Flash News

TREE NEWS update: Xi Jinping issued important instructions on the 7.0-magnitude earthquake in Baqing County, Nagqu City, Tibet, calling for all-out search and rescue of people, proper resettlement of affected residents, and effective protection of people’s lives and property. The instructions were reported on national television. No casualty figures or damage assessments were given in the material.

TREE NEWS update: Japan’s Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ryosei Akazawa said claims that Japan will face a yttrium shortage within a few months are not true. The minister made the remark in response to concerns about the supply of the rare earth element. No further details on supply measures or timelines were provided.

TREE NEWS reports: Shanghai silver’s main futures contract fell more than 4% at the open, while Shanghai gold dropped over 2%. Energy products moved higher, with LU fuel oil up nearly 4%, fuel oil up over 3%, and liquefied petroleum gas and propylene each up more than 2%.

TREE NEWS reports: FTSE China A50 index futures opened 0.09% higher, after closing the previous night session up 0.04%. The early move extends a marginal gain from the prior evening’s trading.

TREE NEWS reports: Margin financing balances across the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges fell a combined 23.295 billion yuan to 2.4191 trillion yuan as of Oct. 22 from the prior trading day. The Shanghai exchange’s balance dropped 10.383 billion yuan to 1.246938 trillion yuan, while Shenzhen’s fell 12.912 billion yuan to 1.172162 trillion yuan.

TREE NEWS reports: Citi said the recent selloff in Chinese stocks shows market sentiment is near or already at extremely pessimistic levels, yet valuations for China’s internet sector remain attractive. The bank reiterated Tencent, Alibaba, Meituan, PDD and Full Truck Alliance as its preferred stocks, adding that even with a potential 10% to 30% further earnings downgrade, sector valuations stay attractive.

TREE NEWS reports: Japan’s services sector activity accelerated in October, with the preliminary services PMI rising to 52 from 51.3 in September. A reading above 50 signals expansion, marking a continued recovery in the country’s service economy.

TREE NEWS reports: CITIC Securities said China-EU trade consultations have sent positive signals, with monthly rare earth permanent magnet export volumes hitting a year-to-date high. Combined with the traditional fourth-quarter demand peak and emerging demand from humanoid robots, the brokerage said the sector’s rigid-supply, elastic-demand logic may keep strengthening and reiterated its recommendation on strategic allocation to the rare earth supply chain.

TREE NEWS reports: Xu Simin has resigned as legal representative, chairman and general manager of Hangzhou Wahaha Group. Xu has not fully left the company, and internal discussions on a successor are ongoing but not final. A former employee said a court told him his labor dispute hearing against Wahaha next month may be rescheduled because of the legal representative’s resignation.

TREE NEWS update: Multiple loud explosions were heard in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in the early hours of the 23rd. Locals received air-raid alerts delivered through a mobile application. No further details on casualties, targets or the cause of the blasts were immediately available.

TREE NEWS update: South Korea’s permanent representative to the United Nations sent a letter to the UN Security Council president on Feb. 22 New York time, demanding that North Korea apologize for a recent landmine explosion in the inter-Korean Demilitarized Zone and take responsible measures, South Korean authorities said on Feb. 23.

TREE NEWS update: The Export-Import Bank of China issued a 1-year bond worth 20 billion yuan on [date not provided]. The issuance carried a coupon rate of 0.0000%, with an expected yield of 0.0000%. The bid-to-cover ratio stood at 1.00 times, and the marginal bid-to-cover ratio was also 1.00 times.

TREE NEWS reports: Japan’s Nikkei 225 opened 0.4% lower and South Korea’s Kospi Composite opened down 2.4%, with Samsung Electronics falling 3% at the open. The declines mark a weaker start for Asian equities.

TREE NEWS reports: Japan’s 10-year government bond yield fell 7 basis points to 2.81%, moving lower on the session. The drop in the benchmark yield reflects fresh demand for Japanese sovereign debt at the long end. No further details on the move were provided.

TREE NEWS update: China is set to issue or is currently issuing government bonds and policy financial bonds, according to a schedule of upcoming and current sovereign and quasi-sovereign debt sales. The notice lists the planned issuance but does not specify amounts, maturities or pricing. No further details were provided.

TREE NEWS update: Iranian state television on May 22 broadcast video showing dozens of new Iranian drones in an underground facility. One new model can now carry a warhead weighing up to 100 kilograms, double the power of earlier models, the broadcaster said. Army commander Hatami was cited as saying Iran’s maturity in drones and unmanned systems has reached a very high level, with more drones to come.

TREE NEWS update: Japan’s economic and fiscal policy minister Minoru Kiuchi said the government will decide whether to formally declare an exit from deflation after comprehensively weighing the CPI, the GDP deflator and the deeper factors behind changes in underlying inflation. No timeline for the decision was given.

TREE NEWS reports: HSBC lowered its average price forecasts for platinum and palladium for 2026, citing changed market fundamentals and investor position reductions. The bank added that both metals still have room to rebound. No specific forecast figures were disclosed.

TREE NEWS reports: Asia may need to invest as much as $1 trillion a year in energy over the next 15 years to safeguard energy supply, McKinsey said in a report. The estimate covers the annual capital required to keep the region’s energy system secure through the period.

TREE NEWS reports: Citigroup said near-term oil price risks remain skewed to the upside even as Gulf crude exports recover, because persistent shipping bottlenecks are keeping landed supply tight. The bank’s view, reported on Wednesday, points to continued friction in physical crude flows rather than a demand-driven price move.