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Ducks end nine-game losing streak by defeating Stars
Chris Kreider's game-winning goal helped the Anaheim Ducks snap a nine-game loss streak by beating the Dallas Stars 3-1 on Tuesday night. Lukas Dostal, who made 24 saves, also had Beckett Sennecke as well as Jacob Trouba. The Ducks snapped their 0-8-1 streak and won two of the three meetings they had with the Stars in this season. Anaheim's (2-9-2) only win in 13 games was on Tuesday. Roope Hintz scored for?the Stars who have lost their first four games in regulation (2-1-1). Casey DeSmith made 22 saves. Dallas, who defeated the Los Angeles Kings by 3-1 on Monday night, fell to 6-2-0 after the second half of two consecutive games this season. The Stars have won six of their nine previous visits to Anaheim. Hintz brought the Stars to within one goal with 2:12 left in the third period by one-timing Matt Duchene's feed. But that was the closest Dallas could get. Trouba has added a blank-netter to the 19:39 time. Sennecke smashed a backhander into the net at 12:03 in the third period. At 3:35 in the middle frame of the game, Kreider scored by snapping a shot-blocker?side past DeSmith. Anaheim led Dallas in first-period shots 12-7. The Stars have been unable to score with the man-advantage in the last four games. The team said that Stars' defenseman MiroHeiskanen was absent from the game because of a family issue. Leo Carlsson, Ducks' forward (lower-body injury), and Cutter Gathier (illness), missed Tuesday's?contest. Troy Terry (upper-body) missed his third consecutive game. The Ducks will play a two-game series with the Kings starting Friday in Los Angeles. The Stars will conclude their six game road trip on Thursday in Utah. Field Level Media
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Silver cracks $90 in Fed rate cut betting
Silver surpassed the $90 mark for the first time, and gold climbed to a new record on Wednesday, after softer than expected U.S. inflation data fueled bets that interest rates would be cut amid geopolitical uncertainties. As of 0525 GMT spot gold was up 1% at $4,633.40 an ounce, after reaching a session high of $4.639.42. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery rose by 0.8% to $4640.90. Spot silver rose 4.2% to $90.59?per ounce, after breaking through $90 for the very first time. It has already risen nearly 27% this year. "U.S. CPI figures showed that inflation was relatively contained at 2,6% (year-on year), and risk assets might be hoping for an equally benign?PPI to keep expectations alive of further monetary policy ease," said Tim Waterer. The U.S. core Consumer Price Index increased 0.2% from month to month and 2.6% annually in December. This was below analysts' expectations for 0.3% and 2.7% increases, respectively. The U.S. core Producer Price Index for December will be released later today. U.S. president Donald Trump welcomed inflation figures and reiterated his call for Jerome Powell, the U.S. Federal Reserve chairperson to "meaningfully" cut interest rates. Powell was backed by the global central bankers and Wall Street bank CEOs on Tuesday, after former Fed officials condemned Trump's decision to probe him. Analysts claim that concerns about Fed independence and trust in U.S. asset added to the demand for yellow metal as a safe-haven. Investors anticipate two rate cuts of 25 basis points this year. The earliest is expected in June. In a low interest rate environment, and when there is geopolitical or economic uncertainty, non-yielding investments tend to perform well. ANZ said that it expects gold prices to rise above $5,000/oz during the first half of 2026. Brian Lan, managing director of GoldSilver Central, believes that silver will likely reach $100 this year and sees a two-digit increase in the price. Other than that, the spot price of platinum rose 4%, to $2,415.95 an ounce. This is a new high for a week. It hit a record $2,478.50/oz on December 29. Palladium rose 3.3% to $1,899.44 an ounce. (Reporting and editing by Rashmi aich, Mrigank dhaniwala and Ishaan rora)
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China's copper imports in 2025 will be the lowest since 2020 amid a major price rally
