Category: Flash News

On February 20th, UN Secretary General spokesperson Diyarik stated on February 19th that Sudan is currently facing a severe food security crisis, with approximately 638000 people in disaster level food insecurity. Diyarik said that according to the “Comprehensive Classification of Food Security Stages” report released by the United Nations, five regions in Sudan have confirmed famine, and about 638000 people are in the fifth stage of the most severe food security, which is a “disaster level food insecurity situation”. Diyarik also stated that there are 4.7 million children under the age of five, pregnant and lactating women in Sudan who suffer from severe malnutrition. Due to food scarcity, many Sudanese people are forced to survive by eating peanut shells. Diyarik calls on all parties involved in the conflict in Sudan to prioritize the interests of the people and to cease hostilities as soon as possible.

On February 20th, French President Macron organized the second emergency meeting to discuss security issues in Ukraine and Europe at 4:00 pm local time on February 19th. The meeting will be held via video conferencing. The heads of government of Canada, Norway, Sweden, Belgium, Greece, Czech Republic, Finland, Romania, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia and other countries attended the meeting. It is reported that this meeting is held after the talks between the United States, Russia, and Saudi Arabia, and France has once again convened European leaders to discuss the situation in Ukraine and European security issues.

On February 20th, US President Donald Trump expressed support for the House’s plan to cut taxes by $4.5 trillion, pouring cold water on the Senate Republicans’ rush to approve funding to help them crack down on immigration, indicating that they do not favor large-scale bills that may take months of bargaining to reach an agreement. As the crucial congressional vote approaches, Trump posted on social media on Wednesday, intervening in the ongoing budget dispute between Republicans in the House and Senate.

On February 20th, minutes from the Federal Reserve’s January monetary policy meeting showed that several attendees expressed that it may be appropriate to consider suspending or slowing down balance sheet tightening until the debt ceiling issue is resolved. The respondents surveyed by the Federal Reserve believe that the balance sheet reduction process will end in mid-2025, slightly later than previously expected.

On February 20th, sustained high temperatures have swept through many parts of southeastern Brazil recently. On the 19th local time, Rio de Janeiro held a press conference, and the head of the fire department, Antonio de Sares, said that due to the continued impact of the heat wave, the number of forest fires in Rio de Janeiro increased by 370% compared to the same period last year. On the 17th alone, 312 forest fires were recorded within the state. From early January to February 17th, the fire department recorded over 2000 forest fires.

On February 19th, CICC Research pointed out that in the long run, the global tight supply and demand pattern of antimony will continue, and the antimony price center is expected to move upward. Benefiting from the continuous growth of new installed capacity in photovoltaics and the increase in penetration rate of double glass modules, the amount of antimony used in photovoltaic glass is expected to continue to increase. The implementation of the trade in policy is expected to drive the demand for electrical equipment and other products, thereby increasing the amount of antimony used in the flame retardant field. Against the backdrop of a relatively rigid global supply of antimony ore, it is expected that the antimony supply-demand gap from 2024 to 2027 will be -0.9, -1.3, -1, and -14000 tons respectively, accounting for -6%, -8%, -6%, and -9% of the demand. Supply and demand may continue to be tight, and the antimony price center is expected to move upward.

On February 19th, according to market research firm CINNO Research, the domestic consumer XR market achieved a quarter on quarter sales growth of 21% in 2024, driven by AR devices. However, the annual sales decreased by 25% year-on-year. The total sales of XR consumer market in China in 2024 were 567000 units, with VR devices showing weak performance; AR devices, with portability, lightweight, and AI technology, have grown by 25% year-on-year, becoming a market highlight. Looking ahead to 2025, with policy support, technological breakthroughs, and continuously enriched content ecology, the institution expects the overall XR market to grow by 25%.

On February 19, it was learned from the Aerospace Information Innovation Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences that China’s first helicopter airborne magnetotelluric detection system developed by the Academy has successfully achieved engineering application, completed geological exploration tasks in 5000m high cold and high altitude areas with complex topography, and provided important data support for the design and construction of major national railway construction projects.

On February 19th, as the impact of the Spring Festival holiday fades away, the transaction status of the real estate market is gradually recovering. Last week, the transaction volume of second-hand houses in 12 cities monitored by institutions continued to rise month on month, and the demand for new houses in the market also continued to be released. According to online real estate data, the second-hand housing market in Shanghai has clearly rebounded last weekend. On February 15th, 1125 second-hand houses (including commercial properties) in Shanghai were sold through online signing, 976 were sold through online signing on February 16th, and 1051 were sold on both weekends. (Pengpai News)

On February 19th, the scale of short-term funds borrowed by Hong Kong banks from the authorities reached its highest level in over five years, indicating a surge in liquidity demand. Data shows that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority lent HKD 5.5 billion through the discount window on Tuesday, the highest amount since December 2019. The 1-month Hibor closed near its one month high on Tuesday, but it is still far from the level of December last year.