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Stock markets mostly fell Tuesday as the US jobless rate hit its highest level since 2021, while oil prices slumped on renewed hopes for an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.The US Labor Department reported that unemployment climbed to 4.6 percent in November, its highest level in four years.The report, delayed by a lengthy government shutdown, also indicated that the US economy lost 105,000 jobs in October.Hiring picked up again in November to 64,000, but this was still a slower pace than before.”Today’s US data releases were overall weaker than expected, although not as bad as some had feared either,” said Forex.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada.He noted that market expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut in March increased to 60 percent after the jobs report, up from around 50 percent.While poor data boosting the chance of interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve can often prop up stocks, Wall Street’s main indices pushed lower on signs of a weaker economy.Separate data showed US retail sales held stable in October, while analysts had been looking for a small gain, and September’s rise was revised down to 0.1 percent.But eToro analyst Bret Kenwell pointed out that part of the report that is used for calculating gross domestic product hit its highest level since the summer.”Today’s update underscores two themes that have been in place: A resilient consumer and a cooling labor market,” he said.Meanwhile, the Brent international oil benchmark dropped below $60 per barrel for the first time since May, while the main US crude contract, the WTI, briefly fell below $55 per barrel for the first time since 2021.A deal to end the war in Ukraine could ease sanctions on Russian oil, adding to oversupply concerns already weighing on the market.US President Donald Trump said Monday that a deal to end the war was closer than ever, after Washington said it offered Kyiv NATO-like security guarantees and voiced confidence Moscow would accept.Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, also pointed out that prices on Middle Eastern oil for immediate trade are lower than those for futures contracts. “When this happens, expectations are that future prices will fall back towards spot price levels, which can aggravate price declines,” she said.European defense stocks slid Tuesday following the update on the talks, analysts said. “A peace deal between Russia and Ukraine looks to be back on the agenda but there have already been multiple false dawns this year,” noted Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.Weak UK jobs data strengthened expectations that the Bank of England will trim borrowing costs on Thursday. The European Central Bank is set to hold interest rates steady this week.The yen held gains against the dollar ahead of an expected rate hike by the Bank of Japan on Friday.Among individual companies, Pfizer fell 3.4 percent after it projected a dip in full-year adjusted profits per share on roughly flat revenues. The big drugmaker is ramping up investments in new products to offset declines in Covid-19 revenues.- Key figures at around 2115 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.6 percent at 48,114.26 (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,800.26 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite:  UP 0.2 percent at 23.111.46 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.7 percent at 9,684.79 (close) Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 8,106.16 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 24,076.87 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.6 percent at 49,383.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 25,235.41 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,824.81 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1747 from $1.1753 on MondayDollar/yen: DOWN at 154.80 yen from 155.23Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3422 from $1.3376Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.52 pence from 87.86Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.7 percent at $58.92 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.7 percent at $55.27 per barrelburs-jmb/des

China will impose anti-dumping duties on European Union pork imports for five years, but at lower rates than temporary levies in place since September, Beijing announced Tuesday.The two economic powerhouses have been locked in a trade spat fuelled by what many European countries view as an unbalanced economic relationship with China.The levies come after a probe launched by China last year concluded that European pork imports “were being dumped, and the domestic industry suffered substantial damages” as a result, the commerce ministry said in a statement Tuesday.The duties will range from 4.9 percent to 19.8 percent — down from temporary levies of 15.6 to 62.4 percent — and will be applied from December 17, it said.”At present, the domestic industry is facing difficulties, and there are strong calls for protection,” a commerce ministry spokesperson said.They added that the investigation’s conclusions were “objective, fair, and impartial”.The agriculture minister of Spain — Europe’s top producer of pork and its derivatives — said Spanish exporters faced an average duty of 9.8 percent, below an overall average of 19 percent.The measures were therefore “acceptable” for Spain and the result “minimised”, Luis Planas told reporters in Madrid.China, the world’s leading consumer of pork, imported 4.3 billion yuan ($600 million) in pork products from Spain alone last year, according to official Chinese customs data.France, meanwhile, exported 115,000 tonnes of pork to China in 2024, according to industry association Inaporc.The French pork industry welcomed Beijing’s decision, with Inaporc describing it as “a relief” for domestic producers.French companies were previously subjected to a provisional duty rate up to 62.4 percent for some products and an average 20 percent for others, Inaporc said.According to the new measures, Groupe Bigard, a major French pork producer, will be charged 9.8 percent, while Danish Crown will be hit with an 18.6 percent levy.