Top Headlines

 Bank of Japan Stuns Market by Holding Off on More Stimulus – Bloomberg

The Bank of Japan held off on expanding monetary stimulus, as Governor Haruhiko Kuroda and his colleagues opted to take more time to assess the impact of negative interest rates.

 

Forget Unfair Dismissal…Whistle Blowing is the New Black – Profit & Loss

If losing a series of cases to former FX traders wasn’t enough, the banking industry faces increased pressure from a growing number of traders seeking whistle blower status as part of a claim for unfair dismissal.

Forget June. The Fed isn’t likely to hike interest rates until December – CNBC

The Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged — no surprise there — moving the focus to the next Federal Open Market Committee meeting on June 14-15.

 

Kiwi rises after RBNZ stands pat – fastFT (subscription)8 hours ago

The Kiwi dollar jumped on Thursday after the Reserve Bank of New Zealand kept interest rates unchanged – although the central bank made it clear that further easing could yet be on the cards.

UK Becomes Second-Largest Offshore Renminbi Clearing Centre – FT (subscription)

The UK unseated Southeast Asian financial hub Singapore as the largest clearing centre for the renminbi outside of greater China in March, according to Swift’s RMB tracker.

The European Union always was a CIA project, as Brexiteers discover – Daily Telegraph

Brexiteers should have been prepared for the shattering intervention of the US. The European Union always was an American project.

EU referendum: Economists launch new pro-Brexit report attacking EU as an “evil” customs union – City AM

A group of economists has struck back against what they see as the one-sided tone of the EU referendum debate today, with a new report that outlines the potential benefits of leaving the EU.

Brexit shock would cost Britons a month’s salary by 2020, OECD warns – Daily Telegraph

A British exit from the EU would trigger a “major negative shock” that would act as a “tax” on growth and could even spark the disintegration of the whole bloc, a top think-tank has warned.

Tusk rejects Tsipras’s summit request but Dijsselbloem says Eurogroup may be held soon – Kathimerini

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is due to speak to European Council President Donald Tusk again on Thursday after the latter rejected his call on Wednesday for a leaders’ summit to discuss Greece’s bailout talks…

CLS Volumes Down 3.5% in March – Profit & Loss

Average daily input value of trades submitted to CLS was $4.69 trillion in March, down 3.5% compared to February.

Regulatory News

Industry to Work Together Over New MiFID Product Rules – FT Adviser

Fund groups, platforms and intermediaries are collaborating to reduce the burden of new Mifid II product rules announced earlier this month.

Company News

Schroders Assets Rise to Record Level Despite New Business Halving – Daily Telegraph

Schroders’ assets under management grew to a record level of £324.9bn, despite its net incoming business halving to £2.7bn in the first quarter as volatile markets weighed on client demand.

Lloyds First-Quarter Profit Almost Halves After Bond Buyback – FT (subscription)

Lloyds Banking Group has almost halved profit after the lender bought back more than £3bn of expensive bonds from investors in the first quarter.

The bank, which is 9 per cent owned by the government, posted a pre-tax profit of £654m in the first three months, down from £1.2bn a year ago.

Deutsche Bank Profit Beats Expectations – WSJ

Deutsche Bank AG said Thursday that first-quarter net income beat analysts’ expectations despite being pressured by difficult market conditions and the impact of the bank’s decision to exit certain areas.

IPO Market Torpid Worldwide: Ernst & Young – News.Markets

Fewer companies have listed globally during the first three months of 2016 than during any first quarter since 2009, according to a report compiled by Ernst & Young.

Sorrell Defends £60m Bonus as WPP Remains on Track – The Times (subscription)WPP appears on track to meet its full-year target of 3 per cent sales growth across its international marketing operation with an increase in like-for-like net sales of 3.2%.

Zuckerberg Seeks to Tighten Grip as Facebook Results Surge – FT

Facebook has proposed an arrangement that will allow Mark Zuckerberg to maintain long-term control while pursuing his charitable giveaway, by creating a new class of stock with no voting rights.

Market Savvy

Special Report: Is FX The Next Industry to be Disrupted by FinTechs? – Profit & Loss

The next edition of Profit & Loss magazine will be featuring a fintech special report looking at how these firms are changing the landscape of financial services and why they are increasingly targeting the FX market.

Crude Oil Prices Take a Breather After Hitting 2016 Highs – Reuters

Crude futures pulled back from 2016 highs on Thursday as traders locked in profits after April’s sharp rally, but analysts said falling U.S. production, strong investor appetite and a weakening dollar could push prices higher soon.

China Trades Enough Cotton in One Day to Make Jeans for Everyone – Bloomberg

The equivalent of 41 million bales of cotton traded in a single day on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange last week, the most in more than five years and enough to make almost 9 billion pairs of jeans, or at least one for every person on the planet.

South Korea’s President Says Needs to Look at Possible ‘Selective’ QE – Reuters

South Korean President Park Geun-hye said on Thursday there is a need to consider “selective” quantitative easing to provide liquidity where it is needed in light of ongoing structural reforms, media reported.

Elections Get Dirty as Adult Filmmakers Set up Political Action Committee – Reuters

California politics got a bit more racy on Wednesday, as producers and actors in the adult film business said they had formed a political action committee, or PAC, to fight a ballot initiative to require the use of condoms when shooting explicit sex scenes.

Press Releases

Mario Draghi: Interview with Bild

Deutsche Börse AG Posts Further Revenue and Profit Growth in Q1/2016

Monex Group Reports Monthly Consolidated Financial Results (IFRS)