Latest news with #UniCredit
Reuters
10 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
ECB's Nagel says savings union more urgent than banking union
MILAN, June 19 (Reuters) - Creating a European Union savings union has become a matter of urgency, European Central Bank policymaker and Bundesbank President Joachim Nagel said on Thursday, adding a closer banking union could follow after that. European policymakers are seeking to foster deeper and more integrated capital markets across the often fragmented 27-member bloc. As part of that, they are pursuing a "savings and investments union" to try to encourage retail investors to fund the investments in energy, defence and technology European needs to bridge the productivity gap with the United States and China. Europe has fallen behind the other major global economic powers, posing a threat to its citizens' living standards. Given growing competition among economic blocs and tense relations with the United States, where a large portion of European savings has typically been invested, Nagel said there was no time to lose. "I think the first step, I believe this is of utmost importance, is to establish the savings and investment union, to do much more here. I think this is now of utmost importance," Nagel told a student conference in Milan. "And then in the next step, we can do the banking union," he said. Speaking at the same conference, UniCredit ( opens new tab CEO Andrea Orcel said the EU needed to become more competitive, which he has perviously said would happen if European banks were allowed to grow in size to better compete with U.S. rivals. Orcel, whose ambitions to take over Commerzbank ( opens new tab have stalled due to strong German opposition, complained about the barriers raised by European governments against the bank's consolidation efforts. Nagel said he shared Orcel's view about the need for Europe to become more competitive, and reiterated his support for a banking union. But he said he thought the banking union was first of all about more uniform rules across different markets, with countries adopting a neighbour's best practice standards wherever necessary, and then consolidation could follow.
Reuters
12 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
EU regulators clear with conditions UniCredit's acquisition of Banco BPM
BRUSSELS, June 19 (Reuters) - EU antitrust regulators on Thursday approved with conditions Italian bank UniCredit's ( opens new tab takeover of rival Banco BPM ( opens new tab. UniCredit agreed to sell 209 branches in northern Italy to allay competition concerns. "These commitments fully address the competition concerns identified by the Commission, by removing the horizontal overlap between the companies' activities in those areas and ensuring that competition is preserved," the European Commission said in a statement. The EU said it had declined a request from the Italian competition authority to refer the merger to it for assessment under Italian competition law. Italy had invoked its "golden powers" over the bid, on the grounds of national security concerns and to set the terms of UniCredit's offer. UniCredit had challenged the government-imposed conditions, with a court hearing set for next month. "The Commission has a particular interest in ensuring that competition is preserved in sectors such as banking and insurance, which are of crucial importance for the economic development of the Capital Market Union and Savings and Investment Union," the commission said in its statement. "Moreover, the Commission is well placed to deal with the transaction as it has developed significant expertise in analysing banking markets," the EU said. Reuters reported on June 10 that the deal would be cleared after UniCredit agreed to asset sales.
Khaleej Times
16 hours ago
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Ailing dollar softens Europe's hit from any oil shock
While oil-importing countries won't fully escape a hit in the event of another energy price shock on Middle East tensions, a period of rare dollar weakness will soften the blow considerably for countries outside America. Most crude prices are denominated in U.S. dollars, so when jumps in the oil price occur during periods of relentless dollar strength, the pain is compounded for regions like Europe. This year's dollar swoon, however, has had the opposite effect, cushioning the impact of the oil price increase set off by the unfolding Israel-Iran war. To be sure, we're still far from 'shock' territory. Dollar-based global crude prices have jumped about 14% since early last week, but they remain well below January peaks and about 7% lower year-over-year. But the impact has been even more benign in Europe, due to the euro's 12% rise against the dollar in the year to date. While the oil price in dollars has all but wiped out its decline for the year so far, the euro price of Brent crude is still down 12% in 2025 and is 20% lower than one year ago. "For oil-importing nations, the greenback's decline offers a crucial reprieve, helping to cushion the blow from soaring oil prices and to limit broader economic fallout," UniCredit strategist Tobias Keller wrote on Wednesday. Should the dollar continue to weaken, it could mitigate the relative economic impact on Europe of any renewed energy price squeeze. That, in turn, could support Europe's performance versus the United States this year and further erode the American exceptionalism narrative fueling extraordinary portfolio flows to the U.S. in recent years. What's more, ongoing dollar weakness amid a fresh energy price retreat would just load more pressure on the European Central Bank to cut interest rates to prevent a big undershoot of its 2% inflation target. Increasingly unstable The dollar/oil link is yet another example of a financial relationship that, in the words of UniCredit's Keller, has become "increasingly unstable" this year. As foreign investors with trillions of dollars invested in U.S. stocks and bonds have started rethinking their dollar exposure in light of America's trade wars, re-worked alliances and upended domestic institutions, the dollar's correlation with stocks, bonds and commodities has shifted. Most obvious is the greenback's apparent loss of its traditional 'safe haven' status during times of great uncertainty and stress, with the dollar falling alongside both stocks and bonds during a turbulent April. The dollar/oil link has become particularly unstable. All else being equal, a stronger dollar should weaken oil prices by sapping non-American demand around the world due to the added local currency cost of a barrel of oil. And the opposite should, in theory, also be true. Yet the cause-and-effect was the other way around in recent years, as a spike in oil prices after Russia's 2022 Ukraine invasion spurred inflation and steep Federal Reserve interest rate rises, followed by a subsequent decline in oil prices and inflation and the beginning of a Fed easing cycle. During that series of events, the dollar moved broadly in tandem with energy prices. When the oil price doubled between mid-2021 and the immediate aftermath of the Ukraine invasion, the dollar index surged by 20%, magnifying the impact of rising energy costs for Europe and elsewhere. But that relationship broke down again last year after the U.S. election, as the dollar initially climbed even as oil prices fell. While the positive correlation resumed after January, the surge in crude this month after the Israel-Iran war broke out has not been matched by a strengthening dollar. Indeed, the greenback is still flirting with new lows. The relationship depends on the backdrop of course. Right now, the primary concern is that a decade of relentless dollar strength now faces a multi-year unwind as trade, economic and investment imbalances are forced to correct. If that prevails, any renewed oil spike would be less severe than last time for the global economy at large.
