The Hang Seng Index reversed its downward trend in Hong Kong on Thursday (February 12th), weakening by around 0.9% to around 27,000 after a strong session earlier. This decline halted the momentum of the short term rally, as investors began to reduce risk in large cap stocks. Among the index's contributors, Tencent was a major drag, with its shares falling by around 2.3%, putting pressure on the technology sector, which has recently been a driving force behind market gains. Weakness in large cap companies like this typically quickly impacts sentiment due to their significant weighting in...
The U.S. on Monday cracked down on companies in China and other countries that use subsidiaries or other foreign affiliates to get around curbs on chipmaking equipment and other goods and technology. The Commerce Department issued a new rule expanding its restricted export list, known as the Entity List, to automatically include subsidiaries owned 50 percent or more by a company on the list, according to a posting in the U.S. Federal Register. The action greatly increases the number of companies that require licenses to receive American goods and services. The rule is likely to disrupt...
With US government funding set to expire at midnight on Tuesday, Republicans and Democrats in Congress show no signs of agreeing to a temporary budget fix that would avert a government shutdown. President Donald Trump will meet with congressional leaders at the White House on Monday in a last-ditch effort to end the impasse. However, Democrats have signaled they are unwilling to simply agree to the Republican-backed short-term funding plan without some adjustments. If Congress fails to act, thousands of federal government employees could be furloughed, from NASA to national parks, and...
US President Donald Trump on Thursday announced sweeping new import tariffs, including a 100% duty on brand-name drugs and a 25% levy on heavy-duty trucks, sparking renewed trade uncertainty after a period of relative calm. This latest attack, which Trump says is aimed at protecting the US manufacturing industry and national security, follows broad tariffs of up to 50% on trading partners and other targeted levies on imported products such as steel. This is the latest turmoil for global businesses already struggling with complex supply chains, soaring costs, and consumer uncertainty caused...
Russia's export rules spark diesel market jitters"Boosting prices were initial reports that Russia intends to ban some companies from exporting diesel. Following repeated attacks on Russian refineries, concerns have grown that domestic supply might become strained. Reports indicate that processing in Russia has dropped by approximately 7% since August. However, Deputy Prime Minister Novak later clarified that the export ban would only apply to traders and resellers." "This significantly reduces the impact, as it is estimated that only a one digit percentage share of Russia's exports will be...
Annual inflation in the United States (US), as measured by the change in the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index, edged higher to 2.7% in August from 2.6% in July, the US Bureau of Economic Analysis reported on Friday. This print came in line with the market expectation. The United States (US) Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) will publish the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index data for August on Friday at 12:30 GMT. The PCE index is closely watched by market participants because it is the Federal Reserve's (Fed) preferred measure of inflation and could...