- ‘Bargaining chip’ -The current trade spat erupted last summer when the EU moved towards imposing hefty tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, arguing that Beijing’s subsidies were unfairly undercutting European competitors.Beijing denied that claim and announced what were widely seen as retaliatory probes into imported European pork, brandy and dairy products.Giuseppe Aloisio, general director of the Spanish meat industry association Anice, told AFP the measure was “unfair” and “punishes an exemplary industry for no reason”.It was “unacceptable that our sector is used as a bargaining chip in a trade dispute — that of electric vehicles — that has absolutely nothing to do with us,” said Aloisio.European producers criticised the imposition of temporary duties on pork in September, denying the dumping allegations.They argued that Chinese consumers pay more than Europeans for products that the latter often ignore, such as pigs’ trotters or ears.The EU ran a trade deficit of more than $350 billion with China in 2024.French President Emmanuel Macron said this month that Europe would consider adopting strong measures against China, including tariffs, if the trade imbalance was not addressed.Alongside trade frictions, China and the EU are at odds on issues such as Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.The EU has urged China to exert pressure on Moscow to end the war, but Beijing has shown no sign of acceding.

Stock markets fell Tuesday as the US jobless rate hit its highest level since 2021, while oil prices slumped on renewed hopes for an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.The US Labor Department reported that unemployment climbed to 4.6 percent in November, its highest level in four years.The report, delayed by a lengthy government shutdown, also indicated that the US economy lost 105,000 jobs in October.Hiring picked up again in November to 64,000, but this was still a slower pace than before.”Today’s US data releases were overall weaker than expected, although not as bad as some had feared either,” said Forex.com analyst Fawad Razaqzada.”The market was pricing in just shy of 50 percent chance of a March cut before the jobs report, but in the immediate aftermath of the report that was up to around 60 percent.While poor data boosting the chance of interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve can often prop up stocks, Wall Street’s main indices pushed lower on signs of a weaker economy.Separate data showed US retail sales held stable in October, while analysts had been looking for a small gain, and September’s rise was revised down to 0.1 percent.But eToro analyst Bret Kenwell pointed out that part of the report that is used for calculating gross domestic product hit its highest level since the summer.”Today’s update underscores two themes that have been in place: A resilient consumer and a cooling labor market,” he said.Meanwhile, international oil benchmark Brent dropped below $60 per barrel for the first time since May, while the main US crude contract WTI briefly fell below $55 per barrel for the first time since 2021.A deal to end the war in Ukraine could ease sanctions on Russian oil, adding to oversupply concerns already weighing on the market.US President Donald Trump said Monday that a deal to end the war was closer than ever, after Washington said it offered Kyiv NATO-like security guarantees and voiced confidence Moscow would accept.Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB, also pointed out that prices on Middle Eastern oil for immediate trade are lower than those for futures contracts. “When this happens, expectations are that future prices will fall back towards spot price levels, which can aggravate price declines,” she said.European defence stocks slid Tuesday following the update on the talks, analysts said. “A peace deal between Russia and Ukraine looks to be back on the agenda but there have already been multiple false dawns this year,” noted Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.Weak UK jobs data strengthened expectations that the Bank of England will trim borrowing costs on Thursday. The European Central Bank is set to hold interest rates steady this week.The yen held gains against the dollar ahead of an expected rate hike by the Bank of Japan on Friday, and the euro rose against the dollar.Worries over the tech sector were also weighing on sentiment, with recent warnings about an AI-fuelled bubble compounded by disappointing earnings last week from Oracle and Broadcom.”Investors appear to be increasingly concerned about high tech valuations,” said Trade Nation analyst David Morrison.”Doubts have crept in over the probability, and time taken, to see a return on AI investment,” he added.