East Asia

On Monday, the Russian rouble fell against the U.S. Dollar and the Chinese yuan as the corporate sales of foreign currencies, which had supported the rouble over the past few weeks, decreased. The rouble fell more than 0.4% against the dollar at 1050 GMT and was down 0.2% against the yuan at 1140 on the Moscow Stock Exchange. The traders believe that the currency sales of Russia's two major oil companies, Rosneft & Lukoil - both sanctioned in the U.S. - have supported the rouble. The traders did, however, note the recent irregularity of corporate forex sales. The U.S. has...

The U.S. released some details on a new trade agreement with South Korea. The United States and South Korea released a joint factsheet on the recent summit between President Donald Trump of the U.S. and President Lee Jae Myung of South Korea. Washington and Seoul have agreed to lower the tariffs on U.S. autos and auto part imports from Korea to 15%. This is a reduction of 25%. Seoul said that the effective date for auto tariffs would be November 1, after the agreement was finalised, and when a bill relating to the $350 billion package of investment is presented...

The Russian rouble gained against the U.S. Dollar and China's Yuan on Thursday, despite lower oil prices in Russia. Oil firms converted their earnings into roubles prior to U.S. sanctions taking effect. At 1020 GMT the rouble had gained more than 1% against the dollar, trading at 80.45, and was 0.5% higher at 11,31 against the Yuan at the Moscow Stock Exchange where it is traded the most. Washington introduced sanctions last month against Russia's two largest oil producers, Rosneft Lukoil as part of President Donald Trump's efforts for an end to Moscow's conflict in Ukraine. The deadline set for...

The Russian rouble is stable against the U.S. Dollar and weaker than the Chinese yuan after the central banks reported an increase in exporters' foreign currency sales last month. Some analysts attribute this to U.S. sanctioned. The rouble traded at 81.20 dollars in the over-the-counter market and at 11.43 yuan at the Moscow Stock Exchange, which was down 0.5% at 0840 GMT. The central bank of Russia announced Monday that foreign currency sales for October were up 68% compared to a month ago, reaching $8.2 billion. The central bank attributed the increase to exporters repaying their foreign debt. In a...

The Gulf's major stock exchanges rose early on Tuesday. This was aided in part by the rising expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut in December and signs that the U.S. shutdown may be nearing its end. The U.S. economy lost jobs last week. Retail and government sectors were the main culprits. A survey released on Friday showed that the U.S. consumer's sentiment had fallen to its lowest level in 3-1/2 years at the beginning of November, due to concerns about the effects the shutdown would have on the economy. The shutdown has delayed important economic metrics including the non-farm...

PetroChina, a major oil company in China, announced on Monday that it will close its Yunnan Petrochemical Plant from November 15th, 2025 to January 15th, 2026 for maintenance. It said that the overhaul covered about 23,000 tasks, with a broad scope and considerable depth. During the maintenance period, operational and supply adjustments will take place. According to a July report by the company, this refinery in Southwestern China produces mainly China VI standard gasoline, diesel and jet fuel for Southwestern China as well as Southeast Asia. The report stated that since its launch in 2017, the company has processed 83,000,000...

The Japan Industry Ministry announced on Friday that it would temporarily increase gasoline and diesel subsides from next week to try and smooth out the impact of planned tax reductions on fuels. To ease the burden of households, the ruling and opposition parties in the country agreed to abolish the gasoline tax by December 31, and the diesel tax by April 1, next year. The government is hoping that by temporarily increasing subsidies on gasoline, diesel and other fuels, consumers won't be tempted into delaying purchases until the tax reductions are implemented. This move will also help Japan avoid long...

Customs data released on Friday showed that China's imports of coal in October were down 10% from the previous year, due to a holiday which reduced the number working days during the month. Imports will be supported in 2025 by the winter restocking of products during the last two months. Imports in October fell from 46.25 to 41.74 millions metric tons, a drop of almost ten percent. Imports in September reached 46 million metric tonnes, a record high for nine months. Feng Dongbin is vice-general manager of Fenwei Digital Information Technology. He said that imports decreased sequentially, and also from...

