ASIA/PACIFIC
-Most Asia-Pacific markets were mixed on Monday as U.S. President Joe Biden and China’s President Xi Jinping are set this week for their first in-person meeting in about a year.
-Fitch Ratings stated on Monday that China’s increasingly tiered regulations intended for the securities sector will likely benefit that sector, boosting greater capital efficiency.
-Australian ports began reopening on Monday following a cyberattack on Friday, according to port operator DP World, which manages nearly half of the goods that flow in and out of the country.
EUROPE
-European Central Bank (ECB) Vice-President Luis de Guindos told the 26th Frankfurt Euro Finance Week on Monday (Nov. 13) that the ECB is determined to ensure that inflation returns to its target of 2% “in a timely manner.”
-German homebuilding collapse threatens wider economic damage, the Financial Times reported. Once-thriving residential construction industry has slumped, posing drag on EU’s largest economy.
-The Russian rouble was little changed in morning trade on Monday, restrained by a drop in oil prices while waiting for more support from exporters’ foreign currency sales, Reuters reported.
AMERICAS
-Moody’s Investors Service on Friday downgraded its ratings outlook on the U.S. government to negative from stable, pointing to rising risks to the nation’s fiscal strength.
-Dry bulk market braces for tightening Panama transit restrictions. Drewry estimates a rise of 5-6% in freight rates due to the diversion of soybean trade from the Panama Canal to the Suez Canal.
-The Latin American cocoa market, currently valued at $3.8 billion, is projected to grow at a rate of 4.30% annually from 2024 to 2032, Bloomberg Línea reported.
AFRICA
-Egyptian state buyer Egyptian Sugar and Integrated Industries Co. (ESIIC) has issued an international tender to buy at least 50,000 metric tons of raw sugar, European traders said on Monday.
-The government of Saudi Arabia has promised to support the reforms being implemented by the Central Bank of Nigeria and also revamp Nigeria’s existing refineries through its state-owned oil company Aramco, Nairametrics reported.
-The African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim) is working on the establishment of a $1 billion African Film Fund to be launched in 2024.
MIDDLE EAST
-Most major Gulf stock markets were subdued in early trade on Monday amid falling oil prices, as oil is a key catalyst for the Gulf’s financial markets.
-China bought an average 1.05 million barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian oil in the first 10 months of 2023, according to shiptracking data from Vortexa.
-Air travel to Middle East falls 26% since start of Israel–Gaza conflict, according to ForwardKeys data.
