Cover Story
Issue 01Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has increased from fewer than 10 daily transits in early March to about 35 on June 22, with some oil tankers and seven ballast LNG carriers entering the Gulf. Insurance costs remain above prewar levels, and shipping groups say routing, safety and tracking disruptions continue to limit a broader recovery.
Thailand’s headline CPI rose 2.42% year on year in June, slowing from 2.79% in May and coming in below market expectations. Core inflation was 1.23%, while the reading stayed within the Bank of Thailand’s 1%-3% target band. The Commerce Ministry kept its 2026 inflation forecast at 1.5%-2.5%.
Destatis said German manufacturing orders fell 3.8% in April from March after a 5.0% rise in March. Foreign orders dropped 4.2%, led by an 11.1% decline from the euro area, while domestic orders fell 2.9%. Orders excluding large contracts also slipped 3.8%, and real manufacturing turnover edged up 0.1%.
Danish shipping group BIMCO said more vessels were resuming Strait of Hormuz passages after the US-Iran ceasefire, but warned that congestion, navigational incidents and electronic interference still affect transit decisions. It said operators should rely on voyage-specific risk assessments and official advisories, and that a return to pre-conflict traffic could take months.
In September 2025, Baillie Gifford said it was consulting on changes across about 1,600 employees, with up to 50 positions potentially affected and some departures expected before year-end. The firm said it was reallocating roles to reflect changes in client distribution, while using internal mobility to redeploy staff where possible.
S&P Global Market Intelligence reported that institutional investors were net sellers of $50.20 billion in equities in December 2024, the largest monthly sale of the year. Index funds and ETFs were net buyers of $25.89 billion, while retail investors also sold a net $7.84 billion and hedge funds bought $20.44 billion.
ICICI Bank's last benchmark US dollar senior bond was a $500 million 3.8% note due 2027 issued in December 2017 through its Dubai branch. The bank's disclosures show foreign-currency senior unsecured ratings of Baa3 from Moody's and BBB from S&P, while April 2026 investor materials detailed capital, deposits and asset-quality metrics.
China’s central bank said it injected a net 10 billion yuan through open-market government bond purchases and sales in June, with first-half net injections via that channel reaching 300 billion yuan. The PBOC said such operations have been conducted routinely this year, with sizes adjusted to liquidity needs and bond-market conditions.
Ottawa said it will refer Alberta’s proposed heavy-crude pipeline to the Major Projects Office for possible national-interest fast-tracking. The project would transport 1 million barrels per day from Alberta to British Columbia’s coast, with Trans Mountain leading development, Pembina investing, and consultations on Indigenous equity participation starting immediately.
In its 2026 Article IV report published June 9, the IMF said Nigeria’s proposed $5 billion total return swap with First Abu Dhabi Bank uses 133% collateral in domestic government securities and creates margin-call exposure tied to the naira and interest rates. IMF staff treated the full collateral amount as debt and cited Eurobonds or concessional borrowing as alternatives.
Ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has increased from fewer than 10 daily transits in early March to about 35 on June 22, with some oil tankers and seven ballast LNG carriers entering the Gulf. Insurance costs remain above prewar levels, and shipping groups say routing, safety and tracking disruptions continue to limit a broader recovery.
Eurostat reported 10.986 million unemployed people in the euro area in May, down 55,000 from April, while the EU total fell 40,000 to 13.163 million. The euro area rate was down from 6.3% a year earlier. Youth unemployment was 14.7% in the euro area and 15.2% in the EU.
Lime, the scooter and e-bike operator backed by Uber, traded as high as $27 and closed around $26 in its July 1 Nasdaq debut after pricing its IPO at $25 a share. The offering valued the company at about $1.7 billion, and Lime said proceeds would help repay its $115 million term loan.
China Resources New Energy, a China Resources Power unit that develops and operates wind and solar projects, started trading in Shenzhen on July 2 after selling 2.11 billion shares at RMB10.11. The IPO could raise RMB24.5 billion with the greenshoe, and the stock reached RMB30.16 intraday after retail demand remained 683.4 times subscribed following a clawback.
After publishing feedback on its 2025 discussion paper, the Bank said it will continue work through 2026 on broader central clearing and minimum haircuts in non-centrally cleared gilt repo, with an update due in early 2027. Bank data showed hedge fund net gilt repo borrowing reached £61 billion in March 2025 and was concentrated among a few funds.
KNDS said on July 1 it is suspending its planned IPO, citing volatility in European defense stocks and saying preparations were substantially complete. Reuters-based reporting said some investors valued the company below €12 billion, while a key shareholder was unwilling to proceed at less than about €12.5 billion.
Getty said its board unanimously decided not to pursue a CMA-supervised divestment of Shutterstock’s editorial business and plans to terminate the merger agreement after the extended July 6, 2026 deadline. The termination would trigger redemption of Getty Images, Inc.’s 10.500% senior secured notes due 2030, and Getty plans to seek advice on financing alternatives.
