Latest News
-
Ukraine uses drones Storm Shadows to strike Russian oil and gas facilities
Ukraine has launched British Storm Shadow missiles as well as its own?domestically-produced long-range drones in order to target several Russian oil and?gas?facilities. Ukraine used British-made missiles in the past to strike Russian industrial targets, which it claims help Moscow's war. The Ukrainian General Staff stated that the air force had used Storm Shadow missiles to attack the Novoshakhtinsk refinery located in the Rostov Region of Russia. "Multiple explosions have been recorded." On Thursday, the General Staff announced on Telegram that the target was "hit". The refinery was said to be one of the largest oil suppliers in southern Russia, and supplied diesel and jet fuel to Russian troops fighting in Ukraine. The SBU, Ukraine's security service, said that long-range drones made locally?hit oil products tanks in the Russian Port of Temryuk located in the Krasnodar Region and a gas processing plant at Orenburg on the southwest coast of Russia. Orenburg, the largest gas processing facility in the world is located approximately 1,400 km (870 miles) away from the Ukrainian border. After the drone attack, two tanks of oil products caught fire in the southern port of Temryuk. Authorities at the Krasnodar Operational Headquarters said on the Telegram App that flames covered a surface area of approximately 2,000 square meters. Both Kyiv, and Moscow, have increased their drone and missile strikes on energy facilities as the Russian war in Ukraine nears its fourth anniversary. Diplomatic efforts to end the conflict have not yielded any tangible results. Kyiv has increased its attacks on Russia's refineries and energy infrastructure in order to reduce Moscow's 'oil revenues', which are a major source of funding its war effort. Ukrainian General Staff said that Ukrainian troops also hit a military airport in the Russian town of Maikop, in the Republic of Adygea region of the North Caucasus.
-
Shanghai copper hovers just below the record high, as Chinese demand increases and dollar weakens
Shanghai copper hovered just below a new record high on Thursday as Chinese demand increased and the U.S. Dollar weakened. The most active copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange ended daytime trading up by 1% at 96,210 Yuan ($13732.51) per metric ton. Shanghai copper reached an all-time record of 96.750 yuan per ton on Tuesday, while?London's benchmark also hit a high at $12.282, close to the $12.300 mark. The London market is closed over the Christmas Holiday. The rise in copper was due to a surge in Chinese demand as the holiday season approached. Yangshan Copper?premium The price of seaborne copper units has been rising since the beginning of December. It reached its highest level since late September, $55 per ton. Prices had been hovering around $40 since mid-October. China's top copper smelters, in a Thursday meeting, decided to not set guidance on the processing fees of copper?concentrates for the first quarter 2026, due to historically low prices and a shortage of raw materials. Investors bet on further interest rate cuts by the U.S. Fed Reserve next year to continue the?weakening of the U.S. Dollar. Aluminium and lead were also up in the SHFE base metals. Zinc fell 0.56%. Nickel's six-day rally ended with a decline of 1.22%. Tin lost 1.18%.
-
Japan's lobby leader says China's export licenses will not reduce excessive steel exports
Tadashi Imai, Chairman of the Japan Iron and Steel Federation, said that China's proposed export-licence requirements would not be effective in curbing export volumes or supporting a recovery in prices. China, the world's biggest steel producer, will implement a licensing system in 2026 for export regulation. This is because robust shipments of metal have fueled a protectionist backlash around the globe. Imai said at a press conference that the permits are aimed at controlling quality. China's steel exports have become a global concern. Japan is among the countries that criticize Chinese firms for receiving government subsidies which?encourage exports at low prices and overproduction. The Federation forecast that Japan's domestic demand for steel from the construction and manufacturing industries will remain flat during the fiscal year beginning in April. Crude steel production is expected to remain unchanged. The Japanese trade and industry ministry forecast this week that Japan’s crude steel production for the current fiscal year will fall by 3.2% to 80.33 millions metric tons, which is the lowest since fiscal 1967. Imai, also the president of Nippon Steel and the CEO of the company, was asked about the impact that U.S. Tariffs will have on his company. He said the tariffs could cut the profit by about 20 billion yen (130 million dollars) this fiscal year, while exports to the U.S. would be halved from the previous year. He said that the total impact of the tariff, which included indirect effects such as the 15% on automobiles was less than what he had expected.
