TREE NEWS reports: Freddie Mac reported third-quarter pre-tax profit of $4.02 billion, ahead of the $3.83 billion estimate. Net interest income for the quarter came in at $5.88 billion, also above the $5.8 billion expected. The government-sponsored mortgage giant’s results cover the quarter ended Sept. 30.
TREE NEWS reports: A total of 1,141 A-share listed companies disclosed subscriptions to wealth-management products, including deposits, in the first three quarters of 2026, with cumulative subscriptions exceeding 852 billion yuan across nearly 13,000 products. Deposits, especially structured deposits, remained the largest allocation at 76.6%, while the share of bank wealth-management products declined and broker, trust and other asset-management products rose.
TREE NEWS update: Microsoft plans to raise at least $25 billion through a US bond issuance. The company is tapping the investment-grade debt market with the sale, which targets a minimum of $25 billion in proceeds. No further terms, including pricing or maturity, were disclosed.
TREE NEWS update: The 8th Yangtze River Delta G60 Sci-Tech Innovation Corridor Technology Achievement Auction on the 29th sold 381 technology results for a total of 702 million yuan ($96.5 million), Xinhua reported. The eighth edition’s cumulative “1+365” transaction total has reached 21.8 billion yuan, while the first eight editions combined have surpassed 70 billion yuan.
TREE NEWS update: Microsoft has launched a 10-tranche US dollar high-grade bond offering, marking its first such sale since 2017. The deal size was not disclosed in the material. The issuance returns the software giant to the investment-grade bond market after an eight-year absence.
TREE NEWS reports: Foreign banks including HSBC, Standard Chartered, DBS and Bank SinoPac have since October launched a wave of renminbi large-denomination certificates of deposit, with Bank SinoPac’s three-year product carrying an annualized rate of 1.92% — roughly 40 basis points above the same-tenor CDs at China’s state-owned banks. The rate advantage has drawn market attention as deposit rates overall stay in the “1%” range.
TREE NEWS reports: Xinjiang exported 130.772 billion kWh of electricity in the first three quarters of the year, up 20.61% year on year. Three ultra-high-voltage DC lines — the ±1100kV Zhundong–Wannan, ±800kV Hami South–Zhengzhou and ±800kV Hami–Chongqing corridors — carried 53.89 billion, 35.33 billion and 27.67 billion kWh respectively, together accounting for nearly 90% of total outbound power.
TREE NEWS update: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on the 29th that its navy conducted an offensive electronic warfare operation west of the Strait of Hormuz, successfully seizing control of a US military spy drone and bringing it down safely. The IRGC statement did not give further details on the drone’s type or the exact location of the operation.
TREE NEWS update: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy said three oil tankers struck mines and caught fire while crossing an unauthorized route south of the Strait of Hormuz over the past 24 hours, then were abandoned on the strait’s southern shore. The statement was issued on the 29th, local time. No further details on casualties, cargo or vessel identities were given.
TREE NEWS reports: Italy’s Istat business confidence index for October came in at 91.9, missing the expected 92 and unchanged from the prior reading of 91.9. The flat print leaves sentiment at the same level as the previous month, with the slight shortfall against consensus pointing to no improvement in business morale at the start of the fourth quarter.
TREE NEWS update: The Federal Reserve kept its benchmark rate at 3.75%-4.00% on Oct. 28 in a 10-2 vote, with Cook and Hammack dissenting in favor of a 25-basis-point increase. The statement upgraded its read on economic activity to “strong” from “moderate” while retaining that inflation remains elevated. Markets priced roughly 87.5% odds of a December hike after the meeting, up from 79%-84% beforehand, with Q3 GDP and September PCE due Oct. 29.
TREE NEWS update: European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde will step down in February 2027, ending more than seven years at the helm of the eurozone’s central bank. Lagarde announced her plans to leave the role after leading the ECB through a period of aggressive interest-rate hikes and balance-sheet tightening. Her departure comes as the ECB continues to navigate inflation risks and slowing growth across the currency bloc.
TREE NEWS reports: Caterpillar reported third-quarter adjusted earnings per share of $7.20, up from $4.95 a year earlier and above the $7.10 estimate. GAAP EPS came in at $7.13 versus $4.88 a year ago, while revenue rose 17% year over year to $20.68 billion, topping the $20.65 billion estimate. The stock fell 3.5% in premarket trading.
TREE NEWS update: European Council President António Costa said the process to find a successor to European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde will begin on Thursday. Costa said the appointment procedure will be launched today and pushed forward without delay so the European Council can make a timely decision, ensuring a smooth transition to the ECB’s next leader.
TREE NEWS update: Chongqing-based motorcycle maker Zhangxue Motorcycle saw monthly output exceed 10,000 units in June, with overseas orders in April already matching a full prior year’s total. The company’s 500,000-unit annual capacity project in Liangjiang New Area has secured land-use planning permission and is expected to break ground within the year, backed by 750 million yuan in investment.
TREE NEWS update: Beijing’s Commerce Bureau extended the application deadline for its 2026 automobile trade-in subsidy from 24:00 on Nov. 30, 2026 to 24:00 on Jan. 10, 2027, unless annual subsidy funds are exhausted. Applicants needing to correct or supplement information must do so by 24:00 on Jan. 20, 2027. Late submissions or corrections will not be eligible for the subsidy.
TREE NEWS reports: The eurozone services sentiment index for October came in at 5.3, missing the expected 5.6 and down from the prior reading of 6.1. The weaker-than-forecast print points to deteriorating sentiment across the bloc’s services sector.
TREE NEWS reports: Eurozone consumer confidence held at -17.9 in October, the final reading confirmed, matching both the preliminary estimate and economist expectations. The indicator stayed unchanged from its flash reading of -17.9, showing sentiment remained at the same level.
TREE NEWS reports: European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde will step down ahead of the end of her term. No date or reason for the early departure was given in the initial account. Lagarde has led the ECB since 2019, steering eurozone monetary policy through the post-pandemic inflation surge and successive interest-rate cycles.
TREE NEWS reports: UBS lowered its 12-month target for South Korea’s KOSPI index to 7,500 from 8,000, reflecting concerns that a stronger won is eroding corporate earnings. The revision was disclosed on Oct. 29. The bank’s move points to currency-driven pressure on Korean exporters’ profitability.