- Key figures at around 1630 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.5 percent at 48,157.75 pointsNew York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.6 percent at 6,777.75New York – Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.4 percent at 22,970.18London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.7 percent at 9,684.79 (close) Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.2 percent at 8,106.16 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 24,076.87 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.6 percent at 49,383.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 25,235.41 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,824.81 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1772 from $1.1750 on MondayDollar/yen: DOWN at 154.81 yen from 155.25Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3425 from $1.3372Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.69 pence from 87.87Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 2.6 percent at $59.00 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 2.7 percent at $55.28 per barrelburs-rl/

Stock markets mostly fell Tuesday as investors prepared for key US jobs and inflation data, while oil prices slumped on renewed hopes for an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine.A deal to end the war could ease sanctions on Russian oil, adding to oversupply concerns already weighing on the market.International oil benchmark Brent dropped below $60 per barrel for the first time since May, while the main US crude contract WTI also declined.US President Donald Trump said Monday that a deal to end the Ukraine war was closer than ever, after Washington said it offered Kyiv NATO-like security guarantees and voiced confidence Moscow would accept.”I think we’re closer now than we have been ever,” Trump told reporters, after he spoke to Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky and a host of European leaders.European defence stocks slid Tuesday following the update on the talks, analysts said. “A peace deal between Russia and the Ukraine looks to be back on the agenda but there have already been multiple false dawns this year,” noted Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.London and Frankfurt stock markets both slid, while Paris ticked up, after Asian markets closed lower.Weak UK jobs data strengthened expectations that the Bank of England will trim borrowing costs on Thursday. The European Central Bank is set to hold interest rates steady this week.Investors’ attention turns to the release later in the day of US November jobs data and the delayed reading for October, which will be followed on Thursday by consumer price index figures.”From a market perspective, the most important question is whether the report opens the door for more rate cuts in the early part of next year,” said Jim Reid, managing director at Deutsche Bank.He added that a softer labour market could support bets for further Federal Reserve rate cuts. Worries over the tech sector were also weighing on sentiment, with recent warnings about an AI-fuelled bubble compounded by disappointing earnings last week from Oracle and Broadcom.Speculation that vast sums invested in artificial intelligence will take some time to make returns, if at all, has also acted as a drag.Seoul lost more than two percent, while Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai were all down more than one percent. The yen held gains against the dollar ahead of an expected rate hike by the Bank of Japan on Friday.- Key figures at around 1050 GMT -London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.3 percent at 9,720.34 pointsParis – CAC 40: UP 0.1 percent at 8,131.27 Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.3 percent at 24,169.16Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.6 percent at 49,383.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 25,235.41 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,824.81 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 48,416.56 points (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1760 from $1.1750 on MondayDollar/yen: DOWN at 154.89 yen from 155.25Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3422 from $1.3372Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.61 pence from 87.87Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 1.6 percent at $59.62 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.7 percent at $55.85 per barrel

Asian markets extended losses with Wall Street on Tuesday as investors prepared for key US jobs and inflation data, while sentiment remains subdued by worries over a possible tech bubble.After a healthy tech-led run this year, traders appeared to be seeing it out on a tepid note amid questions over the huge sums pumped into artificial intelligence and indications the Federal Reserve will pause cutting interest rates.All eyes are on the release later in the day of US November jobs data and the delayed reading for October, which will be followed on Thursday by consumer price index figures.The readings will be pored over for some idea about the Fed’s plans for borrowing costs as officials debate whether or not to continue lowering them in January.Comments from decision-makers show the policy board split, with recent reductions coming on the back of worries about the weakening labour market but concern now turning to stubbornly high inflation.Governor Stephen Miran — an appointee of Donald Trump — warned that rates are still too high, while New York Fed boss John Williams said they were at about the right place and Boston president Susan Collins called the decision a “close call”.”After essentially missing the October jobs report due to a lack of survey data, the Fed will closely scrutinise the November figures when