-
Dalian iron ore continues to benefit Beijing's home buyers
The prices of Dalian Iron Ore Futures rose for the?second straight session on Thursday as Beijing relaxed its restrictions on domestic?buying. The day-traded price of the most traded?iron ore? contract on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange closed 0.58% higher, at 778.5 Yuan ($111.10) per metric ton. Singapore's market will be closed on Christmas Day, Thursday. Beijing's municipal officials further relaxed curbs on home purchase on Wednesday, lowering the qualification thresholds for home buyers, as part of the latest effort to?boost the demand amid the worsening prices of homes in the Chinese capital. Chinese officials pledged earlier this week that they would step up their efforts to stabilize the property market by 2026. Market participants were watching to see if other large cities would ease up home buying further. China's property industry, which used to be its largest steel consumer, has suffered a steady decline since mid-2021, with falling home prices and shrinking sales. The property market slump has had a negative impact on steel consumption, but robust exports and growing demand in the manufacturing sector have helped to offset some of the decline. Analysts also said that the expectation of steel mills booking more seaborne cargoes during the Lunar New Year holiday, in February, to "meet their consumption needs" was another factor supporting the prices. The price gains were curtailed by high portside inventories of?iron ore and seasonal slack demand for steel. The coking coal, the coke and other ingredients used in steelmaking are largely unchanged. The benchmark steel prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange are mixed. The rebar and hot-rolled coil grew by 0.03%. Wire rod jumped 1.21%, while stainless steel fell 0.08%. ($1 = 7.0074 Chinese Yuan) (Reporting and editing by Amy Lv, Ryan Woo and William Mallard).
-
Sources: China's smelter group does not set copper TC/RC guidance for Q1
Sources said that the top copper smelters of China did not set a guideline for copper concentrate processing fees for the first quarter 2026. This is the fourth time in a row the group has refused to do so, as feedstock shortages have pushed charges to new lows. Two sources familiar with the discussion confirmed that the decision was taken at a quarterly China Smelters Purchase Team meeting. The CSPT is a group of sixteen leading smelters whose advice is often used as a standard in spot concentrate transactions. When concentrate supplies are tight, treatment and refining fees (TC/RCs), which miners pay to smelters in order to refine copper concentrates, tends to fall. Antofagasta, a Chinese copper-smelter and the World Bank reached an agreement on 2026 TC/RCs of $0 per metric ton or 0 cents a pound. This was the lowest price ever negotiated in annual negotiations. A source familiar with the situation said that Antofagasta had reached an agreement with its Chinese clients to set annual TC/RCs equal to zero. The CSPT did not set a benchmark for the previous three quarters either, because China's copper smelters were struggling with negative charges on the spot market. This meant that smelters had to pay miners in order to?process the concentrate. CSPT members agreed last month to reduce 2026 production by more than 10% in order to offset falling processing fees, after China's Nonferrous Metals Industry Association stated that it was "firmly against" zero and -negative processing charges. China is studying ways to control its ever-expanding capacity to smelt copper and to counter negative TC/RCs. Copper concentrate is expected to'remain tight' next year due to mine disruptions. This includes the suspension of Freeport’s flagship Grasberg copper mine in Indonesia.
-
Shanghai copper hovers just below the record high, as Chinese demand increases and dollar weakens
Shanghai copper was below its record high Thursday, as the Chinese demand increased and the U.S. dollar weakened. dollar weakened. As of 0330 GMT, the most active copper contract on?the Shanghai Futures Exchange increased 0.40%, to 95,640 Yuan ($13.651.55) per metric ton. Shanghai copper reached an all-time record of 96.750 yuan?a ton, and the London benchmark?also hit a high at $12.282, which is near the $12.300 mark. The London market is closed over the Christmas Holiday. The rise in copper was due to a rise in Chinese demand as we approach the holiday season. Yangshan Copper Premium The price of, which measures Chinese demand for seaborne units of copper, has been rising since the beginning of December. It is now at its highest level since late September, $55 per ton. Investors bet on further interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve in 2013, leading to continued weakness of the?U.S. dollar. dollar. Aluminium and lead were the only two metals that changed little in SHFE. Zinc?dropped by 0.75%. Nickel's six-day rally ended with a decline of 1.79%. Tin lost 1.48%. (1 Chinese Yuan = 7.0058 Renminbi)
-
Dalian iron ore continues to benefit Beijing's home buyers
The prices of Dalian Iron Ore Futures rose for the second consecutive session on Thursday, as further relaxations in Beijing on home purchases boosted sentiment. As of 0251 GMT, the most-traded contract for iron ore on?China's Dalian Commodity Exchange(DCE) increased 0.26% to $776 yuan (US$110.76) per metric ton. Singapore's market will be closed on Christmas Day, Thursday. Beijing's municipal officials further relaxed curbs on home purchase on Wednesday by lowering the threshold of home-buying qualification, in their latest effort to boost demand amid worsening prices for homes in the Chinese capital. This came after Chinese officials?promised earlier this week to increase efforts to stabilize the property market by 2026. Participants in the market were watching to see if other large cities would ease home buying even further. Since mid-2021, China's property sector has suffered a steady decline, with falling home prices and shrinking sales. The protracted downturn in the property market has had a negative impact on steel consumption. However, robust exports and a growing demand for manufacturing products have helped offset some of the decline. Analysts said that the expectation of steel mills booking more seaborne cargoes in order to meet their consumption needs over the Lunar New Year holiday, which is February, also supported the price of the main?steel making ingredient. The price increase was tempered by a?high iron ore stockpile at the port and a seasonally low steel demand. The coking coal, as well as other ingredients used in steelmaking, remained largely unchanged. The Shanghai Futures Exchange has seen a rise in the majority of steel benchmarks. Rebar gained 0.26%; hot-rolled coil gained 0.24%; wire rod increased 0.66% and stainless steel fell 0.58%. $1 = 7,0060 Chinese Yuan (Reporting and editing by Amy Lv, Ryan Woo)
-
Sources say that China's first batch fuel export quotas for 2026 are stable year-on-year.