Reuters
18 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Ailing dollar softens Europe's hit from any oil shock
LONDON, June 19 (Reuters) - While oil-importing countries won't fully escape a hit in the event of another energy price shock on Middle East tensions, a period of rare dollar weakness will soften the blow considerably for countries outside America. Most crude prices are denominated in U.S. dollars, so when jumps in the oil price occur during periods of relentless dollar strength, the pain is compounded for regions like Europe. This year's dollar swoon, however, has had the opposite effect, cushioning the impact of the oil price increase set off by the unfolding Israel-Iran war. To be sure, we're still far from 'shock' territory. Dollar-based global crude prices have jumped about 14% since early last week, but they remain well below January peaks and about 7% lower year-over-year. But the impact has been even more benign in Europe, due to the euro's 12% rise against the dollar in the year to date. While the oil price in dollars has all but wiped out its decline for the year so far, the euro price of Brent crude is still down 12% in 2025 and is 20% lower than one year ago. "For oil-importing nations, the greenback's decline offers a crucial reprieve, helping to cushion the blow from soaring oil prices and to limit broader economic fallout," UniCredit strategist Tobias Keller wrote on Wednesday. Should the dollar continue to weaken, it could mitigate the relative economic impact on Europe of any renewed energy price squeeze. That, in turn, could support Europe's performance versus the United States this year and further erode the American exceptionalism narrative fueling extraordinary portfolio flows to the U.S. in recent years. What's more, ongoing dollar weakness amid a fresh energy price retreat would just load more pressure on the European Central Bank to cut interest rates to prevent a big undershoot of its 2% inflation target. The dollar/oil link is yet another example of a financial relationship that, in the words of UniCredit's Keller, has become "increasingly unstable" this year. As foreign investors with trillions of dollars invested in U.S. stocks and bonds have started rethinking their dollar exposure in light of America's trade wars, re-worked alliances and upended domestic institutions, the dollar's correlation with stocks, bonds and commodities has shifted. Most obvious is the greenback's apparent loss of its traditional 'safe haven' status during times of great uncertainty and stress, with the dollar falling alongside both stocks and bonds during a turbulent April. The dollar/oil link has become particularly unstable. All else being equal, a stronger dollar should weaken oil prices by sapping non-American demand around the world due to the added local currency cost of a barrel of oil. And the opposite should, in theory, also be true. Yet the cause-and-effect was the other way around in recent years, as a spike in oil prices after Russia's 2022 Ukraine invasion spurred inflation and steep Federal Reserve interest rate rises, followed by a subsequent decline in oil prices and inflation and the beginning of a Fed easing cycle. During that series of events, the dollar moved broadly in tandem with energy prices. When the oil price doubled between mid-2021 and the immediate aftermath of the Ukraine invasion, the dollar index (.DXY), opens new tab surged by 20%, magnifying the impact of rising energy costs for Europe and elsewhere. But that relationship broke down again last year after the U.S. election, as the dollar initially climbed even as oil prices fell. While the positive correlation resumed after January, the surge in crude this month after the Israel-Iran war broke out has not been matched by a strengthening dollar. Indeed, the greenback is still flirting with new lows. The relationship depends on the backdrop of course. Right now, the primary concern is that a decade of relentless dollar strength now faces a multi-year unwind as trade, economic and investment imbalances are forced to correct. If that prevails, any renewed oil spike would be less severe than last time for the global economy at large. The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
UniCredit CEO, Mediobanca Counsel Quizzed in Paschi Sale Probe
By and Antonio Vanuzzo Save UniCredit SpA Chief Executive Officer Andrea Orcel has been quizzed by Milan prosecutors as part of a probe into Italy 's sale of a stake of Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena SpA, according to people familiar with the matter. Orcel as well as Mediobanca SpA General Counsel Stefano Vincenzi were asked to give information to prosecutors in recent months because of their knowledge of the transaction and neither are under investigation or accused of any wrongdoing, added the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