setting out the path of monetary policy through early 2026,” Matt Weller, head of market research at City Index, said.”That said, traders are currently pricing in only a one-in-four chance of another rate cut in January, meaning that the market reaction to the release may be more limited unless it shows a large deterioration in the labour market.”With the chances of a cut appearing limited for now — with some putting them at about 25 percent for next month — equity traders were turned sellers for now.Seoul lost more than two percent, while Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Taipei were all more than one percent lower. Sydney, Singapore, Manila, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta also fell. London, Frankfurt and Paris opened lower.Worries over the tech sector were also weighing on sentiment, with recent warnings about an AI-fuelled bubble compounded by weak disappointing earnings last week from Oracle and Broadcom.Speculation that the hundreds of billions of AI investments will take some time to make returns, if at all, has also acted as a drag.”Jitters over the AI theme have resurfaced in recent sessions, not helped by Broadcom’s failure to provide concrete guidance for the quarter ahead, nor by reports that Oracle’s data centre construction may be delayed,” wrote Pepperstone’s Michael Brown.”Concern also lingers over the increase in debt-financed capex, especially from the likes of Oracle, though those concerns seem more likely to linger in the background into next year, as opposed to sparking significant fear in the now.”The downbeat mood on equity markets has filtered into the crypto sphere, with bitcoin briefly falling to as low as $85,171, while gold — a go-to asset in times of uncertainty — hovered around $4,300 and close to a new record high.The yen held gains against the dollar ahead of an expected rate hike by the Bank of Japan on Friday.- Key figures at around 0815 GMT -Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.6 percent at 49,383.29 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.5 percent at 25,235.41 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 1.1 percent at 3,824.81 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.1 percent at 9,737.79Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1751 from $1.1750 on MondayDollar/yen: DOWN at 154.90 yen from 155.25Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3375 from $1.3372Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.85 pence from 87.87West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.6 percent at $56.50 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.5 percent at $60.26 per barrelNew York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 48,416.56 points (close)

The Bank of Japan is expected to hike interest rates Friday for the first time since January, pushing them to their highest level in 30 years and potentially exacerbating turmoil in debt markets.Yields on Japanese government bonds have risen in recent weeks on worries about Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s budget discipline, while the yen has weakened.Higher BoJ interest rates make Japanese bonds more attractive than other assets, pushing down their prices but sending yields — which move inversely — higher.Japan’s economy contracted 0.6 percent in the third quarter, but BoJ governor Kazuo Ueda said last weekthat the impact of US tariffs was less than feared.”So far, US corporates have swallowed the burden of tariffs without fully passing (them) through to consumer prices,” Ueda told the Financial Times.At the same time, inflation has been above the BoJ’s target of two percent for some time, with core consumer prices rising 3.0 percent in October.”The urgency stems from policymakers’ recognition that the window for hiking will close once external headwinds intensify,” said BMI (Fitch Solutions) in a note.- Record-high yields -The majority of economists polled by Bloombergexpect the BoJ to raise its main rate from 0.5 percent to 0.75 percent, which would be the highest since 1995.The BoJ only began raising rates from below zero in March 2024. The US Federal Reserve is now going in the other direction and cutting rates.The BoJ’s move should help keep inflation in check, which would be welcome news to Takaichi, Japan’s first woman prime minister.She hopes to avoid the fate of her predecessor Shigeru Ishiba, who suffered a string of election debacles in part because of anger over rising prices.The lower house last week approved an extra budget worth 18.3 trillion yen ($118 billion) to finance a major stimulus package to help households.But more than 60 percent of the planned spending will come from government borrowing, rekindling market anxiety about Japan’s fiscal health.The country already has the biggest ratio of debt to gross domestic product (GDP) among major economies, with the International Monetary Fund projecting it to hit 232.7 percent this year.Yields on 30-year bond yields reached a record high in early December, and 10-year yields last week hittheir highest level in 19 years.As well as pushing up bond yields, worries about Takaichi’s “responsible proactive fiscal policy” have added to pressure on the yen, which in turn fuels inflation since Japan is so reliant on imports.”These factors will offset the effects of the economic stimulus measures and undermine the medium- to long-term stability of the economy and financial markets,” said Takahide Kiuchi at the Nomura Research Institute.”This is the contradiction and weakness of the Takaichi administration’s proactive fiscal policy,” he said.

