MUMBAI, April 20 (Reuters) - The Reserve Bank of India on April 20 rolled back key parts of emergency rules it imposed earlier in April to curb speculative trades that had pushed the rupee to record lows. The April 1 ban on banks offering non‑deliverable forwards (NDFs) and the prohibition on rebooking cancelled forward contracts have been withdrawn. The central bank also relaxed restrictions on related‑party transactions to permit cancellation and rollover of existing contracts and back‑to‑back deals with non‑resident entities, while keeping a $100 million cap on banks’ net open rupee positions in the onshore market. The measures were first introduced after the rupee slid past 95 to the dollar in late March amid geopolitical uncertainty and rising crude prices; the currency recovered about 2% after initial curbs and has since traded in roughly a 92.50–93.50 range. RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra and officials have framed the curbs as temporary; the partial rollback is aimed at restoring normal hedging activity while maintaining guardrails against arbitrage and speculative positioning.

On April 20, 2026 California Attorney General Rob Bonta unsealed court filings alleging Amazon.com pressured vendors and intermediaries to push competing retailers to raise prices, part of a 2022 antitrust suit. The 16‑page document cites more than a dozen instances in which Amazon flagged lower prices on rival sites and asked suppliers — including Levi Strauss, Hanes, Scotts and others — to “look into” or “fix” prices at Walmart, Home Depot, Chewy and Target. Examples cited include khaki pants, fertilizer, eye drops and pet treats. Bonta is seeking a preliminary injunction to halt the conduct while the case proceeds; a hearing is set for July 23 and trial is scheduled to begin Jan. 19, 2027. Amazon called the filing a distraction and said its agreements with vendors are legal and benefit consumers. The unsealed evidence adds to separate federal and multi‑state antitrust actions, and comes after Amazon overtook Walmart in revenue in 2025, underscoring scrutiny of the company’s market practices.

Kevin Warsh, President Donald Trump’s nominee to succeed Jerome Powell as Federal Reserve chair, told lawmakers in prepared remarks released April 20 that he is “committed to ensuring that the conduct of monetary policy remains strictly independent,” while saying that the Fed should “stay in its lane” on fiscal and social issues. The 56‑year‑old former Fed governor and Hoover Institution fellow said operational independence is strongest for monetary policy but does not extend fully to the Fed’s stewardship of public monies, bank supervision or international finance. Warsh reiterated that “inflation is a choice” and argued the central bank must restore price stability, while pledging reforms at the institution. His Senate Banking Committee confirmation hearing is scheduled for Tuesday; the process faces potential delays as some Republicans have linked action to an ongoing Justice Department probe into Powell over a Fed headquarters renovation and other political pressure from the White House for large rate cuts. Warsh’s background includes a 2006–2011 term as a Fed governor and advocacy of rule‑based and tighter monetary approaches in public commentary.

April 20, 2026 — Agnico Eagle Mines announced a trio of transactions to consolidate a large land package in Finland’s Central Lapland Greenstone Belt. The Toronto-based miner will acquire Rupert Resources in a deal valued at C$2.9 billion, buy Aurion Resources for about C$481 million in cash (C$2.60 per share) and acquire B2Gold’s 70% stake in the Fingold joint venture for $325 million. The moves, expected to close with the B2Gold sale this month and the Rupert and Aurion deals by early Q3 2026, will integrate the Ikkari project with Agnico’s existing Kittilä mine, consolidating roughly 2,492 sq km of tenure. Agnico projects the combined Finland assets could form a long‑life hub producing about 500,000 ounces of gold annually, and expects up to C$500 million in operating and development synergies from shared infrastructure and removed property boundaries. The company plans C$20 million of drilling at Ikkari over 18 months and C$60–100 million in a three‑year regional exploration programme. Market reaction on the announcement saw Agnico shares fall (~2.7%) while Rupert and Aurion jumped sharply.

MILAN/FRANKFURT, April 20, 2026 — UniCredit outlined a detailed plan to overhaul Commerzbank after building roughly a 30% stake since September 2024 and launching a 35 billion-euro all-share offer in March. In an unscheduled analyst call on April 20 the Italian bank presented a value-creation proposal that would cut costs (targeting international operations and “rampant bureaucracy”), invest about 1.7 billion euros in technology and reskilling, and lift Commerzbank’s 2028 profit consensus by about 600 million euros. UniCredit said it does not seek immediate full control and expects regulatory approvals by Q2 2027, keeping the banks separate for 18–24 months if the deal proceeds. Berlin and Commerzbank management have rejected the bid; German Chancellor Friedrich Merz reiterated opposition and unions and the German state (a major shareholder) have raised concerns. UniCredit warned it can avoid being declared in control under German rules (a threshold that can be reached around 40% depending on turnout) and flagged possible forced cash buyouts of minority holders in Commerzbank’s Polish unit mBank. UniCredit projects substantial synergies from a tie-up, including up to €21 billion net profit by 2030 in some scenarios.

Tesla faces a pivotal earnings report after markets close April 22 as its energy storage business increasingly offsets weakness in vehicle margins and fading high-margin regulatory credits. Wall Street estimates the energy unit will generate about $18.3 billion in 2026, with gross margins near 29%, and could account for roughly a fifth of total revenue. Analysts model Tesla’s Q1 revenue at about $21.2 billion and vehicle deliveries near 358,000, but automotive gross margin is expected to fall to the mid-teens. CEO Elon Musk’s push to build new assembly lines and robots — a roughly $20 billion program this year — is forecast to push Tesla to its first quarter of negative cash flow in two years (estimated cash burn about $1.44 billion). Operational signs are mixed: energy deployments were 8.8 GWh in Q1 (down 15% year-on-year) even as revenue share rises. At the same time Tesla is managing legal and regulatory noise: a U.S. DOJ decision not to assist French investigators probing X, a planned interview of Musk in Paris, a class-action suit claiming misleading FSD hardware claims, and Tesla China denying immediate mass robot production in Shanghai. Insider selling and lofty valuation metrics add to investor scrutiny.