Flash News

TREE NEWS update: Russia’s Federal Security Service confirmed that a Japanese journalist has been detained in Moscow on suspicion of espionage, Interfax reported on October 13. The journalist’s identity and the specific allegations were not disclosed. No further details on the case were immediately available.

TREE NEWS reports: Fuel oil futures closed up about 2.1% in the night session, while iron ore fell 0.6% and low-sulfur fuel oil dropped 0.8%. The moves came in Chinese commodity futures trading, with the three energy and bulk materials contracts diverging on the night.

TREE NEWS reports: JPMorgan reported revenue of $50.2 billion and net income of $15.3 billion, both below analyst estimates, as fixed-income trading revenue fell 4% year over year. Equity trading revenue rose 49% to its second-highest quarter on record, driven by prime brokerage. The bank raised its fiscal 2026 guidance, lifting net interest income to $106.2 billion and expenses to $108.6 billion. CEO Jamie Dimon said the bank is “slightly tightening credit standards.”

TREE NEWS update: Iran’s deputy navy commander, Faramarz Bemani, said on the 12th that US naval forces have pulled back sharply from Iran’s maritime border. Bemani said the enemy has withdrawn significantly from the boundary and is keeping as much distance as possible from Iranian waters, adding that US warships, destroyers and aircraft carriers have all moved back.

TREE NEWS update: A tourist boat carrying 30 people sank on the 13th in waters near Tatawa Island in West Manggarai Regency, East Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia’s national search and rescue agency said. Twenty-nine people have been rescued and one remains missing.

TREE NEWS update: Russia has detained a Japanese journalist suspected of espionage, Interfax reported. No further details on the journalist’s identity, the location of the detention or the specific allegations were provided. The detention was announced by Russian authorities.

TREE NEWS update: Seven banks including Bank of China Shanghai Branch, Standard Chartered China and Citi China outlined cross-border finance progress at an October 13 briefing hosted by the Shanghai Banking Association, as Shanghai’s offshore finance pilot advances with several ‘first deals’ completed. The briefing covered offshore financial innovation, cross-border settlement facilitation and multinational corporate treasury management.

TREE NEWS update: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed firm support for Saudi Arabia in a phone call on the 13th with Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman, Erdogan’s communications office said in a statement. The statement gave no further details on the topics discussed.

TREE NEWS update: Iran’s navy said a “non-compliant” oil tanker was damaged and caught fire around midday local time while trying to transit the eastern waters of the Strait of Hormuz, after the vessel switched off its tracking system. The navy confirmed the ship’s identity but gave no further details, stating all vessels must strictly comply with international law, keep electronic equipment on and coordinate with Iranian armed forces.

TREE NEWS reports: The Eurozone STOXX 50 index fell 0.5% intraday to 6,170 points. The decline marks a pullback for the blue-chip euro-area benchmark during the session.

TREE NEWS update: New White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia held her first press briefing on October 13, filling a post left vacant since Karoline Leavitt departed at the end of August. President Trump announced the appointment of Zacharia, a conservative commentator, on social media on October 9. She previously served as senior communications adviser at Trump Media & Technology Group’s Truth Social and as a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson.

TREE NEWS update: Liu Haixing, head of the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, met separately in Beijing on October 13 with Chacón, second vice president of Peru’s Senate, and Emmanuel Bonne, foreign affairs adviser to the French president. The sides exchanged views on implementing the consensus reached by their leaders, strengthening inter-party exchanges and cooperation, and advancing bilateral ties.

TREE NEWS update: Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz is set to sign a special security order banning fiber-optic-guided and cellular-network-guided drones from Israeli airspace, Israeli sources said on the 13th. The temporary measure targets unmanned aircraft controlled through those two guidance methods.

TREE NEWS update: The White House said on the 13th that it has asked US Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle to resign. The move follows allegations of improper conduct, including accepting lavish gifts before and during her tenure as ambassador, and attempts to use her influence within the US government for financial gain.

TREE NEWS update: Russia expects to hold talks with the United States on bilateral issues before the end of the year, Interfax reported. No date, venue or agenda for the discussions was given. Moscow and Washington have yet to announce any formal schedule for the contacts.

TREE NEWS update: Yemen’s Houthi movement on October 13 again called on the public to evacuate and stay away from Saudi targets it may strike. The group said that if Saudi Arabia hits the announced target in Yemen’s capital Sanaa, it will retaliate against Saudi Aramco’s oil headquarters in Dammam, King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and Aramco’s Riyadh refinery. Earlier, the Saudi-led coalition said it would strike an oil facility of Yemen’s state oil company in Sanaa.

TREE NEWS update: People’s Insurance Company of China (PICC) said it received regulatory approval for Tan Jiong to serve as the group’s director and chairman, effective October 12. Tan also becomes chairman of the board’s strategy and investment committee and its sustainability committee on the same date, the company said in a filing.

TREE NEWS update: An explosion was heard in Yemen’s capital Sanaa on October 13, with the Yemen Oil Company facility struck in the attack, which is controlled by the Houthi movement. The report did not specify the cause of the blast or give casualty figures.

TREE NEWS update: Saudi Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said on the 12th at the 25th World Petroleum Congress that global crude inventories are approaching “extremely dangerous” lows and may take two years to return to normal. Onshore commercial oil stocks have fallen below 6 billion barrels, which he called the “last available buffer,” though most of that supply is effectively unusable by the market. Energy supply chains remain under pressure from the Strait of Hormuz situation.

TREE NEWS reports: US existing-home sales rose in September for the first time in four months, reaching an annualized pace of 3.99 million units. The median existing-home sale price climbed 1.3% year-on-year to $417,500. The rebound may prove short-lived, as surging mortgage rates and elevated prices are expected to keep market activity subdued for the rest of the year.