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The recession in the US economy is beginning to bite in central America, leading to a big slowdown in remittance flows that are vital to the region’s health. Guatemala and El Salvador, in particular, are most vulnerable to a drop in the growth in money flows from relatives in the US and elsewhere.

1 trillion the yen value ($10.6 billion) of the corporate bonds the Bank of Japan says it will buy to try to inject liquidity into the stagnating market. The bank will buy bonds rated A or better held by banks in an effort to increase lending from financial institutions.

Temasek’s decision to replace Ho Ching with Chip Goodyear as chief executive raises a host of questions about the future direction of Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund.

The International Finance Corporation has teamed up with Japan Bank for International Cooperation to launch a new recapitalization fund for struggling private-sector banks in the emerging markets.

Fitch Ratings downgraded its ratings for Russia for the first time in more than a decade as a result of falling oil prices, dwindling foreign currency reserves and record capital flight. Fitch cut Russia to BBB from BBB+ and maintained its negative outlook. "The scale of capital outflows and the pace of decline in Russia’s foreign exchange reserves have materially weakened the sovereign balance sheet," says Ed Parker, Fitch’s head of emerging markets in Europe. "The downgrade reflects the negative impact on Russia from the fall in commodity prices and the dislocation to global capital markets that has left Russian banks and companies struggling to refinance debt."

Royal Bank of Scotland is closing its operations in Kazakhstan as part of its business reorganization.

Corporate China’s drive to secure supplies of natural resources while they are available at low prices will be a big source of investment banking activity in Asia this year, according to bankers in the region. Aside from a record-breaking January in the debt market there has been little capital markets activity in 2009. However, several multi-billion dollar deals from China in the past few months suggest that its leading companies are aggressively seeking to take advantage of their cash reserves to buy assets across the world. These deals are fraught with political sensitivities, however, and the current crop will be closely monitored by potential buyers, sellers and advisers that might be considering joining the rush.