Crouched between mountains of discarded plastic, Lanh strips the labels off bottles of Coke, Evian and local Vietnamese tea drinks so they can be melted into tiny pellets for reuse.More waste arrives daily, piling up like technicolour snowdrifts along the roads and rivers of Xa Cau, one of hundreds of “craft” recycling villages encircling Vietnam’s capital Hanoi where waste is sorted, shredded and melted.The villages present a paradox: they enable reuse of some of the 1.8 million tonnes of plastic waste Vietnam produces each year, and allow employees to earn much-needed wages.But recycling is done with few regulations, pollutes the environment and threatens the health of those involved, both workers and experts told AFP.”This job is extremely dirty. The environmental pollution is really severe,” said Lanh, 64, who asked to be identified only by her first name for fear of losing her job.It is a conundrum facing many fast-growing economies, where plastic use and disposal has outpaced the government’s ability to collect, sort and recycle.Even in wealthy countries, recycling rates are often abysmal because plastic products can be expensive to repurpose and sorting rates are low.But the rudimentary methods used in Vietnam’s craft villages produce dangerous emissions and expose workers to toxic chemicals, experts say.”Air pollution control is zero in such facilities,” said Hoang Thanh Vinh, an analyst at the United Nations Development Programme focused on waste recycling.Untreated wastewater is often dumped directly into waterways, he added.The true scale of the problem is hard to judge, with few comprehensive studies.In one village, Minh Khai, Vinh said a sediment analysis found “very high contamination of lead and the presence of dioxins”, as well as furan — all of which have been linked to cancer.And in 2008, the life expectancy for residents of the villages was found to be a full decade shorter than the national average, according to the environment ministry.Local authorities and the environment ministry did not reply to AFP’s requests for comment.Lanh believes the toxic waste in Xa Cau gave her husband blood cancer, but she still spends her days sorting rubbish to pay his medical bills.”This village is full of cancer cases, people just waiting to die,” she said.- Sickness and wealth -No data exists on cancer rates in the villages, but AFP spoke to more than half a dozen workers in Xa Cau and Minh Khai who reported colleagues or family members with cancer.Xuan Quach, coordinator of the Vietnam Zero Waste Alliance, said sustained exposure to the “toxic environment” made it inevitable that residents face “health risks that are of course higher”.Dat, 60, has been sorting plastic in Xa Cau for a decade and said the job “definitely affects your health”.  “There’s no shortage of cancer cases in this village.”But there is also no shortage of workers, keen for the economic lifeline recycling provides.In Xa Cau, plastic piles up around multi-storey homes, some with ornate facades noting the years they were built.”We get richer thanks to this business,” said 58-year-old Nguyen Thi Tuyen, who lives in a two-storey home.”Now all the houses are brick houses… In the past, we were just a farming village.” Most of the waste the villagers recycle is home-grown, researchers and residents say.But even though Vietnam only recycles about a third of its own plastic waste, it also imports thousands of tons annually from Europe, the United States and Asia.Imports soared after China stopped accepting plastic waste in 2018, though recently Vietnam has tightened regulations and announced plans to phase out imports too.For now, US and EU trade statistics show shipments to Vietnam from the two economies reached over 200,000 tonnes last year.In Minh Khai, the owner of a plant producing plastic pellets said domestic supply “is not enough”.”I have to import from overseas,” 23-year-old Dinh, who only gave one name, explained over the whir of heavy machinery. Most domestic waste doesn’t get sorted, so it cannot easily be reused. There have been efforts to improve the industry, including a ban on burning unrecyclable waste and building modern facilities.But burning continues and unusable waste is often dumped in empty lots, according to Vinh.He said the government should help recyclers move to industrial parks with better environmental safeguards, formalising a sector that handles a quarter of the country’s recycling.”The current way of recycling in recycling villages… is not good to the environment at all.”

Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai was found guilty on all three charges in his national security trial on Monday, convictions that rights groups denounced as the death knell for press freedoms in the Chinese financial hub.  Prosecutors said Lai was the mastermind behind two conspiracies to ask foreign countries to take action against Hong Kong or China, and accused him of publishing material that “excited disaffection” against the government.The 78-year-old, who pleaded not guilty, faces up to life in prison when he is sentenced. He can appeal against the convictions.”There is no doubt that (Lai) had harboured his resentment and hatred of the PRC,” Judge Esther Toh told the court, referring to the People’s Republic of China.She said he had invited the United States “to help bring down” the Chinese government, “with the excuse of helping the people of HK”. In Washington, President Donald Trump said he felt “badly” about Lai’s conviction and added that he had asked Chinese leader Xi Jinping to consider his release.”He’s an older man, and he’s not well. So I did put that request out. We’ll see what happens,” Trump said. Separately, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio noted that Lai’s health had reportedly deteriorated in prison and urged Beijing to “bring this ordeal to an end as soon as possible and to release Mr. Lai on humanitarian grounds”. Lai is a British citizen, and the UK government condemned his “politically motivated prosecution” in a statement calling for his release.- Family anguish -The media mogul, wearing a light green cardigan and grey jacket, listened impassively as the verdicts were read out.He nodded to his wife Teresa and his son Lai Shun-yan in the public gallery as he left the court, an AFP reporter saw.Defence lawyer Robert Pang told reporters that Lai was “in fine spirits” and that they would need to read the 886-page verdict before deciding on their next steps.Lai’s other son Sebastien urged Britain to “do more” to help free his father.”It’s time to put action behind words and make my father’s release a pre-condition to closer relationships with China,” he told a press conference in London.In Washington, his daughter Claire Lai warned China her father would be a “martyr” if he dies in prison, as she voiced alarm again for his health.US, EU and French consular representatives were in court, as well as veterans from Hong Kong’s pro-democracy camp.The European Union said the conviction was “emblematic of the erosion of democracy and fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong since the imposition of the National Security Law”, imposed by Beijing after huge and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in 2019.Beijing hit back at the international criticism, saying it opposed the “smearing of the judicial system in Hong Kong by certain countries”.- Self-censorship, fear -Lai, who founded the now-shut Apple Daily newspaper, has been behind bars since 2020.His case has been widely criticised as an example of eroding political freedoms under the national security law.The Hong Kong Journalists Association described a Hong Kong media climate of self-censorship and fear.Beijing’s national security agency in Hong Kong and its Liaison Office in the city both called Lai a “pawn” for anti-China forces.Lai looked thinner on Monday than when he first entered custody, an AFP reporter saw, and some of his supporters who gathered at dawn in front of the court expressed concern for his well-being.”I really want to see what’s happening with ‘the boss’,” said Tammy Cheung, who worked at Lai’s newspaper for nearly two decades.- Health concerns -Authorities have said Lai was receiving “adequate and comprehensive” care, and that he had been held in solitary confinement “at his own request”.Prosecutors cited 161 items Apple Daily published in their case against Lai.Those items, including opinion articles with Lai’s byline and talk shows he hosted, were deemed seditious under a colonial-era law because they “excited disaffection” against the government.Lai maintained that he never sought to influence other countries’ foreign policies, saying Apple Daily represented Hongkongers’ core values, including “rule of law, freedom, pursuit of democracy”.Apple Daily was forced to close in 2021 following police raids. Six top executives were charged as co-defendants and have already pleaded guilty.

