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Asia stocks rise as Nikkei sets fresh record, dollar drops
Asian stocks rose?for the second day on early Tuesday trading, led by a rally in Tokyo’s?benchmark following Prime Minister Takaichi’s decisive victory in the Japanese election over weekend. The broadest index of Asia-Pacific stocks outside Japan, MSCI, rose 0.4%. Nikkei's 225, however, jumped by 2.1%. It was the third day in a row that Nikkei has reached a new record high. After a two day rally, U.S. equity e-minis have cooled down, with S&P500 e-minis down by 0.1%. This partially reverses gains made on Wall Street over night. S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite rose 0.5% on Monday as technology stocks recovered from last week's AI sparked selloff. Kees Verbaas is the global head of fundamental Equity at Robeco. He added: "The investment programmes of large companies are increasing, not decreasing... which is usually good for economic activity." "A large part of the AI supply chains is only possible because of emerging markets." Kevin Hassett, White House Economic Advisor, said that several important economic reports are due to be released later this week, including retail sales, inflation, and delayed payrolls. He also stated on Monday that U.S. jobs gains could be lower in upcoming months, as immigration policies under the Trump administration slow the growth of the labor force and new AI tools increase productivity. The U.S. Dollar Index, which measures greenback strength against a basket six currencies, traded steady at 96.97, near its lowest level of the month. The index recorded its largest one-day decline in two weeks after a Bloomberg News article that stated Chinese regulators had advised financial institutions to reduce holdings of U.S. Treasury Bonds due to concerns over concentration risk and volatility. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced on Monday that senior U.S. Treasury officials visited China last Thursday "to strengthen channels" of communication between Washington and Beijing. The dollar traded at 6.9167 Chinese Yuan against the Chinese yuan. In a research paper, analysts at Alpine Macro stated that "elevating the role of the renminbi on the global stage is moving up the policy agenda." Beijing's primary goal is to reduce the vulnerability of the dollar, not to challenge its dominance. The yield on U.S. Treasury bonds of 10 years increased by 0.2 basis points to 4.196%. The market continues to indicate the Federal Reserve will stay on hold until at least June. Fed funds futures indicate a 17.7% implied probability of a 25 basis-point rate cut at the U.S. Central Bank's next two day meeting on March 18 compared to an 18.4% implied chance on Friday. WTI crude oil was down by 0.1% on the commodities market, at $64.15 per barrel. Silver fell 2.7% to $81.13 an ounce. Gold dropped 0.9% to $5.018.59 an ounce. Bitcoin fell 0.9% to $69756.85 while Ether dropped 1.1% to $298.21. (Reporting and editing by Gregor Stuart Hunter, Stella Qiu)
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Stock indexes rise with US tech shares; the yen gains strength
Investors sought bargains on markets that had been beaten last week. The yen also strengthened after the election victory of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. U.S. tech shares continued to rise on Friday after a sharp drop last week. Concerns about artificial intelligence and its potential to increase competition and squeeze margins prompted a sharp sell-off of software names the previous week. The Nasdaq rose the most among the three main U.S. indexes. Oliver Pursche is senior vice president at Wealthspire Advisors, Westport, Connecticut, and he says that there's a "buy-the-dip" mentality in the markets. Investors were waiting for economic data that could shed some light on Federal Reserve's future interest rate path. The nonfarm payrolls for January in the United States are due to be released on Wednesday. On Friday, we will get the consumer price index for January. CME Group's FedWatch shows that traders are pricing in the first Fed rate reduction of the year in June. Pursche stated that "the bottom line is the consumer spending in Q4 was robust, the economy performed well for the year, and it is likely to be on a strong footing in this quarter Q1, which will reflect in earnings." "The other side is that we see persistent and stubborn inflationary pressures, a weakening of the job market, and a Fed, that at least for the short-term, is on pause." The Dow Jones Industrial Average grew 20.20 points or 0.04% to 50,135.87. The S&P 500 grew 32.52 points or 0.47% to 6,964.82 while the Nasdaq Composite climbed 207.46 or 0.90% to 23,238.67. The Dow closed Friday above