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New Straits Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- New Straits Times
Investors eye lucrative Syria opportunities after Trump lifts US sanctions
AN end to United States sanctions on Syria is expected to mark a new era for an economy devastated by 13 years of war, opening the way for investment flows from the Syrian diaspora, Turkiye and Gulf states that back the new government. Business executives, Syria's finance minister and analysts anticipated an influx of capital into the bankrupt economy once sanctions are lifted in line with US President Donald Trump's surprise announcement, notwithstanding the many challenges still facing the deeply-fractured nation. Billionaire Syrian businessman Ghassan Aboud said he was making plans to invest and expected other Syrians with international business ties to be doing the same. "They were scared to come and work in Syria due to the sanctions risks. This will completely disappear now," said Ghassan, who lives in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). "I'm, of course, planning to enter the market, for two reasons: I want to help the country recover in any way possible, and second, the ground is fertile: any seed planted today can result in a good profit margin," he said, outlining a multi-billion dollar plan to boost Syrian art, culture and education. The lifting of sanctions would radically reshape an economy already set on a new course by Syria's new rulers, who have pursued free-market policies and shifted away from the state-led model adopted during five decades of rule by the Assad family. The US and other Western powers imposed tough sanctions on Syria during the war that spiralled out of protests against Bashar al-Assad's rule in 2011. Washington kept them in place after he was toppled in December, as it formulated its Syria policy and monitored the actions of the new administration led by interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former al-Qaeda commander. Saudi Arabia and Turkiye, which both support Sharaa's government, had urged Washington to lift the sanctions. Saudi Arabia's foreign minister said on Wednesday there would be many investment opportunities once that happened. The conflict has turned many urban areas to rubble and killed hundreds of thousands of people. More than 90 per cent of the 23 million Syrians live below the poverty line, say United Nations agencies. "There's a real chance for a transformational change in Syria and the broader region," said Timothy Ash, senior sovereign strategist for emerging markets at RBC BlueBay Asset Management. Turkish firms and banks were expected to benefit from the lifting of sanctions, said Onur Genc, chief executive officer of financial group BBVA. "For Turkiye, it's going to be positive because there's a lot of reconstruction needed in Syria. Who's there to do that? The Turkish companies," he said. Turkiye strongly backed Syria's opposition during the war, which decimated a diverse and productive economy. It more than halved between 2010 and 2021, official Syrian data cited by the World Bank in 2024 showed. However, this was likely an underestimate, said the bank. Syria's pound has strengthened since Trump's announcement. Currency traders said it was hovering between 9,000 and 9,500 to the US dollar on Wednesday, compared with 12,600 earlier this week. Before the war in 2011, it traded at 47. Syrian Finance Minister Yisr Barnieh said investors from the UAE, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, among others, had been making inquiries about investing. "Syria today is a land of opportunities, with immense potential across every sector — from agriculture to oil, tourism, infrastructure and transportation," he said. Watching footage of Trump meeting Sharaa in Riyadh on Wednesday at his Damascus office, Karam Bechara, general manager of Shahba Bank in Syria, described the excitement in the business community. "It's too good to be true," he said. "We're on the right track now internationally unless something happens in Syria that derails the process," he said. Imad al-Khatib, a Lebanese investor, said he had accelerated his plans to invest in Syria after Trump's announcement. He is planning a US$200 million waste sorting plant in Damascus.