China's Customs data revealed?on Wednesday that the demand for unwrought copper in China will be at its lowest since 2020. Data from the General Administration of Customs revealed that the top consumer imported 5,32 million metric tonnes of?copper? unwrought in 2025, down by 6.4% from 2024. This was the lowest level since record imports of copper in 2020. The data shows that December imports grew by 2.3%, to 437,000 tonnes, compared to November. Imports of copper and copper products include anodes, refined, alloy, and semi-finished copper. Copper prices in 2025 will be the highest since 2009. Benchmark three-month Copper on the London Metal Exchange rose by nearly 42% in the past year and 11% just in December. Investors expected that refined copper supplies would tighten on?non United States markets. Inflows surged due to a CME Premium to the LME because of tariffs fears. Copper stock in COMEX warehouses The LME's on-warrant price of copper fell by more than 40%, while the NYSE saw its prices rise more than 400%. Both exchanges report that the two currencies will be in balance throughout the year. The copper?price was also supported by unexpected mine outages that occurred in 2025 and the booming demand of data centres and electricty, where the metal is a major material. Imports of copper concentrates and ore rose by 7.9% to 30,31 million tons from 28,11 million tons. This is a record high. According to the latest statistics from the National Bureau of Statistics, China produced 13,32?million tonnes of refined copper between January and November. This is an increase of 9.8% year-on-year. Imports of copper concentrates and ore in December increased from 2,53 million tons in the previous month. (Reporting and editing by Tom Hogue, Lewis Jackson, and Dylan Duan)
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Oil pauses gains as Venezuela shipments resume, but Iran concerns loom
The oil market fell after four consecutive days of gains on Wednesday, as Venezuela resumed exports. Meanwhile, U.S. crude inventories and products rose. However there were fears that Iranian supplies would be disrupted due to deadly civil unrest. Brent futures fell 20 cents or 0.3% to $65.27 per barrel by 0525 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was down 23 cents or 0.4% at $60.92 per barrel. Suvro Sarkar is an energy analyst with DBS Bank. He said that oil prices had already factored in a geopolitical premium in recent days, due to the rising tensions in Iran and drone attacks on the Black Sea. He said that unless we see further escalation, and the possibility of disruptions in oil flows, the market may consolidate and wait for next steps in the complex world order. He also said that the American Petroleum Institute's (API) report of large crude and products builds in the U.S. late on Tuesday may be contributing to the price rise. API, citing market sources, reported that crude stocks in the U.S. - the world's largest oil consumer - rose by 5,23 million barrels during the week ending January 9. Gasoline stocks rose by?8.23m barrels while distillate stockpiles rose by 4.34m barrels compared to a week ago. The U.S. Energy Information Administration is scheduled to release its stockpile data later on Wednesday. A poll conducted on Tuesday showed that U.S. crude stockpiles are expected to have decreased last week while gasoline and distillate stocks likely increased. Three sources reported that Venezuela, an OPEC member, has also begun reversing the oil production cuts it had made as a result of the U.S. embargo. Two supertankers left Venezuelan waters Monday, each carrying 1.8 million barrels of crude oil. This could be the first shipment of a 50-million barrel supply deal between Caracas & Washington in order to restart exports in the wake the capture by the U.S. of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro. Despite this, the increasing?protests of Iran have raised concerns about supply disruptions. Iran is the fourth largest OPEC producer. U.S. president Donald Trump urged Iranians on Tuesday to continue protesting, and said that?help is on its way' without specifying exactly what this meant. Citi analysts raised their forecast for Brent oil over the next three months to $70 per barrel. Citi analysts note that the protests so far have not reached the main Iranian oil-producing areas, which limits the actual effect on supply. They said that the current risks were geared toward frictions in logistics and politics, rather than outages. This would keep the impact on Iranian crude exports and supply contained. (Reporting from Katya Glubkova and Emily Chow, in Tokyo; editing by Christian Schmollinger).
