Aurelia Butler

The March reading was the lowest since October 2021, and came in slightly below the consensus forecast of 6.90%, as determined by a Reuters poll. February’s inflation rate stood at 7.62%.Still, core inflation, which strips out volatile food and energy prices, slowed to 8.09% from 8.29% the previous month.”Core inflation was impacted by the high readings in services, driven by the seasonal increase in airfares and tourism packages, and food services,” Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) economist Alberto Ramos wrote in a research note. Easing inflation for processed food prices also marked a positive sign, Bank of Mexico Deputy Governor Jonathan Heath wrote Wednesday on Twitter, but the category remains the “most concerning” given an annual rate of 12.69% and the impact of processed food prices on household spending. Heath also expressed concern about rising inflation for “other services,” a core inflation category that includes a broad range of services like medical consultations and car repair and which reached a peak annual rate of 7.73% in March.Month-on-month, Mexico’s headline consumer price index rose by 0.27% in March, just under the 0.31% forecast in a Reuters poll.The latest data came hours before heads of state from 11 Latin American and Caribbean countries met virtually to discuss a regional anti-inflation roadmap. The participating leaders, including the presidents of Mexico, Chile, Argentina, Brazil and Colombia, agreed to outline new measures to fight rising prices and facilitate regional trade, Mexico’s government said Wednesday, adding that a high-level anti-inflation summit was agreed to be held in Mexico May 6-7.Last week, Mexico’s central bank hiked its key interest rate to 11.25%, but moderating the pace of its tightening cycle.Banxico has raised rates by 725 basis points since its rate-hiking cycle started in June 2021 to combat inflation. More

NEW YORK (Reuters) -Big market swings in March sparked by a banking crisis hurt some hedge fund returns with global macro firm Rokos Capital Management reporting double digit losses. Firms that concentrate on stocks, however, rode a late month market rally to small gains, according to investors and industry data.Macro systematic funds, which place their bets based on algorithmic and technical models, fell 6.7% in March, its worst monthly performance in over five years, Bank of America (NYSE:BAC) (BofA) said in a note. Trend-following funds, also known as CTAs, lost 2.5% in March.Many hedge funds are still compiling March and first quarter numbers, but preliminary reports from research firm Hedge Fund Research showed the average hedge fund was off 1% last month and ended the quarter flat.Some types of funds posted positive numbers.Tiger Global, which was battered by last year’s reversal in tech stocks, posted at 5.2% gain in March, leaving it up 7.3% in the quarter when large technology companies saw gains.Relative value arbitrage portfolio managers, who buy and sell different types of securities to benefit from their relative value, gained 1.1%, while fundamental value and equity hedge funds gained 0.9% and 0.8% respectively, BofA said. London-based hedge fund Rokos Capital Management ended March down roughly 15%, amid a highly volatile month in the bond market, according to a source familiar with the matter, based on preliminary data.The macro hedge fund is down nearly 9.5% year-to-date through March, the source added. To contain sharp losses in March, Rokos decided to cut the risk, it said in a letter to investors last month. This year’s loss contrasts with last year’s eye-popping 51% gain.March’s bond market turmoil hurt macro and trend-following hedge funds, as a rapid reversal in expectations for interest rates caught portfolio managers wrong-footed after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank (OTC:SBNY).Big multi-strategy funds that pursue a variety of investment types and tightly control risk like Citadel and Point72 reported gains for March and are up for the year. Citadel’s flagship Wellington fund rose 1.38% in March for a 4.19% gain in the first quarter. Point72 rose 1.33% in March and is up 2.85% for the year.The Balyasny Atlas (NYSE:ATCO) Enhanced fund gained 0.8% in March and is up 1% for the year. Verition is down 0.25% for March and up 0.95% for the first quarter and Schonfeld Strategic Partners fund rose 0.3% in March and now is 0.03% in the year. Representatives for the funds declined to comment.A Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) report, based on returns posted by the bank’s prime brokerage’s clients, showed fundamental long/short funds gained 1.04% in March. The S&P 500 rose 3.5%, the Nasdaq gained 6.7% and the Dow Jones was up 1.9%. More