Three sources familiar with this matter late Wednesday said that China issued 19 million tonnes of export quotas, including gasoline, diesel and jet fuel, in the first batch for 2026. In this batch of export quotas, the world's second largest consumer of oil gave out?8 millions tons of low sulphur marine fuel. Both volumes were stable compared to a year ago. China's refined fuel exports are managed by a quota-based system that balances the fundamentals of supply and demand in its domestic market. The main recipients of the quotas were the state-owned oil companies Sinopec and CNPC. They received 13.76 millions tons of allowances for gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel exports – more than 70% of the total volume. Zhejiang Petrochemical, a major private refiner, was allocated 1.56 million tonnes?of export quotas in this first batch. Almost 85% of the 8 million tons of low-sulphur fuel allowed for marine use went to Sinopec and CNPC. China's oil refinery exports, including aviation fuel, marine bunker fuel, and diesel fuel, totaled 52.65 millions tons in the first 11 months 2025. This is a 3.2% decrease from last year.
AI bubble worries in 2026 will test Asia's strong equity deal pipeline
The Asian equity capital market will be boosted by a strong pipeline of high profile IPOs from companies in China and India that are looking to take advantage of the diversification trend among investors. However, concerns over rising tech valuations may slow down momentum.
LSEG data shows that Asian equity capital markets (ECMs) have been awash with $267 billion in deals this year. This is up 15% on 2024 and the first annual increase since 2021.
Data shows that Hong Kong, which is the preferred listing destination of Chinese companies, has dominated regional ECM transactions with 75 billion dollars raised so far in 2025. This is more than triple the amount raised last year, and the highest level since 2021.
LSEG data shows that India has raised $19.3 Billion via IPOs this year. This is down 6% compared to the record $20,5 Billion in 2024. Data for 2025 does not include the $604 million IPO of e-commerce company Meesho, which is currently underway.
James Wang, Goldman Sachs' head of Asia and ex-Japan ECM, said that the two main drivers for equity issuance in Asia this year were China's recovery as well as India's continued growth.
He said that he expected both markets to be central to the regional deal flow by 2026. "We're still in the beginning stages of a larger upswing, supported by Asia’s economic growth and improved corporate earnings," he said.
According to a forecast from investment banking firm Equirus Capital, India will generate up to $20 billion in IPOs by 2026. Public disclosures revealed that over 300 companies had filed for Hong Kong listing.
Advisors expect that landmark offerings, such as India's Reliance Jio Platforms IPO and Hong Kong's second listing of China Zhongji Innolight Co will boost volumes in 2026.
PIVOTING AWAY FROM US ASSETS
Asia has benefitted from the global trend of diversifying portfolios. Investors have shifted away from U.S. assets over the past few months due to uncertainty about President Donald Trump's geopolitical and trade policies.
Li He, Davis Polk's Asia co-head and former Japan partner, said: "In times of U.S. turmoil, capital often rotates to Asia in search for diversification and structural gains."
The recovery of 2025 wasn't a flash in a pan. It reflected the deep liquidity in the region, and a clear shift towards frontier technologies which are changing how we produce, consume and interact.
The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong has risen nearly 30%, beating U.S. benchmarks. India's benchmark is up around 10.8%.
Taking advantage, Chinese battery company CATL raised $5.3 Billion in a Hong Kong Second Listing, and Zijin Gold International reaped $3 Billion from an IPO, in two of the largest offerings in the world this year.
AI BUBBLE CONCERNS
The largest bout of volatility seen in U.S. stock prices in months, in November, revealed cracks in global AI rally. This raised questions about whether the markets are in the grip of a speculative boom that is about to burst.
Reports indicate that Chinese AI chip manufacturers MetaX, Kunlunxin and Zhipu AI, among others are planning IPOs. These deals could be worth billions of dollars.
Arun Balasubramanian is a partner in the law firm Freshfields. He said that many AI technologies and digital infrastructure assets are yet to be tapped into public markets in Asia. However, it is too early to tell if AI is overvalued.
"If these AI bubble concerns result in a major selloff, it could be contagious." Significant selloffs affect not only one sector but the entire market. "So that's an important risk."
Pratik Loonker is the head of ECM at India's Axis Capital. He said that AI-driven global de-rating may have an impact on valuations and pricing.
Investors are moving away from high-growth stories and towards quality names that generate cash.
(source: Reuters)