22 листопада Рада директорів МВФ за підсумками першого перегляду програми stand-by (SBA) погодила виділення Україні траншу кредиту в розмірі близько 700 мільйонів доларів
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As Americans face high prices in stores and at the gas pump, President Joe Biden says he is taking key steps to lower gas prices by opening up strategic reserves and to ease the burden on consumers in other ways. VOA’s Anita Powell reports from the White House.
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Завтра, 24 листопада, Міністерство фінансів має виплатити за попередньо залученими ОВДП відсотків на 4,827 мільярда гривень
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На міжбанківському ринку сесія завершується на рівні 26 гривень 85–87 копійок за долар
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The shutdown of internet access via mobile phone networks that began Saturday dragged on for a fourth day Tuesday. The government said in a statement the shutdown is in the interest of national defense and public security and will last until around 10 p.m. tonight.

VOA talked to some Burkinabes on the streets of Ouagadougou to ask how the shutdown was affecting them and what they thought of the government’s decision.

Alexi Sawadogo, a physician, spoke outside a bank on one of the city’s busy boulevards. He said he was there to check his account balance as the shutdown meant he could no longer do so online. 

“It disconnects us from our friends who are outside the country, with whom we communicate regularly,” he says. He notes that he understands that it is because of the French convoy that was blockaded in the north, but says insecurity is not a valid reason and that the government needs to review its strategy. 

The shutdown has come in the wake of protests in recent days that have blocked a French military supply convoy that is attempting to travel from Ivory Coast to Niger. Protesters say they want an end to French military intervention in the regional war against Islamist militants. 

There have also been protests against the government’s handling of security, after a terrorist group believed to be associated with al-Qai da killed more than 50 military police in an assault on a base in northern Burkina Faso on November 14th. 

Ali Dayorgo, a university student, said the shutdown has affected his ability to work and learn the latest news.

He says he doesn’t understand why the shutdown is happening, but he hears the voice of the Burkinabe youth. “I feel the anger of the youth,” he expressed, adding that even if he doesn’t join protests against insecurity, he supports them.

A funeral for some of the victims of the attack is taking place in Ouagadougou today. 

Drabo Mahamadou is the national executive secretary of the “Save Burkina Faso Movement,” one of the protest groups that is calling for President Roch Kabore to resign. He said they have called on the population to attend Tuesday’s funeral and to attend a protest on Saturday.

He says, because the government is insensitive to pain, we are calling on the population to come out en masse on the 27th. We want [protesters] to prove that this government is not helping Burkina Faso. It is the government that is causing harm to the Burkinabé people.

A government spokesperson could not be reached for comment.

Eloise Bertrand is a research fellow at the University of Portsmouth who focuses on Burkina Faso. She thinks the restrictions on the internet are unwise; pointing out that “this shutdown may well backfire against the government. We can see that civil society groups and stakeholders who were not really involved in protests against the French convoy are annoyed and angered by this internet shutdown.”

Reports suggest the French military convoy is now waiting in the town of Zinaire, about 30 kilometers north of the capital. Protests are also said to be taking place in the town.

With the demonstrations continuing, it remains to be seen if the government will lift the internet shutdown tonight. Further protests are scheduled for Saturday.
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The White House announced Tuesday a coordinated release of millions of barrels of oil from strategic reserves in multiple countries to bring down energy costs.

The U.S. Department of Energy will make available 50 million barrels of oil, according to the White House statement.

China, India, Japan, South Korea and Britain are also participating. The statement did not specify how much oil each of those nations will be releasing.

“American consumers are feeling the impact of elevated gas prices at the pump and in their home heating bills, and American businesses are, too, because oil supply has not kept up with demand as the global economy emerges from the pandemic,” the White House said. “That’s why President Biden is using every tool available to him to work to lower prices and address the lack of supply.”

The Biden administration is also looking at potential price manipulation in oil and gas markets with a Federal Trade Commission investigation.
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Тепер Пауелл має можливість завершити процес найбільш значного перегляду фінансово-кредитної політики США, починаючи з 1970-х років
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U.S. President Joe Biden on Monday reappointed Jerome Powell to a second term as chair of the country’s central bank, the Federal Reserve, saying that Powell has played a pivotal role in helping the United States recover from the worst of the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

Biden’s reappointment of Powell, 68, to one of the most important economic policy positions in the world, ends weeks of speculation in financial markets and in Washington political circles. Some progressive Democrats in Congress had pushed Biden to name Fed Governor Lael Brainard to head the Fed, but the president instead named her as vice chair.

Biden’s appointment of Powell, a Republican and former private equity executive, to another four-year term is a rare instance in which he renamed a key official first appointed by his Republican predecessor, former President Donald Trump, as the Fed chief.

Financial markets greeted the Powell reappointment favorably, with all major U.S. stock indexes up sharply in early trading Monday.

In politically fractious Washington, Powell enjoys wide bipartisan support and is expected to again win Senate confirmation. Of the 84 lawmakers who voted for him four years ago, 68 of them are still in office, equally split between Democrats and Republicans.

Powell was first named to the Fed’s seven-member policy-making board a decade ago by then-President Barack Obama, another Democrat, before being elevated to Fed chair by Trump. Biden also has three other current or upcoming vacancies to fill on the Fed board, which broadly sets economic policy for the U.S., the world’s largest economy.

Biden said the U.S. has made “remarkable progress over the last 10 months in getting Americans back to work and getting our economy moving again,” and praised the work of Powell and Brainard. Under Powell, the Fed provided stimulus money to boost the recovery.

“As I’ve said before, we can’t just return to where we were before the pandemic, we need to build our economy back better, and I’m confident that Chair Powell and Dr. Brainard’s focus on keeping inflation low, prices stable, and delivering full employment will make our economy stronger than ever before,” Biden said in a statement.

“Together, they also share my deep belief that urgent action is needed to address the economic risks posed by climate change and stay ahead of emerging risks in our financial system,” the president said.

“Fundamentally, if we want to continue to build on the economic success of this year, we need stability and independence at the Federal Reserve – and I have full confidence after their trial by fire over the last 20 months that Chair Powell and Dr. Brainard will provide the strong leadership our country needs,” Biden said.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, herself a former Fed chair, praised Powell’s reappointment, as did several Republican senators.

“The steady leadership of Chair Powell & the Federal Reserve helped ensure our economy was able to recover from a once-in-a-generation health & economic crisis,” Yellen said. “I’m pleased our economy will continue to benefit from his stewardship, & the expertise & experience of Lael Brainard.”
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Торги на українському міжбанківському валютному ринку завершуються на рівні 26 гривень 73–75 копійок за долар
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