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China's oil imports in 2025 and December inflows are both at record levels
China's crude imports increased 17% in December compared to a year earlier, and total imports for 2025 will rise 4.4%. The daily volumes of crude oil imported in December 2025 and throughout the year will be at all-time records. According to the General Administration of Customs, the world's biggest crude importer imported 55.97 millions metric tons of petroleum in December. This is equivalent to 13,18 million barrels of oil per day. The increase was 10% compared to 50.89 in November. The data shows that China will import 557.73 millions tons of crude oil by 2025 or 11,55?million barrels per day, an increase of 4.4% over the previous year. According to Kpler, an independent consultancy, the increase in crude oil imports is due to a stronger crude?throughput, and a firmer demand for restocking. The consultancy said that China's oil output is expected to increase by 0.7% in 2025. According to Rystad Energy, the average stockbuild in 2025 will be 430,000 bpd. This is up from 84,000 in 2024. Half of this growth is due to new storage capacity by both state-owned companies and independent ones. Ye Lin, vice-president at Rystad energy, said that "energy security is the main?driver" of China's stockpiling in light of rising geopolitical tensions. Low oil prices are also important, since the average crude price in China is $10 per barrel less than it was in 2024 due to sanctions. Kpler, and the ship-tracking company Vortexa, both estimated that seaborne crude imports reached a record high of 12 million barrels per day in December. Lower oil prices encouraged refiners to increase purchases, while strategic-petroleum-reserve restocking may also have played a role, said Muyu Xu, an analyst at Kpler. Xu said that independent refiners had been able to buy more spot cargoes since receiving their import quota allocations for November. Kpler, Vortexa and Kpler said that onshore crude inventories increased by 35 million barrels during December. Kpler also added that China’s?onshore oil inventories hit a record of 1.206 billion in late December or early January. Vortexa reported that more than 12 million barrels of new stock were built in December, mostly at state-owned facilities connected to Sinopec Maoming refinery and PetroChina Jieyang, Vortexa stated. In Shandong, nearly 15 million barrels were accumulated. Vortexa said that this was in line with the record-high sanctioned oil imports to Shandong between November and December. As a result of increased Russian supplies, some Iranian barrels were replaced by Russian oil in December. This was reported by Emma Li, a Vortexa analyst. China's imports of natural gas, including pipeline gas as well as liquefied gas (LNG), jumped 16.3% in December compared to a year ago. They now total 13.45 million tonnes. Customs data show that gas imports for 2025 will total 127.87 millions tons, down by 2.8% compared to a year ago.
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China imports iron ore and steel at record levels
Iron ore futures rose on Wednesday as China reported record steel exports and its highest-ever monthly imports. As of 0326 GMT, the most-traded contract for May iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange was up 0.49% at 824.5 Yuan ($118.17). The benchmark iron ore for February on the Singapore Exchange rose 0.29% to $108.65 per?ton. Data from the General Administration of Customs revealed that China's steel imports reached a monthly record high in December, fueled by front-loading, prompted?by Beijing’s announcement of requiring export licenses for shipments starting 2026. Imports of iron ore?also reached a record in December, as well as last season,?as mills were encouraged to order more cargoes by low inventories and better steel margins. Atilla Winnel, Navigate Commodities' managing director, said that the mills had begun to replenish their steel stocks ahead of Chinese New Year. He said that such bullish conditions would continue until the Lunar New Year. Analysts said that high iron ore costs, combined with shrinking margins at steel mills, could cause buyers to delay restocking their stock until there is a correction. Coking coal and coke both fell by 0.66% and 0.2% respectively. The benchmark steel prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange have gained ground. The Shanghai Futures Exchange saw a rise in steel benchmarks. ($1 = 6.9771 yuan) (Reporting by Ruth Chai; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)
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Silver cracks $90 on Fed rate-cut bets. Gold nears record highs.
