Flash News

TREE NEWS reports: Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index opened up 0.92% at 24,434.93 points, with the Hang Seng Tech Index rising 1.03%. Alibaba gained more than 3%, NIO climbed nearly 3% and NetEase added close to 2% in early trade.

TREE NEWS update: The People’s Bank of China conducted a 50 billion yuan 7-day reverse repurchase operation on Thursday, keeping the rate unchanged at 1.40%. The rate matches the previous operation, signaling no change in the central bank’s short-term liquidity pricing.

TREE NEWS reports: The offshore yuan rose to 6.6906 per US dollar, its strongest level since 2022, gaining about 20 pips intraday. The move marks a fresh multi-year high for the offshore renminbi against the dollar.

TREE NEWS reports: The People’s Bank of China set the yuan’s central parity rate at 6.7313 per US dollar, 17 pips stronger than the previous fix of 6.7330. The previous official onshore close was 6.6921, and the overnight session last traded at 6.6929.

TREE NEWS reports: Bank of Korea Governor Shin Hyun-song said strong demand for semiconductors is supporting economic growth that has exceeded expectations, adding that inflation is expected to remain above target for some time. He said financial stability risks still warrant attention, and that the timing and pace of any further rate hikes will be data-dependent.

TREE NEWS reports: The Taiwan Stock Exchange weighted stock index dropped more than 1% on the day. The decline marks a pullback for the benchmark, which tracks the performance of listed companies on the Taiwan exchange. No further details on the drivers of the move or specific sector performance were provided.

TREE NEWS reports: China’s commodity futures opened higher, with the TSR20 rubber main contract up more than 4%, while rubber and coking coal rose over 3%, and methanol and coke gained nearly 3%. On the downside, lithium carbonate, styrene, live hogs and asphalt each fell more than 2%.

TREE NEWS reports: FTSE China A50 index futures opened 0.05% higher, recovering slightly after the prior trading day’s night session closed down 0.17%. The early move reflects modest positioning in the Singapore-listed contract tracking the 50 largest A-share companies.

TREE NEWS reports: The South Korean won strengthened 0.8% against the US dollar, reaching its highest level since October 2024. The move marks a fresh multi-month peak for the currency, which has been among Asia’s more closely watched units this year.

TREE NEWS update: The Saudi-led coalition said on 12 December it intercepted and destroyed a ballistic missile fired by Yemen’s Houthi movement toward Khamis Mushait in southwestern Saudi Arabia. The coalition spokesman announced the interception in a post on social media. No casualties or damage were reported in the statement.

TREE NEWS update: Moody’s has assigned an A1 rating to the medium-term notes Tencent plans to issue. The rating applies to the proposed debt offering, with the specific size and terms of the notes not disclosed. Tencent is a Chinese technology conglomerate whose business spans social media, gaming, cloud computing and fintech.

TREE NEWS reports: South Korea’s benchmark Kospi index extended its intraday decline to 2% on the day. The broader index moved deeper into negative territory as the session’s losses widened. No further details were immediately available.

TREE NEWS reports: CICC said in a research note that a barbell strategy combining technology and dividend stocks is likely to gain importance amid limited aggregate growth, structural strength in select sectors and rising market volatility. On the tech side, CICC recommends companies with clear industry trends, long-term competitive advantages and earnings delivery; on the dividend side, quality firms with stable profit and cash flow, sustainable payouts and reasonable valuations.

TREE NEWS reports: The China Foreign Exchange Trade System (CFETS) said its yuan exchange rate index rose 0.41 to 103.61 on October 9. The index tracks the renminbi against a basket of currencies. No further details were disclosed.

TREE NEWS reports: CITIC Securities said in a research note that VLCC freight rates are set to climb further as Hormuz oil exports recover to pre-war levels, cargo volumes surge and the available vessel list stays limited, with strength spilling over into Suezmax. Saudi Arabia’s wider discounts keep stimulating cargoes, STS transfers are now the main delivery method, and rising ship attacks plus repair difficulties are further eroding effective VLCC capacity. The brokerage expects tanker leaders’ valuations and profits to reach record highs in the fourth quarter of 2026.

TREE NEWS reports: Germany’s DAX 40 index rose above 25,200 points, trading at 25,210.40, up 0.2% from the previous session’s close. The move marks a fresh push higher for the benchmark German equity index.

TREE NEWS reports: South Korea’s KOSPI index fell more than 1% intraday, with SK Hynix dropping 2.44% and Samsung Electronics down 2.42%. The decline came as the benchmark index’s losses deepened during the session.

TREE NEWS reports: Huatai Securities said in an A-share strategy note that last week’s market volume rose from pre-holiday levels, led by coal, media and oil-petrochemicals, while electronics, telecom and machinery pulled back. It flagged that overseas rates remain elevated, with roughly a 20% probability of an October hike, keeping valuation pressure on long-duration assets. The brokerage advised hunting value along earnings and growth, balancing tech hardware, selected cyclicals and infrastructure, with dividend plays as a base position.

TREE NEWS update: Japan’s stock market is closed today for a public holiday. South Korea’s Kospi opened 0.7% lower. No further market details were immediately available.

TREE NEWS reports: South Korea’s exports rose 102% year-on-year in the first ten days of October. The 102% growth figure marks a sharp acceleration in the country’s outbound shipments for the period. No further breakdown of the data was provided.