Charles Schwab is facing risks due to unrealized losses of over $29 billion on its balance sheet from 2022. As a result, Schwab shares have lost over a quarter of their value since March 8, with some analysts expecting earnings to suffer. The company’s CEO, Walt Bettinger, said the company is healthy and prepared to withstand the turmoil.

The Bank of England lifted the UK’s interest rates by 25 bps, the eleventh rate hike in a row. The interest rates were increased from 4% to 4.25%, reaching 15-year highs, with the aim of bringing inflation down.

The Swiss National Bank joined the Fed with another rate hike of 50 bps. The interest rates were increased from 1% to 1.5%, the highest since 2008. The central bank suggested more rate hikes could occur this year. 

The Federal Reserve raised interest rates by 25 bps as expected, from 4.75% to 5%. The news pushed Bitcoin to $29,000 and Nasdaq close to $13,000.

The annual inflation rate in the UK unexpectedly jumped from 10.1% to 10.4%, significantly higher than the 9.9% forecast. Lebanon’s inflation surged from 123.53% to 189.67%. South Africa’s inflation jumped by 0.1% from 6.9% to 7%.

Canada’s annual inflation rate dropped to 5.2% from the previous month’s 5.9%. This is the lowest reading since January 2022 and falls short of the market’s projection of 5.4%. Core inflation decreased as well, from 5% to 4.7%.

Thursday saw an almost 1% increase in European stock indices on hopes that central banks will soon halt their tightening cycle. Global risk sentiment improved as worries about the recent banking turmoil subsided. The STOXX 600 jumped to 455 while DAX 40 surged to 15,500.

Ripple (XRP) jumped an additional 12% to $0.58, as investors hope the lawsuit between the SEC and Ripple is coming to an end. The cryptocurrency is already up 65% in the last 2 weeks.

Saudi Aramco is working with China to build a $12.2 billion oil refinery. The refinery will be in northeast China, and it is expected to be fully operational in 2026. About 300,000 barrels of oil a day will be housed at the refinery.

The announcement of Alibaba’s plan to divide itself into six distinct businesses boosted the stock by 13%. This reorganization may result in many IPOs down the road. The segments would be cloud, e-commerce, global e-commerce, digital mapping, logistics, and a media arm.

Five large banks in France were reportedly targeted by investigators as part of a €100 billion fraud probe. French and German  governments were involved because of a possible money laundering allegation. The banks under investigation are HSBC, Societe Generale, BNP Paribas, Exane, and Natixis.

Charles Schwab is facing risks due to unrealized losses of over $29 billion on its balance sheet from 2022. As a result, Schwab shares have lost over a quarter of their value since March 8, with some analysts expecting earnings to suffer. The company’s CEO, Walt Bettinger, said the company is healthy and prepared to withstand the turmoil.