Flash News

TREE NEWS reports: Brazil is preparing its first panda bond issuance, potentially launching as soon as next week after Sunday’s presidential election, with an initial tranche of 5 billion yuan. The government is seeking to raise about 10 billion yuan ($1.5 billion) in total. The sale would make Brazil the first Latin American sovereign issuer in China’s panda bond market and could set a pricing benchmark for Brazilian companies such as Vale, which is also considering yuan-denominated debt.

TREE NEWS reports: The Bloomberg Electric Vehicle Price Return Index fell 1.01% to 2,974.76 on Tuesday, October 20, after touching a session low of 2,952.25 at 14:13 Beijing time. CALB’s Hong Kong-listed H-shares dropped 9.21% and Umicore’s European shares lost 4.47%, while RoboSense gained 3.92% and Volvo Car rose 4.4%.

TREE NEWS reports: SpaceX reported third-quarter revenue of $14.58 billion, topping analysts’ estimate of $12.8 billion. Net profit came in at $4.4 billion versus an expected $1.88 billion, while capital expenditure reached $19.59 billion, roughly in line with the $19.6 billion forecast.

TREE NEWS reports: The S&P 500 closed provisionally up 0.2%, with health care rising 2.3% and real estate adding 1.6%, while technology fell 0.3% and telecom dropped 1%. The Nasdaq 100 slipped 0.1%, as Arm Holdings fell 3% and Lam Research, KLA, Applied Materials, Cadence, Constellation Energy, Netflix and Meta each lost at least 1.7%. Semiconductor and memory-chip indices declined 0.3% and 0.5%, respectively.

TREE NEWS reports: Franklin Templeton’s global chief investment officer for fixed income, Sonal Desai, warned that continued selling of French bonds could escalate into a eurozone debt crisis potentially more severe than the bloc’s previous crisis. “I don’t think anyone is truly prepared for a European debt crisis 2.0, and if it does break out, it could be much worse,” Desai said. The fixed income investment head cautioned that sustained French bond selloffs risk spilling over into a broader euro area crisis.

TREE NEWS update: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on the 20th that dialogue with the United States is possible only if Washington first lifts its pressure, threats and sanctions, according to a statement made during a meeting with Pakistan’s Chief of Army Staff Asim Munir. Pezeshkian said the US cannot simultaneously escalate sanctions, pressure and blockade while claiming to seek talks, and that Iran has been and remains willing to negotiate. He added that the US cannot achieve its goals through war, which would only cause destruction and loss across the region.

TREE NEWS update: Houthi spokesman Yahya said Saudi warplanes launched 93 airstrikes and missile attacks on civilian targets across eight Yemeni provinces in the past 24 hours, including Al-Jawf, Taiz, Saada, Marib, Hajjah, Lahij, Amran and Ibb. He said F-15 and Typhoon jets flew from air bases including Khamis Mushait, Taif, Al-Kharj and Sharurah, causing civilian casualties. Since the latest escalation began, the total has reached 2,793 strikes, he said.

TREE NEWS update: Boeing has received US approval for the largest variant of its 737 MAX aircraft, the company said. The clearance covers the biggest member of the 737 MAX family, though the announcement provided no further details on the aircraft’s specifications or the timing of first deliveries. The approval marks a regulatory step for Boeing’s narrowbody lineup.

TREE NEWS reports: Chicago Board of Trade corn futures fell 1.18% on Tuesday, with soybean meal down 1.83% and wheat off 1.91% in late New York trading on Oct. 20. The Bloomberg Grain Subindex lost 1% to 31.2360 points after touching a session high of 31.7319 at 20:05 Beijing time. Soybeans slipped 0.41% to $12.6275 a bushel, while lean hogs rose 1.21% and live cattle gained 0.93%.

TREE NEWS update: US President Donald Trump said it is too early to discuss endorsing Vice President JD Vance for the 2028 presidential election. Asked about the possibility of backing Vance, Trump said everything is still too early to say. The remark leaves the question of a 2028 endorsement open.

TREE NEWS update: US President Donald Trump reiterated that oil prices will decline once the war with Iran concludes. He made the remark without providing further details on timing or expected price levels. The comment links the trajectory of crude prices directly to the end of the conflict.

TREE NEWS reports: The United States and Canada are not expected to conclude a trade agreement before the US midterm elections, CBC reported. No timeline for resuming talks or a revised deadline was given. The two countries have been negotiating to update their trilateral trade pact with Mexico.

TREE NEWS update: French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau said on the 20th that soldiers from the Sentinelle anti-terror operation will be deployed to reinforce police and gendarmes ahead of protests expected on the 24th. The troops will mainly serve as static guard forces, easing pressure on police and increasing their operational mobility, he told the National Assembly. The government is also considering banning undeclared protests and declared rallies deemed at risk of spiraling out of control.

TREE NEWS reports: The onshore yuan (CNY) closed at 6.6781 per dollar at 03:00 Beijing time, gaining 29 pips from Monday’s overnight close. Trading volume for the session totaled $41.483 billion. The move marks a modest strengthening of the Chinese currency against the dollar.

TREE NEWS reports: The Hang Seng Index main futures contract closed up 0.51% at 24,001 in the overnight session. The Hang Seng Tech Index futures rose 0.69% to 4,076. The moves reflect overnight positioning in Hong Kong equity derivatives.

TREE NEWS update: Israel’s military and Shin Bet said in a joint statement on the evening of the 20th that a precise airstrike on Gaza City earlier that day killed Yassin, a senior member of Hamas’s security apparatus. The statement identified the target as a senior figure in the group’s security agency. No further details on the operation or casualties were provided.

TREE NEWS reports: The ICE U.S. Dollar Index fell 0.29% to 101.685 at the New York close on Tuesday, Oct. 20, trading between 101.982 and 101.506 during the session. The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index dropped 0.25% to 1,220.19, with an intraday range of 1,222.99 to 1,218.40, hitting its session low at 22:30 Beijing time.

TREE NEWS update: US President Donald Trump said Ukraine must be willing to reach an agreement to end the conflict, adding that he wants to see whether a deal can be struck. Trump also said the United States has given Ukraine a great deal while receiving nothing in return. He made the remarks without specifying terms, timing or the parties involved in any prospective negotiations.

TREE NEWS update: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government will release its federal budget on Nov. 5, the government said. The budget date sets the stage for the minority Parliament’s fall fiscal agenda. No further details on the budget’s contents were provided.

TREE NEWS update: US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Oslo on Thursday, with leaders from Norway and Finland also taking part and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner joining by video. The talks aim to draft a peace proposal that can be presented to Russia, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Zelenskiy said at a joint news conference.