Flash News

TREE NEWS update: The Bank of England has issued proposals on thresholds for the banking, insurance and credit union sectors. The measures set out where smaller firms would sit relative to the central bank’s regulatory requirements. No further details of the thresholds were given.

TREE NEWS update: US President Donald Trump said on the 6th that he expects to speak with Russian President Vladimir Putin soon. Asked by reporters whether he had already spoken with Putin, Trump replied, “I have a call scheduled” with the Russian president, and when asked when it would take place, he said: “Soon.”

TREE NEWS reports: Russia’s war expenditure is projected to reach a record high in 2026. No further figures or details were immediately available.

TREE NEWS update: Hang Seng Indexes Company will expand the Hang Seng Tech Index from 30 to 50 constituents in its first major methodology overhaul since the gauge launched nearly six years ago. Forty members will be selected by market capitalization and ten by trailing 12-month revenue growth, while the sector requirement is scrapped. Review results are due November 20, with the changes effective December 7.

TREE NEWS reports: Douyin Life Services said group-buy orders rose 53% year on year during the 2026 Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holiday period. Food and beverage orders climbed more than 61%, travel and hotel orders rose 42%, and hotel bookings jumped nearly 79%. Average daily scenic-spot group-buy transactions on the DouShengSheng app rose 142%.

TREE NEWS update: Hamas issued a statement on October 7 marking the third anniversary of its “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation, saying it remains committed to implementing the ceasefire agreement. The group also reiterated that armed resistance is the legitimate path to ending the Israeli occupation and achieving Palestinian self-determination.

TREE NEWS update: The International Energy Agency’s governing board will hold an informal meeting Wednesday at 13:00 local time to discuss a proposal to release crude oil and diesel reserves, two EU diplomats said. EU representatives had already discussed the proposed release at a Wednesday morning meeting, the diplomats added.

TREE NEWS reports: IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said rising yields are a response to fundamentals, adding that the world economy remains resilient despite multiple shocks. The comments were made as bond yields climbed, with Georgieva framing the move as a reflection of underlying economic conditions rather than a sign of instability.

TREE NEWS update: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praised Greece’s commitment to defense spending and announced a new security cooperation memorandum of understanding with Greece. The agreement will strengthen counterterrorism information sharing between the two countries.

TREE NEWS update: IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said advanced economies need to take urgent action as the crisis drives up deficits and debt, calling on governments to act immediately. The US, Japan, France and Italy are all in focus, while Germany is a welcome exception; spillovers are also hitting former eurozone bailout countries. She said Bessent’s remarks on deficits and debt were encouraging.

TREE NEWS reports: Lead orders on the London Metal Exchange rose by 8,625 tonnes, the largest single increase since mid-July. The jump in LME lead orders marks the biggest build in warrants for the metal in roughly two months.

TREE NEWS update: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian forces struck infrastructure in Kyiv and 12 Ukrainian regions in the early hours of October 7, with energy facilities among the main targets. A five-story residential building in Chernihiv region was hit. Five people were killed and 26 injured, including five children, and rescue operations are continuing.

TREE NEWS update: The U.S. Department of Homeland Security accelerated its training process for immigration enforcement officers, trimming instruction on national immigration law and simulated real-world job scenarios. The shortened curriculum covers less legal and practical preparation than the original program.

TREE NEWS reports: The London Metal Exchange reported inventory changes across its metals warehouses: zinc stocks rose 475 tonnes, while copper fell 3,100 tonnes, lead dropped 225 tonnes and tin declined 80 tonnes. Nickel and aluminium inventories were unchanged.

TREE NEWS update: Ukraine’s Air Force said early on the 7th it had detected multiple Russian Tu-95 strategic bombers taking off, warning of a missile threat over Kyiv and the Dnipropetrovsk region. Kyiv’s city military administration said air-raid alerts were sounded over the missile threat, and the Kyiv regional administration said alerts were triggered in multiple districts of the region.

TREE NEWS update: President Donald Trump said on February 6 that the US military campaign against Iran “must be wrapped up,” speaking at Sparrows Point, Maryland. Trump said the operation had been done “very well” and that the only question was whether to conclude it “in a soft way or a hard way.” The US and Israel began strikes on Iran on February 28, and the conflict is ongoing amid US airstrikes, a naval blockade and economic pressure.

TREE NEWS reports: Singapore’s air pollution worsened to the world’s highest level as haze from Indonesian wildfires blanketed the region days before the city-state’s Formula One weekend. IQAir data showed Singapore’s air quality in the “very unhealthy” range as of Wednesday afternoon. Neighboring Kuala Lumpur ranked second globally for pollution. About 200 schools, kindergartens and nurseries in Malaysia’s Batu Pahat area of Johor, roughly 140 km northwest of Singapore, were ordered closed today due to the haze.

TREE NEWS reports: The spread between French and German 10-year government bond yields widened by 10 basis points to 138 basis points. The move marks a further divergence in euro-area sovereign borrowing costs between the two largest economies.

TREE NEWS reports: European Union countries are expected not to take on any new obligation to release oil from reserves after an agreement among G7 nations. The expectation leaves the existing release framework unchanged for EU members, with no fresh drawdown commitment attached to the G7 accord.

TREE NEWS update: AMD CEO Lisa Su said Wednesday the US chipmaker will continue to explore cooperation opportunities with Samsung Electronics in memory and foundry. On tight memory chip supply, Su said AMD is working with customers to optimize memory usage to meet more computing demand ahead. During a visit to Seoul, she said she had met SK Hynix executives and plans to meet Samsung Electronics executives.