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In this special round-up on China’s annual Two Sessions parliamentary meeting, the government does not set a growth target for 2020 but raises the budget deficit to at least 3.6% of GDP. It also plans to issue Rmb1tr ($140bn) of special ‘anti-pandemic’ treasury bonds.

In this round-up, China’s central bank leaves the benchmark loan prime rate (LPR) unchanged for May, the stock exchanges of Shanghai and Shenzhen will allow companies to sell bonds with maturities under one year, and fund manager Fidelity International is looking to break into the onshore mutual fund industry.

China Southern Asset Management is in a strong position to capture opportunities in the Mainland’s rapidly growing equity fund market. The rising competition in this segment is only set to push it harder.

In the classic UK sitcom Yes, Minister, cunning civil servant Sir Humphrey Appleby would try to deter government minister Jim Hacker from making a particular decision by calling it "courageous" — meaning it was risky. He might have given similar advice to bankers on the IPO of coffee company JDE Peet’s this week.

Bank balance sheets are set to expand and Intesa's will be no exception. It will mean an an increased reliance on central bank funding. But apart from this, the Italian bank's mix of funding is likely to remain unchanged from February with the emphasis on regulatory capital. But as Alessandro Lolli, head of group treasury and finance told GlobalCapital, the bank has great flexibility in navigating its capital raising during the pandemic.

Bonds are back, baby! Or at least that’s what my banker friend is telling me.

GlobalCapital has made the difficult but hopefully understandable decision to postpone our 2020 Bond Awards, but we are now relaunching them today.

Unlike many banks, NordLB had been actively reducing its balance sheet well before the coronavirus crisis hit, so its need for funding is more modest than most. Though it seems likely Pfandbrief issuance will eventually return, German borrowers are hesitant to come to market, especially when there is cheap, plentiful central bank funding available. And, while Pfandbrief investors are well protected, it seems likely that a slow recovery in the commercial real estate market and a more questionable outlook for SME lending, will take its toll on lenders’ business models.

What is the significance of the agreement between German chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron on a European recovery package, funded through EU debt? GlobalCapital discussed it with Shahin Vallée, a senior fellow at the German Council on Foreign Relations (DGAP) and previously an economic adviser to Macron when he was France’s economy minister.

Banks want to position themselves as ahead of the curve on sustainability. They are among the most sophisticated, well resourced, IT-savvy organisations in the world. Why can't they work out the carbon footprints of their portfolios?

Governments across the world are scrambling to conjure up funds to offset the financial devastation of the coronavirus pandemic, including in the UK, which is expected to raise about £250bn between April and August alone. GlobalCapital spoke to Roger Bootle, economist and chairman of Capital Economics and recent author of “The AI Economy”, about the long-term implications of the UK’s higher borrowing.

Chinese investment banks have a clear edge over their global counterparts when it comes to winning more offshore bond mandates from the country in the post Covid-19 environment.