Category: Flash News

On February 25th, lawmakers in the South Dakota state legislature postponed a vote that could allow the state to invest in Bitcoin, effectively killing the bill. At the State House Commerce and Energy Committee meeting on February 24th, the majority of attending lawmakers voted to postpone HB 1202 bill to the 41st day of the South Dakota legislative session. Due to the legislative session not exceeding 40 days, this motion effectively stifles the current version of the bill, which proposes to “allow state level investment” in Bitcoin. The proposed bill will modify the classification of public funds in South Dakota to include up to 10% of Bitcoin investments.

On February 25th, Hazem Kassem, spokesperson for the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), stated that the recent statements made by Musa Abu Marzuk, a senior official of the organization’s Politburo, to the media do not represent the position of Hamas. Musa Abu Marzuk, a member of the Political Bureau of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), stated that if he could foresee the consequences of the attack on October 7, 2023 on the Gaza Strip, he would not be able to support this operation. In addition, Kassem denied that Hamas may consider the possibility of disarmament, stating that “resistance to armed conflict is a legitimate right” and that the Palestinian people have the right to “resist in all forms until liberation and return are achieved”.

On February 25th, China’s monetary policy framework is in a period of gradual weakening of quantitative targets and increasing emphasis on the role of interest rate regulation. The adjustment of the reserve requirement ratio, which has frequently appeared in monetary policy operations in the past, may gradually become “low-key”. Especially recently, the People’s Bank of China mentioned in the latest monetary policy implementation report in the form of a column that “further improve the deposit reserve system”, triggering the market’s speculation that the deposit reserve system is about to usher in reform again. At present, China’s statutory reserve requirement ratio includes three levels: large, medium, and small banks, which are 8%, 6%, and 5% respectively, with an average reserve requirement ratio of 6.6%. Among them, the reserve requirement ratio for small banks has been reduced to 5% in 2021, and since then, the reserve requirement ratio for small banks has not been adjusted. Therefore, it has also been interpreted by the outside world as “5% is the hidden lower limit of China’s statutory reserve requirement ratio”. However, as the People’s Bank of China said, “the practice of adjusting long-term liquidity through deposit reserve can see that the level of deposit reserve ratio has no absolute advantages or disadvantages”, and 5% is not insurmountable. (Securities Times)

On February 25th, the parent fund of technology innovation and entrepreneurship investment in Guangzhou Development Zone (Huangpu District) recently disclosed its direct investment rules, which show that seed direct investment and angel direct investment projects are allowed to have a maximum of 100% loss per project. In the eyes of industry insiders, the above measures innovatively shift the role of the government from risk sharing to risk support, and solve the industry’s stubborn problem of not daring to invest early or small. The assessment of government investment funds has shifted from “calculating current accounts” to “calculating future accounts”, giving decision-making space for market-oriented investment and unprecedented trial and error space for the development of hard technology. Industry insiders believe that due to multiple regulations on investment institutions, to truly promote the implementation of a fault-tolerant mechanism for government investment funds, more operational guidelines need to be developed in areas such as performance evaluation and investment project supervision. (Shanghai Securities News)

On February 25th, US President Trump said on the 24th that plans to impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada will “proceed as scheduled”. Trump held a joint press conference with visiting French President Macron at the White House that day. When asked about the upcoming deadline for the US to impose tariffs on Mexico and Canada next month, Trump said that the tariffs are being pushed forward as planned and seem to be progressing “very quickly”. He also said that the United States has been treated “very badly” by many trading partners, not just Canada and Mexico, but the United States has been “taken advantage of”. On the 1st of this month, Trump signed an executive order imposing a 25% tariff on products imported from Mexico and Canada, with a 10% increase on Canadian energy products. On the 3rd, Trump announced a 30 day suspension of the imposition of tariffs on the two countries and continued negotiations. According to this decision, the relevant tariff measures will take effect on March 4th.

On February 25th, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Karas announced at a press conference of the EU Israel Joint Council that he will hold his first high-level political dialogue with the Palestinian Prime Minister in April. The EU supports the Palestinian Authority’s return to Gaza and every displaced Palestinian’s return to their homes, as Gaza is their home. Karas emphasized that at that time, the EU will also work with all parties in the region to support the reconstruction of Gaza. Palestinians must be able to live in Gaza, and Gaza must never become a safe haven for “terrorists” again.

On February 25th, Mexican President Simbaum expressed to the media on the 24th that he hopes to have a new round of telephone communication with US President Trump on the tariff issue. Simbaum emphasized, ‘We need to reach an agreement now.’. Previously, the United States announced a one month suspension of the imposition of tariffs on Mexican goods imported to the United States, which was officially implemented on March 4th. The Mexican side hopes to reach a new tariff agreement with the United States before this date.

On February 24th local time, Delta Air Lines and the Federal Aviation Administration announced that Delta Air Lines Flight 876 “found smoke inside the plane” while flying from Atlanta to Columbia, South Carolina. The aircraft involved was forced to return to Atlanta airport and subsequently landed safely. It is reported that the Boeing aircraft model is Boeing 717, carrying 94 passengers, 2 pilots, and 3 crew members. The Federal Aviation Administration of the United States will launch an investigation into the incident.

On February 25th, French President Macron visited the US capital Washington D.C. and met with US President Trump. Macron said that there were good discussions at the G7 meeting that morning. Our goal is to establish a stable and lasting peace in Ukraine. Europe is willing to become a stronger partner and make more efforts in defense.

On February 25th, according to the Associated Press on the 24th, the cities of Chelsea and Somerville in Massachusetts, USA, filed lawsuits against Trump’s threat to cut funding if he does not comply with immigration policies. It is reported that these two cities have implemented so-called “asylum policies” that restrict cooperation with federal immigration departments. They claimed that the government’s strategy violated the constitutional rights of the city. The lawyer stated that the president cannot use federal funds as a weapon to force local governments to undermine public safety and values, and participate in his large-scale eviction campaign.