SK Innovation Co Ltd, the owner of South Korea’s largest refiner SK Energy said on Friday that it expects the refining margins to remain stable in the fourth-quarter amid global supply disruptions as well as the onset winter peak demand. The company reported an operating loss of 423 billion won in the period July-September, but a profit of 573 trillion won for that same period. This compares to an analyst's average forecast of 304 billion dollars in profit. The third-quarter revenue increased 16.3%, to 20.5 trillion won, from the same period last year. SK On, a battery supplier to Ford...

India's Foreign Ministry announced on Thursday that Indian companies had received licenses to import rare earth magnets. This signals a relaxation of Beijing's export controls. China has become more powerful in its trade wars with the U.S. because of rare earths. Rare earths are a grouping of 17 elements which play an important role in planes, cars and weapons. Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Indian foreign ministry, announced the licensing decision at a press briefing. He did not give details about the companies who received approval or the number of licenses granted. China is the only country that has a...

Covestro, a German chemicals company, lowered its core profit forecast for the full year on Thursday because of soft demand. However, it said that its financial stability will be assured as ADNOC's $17 billion acquisition by Abu Dhabi is expected to close during the fourth quarter. Covestro's earnings before interest taxes, depreciation, and amortization are now expected to range between 800 and 700 million euros. This is a drop from the two previous cuts it made this year. The previous estimate was that the EBITDA would range between 700 million and 1.1 billion euro. The company's products, including foam chemicals...

Here are some details from the U.S. White House Factsheet and South Korea's Chief Policy Advisor Kim Yong Beom on the recent trade agreement between the two nations. Washington and Seoul agreed that tariffs on U.S. auto imports from Korea and auto parts will be reduced to 15% from 25%. This is to bring them in line with their Japanese counterparts who pay the same 15% tariffs after Tokyo made a deal with Washington. South Korean wood product and pharmaceutical manufacturers will have the lowest tariffs of all countries. Generic drugs and aircraft parts will be exempt from tariffs. Kim...

The competition for essential minerals has now reached the lowest part of the metal supply chain. Maros SEFCIOVIC, EU Trade chief, says that aluminium scrap is a strategic commodity. Over a million tons of aluminium scrap is exported from the EU every year. Sefcovic, the European Commission's Director of Communications and Public Affairs, described this as "a measure that is balanced" in order to keep more recyclable materials in Europe. The industry association European Aluminium blames the United States for the price differential created by the country's import duties, which is causing more European scraps to be exported to the...

The Chinese embassy in Central African Republic (CAR), has warned that its citizens could become "mining slaves", in the gold trade of the politically insecure nation. Chinese workers are now looking to sub-Saharan Africa for work as gig economies in Asia dry up. The embassy released a statement Thursday stating that Chinese nationals were killed or kidnapped, and some even scammed of large sums and deported because they illegally mined. China has sent workers to resource-rich sub Saharan Africa in search of fortune. Gold prices have soared amid massive Chinese state purchases, while factory and construction jobs are disappearing as...

Sources said that China's state owned iron ore purchaser has ordered steel mills to stop buying a specific type of BHP ore. This ban is in addition to another one already in place, and escalates a dispute about a new contract. China Mineral Resources Group, set up in 2020 to centralise the purchasing of iron ore and to win better terms for miners, has asked Chinese steel mills to not buy new cargos of Jinbao Fines, a low-grade ore produced by the world's largest iron ore mining company, BHP. Sources said that CMRG had told mills they were not allowed...

Paul Weibel, CEO of 5E Advanced Materials, said that the company is in discussions with Los Alamos National Laboratory about securing $20 million of federal funding for the Fort Cady Boron Project in California. The project will help the company become one of few domestic suppliers of this newly-designated critical mineral. Weibel stated that the New Mexico laboratory had made an offer to finance the company's operations. Los Alamos didn't immediately respond to our request for comment. The U.S. Department of Energy operates the lab, which conducts research on national security, space exploration and nuclear fusion. It also conducts research...