the 50,000 mark for the first. The MSCI index of stocks around the world rose 11.15 points or 1.07% to 1,053.97 and reached a new record high. The pan-European STOXX 600 rose by 0.7%. Stocks in Japan had risen to new highs earlier. Japan's Nikkei led the gains, rising 3.9% and reaching all-time records. A decisive majority of the ruling LDP cleared the way to more tax cuts and spending. Two-year Japanese government bonds yields reached their highest level since 1996, at 1.3%. The yen gained strength across the board and reversed six days of consecutive losses. The yen gained the most against the dollar. It had almost recovered all of its steep fall against the Japanese currency at the end of January. After Bloomberg, the dollar has also declined. reported Chinese regulators have advised Chinese financial institutions to reduce their exposure to U.S. Treasury Bonds. The dollar index, which measures greenbacks against a basket including yen and euro, dropped 0.8% to 96.83. At $1.1917, the euro rose 0.85%. The dollar fell 0.91% against the Japanese yen to 155.77. The British stock market and bonds were under pressure after Prime Minister Keir Starmer was asked to resign by the leader of his party in Scotland, following two resignations in a row. London's FTSE 100 index has erased previous falls and is now higher. The 10-year gilt The yield on 30-year gilts briefly reached its highest level since November. U.S. Treasury rates rose initially, but then dipped lower ahead of this week’s economic data releases. The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. notes dropped 0.4 basis points from 4,206% to 4.202% late Friday. Spot silver rose after trading below the record high of $121.64 on January 29. U.S. gold futures GCv1 for April delivery settled 2% higher at $5,079.40 per ounce. Oil Gained After the U.S. Department of Transportation advised U.S. flagged vessels to stay as close to Iranian territory as possible while passing through Strait of Hormuz or Gulf of Oman. Brent crude gained 99 cents and settled at $69.04 per barrel. U.S. crude was up 81 cents. Caroline Valetkevitch reported from New York with additional reporting from Amanda Cooper in London, and Wayne Cole in Sydney. Editing was done by Chizu nomiyama and Nia Williams.
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Health officials confirm that Israeli strikes have killed five people in Gaza
Health officials reported that Israeli airstrikes killed five Palestinians on Gaza's border with Egypt. This is the latest in a series of violent incidents to threaten a four-month old truce, brokered by the United States. Two people riding electric bikes were killed in Deir Al-Balah, central Gaza by an airstrike, according to medics. Israeli drone fire later killed a woman and troops in Khan Younis, south of Gaza. Palestinian medics confirmed that Israeli gunfire killed another man in Jabalia, north Gaza. Israeli forces had killed four militants the day before in Rafah, a southern city. They emerged from a tunnel underground and fired on troops. Israeli military did not directly comment on the four people who were killed in Rafah on Tuesday. Instead, they said that they had launched attacks against what it called?Hamas militants as a response to Monday's attack. Gaza City saw dozens of Palestinians gather at the funerals for three people who were killed in an Israeli airstrike that struck an apartment block on Monday night. The bodies of two men were identified by the green Hamas flag wrapped around one body and the green Hamas ribbon worn on the forehead of another. It was not possible to determine the identities of the victims. TRADING BLOAME Israel and Hamas repeatedly blamed each other for violating the ceasefire agreement, which is a crucial element in U.S. president Donald Trump's plan to end the Gaza War, the deadliest, most destructive conflict between Israel and Palestine over generations. Next, Trump's plan calls for Hamas to disarm, Israel to withdraw its troops from Gaza and an international peacekeeping force. Hamas, which has rejected calls for it to "lay down its weapons", and Israeli officials have said they are preparing to return to war. Gaza's Health Ministry reports that at least 580 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire after the ceasefire agreement was struck in October. Israel claims that militants have killed four soldiers in Gaza during the same time period. According to Israeli statistics, the Gaza war began with the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023 on southern Israel which killed over 1,200 people. According to Palestinian data, Israel's air war and ground conflict in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of more than 72,000 Palestinians since then.
