In The News

Stream of Foreign Wealth Flows to Elite New York Real Estate

Louise Story and Stephanie Saul February 16, 2015
Purchase of high-cost US real estate has become less transparent even as the nation tries to battle tax evasion with overseas accounts. Louise Story and Stephanie Saul investigate purchases of elite condos by foreign billionaires in the heart of Manhattan for the New York Times. The source of money for such sales is difficult to identify with US laws permitting movement of funds through shell...

US Government Faces Pressure After Biggest Leak in Banking History

Paul Lewis February 9, 2015
A huge leak of undeclared bank accounts will prompt regulators and justice officials to explain the investigation’s status and punishments. The data suggest that suggests the Swiss offices of HSBC helped clients – hedge fund managers, athletes, fashion models, entertainers and royalty, including the king of Jordan – hide more than $100 billion in assets. So far, 61 of 106,000 clients have been...

Chinese Stocks Plummet 8 Percent

Scott Cendrowski January 19, 2015
Chinese regulators suspended three large brokerage firms from extending margin accounts – essentially loans – for new clients for three months, and that led the Shanghai market index to plummet by more than 7 percent, the biggest drop in six years, reports Fortune. “The regulator also punished nine different brokerages for allowing unqualified traders to open leveraged accounts, Xinhua reported,...

Europe’s Cheap Borrowing Costs Lure Corporate Fundraising

Sally Bakewell and Cordell Eddings December 30, 2014
Borrowing costs in Europe have fallen against dollar rates, to near half in some cases, and Bloomberg anticipates US firms to issue more bonds in euros. “Apple Inc. (AAPL), Verizon Communications Inc. and Albemarle Corp. led 68 billion euros ($83 billion) of bond issuance by American borrowers this year, the busiest since 2007 and 45 percent higher than 2013, according to data compiled by...

Clouds Over Charities for Refugees in Islamic Countries

Susan Froetschel December 18, 2014
The world has 50 million displaced people, and refugees have little choice but to depend on other countries and their citizens for generosity. Faith-based charities are often among the first to respond to humanitarian crises, notes the UN Refugee Agency, and Islamic faith-based charities are active in Pakistan, Iran, Lebanon, Jordan and Turkey – lead host nations for refugees. Fundraising by...

How Crude Oil’s Global Collapse Unfolded

Russell Gold December 17, 2014
The price of oil has fell from $110 per barrel to about $60 per barrel for a combination of reasons: Increased US oil production has upended global markets; Nigeria once delivered a million barrels a day to the US; that dropped to zero this summer. Now oil-producing nations like Nigeria, Saudi Arabia and Iran hunt for new customers and compete for Asian markets. At the same time, demand lags in...

The Olympic Games and Asia’s Rise

Susan Brownell November 27, 2014
The Olympics are global mega events. The world briefly pauses to admire athletic skill and dedication. The audience also assesses the host city’s customs and capability. Anthropology professor Susan Brownell points out that the Olympic Games are increasingly being hosted by nontraditional powers like China. “Concern that this is a sign of Asia’s rise and the West’s decline is unfounded,” she...