Time of India
03-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Trading Day: Resilience trumps uncertainty
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Popular in Markets Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads This Week's Key Market Moves Chart of the Week Here are some of the best things I read this week: Choppier waters ahead? One of the biggest surprises in a week overflowing with them - from top-tier economic indicators , to company earnings and policy decisions from around the world - was how steadfast financial markets and U.S. stocks closed the week with gains of up to 3%, the dollar advanced, Treasury yields rose, and the VIX index of U.S. equity market volatility eased. On the surface, a strong week for investor sentiment and risk that would be only half the showed that the U.S. economy shrank in the first quarter - a statistical anomaly due to a record hit from trade, perhaps, but the first contraction in three years, nevertheless, and putting the economy halfway towards a technical of that gloom was countered by unequivocally positive GDP figures from the euro zone. And yields and stocks leaped higher on Friday after April's non-farm payrolls report showed the Trump administration's global trade war has yet to be materially felt in the U.S. labor the corporate front, dozens of leading global firms cut or declined to give forecasts in their first-quarter earnings, such is the uncertainty surrounding tariffs. Yet the overall tone from these calls this week was positive, and investors have consistently bought the post-Liberation Day of the most significant developments this week for world markets came from Tokyo, where the Bank of Japan kept interest rates on hold as expected but slashed its growth outlook and lowered its inflation forecasts. The yen tumbled, but still ended the week essentially some huge price swings in individual shares and assets. In the U.S. and beyond, there's little evidence that trade uncertainty is prompting companies to lay off workers or jack up prices. Not yet a growing belief that U.S. President Donald Trump is backing away from his more belligerent tariff threats, and that a more receptive Washington is closing in on several bilateral trade deals. Tensions with China may even be cooling the risks to growth and markets lie ahead, and a "cliff-edge type of adjustment" in the coming months is possible, warns RBC BlueBay Asset Management's Mark Dowding."There appear to be similarities to the Roadrunner cartoon, in which Wile E. Coyote keeps on running, long after the ground has disappeared beneath his feet, ahead of the inevitable moment of realisation when gravity kicks in," he wrote on consumer sentiment sliding and inflation expectations rising, stagflation looms. For markets, that suggests choppy waters ahead rather than plain sailing.I'd love to hear from you, so please reach out to me with comments at . You can also follow me at @ReutersJamie and @ Britain's FTSE 100 notches a record 15 consecutive daily gains, the longest winning streak since the index was launched in 1984.* Wall Street rallies on Friday, ending the week up around 3%. The Dow has its best run since December 2023, the S&P has its longest winning streak since November 2024.* U.S. bond yields rise as much as 7 basis points, thanks to a sharp rise on Friday after the April employment report.* Oil falls 8%, with Brent crude futures at a four-year closing low on Friday of $61.17/bbl ahead of Saturday's OPEC+ meeting. Japan's Nikkei 225 rises 3% on U.S. trade deal optimism and weaker yen. Index rises seven days in a row, its best run since August-September, 2023.* Gold slips 2.6% on the week, easing further back from its recent $3,500/oz his first term in office, U.S. President Donald Trump regularly took credit on social media for the boom on Wall Street. He has been less vocal this time around, and with stocks down since his inauguration, this week he posted: "This is Biden's Stock Market, not Trump's," adding that the recent slide had "NOTHING TO DO WITH TARIFFS".April 30 marked the first 100 days of Trump's second term, and the following chart shows where they rank in history. Stocks have clawed back some of these losses in the last two days, and if the rebound continues, maybe it will be Trump's stock market after all.1. America's Economic Tailwinds Will Override Trump and His Tariffs2. Trump and the Triumph of the Technolords3. The Smoot-Hawley Trade War4. Trump tariffs expose US weak flank in services5. Remarks by Kevin Warsh - Commanding Heights: Central Banks at a Crossroads IMF Lecture Hosted by G30What could move markets on Monday?* Australia reaction to Saturday's general election* Indonesia GDP (Q1)* U.S. services ISM and PMI (April)* U.S. 3-year Treasury note auctionOpinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from Day is also sent by email every weekday morning. Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also sign up here.
