ASIA/PACIFIC
Asian markets mostly rose on Monday as investors analyzed Japan’s fourth-quarter economic data and anticipated a series of central bank decisions from the region later this week. Tencent’s stock price reached its highest point since July 2021, according to data from LSEG. This surge coincides with the beta testing of Deepseek integration within Tencent’s Weixin messaging app. The Chinese tech giant’s shares were last trading 4.25% higher. Australian stocks opened the week lower, dragged down by losses in the banking and mining sectors.
EUROPE
European stock markets moved higher as a number of defense stocks soared. This comes as EU leaders prepare for an emergency summit in Paris, called by French President Emmanuel Macron. The summit’s agenda reportedly includes a discussion of US tariffs on EU goods and the ongoing peace talks related to the conflict in Ukraine. Investors are also bracing for another busy week of corporate earnings reports, with companies like Airbus, Booking, Mercedes-Benz, and Renault among those scheduled to release their results.
AMERICAS
Stock markets in the US will be closed today, due to the Presidents’ Day holiday.
AFRICA
Investors holding Ethiopia’s defaulted bond said there are “significant flaws” in the latest International Monetary Fund report that suggests the country is facing a solvency issue, a scenario that would require them to grant debt relief, Reuters reported. About 75% of businesses in Nigeria have identified high interest rates as their primary operational constraint in January 2025, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s Business Expectation Survey for January 2025.
MIDDLE EAST
Major stock markets in the Gulf fell with investors cautious over the potential implications of U.S. President Donald Trump’s plans to impose reciprocal tariffs, fearing a potential escalation of global trade tensions. Suez Canal Bank aims to become key player in Egypt’s financial and banking sector Akef El Maghraby, the lender’s CEO & managing director told Daily News Egypt.
COMMODITIES
GOLD
Spot gold rose 0.6% to $2,899.73 per ounce as of 0313 GMT while U.S. gold futures gained 0.4% to $2,912.50, on easing US dollar.
OIL
Brent crude futures slid 20 cents, or 0.2%, to $74.59 a barrel by 0112 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate
crude was at $70.51 a barrel, down 23 cents, or 0.3%, on expectations Russia-Ukraine peace may lift supply.
