EUR/USD
1.18526
-0.986%
Gold
4847.62
-9.836%
Oil
65.488
0.377%
USD/JPY
154.755
1.076%
GBP/USD
1.36826
-0.917%
GBP/JPY
211.750
0.158%
Real-time News
February 1st - On January 31st, House Democratic Leader Hakim Jeffries stated that they would not help Republicans pass a federal government funding bill through a fast-track process. US media pointed out that Jeffries statement suggests the US government shutdown may last longer than expected. The US Senate passed a funding bill for several federal departments for the remainder of the fiscal year on January 30th, and the bill will be sent to the House for consideration. However, the House is currently in recess and may vote on the funding bill as early as February 2nd. It is reported that the operating funds for several federal departments, including the State Department and the Pentagon, were exhausted on January 30th, thus the US federal government entered a partial shutdown starting at midnight on January 31st.On February 1st, India raised taxes on some stock transactions in an effort to further curb speculative trading by retail investors. According to the budget submitted to Parliament on Sunday, the Indian government increased the securities transaction tax on stock index futures from 0.02% to 0.05%. The tax rate on option premiums and option exercise also increased from 0.1% to 0.15%. This news triggered a sharp drop in the stock market, with Indias main index, the NIFTY 50, falling nearly 3% intraday. Shares of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Indias second-largest stock exchange, and brokerage stocks, including AngleOne, all fell sharply. This move signifies Indias determination to curb speculative trading. The influx of retail traders had previously made India the worlds largest market for such products by contract trading volume. Regulators had introduced several restrictions by the end of 2024, including limiting the number of index option contracts per exchange to one per week.Tencent Yuanbao App has risen to the number one free app on the Apple App Store, after announcing the launch of a 1 billion yuan cash bonus campaign.February 1st - US President Trump stated on January 31st that India will import oil from Venezuela, not Iran. He also claimed that the US welcomes the agreement reached between China and the US to import Venezuelan oil. According to Reuters, Trump made these remarks aboard Air Force One, en route from Washington D.C. to Florida. He said the US and India had finalized an agreement, "at least in principle."February 1st - On February 1st local time, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Ghalibaf issued a stern statement at an open parliamentary session, announcing reciprocal countermeasures against recent European designations of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Ghalibaf declared that Iran officially designates the armed forces of European countries as "terrorist organizations." Ghalibaf emphasized that the EU will bear full responsibility for all legal and practical consequences arising from this designation, including the risk of security confrontation within the region.
