President Donald Trump announced a new peace pact between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which he linked to US access to critical minerals. At a meeting in Washington, Trump claimed his administration had "succeeded where many others have failed," calling this the eighth war he has ended in less than a year. However, the reality on the ground is far more complicated, as fighting in eastern Congo continues despite the signing of the previous peace agreement. The agreement is not just about a ceasefire; it also concerns the mineral trade. The agreement grants US companies access...
The S&P Global Flash Australia Services PMI Business Activity Index rose to 55.1 in August from 54.1 in July, marking the fastest growth in 40 months. The expansion was driven by stronger demand and renewed increases in new export business, particularly from the US, Europe, and Asia-Pacific markets. To manage higher workloads, service providers added staff at the quickest pace since April 2023. Input costs remained elevated due to higher wages, materials, and shipping, but the rate of inflation eased, allowing firms to raise selling prices more moderately. As a result, output price...
China is considering permitting yuan-backed stablecoins for the first time as part of efforts to increase global adoption of its currency, according to a report from Reuters, citing sources familiar with the matter. This potential policy shift represents a significant reversal of China's previous stance toward digital assets. The State Council, China's cabinet, is expected to review and possibly approve a roadmap later in August that would promote wider international usage of the yuan, including initiatives to compete with U.S. developments in stablecoins. Sources indicate the plan will...
Bank Indonesia unexpectedly cut its benchmark interest rate by 25 bps to 5.0% at its August 2025 policy meeting, following a 25 bps cut the previous month and defying market expectations to hold rates steady. This marked the fifth rate cut since last September, bringing the benchmark to its lowest level since October 2022. The decision reflects projections that inflation for 2025–2026 will remain within the central bank's target range of 2.5% ± 1%, a stable Rupiah exchange rate, and ongoing efforts to support economic growth. Recent data showed GDP grew by 5.12% yoy in Q2—its highest pace...
The U.K.'s annual inflation rate hit a hotter-than-expected 3.8%in July, according to data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) on Wednesday. Economists polled by Reuters had anticipated inflation would reach 3.7% in the twelve months to July, after it picked up to 3.6% in June, exceeding forecasts. July core inflation, which excludes more volatile energy, food, alcohol and tobacco prices, rose by an annual 3.8%, up from 3.7% in the twelve months to June. The latest data comes after the Bank of England earlier this month voted by a fine margin to cut...
The U.S. Commerce Department said on Tuesday it is hiking steel and aluminum tariffs on more than 400 products including wind turbines, mobile cranes, appliances, bulldozers and other heavy equipment, along with railcars, motorcycles, marine engines, furniture and hundreds of other products. The department said 407 product categories are being added to the list of "derivative" steel and aluminum products covered by sectoral tariffs, with a 50% tariff on any steel and aluminum content of these products plus the country rate on the non-steel and non-aluminum content. Evercore ISI said in a...
Asian stock markets fell in unison on Thursday, following Wall Street's decline. A brief rally in tech stocks led by Nvidia quickly faded, prompting investors to turn away from riskier assets like...
Both the STOXX 50 and STOXX 600 hovered around the flatline on Friday, as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of further developments in trade talks between US President Trump and Chinese...
President Donald Trump announced a new peace pact between Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, which he linked to US access to critical minerals. At a meeting in Washington, Trump claimed...