief to European allies that are still dependent on Russian energy. "Why don't we carve out for countries who are helping Ukraine?" Graham said in an interview with Semafor earlier in June. "If you're providing military economic assistance to Ukraine, you get a carve-out. So China, if you don't want to get sanctioned, help Ukraine." Trump, speaking candidly on a podcast published Wednesday, questioned whether Putin has any interest in ending the conflict. "I'm starting to think maybe he doesn't," Trump said when asked whether the Russian president minds losing thousands of soldiers in Ukraine each week. On Capitol Hill, Trump's top military advisors were pressed Wednesday on whether they believe Putin intends to halt his offensive. "I don't believe he is," said Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. "Remains to be seen," added Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. The European Union unveiled a fresh sanctions package, that still needs to be voted on, which would ban transactions with the Nord Stream energy pipelines. Since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. has imposed sweeping sanctions: cutting Russian banks off from the U.S. financial system, freezing over $300 billion in Kremlin assets, banning key technology exports, and blocking imports of Russian fuel.