(Reuters) -Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc sued fast-casual dining rival Sweetgreen Inc in California federal court Tuesday, claiming the salad chain’s new “Chipotle Chicken Burrito Bowl” violates its trademark rights.Chipotle’s lawsuit said Sweetgreen’s “very similar and directly competitive” bowl is an attempt to capitalize on the Chipotle brand and likely to confuse consumers. Sweetgreen said in a statement that it was aware of the lawsuit and does not comment on pending litigation. The company’s stock price was down more than 11% early on Wednesday afternoon.Chipotle chief corporate affairs officer Laurie Schalow said in a statement that the company will “take appropriate actions whenever necessary” to protect its trademarks.Sweetgreen announced the bowl in a March 30 press release, describing it as “the latest iteration of Sweetgreen’s menu innovation strategy, as the brand evolves beyond salads to introduce a bowl without any greens.”Chipotle’s lawsuit said Sweetgreen advertises the bowl using the word “Chipotle” in the same font and style as the Mexican-food chain and uses a background with Chipotle’s trademarked “Adobo Red” color.The lawsuit said Sweetgreen continued infringing despite a cease-and-desist letter and phone call from Chipotle’s legal department. Chipotle said it suggested changing the name to something that uses “chipotle in lower-case, in a textual sentence, to accurately describe ingredients of its menu item,” like a “chicken bowl with chipotle.”Chipotle asked the court for an order blocking Sweetgreen from using the “Chipotle” name and an unspecified amount of money damages.The case is Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc (NYSE:CMG) v. Sweetgreen Inc, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California, No. 8:23-cv-00596. More

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Boeing Co said on Wednesday it had restarted deliveries of its widebody 767 after a three-month pause caused by supplier quality issues.The U.S. planemaker was forced to halt deliveries of the 767F freighter and KC-46 tanker earlier this year after it discovered center fuel tanks made by a supplier were not properly sealed. Boeing (NYSE:BA) declined to comment on when 767 deliveries restarted, but flight data shows it handed over a 767F freighter to FedEx (NYSE:FDX) on March 24. The same day, Boeing’s defense unit tweeted that a KC-46 tanker had been delivered to the U.S. Air Force. Another FedEx freighter flew from Paine Field north of Seattle to Indianapolis on Tuesday.Before that, its most recent 767 deliveries occurred in December. While Boeing maintained the fuel tank issue would not impact its ability to meet annual delivery goals, the company had to remove and repaint the center fuel tank of affected aircraft before deliveries could resume. Stan Deal, head of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, told reporters last week that the company would resume 767 freighter deliveries “shortly,” with KC-46 tanker deliveries following afterwards. “We have a paint adhesion (problem), the sealer did not adhere properly. So, we’ve got to go in and make sure that it’s all conforming. It’s taken quite a bit of time to do,” Deal said, adding that the company was still evaluating how many aircraft will need to be reworked.Aircraft deliveries are closely monitored by Wall Street, as customers hand over the bulk of their payment to Boeing when they pick up their planes. However, the influx of cash from 767 deliveries may be partially offset by a new charge on the KC-46 program caused by the fuel tank flaw. Boeing will disclose the charge, which is expected to be lower than $500 million, during its first-quarter earnings on April 26, Chief Financial Officer Brian West said in March. Under the terms of its fixed-price contract with the U.S. Air Force, Boeing is responsible for paying for all expenses in excess of $4.9 billion and has taken $6.8 billion in charges so far. More

The UK government on Wednesday set out proposals to introduce full customs checks on goods entering Britain from the EU by the end of October 2024, more than three-and-a-half years after originally planned. While the new rules are required by Britain’s post-Brexit trade agreement with the EU, their introduction has been repeatedly delayed since the UK officially withdrew from the bloc on January 31, 2020, with ministers fearing they could create unacceptable delays at Channel ports and other entry points. The proposals announced on Wednesday were designed to address these concerns, with stripped back plans that included carrying out checks away from ports to avoid causing disruption, and the launch of a pilot trusted trader scheme to simplify processes and allow regular importers to avoid full customs inspections. They also propose that goods are ranked according to their level of risk to human, animal or plant health. The Cabinet Office insisted it was its “firm intention” to press ahead with the first phase of controls in October this year.Baroness Lucy Neville-Rolfe, the minister in charge of the process, insisted the plans struck the correct balance between guaranteeing the security of goods entering the UK and ensuring that trade flowed freely.“Our proposals strike a balance between giving consumers and businesses confidence while reducing the costs and friction for businesses,” she said.Lord Benyon, biosecurity minister, said it was “vital” the UK had strong borders in place. “Invasive diseases could cost our farms and businesses billions of pounds, threaten our food safety and break confidence in UK exports around the world,” he said.

