A judge ruled that President Donald Trump's administration must arrange for the return of a group of alleged Venezuelan gang members deported to a prison in El Salvador.

US District Judge James Boasberg ruled that about 137 men sent in March to the notorious CECOT prison deserve to return to the US to contest in court how they were designated for removal without due process under the 1798 Alien Enemies Act. Boasberg said the government must "facilitate" their return and submit a plan within two weeks.

Boasberg declared Monday that the men "should not have been removed in the manner that they were, with virtually no notice and no opportunity to contest the bases of their removal, in clear contravention of their due-process rights." Even though the men were later sent to Venezuela, he said, the court continued to have jurisdiction over them.

As a result, the US must "undo the effects of their unlawful removal by facilitating a meaningful opportunity to contest their designation" as alien enemies under a law previously used only in wartime, and the validity of Trump's proclamation invoking that statute, Boasberg ruled.

Boasberg has clashed repeatedly with Trump's administration since he unsuccessfully ordered the return of planes carrying suspected gang members to the prison on March 15. The planes proceeded anyway, and the US Supreme Court upheld his ruling that the detainees should have had notice and a chance to make their case to a judge before they were deported.

The judge has also investigated whether Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and others were in contempt of court for the Venezuelan deportations. But the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit temporarily halted hearings he had scheduled to start Dec. 15 after the US argued he has no constitutional authority to proceed and compel testimony from current and former government attorneys. The panel said it's still reviewing the case.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Source: Bloomberg Europe

South Korea's National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac affirmed good ties with senior Japanese cabinet members during discussions held in Tokyo, ahead of a visit by President Lee Jae Myung to Japan expected early next year.

Wi spoke with Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara and Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi in two separate meetings on Monday. Wi confirmed with both Kihara and Motegi the importance of a forward-looking and stable development of ties between Seoul and Tokyo, and agreed that the governments will continue to work together closely, according to statements from Japan's Foreign Ministry.

Motegi also said that Japan and South Korea are important neighbors and should work together on various international issues as partners, and pointed to the increasing importance of cooperation not only between Japan and South Korea, but also trilaterally with the US as the security environment becomes increasingly tense, according to the statement.

Local media have reported that preparations are underway for Lee to visit Japan in mid-January to meet with Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. Some reports have said the meeting may take place in Takaichi's native prefecture of Nara, in western Japan.

A meeting between the leaders in January would happen as relations between Tokyo and Seoul remain stable after a warming of ties in 2023, when the two governments agreed to put their differences, including various wartime compensation issues, behind them to cultivate a forward-looking relationship.

Japan and South Korea have a long history of tension dating back to Japan's annexation of South Korea, which ended in 1945 with Japan's surrender in World War Two. Lingering disputes over wartime issues have flared at times, overshadowing cooperation between the two nations.

The meeting would happen as a dispute between the region's two biggest economies, Japan and China, shows no signs of abating after Takaichi's comments on a possible Taiwan contingency incurred the wrath of Beijing.

Source: Bloomberg Europe

JPMorgan Chase & Co. has reclaimed its top spot in India's equity offerings for the first time in five years, seizing the lead from Kotak Mahindra Capital Co. in one of the world's busiest fundraising markets.

The Wall Street bank's market share has nearly doubled from a year ago to more than 11%, after it was credited with 537 billion rupees ($6 billion) in equity offerings in 2025, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It climbed up four spots after advising on stake sale in some of the largest block trades this year, including stake sale in telecom firm Bharti Airtel Ltd. and IndiGo operator InterGlobe Aviation Ltd.

"We invested well in advance rather than waiting for the market to expand," said Abhinav Bharti, head of equity capital markets at JPMorgan India. The bank has beefed up the size of its investment banking team to the biggest among global players in the nation, with a record boom in deals likely extending into coming years, he said.

The return of a foreign bank as the top arranger comes as the pipeline of offerings expands, with companies raising nearly $55 billion this year from listings, share placements and block trades. Domestic banks still dominate first-time equity sales, which have hit record levels on strong inflows from local mutual funds and retail investors, while global banks are being favored for bulk trades typically placed with foreign institutional investors.

Citigroup Inc. is the second-biggest arranger of deals in India in 2025 with a 9.6% market share, while Kotak slipped to the third spot after leading the charts for three straight years. The shift signals global banks' ability to leverage their international network, balance-sheet capacity and cross-border execution.