Silver surpassed the $90 mark for the first time, and gold climbed to a near record high. Weaker-than-expected U.S. readings of inflation fueled bets that interest rates will soon drop amid geopolitical uncertainties. As of 0406 GMT the spot gold price rose by 0.9%, to $4,627.95 an ounce, after hitting a record $4,634.33 per ounce on Tuesday. U.S. Gold Futures for February Delivery? rose 0.8% to $4635.60. Spot silver rose 4.6% to $90.95 per ounce, after breaking $90 for first time. Brian Lan, GoldSilver's Central managing director, said that the data was positive. The inflation rate and unemployment rate in the U.S. were both lower. These are the factors which have driven precious metals higher. Lan said that silver's next major milestone is $100 and high percentage gains of two-digits are expected this year. The U.S. Consumer Price Index core rose by 0.2% on a month-to-month basis and 2.6% annually in December. This was below analysts' expectations for 0.3% and 2.7% increases, respectively. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, welcomed the inflation numbers and reiterated his call for Jerome Powell, the U.S. Federal Reserve?chair to reduce interest rates "meaningfully." Powell was backed by the top Wall Street bankers and global central bankers on?Tuesday, after former Fed?chiefs condemned Trump's decision to probe him. Analysts claim that concerns about Fed independence and the trust in U.S. asset prices contributed to demand for yellow metal as a safe haven. Investors anticipate two rate cuts of 25 basis points this year. The earliest is expected to be in June. In a low interest rate environment, and in times of geopolitical and economic uncertainty, non-yielding investments tend to perform well. Trump, meanwhile, urged Iranians protesters to continue, saying that 'help will be on its way' as Iran witnessed its largest demonstrations in many years. Other than that, the spot price of platinum rose 4.7%, to $2,432.80 an ounce. This is a new high for a week. It hit a record $2,478.50/oz on December 29. Palladium rose 3.7% to $1,910.08 an ounce. (Reporting and editing by Ishaan arora, Rashmi aich)
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'Are you dead?' Chinese app for singles goes viral
The app "Are You Dead" which targets lone-living people in China has become a viral hit. Its popularity and comments on social media have been widespread, leading the company to introduce a subscription charge and change the name of its product for a wider audience. Sileme is the Chinese name for "Are You Dead?" The app is called "Are you dead?" in English. It was created to be a "lightweight safety tool" for those who live alone, whether they are students, officers, or anyone else. App requires a single emergency contact and will send automatic notifications to the user if they have not checked into the app in a period of?consecutive?days. The Global Times reported that China could have as many as 200 million single-person households. Sileme announced on Tuesday, via its official Weibo account, that it will soon launch a new version of its global brand name Demumu. The app is called Demumu and is number two on Apple's chart of paid apps. It was at the top earlier this week. "Thanks for all the support from netizens. "We were initially a small unknown team, cofounded and operated by three born after 1994," said Sileme. The company announced on Sunday it will launch a payment scheme of eight yuan ($1.15) to cover rising costs. Demumu, an app available on Apple's App Store, already charged HK$8 for the download. Sileme's name was suggested by some social media users, such as Weibo. Others suggested "Are You Alive", "Are You Online" or "Are?You There." One user said that it was helpful for safety reasons. It will help us singles feel more comfortable in our daily lives. Reporting by Farah Masters; editing by Michael Perry.
The yen is on the market's radar with the 'Takaichi Trade', a turbo-charged morning bid in Europe.
Ankur Banerjee gives us a look at what the day will bring for the European and Global markets. And then we're back to screen-gazing, as the yen edged towards?160 a dollar, fueling intervention concerns, as the prospect a snap election in Japan next month turbocharges so-called "Takaichi trading".
Investors are selling the Japanese government bonds and the yen because they fear low interest rates and additional stimulus for an economy that has one of the largest debt burdens of any developed country. After local media reported that Prime Minister Takaichi may call for general elections in February, the Nikkei index soared to 54,000 for the first-time on Wednesday. The yen is at its lowest level against the dollar since July 20,24. Traders are cautious about authorities intervening, even though it could be difficult just before an election. The market is still vigilant, because a snap election could lead to Japan's own version of?U.S. Fiscal cliff. Silver and gold continue to rise in value as they reach new peaks, as geopolitical tensions drive safe-haven flows. Dollar has struggled with weak U.S. data and concerns about the Federal Reserve.
The data on Tuesday revealed that U.S. inflation is low, which means rate cuts are still possible in 2026. However, traders don't expect the Fed will move before Jerome Powell’s term ends in may. Investors say that the escalating dispute between Powell and U.S. president Donald Trump has reinforced the argument for diversification outside the United States. The?U.S. The?U.S. Supreme Court will likely issue a ruling or two on Wednesday. This could include litigation regarding the legality Trump's tariffs.
The court will release its rulings around 10 a.m. ET (1500 GMT). The court doesn't announce in advance the decisions it will make. Later?inthe day, traders will be looking for comments from Citigroup and Bank of America on Trump's proposed 10% credit card interest rate cap. JPMorgan Chase said that the proposed 10% cap on credit card interest rates would hurt consumers and weigh on the market. The bank reported a quarterly profit on Tuesday that was higher than analysts' expectations.
The following are key developments that may influence the markets on Wednesday.
Bank earnings and possible SCOTUS decision on U.S. Tariffs
(source: Reuters)