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  FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Shares in Deutsche Pfandbriefbank (PBB) dropped 7.5% on Thursday after a cut to its credit rating on concerns over the lender’s exposure to the commercial real estate sector. The bank, which is one of Germany’s largest real estate financers, last week sought to reassure investors that it has enough funds to cope with a property slump that has cast a shadow over numerous lenders. Ratings agency S&P cut PBB’s rating to BBB-/A-3 from BBB/A-2 late on Wednesday with a negative outlook, sending the bank’s shares down 7.5% in Frankfurt on Thursday morning. “The negative outlook reflects our view that weak (commercial real estate) markets, notably in the U.S., could increase the cost of risk in PBB’s highly concentrated loan portfolio,” S&P said. https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/german-lender-pbbs-shares-plunge-after-sp-rating-cut/

  www.globalbankingandfinance.com/explainer-why-the-5-2-billion-sale-of-russias-yandex-is-significant/ LONDON (Reuters) – A $5.2 billion cash and share deal to sell the key Russian assets of technology group Yandex, often labelled as “Russia’s Google”, to a consortium of Russian investors was announced on Monday after months of negotiations. Here’s why the deal is significant. RUSSIA’S LARGEST TECH ASSET Moscow has long sought to gain more influence over Yandex, set up in the dotcom boom in the late 1990s, as it became a key player in online services such as search and advertising, email, ride-hailing, e-commerce, cloud and streaming. The sale to a group of Russian investors would bring Yandex under the control of only Russian entities for the first time. Yandex, which went public on Nasdaq in 2011 through its Dutch-registered holding company Yandex NV, has a free-float of almost 88%, with many Western investors among its shareholders.

  https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/european-stocks-surge-dollar-gains-as-fed-decision-looms/ NEW YORK/LONDON (Reuters) -European shares surged to their highest since January 2022 and bond yields on both sides of the Atlantic eased on Monday even as markets scaled back what investors deemed had been overly ambitious bets on policy rate reductions at the end of 2023. Stocks on Wall Street were little changed and the U.S. dollar advanced at the start of a packed week of big corporate earnings, European inflation data, Federal Reserve and Bank of England policy meetings and U.S. jobs numbers for January. Europe’s broad STOXX 600 index briefly touched a fresh two-year high and traded slightly higher on the day after its biggest weekly gain in over two months last week. [.EU] The dollar rose and the euro sank to almost a seven-week low, breaking below the 1.08 mark, as the market dialled back expectations of the extent of rate cuts this year by the Fed and European Central Bank (ECB),

 LONDON (Reuters) -Oil prices rose on Monday as traders weighed the impact of wars in the Middle East and Ukraine on oil supply against economic headwinds dampening global oil demand. Brent crude rose 90 cents to $79.46 a barrel by 1450 GMT. The front-month U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures contract for February delivery was up $1.10 at $74.42 a barrel in tepid trade, with the contract set to expire on Monday. The more active March WTI contract was up 91 cents at $74.16. “While oil prices have firmed up a little, it is strange that they have not risen further, given the rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East,” said Gary Dugan, chief investment officer at Dalma Capital. “Part of the reason why oil prices have remained in check could be the market’s anticipation that global growth is slowing. https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/oil-rises-as-geopolitics-counter-demand-concerns/

  LONDON (Reuters) -Oil prices dipped on Monday as Middle East conflict’s limited impact on crude output prompted profit taking after oil benchmarks gained 2% last week. Brent crude futures were down 49 cents at $77.80 a barrel by 1051 GMT and U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude lost 51 cents to to $72.17. Several tanker owners steered clear of the Red Sea and multiple tankers changed course on Friday after U.S. and Britain launched strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen after the Iran-backed group’s attacks on shipping in response to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. The conflict has also held up at least four liquefied natural gas tankers travelling in the area. https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/oil-slips-despite-middle-east-conflict/

 LONDON (Reuters) — Countries making up over 60% of the world’s economic output and more than half of its population hold elections this year. Taiwanese voters on Saturday swept the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s presidential candidate Lai Ching-te into power, rejecting Chinese pressure to spurn him. And on Monday, U.S. Republican presidential candidates face the party’s first nominating contest in Iowa. Here’s a look at key elections in focus for markets, in roughly chronological order. 1/ EUROPE Dates: March 10 (Portugal), June 9 (Belgium), June 6–9 (European Parliament), autumn/winter (Croatia), November (Romania), to be confirmed (Austria) https://www.globalbankingandfinance.com/how-an-election-packed-2024-could-swing-world-markets/