The copper market edged upwards on Thursday, following strong results by AI giant Nvidia. However, a strong dollar as well as concerns over the demand from China's top metals consumer weighed heavily on the market. The benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange increased 0.3%, to $10,784 per metric ton, by 1525 GMT. This modest gain was extended from the previous session. LME copper is up 22% for the year, but it has fallen from its record high of $11,200 reached on October 29, 2009. Nvidia shocked Wall Street on Wednesday after the markets closed by reporting an...

The price of copper edged up after a three day decline on Wednesday as investors awaited delayed U.S. jobs data. However, uncertainty over the Federal Reserve’s rate decision kept gains in check. As of 0300 GMT, the most active copper contract at the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.15%, to 86.060 yuan (12,107.48 dollars) per ton. The benchmark copper for three months on the London Metal Exchange rose by 0.26%, to $10,747.5 per ton. Investors are cautious ahead of the official U.S. September job data, which was delayed due to the government shutdown. This is a crucial reference for the direction...

Bosch said that thousands of employees are facing production interruptions due to a global shortage of chips caused by a dispute with the manufacturer Nexperia. China and the Netherlands are locked in a fight for control of Nexperia. However, there is hope that the standoff will ease with the Dutch government sending an official delegation to Beijing to try to reach a compromise. Bosch reported that it was experiencing disruptions at three of its sites: Ansbach, Salzgitter and Braga (both in Germany) and Braga (Portugal). It said: "We continue to do everything possible to serve our clients and to avoid...

Copper fell for the third consecutive session on Tuesday. It hit its lowest level in almost two months, as industrial metals slid along with a wide sell-off of risky investments sparked off by fears about an overvalued technology sector and faded hopes of a U.S. interest rate cut. As of 1026 GMT, the benchmark three-month copper price on the London Metal Exchange had fallen 0.7% to $10,702.50 a metric tonne. The metal, which is used for construction and power, and was expected to be a beneficiary of the AI boom, fell by as much as 1.1% earlier to $10,660.50. Its...

The dollar strengthened on Tuesday as the U.S. Federal Reserve was divided over a rate cut in December. In addition, the delayed September payrolls were the main focus. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract closed the day trading at 85,650 metric tons down by 0.88%. By 0708 GMT, the benchmark three-month price of copper at the London Metal Exchange had fallen by 0.97%. It was now $10,674 per ton. Dollar benefited from a decline in expectations that the Fed will cut rates next month. The dollar's strength makes commodities traded in greenbacks more expensive for investors who use...

Dalian iron ore prices rose for the second session in a row on Tuesday, reaching a new two-week-high due to strong near-term demand from China's top consumer. However, profit-booking and a declining basis limited some gains. The contract for January iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange closed the daytime trading 1.41% higher, at 792 Yuan ($111.35), its highest price since November 3. On Monday, the contract also reached a new two-week high. As of 0758 GMT the benchmark December iron ore price on the Singapore Exchange had remained unchanged at $104.4 per ton. This follows a day-ago gain of...

The copper price fell on Monday due to a stronger dollar, the fading of hopes for a further Federal Reserve rate reduction, and macro-economic concerns. As of 1036 GMT, the benchmark three-month price for copper at the London Metal Exchange had fallen by 0.5% to $10,797.50 a metric ton. Metals used in construction, manufacturing and power are considered to be a good indicator of global economic health. In a note, Neil Welsh, the head of metals for Britannia Global Markets said that the base metals market was largely defined as a quiet one, with participants waiting on delayed U.S. data...

Yum China Holdings (the parent company of KFC in China and Pizza Hut there) said on Monday that it would continue to run a vigorous campaign in order to improve profitability and open new stores in the future. Smaller cities will be a key target. Yum China stated that by 2028 KFC plans to have over 17,000 stores in China, with an operating profit of 10 billion yuan (1,41 billion dollars). The company will use lower-capex store models in order to expand into smaller, untapped cities. The group expects to double the operating profit for Pizza Hut in China by...