EUR/USD
1.15254
0.008%
Gold
4375.64
-0.744%
Oil
81.121
-0.662%
USD/JPY
159.333
-0.051%
GBP/USD
1.34859
-0.062%
GBP/JPY
214.881
-0.105%
Real-time News
August 13th - According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), from August 1st to 9th, the national passenger car market retail sales reached 317,000 units, a 22% decrease compared to the same period last August and a 3% decrease compared to the same period last month. The cumulative retail sales this year totaled 10.49 million units, a 20% decrease year-on-year. From August 1st to 9th, national passenger car manufacturers wholesaled 276,000 units, a 24% decrease compared to the same period last August and a 2% increase compared to the same period last month. The cumulative wholesale sales this year totaled 15.086 million units, a 5% decrease year-on-year.August 13th - According to foreign media reports, foreign investment in Japans chip industry has reached 6 trillion yen (approximately US$37 billion), a figure further expanded with recent announcements by Sony and TSMC of plans to build image sensor factories. TSMC has already invested 3 trillion yen in its two wafer fabs in Japan. The first fab is scheduled to begin mass production of logic chips in 2024, while the second is currently under construction. Micron Technology launched an expansion project for its Hiroshima Prefecture plant last month, planning to invest 1.5 trillion yen to produce advanced memory chips, crucial for artificial intelligence data centers. Also in July, Israeli chipmaker Tower Semiconductor announced a 600 billion yen investment to mass-produce chips for optical communication equipment used in data centers.Tencent Holdings (00700.HK) fell nearly 5% in late trading, with its total market capitalization briefly dropping below HK$4 trillion.August 13 - According to an assessment by the Netherlands-based Triodos Bank, the extreme heatwave that hit Europe this summer will cost EU countries approximately €180 billion in economic losses, roughly equivalent to 1% of the EUs GDP in 2025. However, the data does not include the associated losses due to human casualties.On August 13th, Alvin Liew, senior economist at United Overseas Bank (UOB) in Singapore, stated in a report that US inflation may have peaked in the second quarter, but uncertainty surrounding energy prices means inflation could still rise again. Liew noted that declining energy prices have helped curb inflation. However, he stated, "Energy prices remain high… If oil prices rise again, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East could quickly reverse the recent cooling of inflation." The bank projects that the average increase in US overall CPI and core CPI in 2026 will be approximately 3.5% and 2.8%, respectively.