Reuters
17-04-2025
- Business
- Reuters
BlueBay sells US dollars short, citing low investor confidence
HONG KONG, April 17 (Reuters) - RBC BlueBay Asset Management has opened short positions on the U.S. dollar, betting on the end of U.S. exceptionalism as President Donald Trump's trade war threatens to destroy decades of trust and credibility in the currency. The dollar has been falling on concerns over the impact Trump's trade tariffs will have on the economy, consumer incomes and markets, and as investors pull money out of U.S. stocks, signalling doubts over its "exceptionalism" or status as the bedrock of the global financial system. An index of the dollar's value against six other major currencies is down 4% in April and on track for its worst month since 2022. "At the beginning of last week, we were selling dollars," said Mark Dowding, chief investment officer for RBC BlueBay's fixed income team, who oversees over $133 billion in assets globally, in an interview. "There is a loss of credibility in U.S. policy making," he said, adding Trump's tariff policies "didn't feel like it had been very well thought through." BlueBay was long the dollar at the beginning of the year but closed that position in the middle of the first quarter and has now turned bearish. The fund is bullish on the Japanese yen and is betting the yen will rise to 135 per dollar, a rise of nearly 6% from current levels, given its undervaluation and as Japanese capital abroad returns home. Trump's back-and-forth tariff threats have caused wild price moves in U.S. equities, bonds and currencies, sparking a debate over whether the dollar and U.S. Treasuries can maintain their safe haven status. European and Japanese investors are looking more at domestic assets now rather than putting money in the United States, Dowding said, "We think it could end up bringing about a longer-term turning point for the value of the U.S. dollar." Dowding believes the Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut interest rates in the near term as tariffs could disrupt supply chains, creating shortages and driving inflation higher. "We continue to see volatility in Treasury prices," he said, adding he is waiting for a good entry point. "If the 10-year yield went down below 4.2%, I'd want to sell. If the yield went above 4.8%, I'd want to buy." Among other trades, he has started to buy inflation-linked bonds in the U.S. and Europe. "We think the inflation is going up to 4% in the U.S. this year," he said.
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
BlueBay sells US dollars short, citing low investor confidence
By Summer Zhen HONG KONG (Reuters) - RBC BlueBay Asset Management has opened short positions on the U.S. dollar, betting on the end of U.S. exceptionalism as President Donald Trump's trade war threatens to destroy decades of trust and credibility in the currency. The dollar has been falling on concerns over the impact Trump's trade tariffs will have on the economy, consumer incomes and markets, and as investors pull money out of U.S. stocks, signalling doubts over its "exceptionalism" or status as the bedrock of the global financial system. An index of the dollar's value against six other major currencies is down 4% in April and on track for its worst month since 2022. "At the beginning of last week, we were selling dollars," said Mark Dowding, chief investment officer for RBC BlueBay's fixed income team, who oversees over $133 billion in assets globally, in an interview. "There is a loss of credibility in U.S. policy making," he said, adding Trump's tariff policies "didn't feel like it had been very well thought through." BlueBay was long the dollar at the beginning of the year but closed that position in the middle of the first quarter and has now turned bearish. The fund is bullish on the Japanese yen and is betting the yen will rise to 135 per dollar, a rise of nearly 6% from current levels, given its undervaluation and as Japanese capital abroad returns home. Trump's back-and-forth tariff threats have caused wild price moves in U.S. equities, bonds and currencies, sparking a debate over whether the dollar and U.S. Treasuries can maintain their safe haven status. European and Japanese investors are looking more at domestic assets now rather than putting money in the United States, Dowding said, "We think it could end up bringing about a longer-term turning point for the value of the U.S. dollar." Dowding believes the Federal Reserve is unlikely to cut interest rates in the near term as tariffs could disrupt supply chains, creating shortages and driving inflation higher. "We continue to see volatility in Treasury prices," he said, adding he is waiting for a good entry point. "If the 10-year yield went down below 4.2%, I'd want to sell. If the yield went above 4.8%, I'd want to buy." Among other trades, he has started to buy inflation-linked bonds in the U.S. and Europe. "We think the inflation is going up to 4% in the U.S. this year," he said. Sign in to access your portfolio
