Bloomberg Business

Banks in Europe are facing flagging demand for loans amid rising borrowing costs and industry turmoil, but they remain optimistic about profitability from higher lending rates.

CVS Health Corp. cut its earnings forecast for the year as it looks to pay for two major acquisitions that are central to its strategy of broadening its health-care services.

South African Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago unveiled upgraded banknotes on Wednesday that will incorporate enhanced security features, including color-changing ink, to prevent counterfeiting.

Nordstrom Inc. plans to give up its store in downtown San Francisco, becoming the latest retailer to depart the area as the city struggles with emptied office buildings and crime concerns.

Wheat held near a two-year low as officials from the Black Sea region agreed to negotiate the continuation of the Ukraine grain deal, before a looming Russian deadline for leaving the pact.

China and Vietnam have tumbled to join North Korea at the very bottom of the latest World Press Freedom Index, while Russia also moved lower.

Brazil’s Federal Police carried out searches in the home of the former president Jair Bolsonaro on Wednesday, according to a source involved in the investigations.

Kenya’s economy fared below expectations in the fourth quarter as tighter financial conditions and spending cuts by the government weighed on manufacturing and consumption.

The European Union’s executive proposed stricter rules aimed at lifting immunity in criminal investigations faster as part of an overhaul of anti-corruption laws amid scandals such as the Qatar bribery affair that’s roiled the bloc’s own parliament.

Higher interest rates and lower loan impairments flattered Lloyds Banking Group Plc’s earnings in the first quarter, as the lender said the benefits from higher interest rates have likely peaked.