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·         China’s yuan will rally despite the central bank’s moves to curb its strength, analysts say

The Chinese yuan will continue to strengthen against the U.S. dollar, even though China’s central bank has taken steps to curb its currency appreciation, analysts told CNBC.

The onshore Chinese currency appreciated by nearly 3.9% since the start of 2020 before the People’s Bank of China changed rules over the weekend, making it cheaper for traders to bet against the yuan. The yuan’s year-to-date gains against the greenback were pared after the announcement — to about 3.4%, as of Thursday morning Singapore time.

·         BlackRock is bullish on China’s domestic bond market.

China’s massive onshore bond market offers investors a level of returns that may be hard to find elsewhere in the current environment of low interest rates, a BlackRock portfolio manager said on Thursday.

The U.S. investment giant has a “positive” view on the domestic bond market in China, where economic data and continued monetary policy support point to a sustained economic recovery, said Neeraj Seth, BlackRock’s head of Asian credit.

·         China’s pork prices rise at the slowest pace in more than a year

China’s consumer price index rose slightly in September as food prices climbed, even with a drastic slowdown in the increase in pork prices.

The consumer price index rose 1.7% last month from a year ago, China’s National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday. That figure was slightly below the 1.8% rise predicted by analysts in a Reuters poll, and below the 2.4% increase in August.

Overall food prices remained elevated, up 7.9% in September from a year ago, with fresh vegetable prices climbing 17.2%.

Pork prices climbed 25.5%, but at a slower rate than increases of over 100% seen for much of the last 12 months. Pork prices rose 52.6% year-on-year in August. September’s print marked the slowest pace of growth since June 2019, according to statistics bureau data.

The producer price index fell 2.1% in September from a year ago, greater than the 1.8% decline forecast by a Reuters poll.

·         IMF's Georgieva says private creditors, China need to fully participate in debt relief

International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva on Wednesday called for increased participation in debt relief for poor countries by private creditors and China, saying this was key to its success and a potential framework for debt restructurings.

·         Worried European nations revive curfews, lockdowns amid ‘exponential growth’ in virus

France imposed curfews while other European nations are closing schools, cancelling surgeries and enlisting student medics as overwhelmed authorities face the nightmare scenario of a COVID-19 resurgence at the onset of winter.

Most European governments eased lockdowns over the summer to start reviving economies already battered by the first wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

But the return of normal activity - from packed restaurants to new university terms - fuelled a sharp spike in cases all over the continent.

Efforts to develop a vaccine hit snags in some areas, with Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N pausing its trial after an unexplained illness in a study participant. AstraZeneca's AZN.L U.S. trial has remained on hold for more than a month.

 

·         'Good progress' is not good enough: EU to push Brexit Britain on trade

European Union leaders meeting in Brussels on Thursday will pressure Britain for concessions in their troubled Brexit talks, saying a trillion euros worth of trade could be sunk if London does not budge on fisheries, fair competition and solving disputes.

Months of painstaking talks have narrowed the gaps on issues from energy ties to coordinating social benefits from 2021 when Britain’s standstill transition period after leaving the bloc ends.

But the three most contentious areas have barred a deal on a new partnership between the EU and Britain, with businesses and markets increasingly jittery about uncertain trading rules as the year-end deadline to put a deal in place nears.

·       Goldman Sachs says there could be Brexit drama ahead and then a thin deal

Goldman Sachs said on Thursday that there could be drama at the EU summit over Brexit but that a thin Brexit trade deal was likely to struck by early November.

·         Wells Fargo fires over 100 employees for COVID-19 relief fund misuse: source

Wells Fargo & Co WFC.N has fired about 100 to 125 employees for unethically availing themselves of coronavirus relief funds, according to a source familiar with the matter.

·         Thailand bans protests as challenge to establishment escalates

Thailand’s government banned protests and police arrested at least three protest leaders on Thursday in the face of escalating demonstrations targeting King Maha Vajiralongkorn as well as Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, a former junta leader.

 

·         Thai police to set up checkpoints to stop Bangkok protests

Police in Thailand’s capital Bangkok said on Thursday they would set up checkpoints coordinated with the army to stop protesters gathering under emergency measures imposed to end three months of anti-government protests.

·         Oil dips as surging coronavirus cases threaten demand recovery

 

Oil prices fell on Thursday, paring gains from earlier in the session, as a resurgence in COVID-19 infections across the globe underpinned concerns over economic growth and a recovery in fuel demand.

 

European nations are reviving curfews and lockdowns amid the growth in new coronavirus cases. India, which is on track to overtake U.S. with the world’s most COVID-19 infections, is bracing for a surge of cases in coming weeks as it heads into its main holiday season. The country is the world’s third-biggest oil user

 

Brent crude LCOc1 futures dropped 28 cents, or 0.7% to $43.04 a barrel at 0724 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude CLc1 futures were down 24 cents, or 0.6%, to $40.80.

 

The International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Wednesday that a second wave of coronavirus infections could complicate efforts by producers to balance the market.

Reference: Reuters, CNBC