While Kotak's deal value was lower than JPMorgan, it arranged a higher number of offerings than any other bank during the year, including Tata Capital Ltd.'s $1.7 billion IPO and Hexaware Technologies Ltd.'s billion-dollar share sale, underscoring the dominance of domestic players in primary issuances.

"If you remove block deals, we are much much ahead of our competitor," said V Jayasankar, managing director at Kotak. The bank is focused on large-cap IPOs of over 50 billion rupees and has a significant share in the mid-cap space, he said.

Among other banks, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and HSBC Holdings Plc also climbed up the rankings as they stepped up their India presence to capture the rising deal flow. Jefferies Group and Morgan Stanley slipped in the league table.

Source: Bloomberg Europe

Australia's central bank this month considered whether a rise in interest rates might be needed in 2026 given a recent pick up in inflation, but felt it would take a "little" time to know for sure.

Minutes of the Reserve Bank of Australia's December policy meeting showed its board judged inflation risks had increased following surprsingly high readings for consumer prices in October and the third quarter.

However, some of the lift in inflation could be due to volatile factors and it would be important to see figures for the fourth quarter due in late January.

"Members discussed the circumstances in which...an increase in the cash rate might be needed to be considered at some point in the coming year," the minutes showed.

"While recent data suggested the risks to inflation had titled to the upside, members felt it would take a little longer to assess the persistence of inflationary pressures."

RBA Governor Michele Bullock had already taken a hakish turn at a post-meeting media conference, ruling out further rate cuts and warning hikes might be needed if inflation did not subside.

Consumer price inflation surged to 3.8% in October, in part due to the ending of some government electricity rebates, a factor that will bias the annual rate higher out to mid-2026.

More importantly for policy, core inflation picked up to 3.3% in October taking it further above the RBA's target band of 2% to 3% and alarming board members.

Still, if the pick up in inflation did prove temporary then holding the cash rate steady at 3.60% "for some time" might be sufficient to keep the economy close to balance, the board judged.

That raised the stakes for inflation figures for December and the whole fourth quarter due in late January, where a high reading could just push the RBA into tightening at uts next meeting on February 3.

Markets have already swung wildly to price in the risk of a rate hike, with a February move seen at around 25%. A quarter point rise in the cash rate is fully p[riced by July, with 44 basis points of hikes implied for 2026.

The minutes showed the RBA board was divided on whether financial conditions were restrictive enough to restrain inflation, with some citing aggressive lending by banks and strength in house prices as evidence conditions were no longer tight.

The board did agree that the labour market was still a little tight and the economy was likely operating with excess demand. Elevated measures of capacity utilisation also pointed to supply constraints.

Source: Investing

President Donald Trump reiterated his desire for US control over Greenland on Monday, after announcing plans to appoint Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry as a special envoy to the island.

"We need it for national security," Trump told reporters Monday at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. "We have to have it. And he wanted to lead the charge."

The president said Landry was "a deal-maker-type guy" who could help execute his vision for taking control of the territory.

"You look up and down the coast, you have Russian and Chinese ships all over the place," Trump said.

The president also said his desire was not rooted in Greenland's energy or mineral reserves — saying the US had plenty of resources — but that he did not believe Denmark had devoted enough spending to protect the island. Greenland is an autonomous Danish dependent territory with self-government and its own parliament.

"They have a very small population, and I don't know — they say Denmark, but Denmark has spent no money. They have no military protection," Trump said. "They say that Denmark was there 300 years ago or something, with a boat. Well, we were there with boats too, I'm sure. So we'll have to work it all out."

Trump has shown a keen interest in taking control of Greenland after first floating the idea of buying the territory from Denmark six years ago. But the president has become more vocal about it in his second term and deployed key US officials, including Vice President JD Vance and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, to the Arctic island. Donald Trump Jr., the president's eldest son, also visited in January before Trump was sworn in for his second term.

Trump's focus has been eyed warily by residents of Greenland and Denmark — and it's drawn scrutiny from Danish intelligence officials. The Danish Defense Intelligence Service for the first time earlier this month described the US as a potential security risk, noting the country's efforts to wield its economic and technological strengths as a tool of power to friend and foe.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a social media post following the announcement that the EU stood "in full solidarity with Denmark and the people of Greenland."

"Arctic security remains a key priority for the European Union, and one in which we seek to work with allies and partners," she said. "Territorial integrity and sovereignty are fundamental principles of international law. These principles are essential not only for the European Union, but for nations around the world."

Source: Bloomberg

Source: Bloomberg