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Cleveland-Cliffs slumps after quarterly revenue misses estimates
Cleveland-Cliffs' shares fell over 17%?Monday after the steelmaker reported a fourth-quarter profit that was below Wall?Street expectations. Shares of the company were trading at $12.22 and were on track for their largest single-day decline since October 21. Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lourenco Goncalves stated that the company's performance in 2025 would be affected by the weak production levels of the automotive industry, the termination a 5-year contract for slab supply with ArcelorMittal, and the impact the Trump administration’s sweeping metal tariffs will have on its Canadian operations. Goncalves stated that "Canada became a dump for producers who were trying to avoid US tariffs and downstream Canadian manufacturing suffered as well." Commercial contracts lagged behind despite the tariffs, which boosted U.S. spot steel prices. The industry had to adjust to an older price index, leading to a 'lower fourth-quarter selling price. Tariffs have further hurt the sales of?the automobile sector?, which accounts for 28% of Cleveland-Cliffs quarterly steelmaking revenues. The bottom line of U.S. carmakers has also been hit by higher production costs. LSEG data shows that the company's revenue for the quarter decreased marginally to $4.31 Billion from a previous year, which is below analyst expectations of $4.59 Billion. The total revenue for 2025 also dropped to $18.61 from $19.19 billion. The steel producer, however, posted a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss. Its adjusted loss per share was 43 cents in the quarter that ended on December 31 compared to 68 cents one year earlier. Analysts, on average, had expected a loss per share of 60 cents. Goncalves stated that the company expects to incur higher costs during the next quarter due to "the recent spike in utilities costs" and a change in (product) mix, before returning to normal in Q2, with improved steel pricing and increased shipment volumes. The company wants to?finalize a deal in the first half 2026 with Korean steelmaker Posco. The median price target compiled by LSEG of 15 brokerages that cover Cleveland-Cliffs was $13. By 2025, this stock would have gained 41.3%. Reporting by AnshumanTripathy and AatreyeeDasgupta from Bengaluru, Editing by MajuSamuel and Shakesh Kuber
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Harmony Gold announces that newly acquired Australian copper mine will require a two-year overhaul
Beyers Nel, the Chief Executive of Harmony Gold in South Africa, said that the CSA Copper Mine acquired by Harmony Gold recently could require a capital 'injection' and a strategic rethink. This could take up to two years. Harmony, South Africa’s largest gold producer, has diversified into copper, a critical metal for electric vehicles and grid infrastructure. Gold mining in South Africa is becoming more expensive and geologically challenging due to the deepness of the mines. Harmony acquired the CSA mine from Australian Mac Copper Ltd last October in a $1.03 billion deal. Harmony has not yet said whether it can increase or maintain the output of 40,000 tons per year. Nel stated that the operation required significant work. He said that it could take up to two years or more to de-risk the mine and un-bottleneck it, on the sidelines the Africa Mining Indaba. It is a mine which is currently constrained. This mine needs a little rethinking and capitalisation. He said that the two main issues are inadequate ventilation and a lack of flexibility in mining due to poor insulation. Harmony examines short-term projects that will improve ventilation and allow deeper mining. The company will 'give the first official production outlook for mine when it reports its half-year results on March. This period covers?the six month from January to the end of June. We don't expect it to blow the lights out. "I mean, the mine has a constrained space," said?Nel. Harmony is also the sole owner of the Eva copper project located in Queensland (Australia) and is a joint-owner with Newmont for Wafi-Golpu - a gold-copper mine in Papua New Guinea that is currently undergoing the?process to obtain a special mining license. Nel stated that "we don't have a timeline for when we will get the licence, but we feel confident that we are making progress towards achieving our goal." Reporting by Nqobile dludla, Olivia Kumwenda - Mtambo and Susan Fenton; Editing by Nelson Banya
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Botswana's economic recovery is projected but debt spirals upward
Botswana is projected to grow in this year's economic forecast after two consecutive years of contraction. However, debt will likely rise above 'the' government's statutory limit due to another large budget deficit. Ndaba Gaolathe, in a speech on the budget, said that economic growth was expected to be 3.1% this year, compared with estimated contractions of?2.8% last year and 0.4% last. Southern Africa's economy has suffered a severe downturn, largely due to the economic uncertainty and growing popularity of lab-grown diamonds. About one-third of Botswana’s revenue is generated by diamonds, and about three-quarters comes from its foreign exchange earnings. Gaolathe told lawmakers that the 'budget deficit for the fiscal year starting in April is seen as 26.35 billion Pula ($1.91billion), or 8.9% gross domestic product. This compares with a projected deficit of 25,48 billion pula for this fiscal year. The minister stated that "this reflects a structurally stretched fiscal framework?where expenditure commitments consistently exceed realistic and available realisable resources." By March 2026, the debt-to GDP ratio will be estimated at?38.77% and by March '2027 it will reach 44.66%. This is a breach of the current statutory debt limit of 40%. Gaolathe said that while such a rise in the ceiling may cause short-term concerns about credibility, they are far outweighed by the "significantly higher economic risks" arising from the fiscal consolidation required to remain within the existing ceiling. He continued that it was urgent to increase economic diversification, and strengthen growth sources other than mining. $1 = 13.8313 pula (Reporting and editing by Alexander Winning, Tomaszjanowski and Tomasz Winning in Cape Town and Johannesburg).
