EUR/USD
1.15796
0.009%
Gold
4417.87
0.030%
Oil
84.124
0.040%
USD/JPY
159.377
-0.053%
GBP/USD
1.35455
0.023%
GBP/JPY
215.889
-0.021%
Real-time News
On August 18th, the State Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau released key regulatory indicators for the banking and insurance industries in the second quarter of 2026. Data showed that the net interest margin (NIM) of commercial banks was 1.41% in the second quarter, a slight increase of 0.01 percentage points from 1.40% in the first quarter, marking the first quarterly increase since 2022. However, different types of banks showed divergent trends. State-owned banks, city commercial banks, rural commercial banks, and private banks all saw their NIMs increase quarter-on-quarter, while joint-stock banks remained flat, and foreign banks experienced a decline. Industry analysts believe the core driver of this NIM stabilization is on the liability side: the concentrated maturity and repricing of high-interest deposits, coupled with banks proactive optimization of their liability structure, effectively reduced interest costs. Under regulatory guidance, the interest rate self-regulation mechanism played a role in curbing irrational price competition in lending rates, helping to stabilize asset pricing and supporting the NIM.August 18th - Foreign investors holdings of U.S. Treasury bonds declined in June, primarily due to reductions in holdings by Japan and China. According to data released by the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday, foreign holdings of U.S. Treasury bonds decreased by $72.1 billion month-on-month to $9.3 trillion in June. Foreign holdings have declined in three of the past four months since reaching a record high in February. During this period, U.S. Treasury bonds fell as investors worried about the massive fiscal deficit and above-target inflation. Japan, the largest holder of U.S. Treasury bonds, saw the largest reduction in June, decreasing its holdings by approximately $26.4 billion to $1.12 trillion. The yen has been under continued pressure in recent months, prompting Japan to intervene to stabilize its exchange rate. The U.S. also participated in intervention at the end of July. Some market observers believe the underlying reason is concern that Japan might sell U.S. Treasury bonds to defend the yen, thereby pushing up U.S. borrowing costs. "Japans actions are clearly driven by the need for foreign exchange intervention," said Paresh Upadhi, a strategist at Vanguard Investments. He pointed out that U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessant not only intervened in July but also suggested that Japan might utilize the Federal Reserves tools to avoid directly selling its government bonds. It goes without saying that we will not see Japan selling U.S. Treasury bonds again.BHP Billiton: The cost environment has "significantly changed" due to the conflict in the Middle East.BHP Billitons revenue for the fiscal year was US$58.76 billion, a 15% increase year-over-year. Capital and exploration expenditures for the fiscal year were US$10.26 billion, a 5% increase year-over-year.BHP Billitons net profit for the fiscal year was US$9.83 billion, up 9% year-on-year. BHP Billitons underlying profit for the fiscal year was US$13.2 billion, up 30% year-on-year, exceeding market expectations of US$12.66 billion.