European stock markets recovered upward momentum on the back of interest rate optimism Monday following a brief correction affecting mostly the tech sector, but gains were pared as Wall Street teetered.The week is filled with economic data and central bank decisions, keeping investors on their toes.Wall Street seemed poised early Monday to match European gains but tech worries crept back into the market, causing key indices to reverse their early upward move.Gold climbed closer to its all-time high and the dollar dropped as traders bet on further cuts to US interest rates by the Federal Reserve next year.”The coming week is shaping up to be a significant one for global markets,” said Jim Reid, managing director at Deutsche Bank.The European Central Bank is expected to hold interest rates steady on Thursday, while the Bank of England is forecast to trim borrowing costs, as policymakers react to cooler inflation in the eurozone and UK.However the Bank of Japan is expected to hike its main rate on Friday with the yen weak.Traders will also digest key US data, including a report on jobs with partial October figures and November’s numbers, both delayed by a government shutdown. Investors will study a US inflation reading this week as well.Markets will pour over the reports for hints on how they could affect the Fed’s January rate decision.”The Fed is still making it clear that it’s concentrated more on the employment side of the mandate,” said Patrick O’Hare of Briefing.com. The central bank has dual goals of maximum employment and stable prices.The bank has lowered borrowing costs at its past three meetings, citing concerns about a struggling American labor market, although there has been dissent including from policymakers concerned about persistently high inflation.Also in view is the race for who will take the helm at the Fed after boss Jerome Powell steps down in May, with US President Donald Trump’s top economic aide Kevin Hassett and Fed governor Kevin Warsh said to be the front-runners.For now, “investors appear indecisive about making gutsy maneuvers prior to a heavy plate of high-profile economic data starting tomorrow,” said Jose Torres of Interactive Brokers.Concerns about the AI-fuelled tech rally returned to the spotlight late last week too after poorly-received earnings from US giants Oracle and Broadcom revived questions about the vast sums invested in the sector.After hefty losses on Wall Street on Friday, where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices both shed more than one percent, Asia in turn suffered a tech-led retreat Monday.- Key figures at around 2105 GMT -New York – Dow: DOWN 0.1 percent at 48,416.56 points (close)New York – NASDAQ: DOWN 0.6 percent at 23,057.41 (close)New York – S&P 500: DOWN 0.2 percent at 6,816.51 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 1.1 percent at 9,751.31 (close)Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.7 percent at 8,124.88 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.2 percent at 24,229.91 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.3 percent at 50,168.11 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.3 percent at 25,628.88 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,867.92 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1750 from $1.1742 on FridayDollar/yen: DOWN at 155.25 yen from 155.83Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3372 from $1.3368Euro/pound: UP at 87.87 pence from 87.83West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.1 percent at $56.82 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.9 percent at $60.56 per barrelburs-tmc-bys/jgc

Stock markets on both sides of the Atlantic recovered upward momentum on the back of interest rate optimism Monday, following a brief correction affecting mostly the tech sector.The week is filled with economic data and central bank decisions.Gold climbed closer to its all-time high and the dollar dropped as traders bet on further cuts to US interest rates by the Federal Reserve next year. “The coming week is shaping up to be a significant one for global markets, with a dense calendar of economic releases and major central bank decisions,” said Jim Reid, managing director at Deutsche Bank.The European Central Bank is expected to hold interest rates on Thursday, when the Bank of England is forecast to trim borrowing costs, as policymakers react to cooler inflation in the eurozone and UK. However the Bank of Japan is expected to hike its main rate on Friday with the yen weak.Attention turns also to key US data, including reports on jobs for October and November, which were delayed by a government shutdown. Investors will also study a US inflation reading this week.The data will be pored over for an idea about the Fed’s plans for next month’s rate decision.The US central bank has lowered borrowing costs at the past three meetings, citing concerns about a struggling American labour market, though there has been some dissent among policymakers who are concerned about persistently high inflation.Also in view is the race to take the helm at the Fed after boss Jerome Powell steps down in May, with US President Donald Trump’s top economic aide Kevin Hassett and Fed governor Kevin Warsh said to be the front-runners.Concerns about the AI-fuelled tech rally returned to the spotlight late last week after poorly-received earnings from US giants Oracle and Broadcom revived questions about the vast sums invested in the sector.After hefty losses on Wall Street on Friday, where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices both shed more than one percent, Asia in turn suffered a tech-led retreat Monday.- Key figures at around 1440 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.2 percent at 48,557.21 pointsNew York – NASDAQ: UP 0.4 percent at 23,281.37 New York – S&P 500: UP 0.3 percent at 6,848.68London – FTSE 100: UP 1.0 percent at 9,741.91Paris – CAC 40: UP 1.0 percent at 8,148.61Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.3 percent at 24,256.41Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 1.3 percent at 50,168.11 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.3 percent at 25,628.88 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.6 percent at 3,867.92 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 0.5 percent at 48,458.05 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1753 from $1.1742 on FridayDollar/yen: DOWN at 155.05 yen from 155.83Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3392 from $1.3368Euro/pound: DOWN at 87.77 pence from 87.83West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.5 percent at $57.17 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $60.92 per barrelburs/jh/rlp