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Cleveland-Cliffs slumps after quarterly revenue misses estimates
Cleveland-Cliffs' shares fell in early trading on Monday after the steelmaker reported a fourth-quarter profit that was?below Wall Street expectations. Lourenco Goncalves, CEO of the company, said that the performance in 2025 would be affected by a weak production level in the automotive industry, a five-year slab agreement expiring in its final year and 'a new adverse dynamic on the Canadian market. Commercial contracts lagged behind despite President Donald Trump’s sweeping metal tariffs, as the industry adapted to an older price index. This resulted in lower selling prices for the fourth quarter. Tariffs have further harmed demand for?automotive products, which is a major market for Cleveland-Cliffs. Several U.S. carmakers cited?increasing production costs. LSEG data shows that the company's revenue for the quarter decreased marginally to $4.31 Billion from a year earlier, falling below analyst expectations of $4.59 Billion. The total revenue for 2025 also dropped to $18.61 from $19.19 billion. The company, however, posted a narrower-than-expected quarterly loss. The adjusted loss per share was 43 cents, compared to 68 cents in the same quarter last year. Analysts had predicted a loss of 60 cents. Gordon Johnson, an analyst at GLJ Research, said that "U.S. car production?remains weak (and deteriorating), Canada remains weak and neither has provided much ballast 'to results." Cleveland-Cliffs shares are down 18.8% to $11,96. The stock has gained 41.3% in 2025. (Reporting and editing by Maju Sam in Bengaluru, AnshumanTripathy, AatreyeeDasgupta).
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Lebanese Health Ministry: Israeli strikes kill 4 in Lebanon, including a child
Lebanon's National News Agency, citing Lebanon's Health Ministry, reported that Israeli forces killed four people in southern Lebanon, including a young child, on Monday. The Israeli military claimed they targeted members of the Shi'ite Muslim-led armed group Hezbollah. According to Hezbollah and the Lebanese Sunni Islamist Jama'a Islamiya group, in a third raid, Israeli forces seized a senior official of Jama'a Islamiya. According to the Israeli military, he is a senior terrorist and was sent to Israel for questioning. Israel has been conducting regular strikes on Lebanon since the 2024 war with Hezbollah. According to Lebanese security sources, around 400 people have died since the ceasefire. NNA, citing the Health Ministry, reported that three of the victims, including a child of 3 years, were killed by an Israeli airstrike on the village of Yanouh. Israeli military claimed to have killed a Hezbollah fighter in an airstrike?in Yanouh. They identified him as the leader of Hezbollah artillery -in that area. He was also said to have carried out many attacks against Israel during the war and be working on rehabilitating Hezbollah artillery's capabilities. The Israeli military stated that they were "aware" of the claim of uninvolved civils being killed, that measures were taken to minimize harm to civilians such as use of precise munitions or surveillance and that they regretted any harm caused to innocent civilians. The incident was under review, it said. NNA reported that the fourth death occurred in Aita al-Shaab. The Lebanese Health Ministry said,?a gunman was killed by Israeli fire. Israeli troops have "eliminated" a Hezbollah terror in Aita al-Shaab. He was "involved with gathering intelligence on IDF soldiers and operated to restore Hezbollah’s terrorist infrastructure". Hezbollah said in a statement that the incidents were a "dangerous escalate" and "signals a new phase of Israeli aggressiveness." Israel accuses Hezbollah that it is attempting to rearm, in violation of the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon. Hezbollah claims it has respected the southern Lebanon ceasefire. Early in the morning, a Jama'a Islamiya official, who fired rockets against Israel during the Gaza War, was arrested from the village Habbariyeh near Hasbaiyaa.
TSX drops as mining and tech stocks fall
Canada's main index of stocks fell on Friday as the mining sector suffered from a cooling in metal prices, and technology shares also retreated. However, the benchmark index was still on course for its second consecutive week of gains.
As of 10:54 a.m., the S&P/TSX composite index was down by 0.3% to 32,941.12?points. ET.
Materials index, which includes metal miner companies, fell 1.7% after gold, silver, and copper prices dropped from record highs.
Endeavour Silver
The TSX fell by the most amount of any other stock.
Blackline Safety, a safety technology company, has seen its share of the information technology sector drop by 1.9%
Los Angeles
After a day, the rate of 4.3% is calculated.
Reporting
fourth-quarter results. Energy shares gained?0.8% due to rising oil prices, helping offset some losses. Crude gained nearly 1% despite the decreasing likelihood of an American military strike against Iran.
MDA Space, a space technology company, was the standout. Its stock jumped 13.6% when Morgan Stanley upgraded it to "overweight" (from "equal weight")
This week, energy is expected to be the best performing sector, followed by material, despite Friday's losses.
Canada and China have also struck an initial
trade deal
Tariffs for electric vehicles and canola will be slashed.
Both nations promise to?dismantle barriers and forge new strategic ties.
"I am not sure that this will move the?markets." "Canola is not really produced by publicly traded companies, even though it's a big cash crop," said Brian Madden of First Avenue Investment Counsel.
"Chinese sales of electric vehicles in Canada will probably not have a major impact on stock markets."
Investors are also awaiting the release of domestic inflation figures for December, due Monday.
(source: Reuters)