Business
UK inflation dips in March, potentially paving the way for another interest rate cut
The Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich frames buildings in London’s financial area Canary Wharf, in London on March 27. (AP)
LONDON, April 16, (AP): Inflation in the United Kingdom fell for the second month running in March largely as a result of lower prices at the pump, official figures showed Wednesday, a move that is likely to pile pressure on the Bank of England to cut interest rates next month. The Office for National Statistics said consumer prices rose by 2.6% in the year to March, down from 2.8% the previous month.
The decline was bigger than anticipated, with most economists predicting a more modest decline to 2.7%. However, inflation remains above the Bank of England’s target of 2% and is set to rise to over 3% in April due to a confluence of factors, including higher domestic energy bills as well as the potential impact of higher taxes and labor costs for businesses, which are likely to pass some costs on to customers.
Still, most economists think the bank can lower its main interest rate from 4.50%, as the peak in inflation is likely to be lower than previously thought, not least because US President Donald Trump’s tariff policies are likely to depress global growth and hence prices. One impact of Trump’s tariff plans has been lower oil prices, which will have a downward effect on inflation.
“An interest rate cut in May looks increasingly nailed on, and the path to more easing in the second half of the year is getting clearer,” said Luke Bartholomew, deputy chief economist at asset management firm Aberdeen. Inflation is way down from levels seen a couple of years ago, partly because central banks have dramatically increased borrowing costs from near zero during the coronavirus pandemic.
Prices then began to shoot up, first as a result of supply chain issues and later because of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which pushed energy costs higher. As inflation rates have declined from multidecade highs, central banks, including the US Federal Reserve have started cutting interest rates, though few, if any, economists think that rates will fall back to the super-low levels that persisted in the years after the global financial crisis of 2008-2009 and during the pandemic.
Shaikha Al-Bahar
Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK)
KUWAIT CITY, May 20, (Agencies): Deputy Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Bank of Kuwait (NBK) Shaikha Al-Bahar is the only Kuwaiti who made it to the 2025 100 Most Powerful Women in Business List that Fortune released on Tuesday. The list consists of a hundred influential businesswomen in the finance, technology, health care, telecom, retail, energy and other industries.
In 1977, Al-Bahar joined NBK, where she proved her leadership capabilities as she rose through the ranks over the years. At present, she is the only woman in the executive management team of the bank. She currently heads NBK-France and Egypt; in addition to her post as board member of NBK (International) — the subsidiary of the bank in the United Kingdom. Al-Bahar was the brain behind the launching of NBK RISE, a program that aims to empower women leaders and train them within nine months to assume leadership posts.
NBK is one of the largest financial institutions in Kuwait and one of the leading banks in the region. The total value of its assets as at the end of March reached more than $135 billion. Group CEO of First Abu Dhabi Bank in the United Arab Emirates Hana Al-Rostamani joins Al-Bahar as the only two women from the Gulf on the list, ranking 76th and 92nd respectively. The Fortune editors compiled the list based on company size and health; in addition to an executive’s career path, influence, innovation, and efforts to make business better.
The 2025 list includes 52 women from the United States of America and 48 from other countries as follows: eight from China; seven each from France and the United Kingdom; three each from Germany, Singapore and Brazil; two each from Australia, Hong Kong, Japan and Spain; and one each from Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Chief Operator at Costco and merchant Claudine Adamo, who ranked 43rd, is one of 16 newcomers. She helped millions of Americans navigate inflation by keeping prices low on essentials, and the next-gen execs such as ByteDance CFO Julie Gao (81st), who steered the finances of the TikTok owner through its tangles with the US government.
Following are the top 10 Most Powerful Women in Business in 2025:
1. Mary Barra, Chair and CEO, GM (U.S.)
2. Julie Sweet, Chair and CEO, Accenture (U.S.)
3. Jane Fraser, CEO, Citigroup (U.S.)
4. Lisa Su, Chair and CEO, AMD (U.S.)
5. Ana Botín, Executive Chairman, Banco Santander (Spain)
6. Tan Su Shan, Deputy CEO and Group Head of Institutional Banking, DBS Group (Singapore)
7. Thasunda Brown Duckett, President and CEO, TIAA (U.S.)
8. Marta Ortega, Chairperson, Inditex (Spain)
9. Abigail Johnson, Chairman and CEO, Fidelity Investments (U.S.)
10. Meng Wanzhou, Deputy Chairwoman, Rotating Chairwoman, and CFO, Huawei (China)
The stock prices of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL) is displayed at the listing ceremony in Hong Kong on May 20. (AP)
BEIJING, May 20, (AP): Asian shares rallied Tuesday after China cut key interest rates to help fend off an economic malaise worsened by trade friction with Washington. Shares in China’s CATL, the world’s largest maker of electric batteries, jumped 17.2% in its Hong Kong trading debut after it raised about $4.6 billion in the world’s largest IPO this year.
Its shares traded in Shenzhen, mainland China’s smaller share market after Shanghai, gained 1.2% after dipping earlier in the day. The Reserve Bank of Austalia reduced its benchmark interest rate by a quarter percentage for a second time this year, to 3.85%, judging inflation to be within its target range. The earlier reduction, in February, was Australia’s first rate cut since October 2020.
The future for the S&P 500 lost 0.4% while that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average was 0.2% lower. In early European trading, Germany’s DAX edged 0.1% higher to 23,954.16 while the CAC 40 in Paris climbed 0.2% to 7,897.13. Britain’s FTSE 100 rose 0.3% to 8,723.97. China’s central bank made its first cut to its loan prime rates in seven months in a move welcomed by investors eager for more stimulus as the world’s second largest economy feels the pinch of Trump’s higher tariffs.
The People’s Bank of China cut the one-year loan prime rate, the reference rate for pricing all new loans and outstanding floating rate loans, to 3.00% from 3.1%. It cut the 5-year loan prime rate to 3.5% from 3.6%. With China’s chief concern being deflation due to slack demand rather than inflation, economists have been expecting such a move.
Data reported Monday showed the economy under pressure from Trump’s trade war, with retail sales and factory output slowing and property investment continuing to fall. Tuesday’s cuts probably won’t be the last this year, Zichun Huang of Capital Economics said in a report. “But modest rate cuts alone are unlikely to meaningfully boost loan demand or wider economic activity,” Huang said. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.4% to 23,659.70 early Tuesday, while the Shanghai Composite index advanced 0.4% to 3,380.48.
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