Chile: Chile Fire in Valparaiso Kills 12 and Forces Thousands to Evacuate
BBC reports that the city of Valparaiso, located on the west of Santiago, got emerged by flames and killed 12 residents. More than 10,000 of people have been evacuated to escape the fire. This is the second emergency that President Bachelet has had to face in the first month of her second term in office, after an 8.2 earthquake hit northern Chile on 1 April.
Switzerland: Swiss National Bank Maintains Exchange Rate Cap
Bloomberg reports that the Swiss National Bank (SNB) maintains the cap on the franc versus the euro which has been fixed at 1.20 since September 2011. SNB President Thomas Jordan said that it would remain in place for the foreseeable future in order to maintain price stability and to avoid negative inflation. Moreover, the SNB said that it was prepared to charge negative interest rates on excess reserves of commercial banks and the IMF already approved these plans.
Eurozone: Eurozone Industrial Output Grows 0.2% in February
As reported by the BBC News, industrial output in the 18-nation eurozone grew by 0.2% in February, in line with analysts’ expectations. Growth was driven by a 0.6% increase in intermediate goods and a 0.5% increase in non-durable consumer goods.
France: Sinking French Economy ‘Afloat’: Finance Minister
Michel Sapin, who took over as Finance Minister following a recent reshuffle of President Francois Hollande’s cabinet, recalls that the French economy was close to sinking during the crisis but is now afloat and poised to gather momentum.
Italy: Italy Inflation-Linked Bond Tops $7 Billion on First Day
Bloomberg reports that the Italian government sold an inflation-linked bond of USD 7 billion with a maturity of six-years. The sale of the bond aimed at retail investors comes after the Rome-based Treasury last week managed to sell one-year and three-year debt at record lows.
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