The net profit of one of the largest banking groups in the US Wells Fargo & Co in the first quarter of 2018 grew by 5.5% to $ 5.94 billion compared to the same period last year.

Net income of the largest US bank by assets JPMorgan Chase & Co. in the I quarter of 2018 increased to $ 8.71 billion, or up to $ 2.37 per share. For the same period last year, the profit was $ 6.45 billion, or $ 1.65 per share, according to the bank's statements.

In February 2018, bank lending to companies in the euro area weakened, while its level remains close to the multi-year high, according to the European Central Bank (ECB). Lending to non-financial corporations increased 3.1% year-on-year after growth of 3.4% in January, when lending grew at the strongest pace since May 2009.

In Vietnam, the 25th Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit, which was held November 10-11, 2017 in Danang, completed its work. According to the results of the APEC-2017 summit, agreements were reached between the participating countries in the field of digital economy, investments and business ties. In addition, Putin and Trump held talks and made a joint statement on Syria.

The annual meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club was held in Sochi from October 16 to 19. The general theme of "Valdai-2017" this year was called "Creative destruction: will a new world order arise from conflicts?"

Over four days, more than 130 experts from 33 countries discussed global, political and social conflicts of the day, the opportunities for society to adapt to new factors and conditions. Through the analysis of contemporary conflicts, experts and political scientists predicted the outlines of the world of the future. The final session was also attended by President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin, former President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai, scientific director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute Asley Toye and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Alibaba Group, Jack Ma.

In Vladivostok, the third Eastern Economic Forum (VEF-2017), which was held on September 6-7, 2017, completed its work. The focus was on negotiations on the situation on the Korean peninsula, in which Russian President Vladimir Putin, as well as the leaders of Japan, South Korea and Mongolia took part. However, geopolitical instability did not prevent Asian companies and Russian business from entering into 217 agreements on large-scale investment projects for 2.5 trillion rubles.

The ninth BRICS summit (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa), which was held on September 4-5, 2017, ended in Chinese Xiamen. The leaders of the countries of the organization in the final document advocated a more equitable world economic order, called for abstaining from the policy of isolation and condemned unilateral military interventions and sanctions. One of the main issues was the situation on the Korean peninsula. The heads of state and government of the five countries condemned the nuclear test in the DPRK, but noted that the only way to solve the problem is direct dialogue.

The 48th annual World Economic Forum (WEF), which was held from January 23 to 26, 2018, completed its work in Davos, Switzerland. The slogan of the event was "Creating a common future in a fragmented world." It was attended by more than 70 heads of state and government. Most of the world's leading countries represented at the forum spoke out against protectionism in world trade, which is now gaining momentum. One of the main events within the forum was the speech of US President Donald Trump, who announced his intention to build mutually beneficial trade cooperation with the whole world.

The annual rating of innovative economies of the Bloomberg Innovation Index of 2017 is drawn up, which assesses the R & D economy and the concentration of high-tech public companies. South Korea has become the most innovative economy. It has become the leader because of the intensity of R & D and the production of products with high added value.

The International Monetary Fund has published new data on the gold and foreign exchange reserves of the world in 2017. Gold and exchange currency reserves are highly liquid assets that are under the control of state monetary authorities. They consist of funds in foreign currency, special drawing rights, reserve positions in the IMF and monetary gold.