The National Farmers Union welcomed the proposals. “For the past three years, our farmers have faced the full gamut of EU controls on our exports while the EU has enjoyed continued easy access to the UK marketplace,” said the NFU’s president Minette Batters. “As we mark ten years on from the horsemeat scandal, and with food fraud stories so recently making the headlines, it is critical that a robust system of import checks is put in place as quickly as possible and there are no further delays.”However, Shane Brennan, chief executive of the Cold Chain Federation, representing refrigerated food traders, pointed out that when similar customs checks were brought in on goods flowing from the UK to the EU, the increased bureaucracy forced many smaller UK businesses to stop exporting.“There’s nothing in what is proposed in this model that suggests we won’t have exactly the same experience coming the other way,” Brennan said.Andrew Opie, director of food and security for the British Retail Consortium, the retail trade body, said it was “imperative” the government stepped up its engagement with retailers and their European suppliers to avoid disruption.“Ports and farmers will . . . need to be ready for physical checks from January, when the UK is particularly reliant on imported produce,” Opie pointed out.The plans will be subject to a six-week consultation period before being finalised. More

LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) – The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has given Argentina something of break by easing economic targets in its $44 billion loan deal, but some rosier-than-reality program forecasts may be setting the South American country up for more failure.The IMF this week cut the level of foreign currency reserves Argentina needs to build up by the end of this year by $1.8 billion, citing a major drought that has hammered production of top exports soy and corn. It sharply lowered the target for Q1.But, analysts pointed to some “optimistic” presumptions in the Washington-based lender’s review of the country, saying that inflation aims, crop production, fiscal targets and even reserves buildup aims already looked out of Argentina’s reach.The IMF pegged 2023 inflation at 60% versus most analyst forecasts above 100%. It has trimmed its outlook for main cash crop soy, but at 45.5 million tonnes soars above local grains exchanges forecasting a harvest of 25 million to 27 million tonnes. Its growth forecast at 2% jars with many predicting a contraction.”In our assessment, these forecasts are overly optimistic,” Sergio Armella at Goldman Sachs (NYSE:GS) wrote in a report, adding Argentina seemed unlikely to have even met adjusted reserves and fiscal targets for the recently completed first quarter.Armella added that Argentina, the IMF’s biggest debtor, would face rising pressures later in the year as the country barreled toward elections in October where the government faces a battle to hold onto power, with poverty levels rising.”The risk that authorities deviate further from the program’s targets will increase ahead of the Oct presidential elections and the (primary) elections in the summer,” he said.An IMF spokesperson said that a revision is forthcoming in the world economic outlook, and the Fund “will assess all end-March targets in the next review.” Argentina reserves https://www.reuters.com/graphics/ARGENTINA-IMF/zgvobaqojpd/chart.png COMMITMENT TO THE PROGRAM?Argentina – a serial defaulter which has long battled high inflation, currency weakness and indebtedness – struck a $57 billion deal with the IMF in 2018 to try and fix its economic woes. That deal failed and a new program was agreed last year.However, high global prices linked to the war in Ukraine and one of Argentina’s worst-ever droughts has hit the country’s ability to stabilize its economy and build up much-needed foreign currency, putting even the new deal under pressure.”A commitment to stick to the program … could become more challenging as the election approaches,” said Stuart Culverhouse, chief economist and head of fixed income research at Tellimer Research.”Evidence of weakening commitment, across the political spectrum, could endanger the completion of upcoming reviews.”Those reviews of how Argentina is doing against its economic targets are linked to scheduled disbursements of funds. Failure to meet the targets could stall the program or force the IMF to adjust the targets further.Kimberley Sperrfechter, Latin America economist at Capital Economics, wrote in a note that it remained a “tall order” for Argentina to meet its reserve accumulation target by year-end, despite it being cut to $8 billion from $9.8 billion.The IMF net reserve targets are the amount Argentina needs to accumulate over time above a baseline of $2.277 billion at the end of 2021. IMF officials said that by March 23 net reserves were around $1 billion below the March-end target.”The historic drought afflicting Argentina will cause a steeper contraction in GDP than most expect this year and intensify balance of payments strains by reducing export earnings to the tune of 2-3% of GDP,” she said.”That will make it hard to meet the IMF’s (downwardly revised) FX reserve target and increases the risk of a disorderly devaluation.” More