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The Bank of England: Businesses expect wages to rise by 3.4% over the next year. The March forecast was for a 3.5% increase.

Bank of England: UK businesses expect prices to rise by 3.8% over the next year. A 3.5% increase is projected for March.

On Friday, April 24, the Hang Seng Index closed up 62.87 points, or 0.24%, at 25,978.07; the Hang Seng Tech Index closed up 36.68 points, or 0.75%, at 4,902.2; the H-share Index closed up 42.99 points, or 0.49%, at 8,775.62; and the Red Chip Index closed down 2.8 points, or 0.06%, at 4,362.46.

On April 24th, data from the German think tank Ifo showed that Germany's business climate index fell to a multi-year low in April, as business confidence plummeted due to the impact of the Middle East conflict. Furthermore, the expectations index also fell to its lowest level since August 2023. Analysts say the current economic situation looks quite dire, as soaring energy prices are the main reason for the decline in business and economic activity. This is already evident in the PMI data, and the situation will worsen as long as the war continues, especially if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed. With rising price pressures and weakening economic confidence, the European Central Bank faces a challenging path forward. Germany already experienced relatively persistent inflationary pressures before the conflict erupted. Therefore, this will further exacerbate concerns about stagflation when looking ahead to the coming months.

Shares of some U.S. chipmakers rose in pre-market trading after Intel projected second-quarter revenue that beat expectations. AMD (AMD.O) rose 7.2%, and Arm (ARM.O) rose 6.5%.

Swiss National Bank President: Given the conflict in the Middle East, our willingness to intervene in the foreign exchange market has increased.

Swiss National Bank President: We have unlimited room for maneuver in terms of policy interest rates and foreign exchange intervention.

Germany's April IFO Business Expectations Index was 83.3, below the expected 85 and the previous reading of 86.

On April 24, the International Energy Agency (IEA) stated that the global natural gas market will continue to experience tight supply conditions beyond this year, as ongoing conflict in the Middle East and damage to regional infrastructure continue to disrupt supply. In a report released Friday, the IEA stated that the war has delayed a previously anticipated liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply glut, despite new production capacity coming online. The impact of this capacity expansion, primarily driven by the United States, has been postponed "at least two years." The IEA indicated that the combined effect of reduced supply and slower capacity growth in the short term could result in a total LNG supply deficit of approximately 120 billion cubic meters between 2026 and 2030. This estimate takes into account the delays in the eastward expansion project of Qatar's North Field.

Wu Gai, deputy director of the Department of Economic Construction of the Ministry of Finance, said that in the two months since the pilot policy of prize-winning invoices was implemented, as of last week, 50 pilot cities have distributed 3.68 billion yuan in prizes, boosted sales in related fields by about 160 billion yuan, and a total of 410 million people have participated in the activity, with 170 million people winning prizes.

According to the German business daily Handelsblatt, Commerzbank is planning further layoffs as part of its updated strategy; the scale of the layoffs has not yet been determined.

According to Nikkei, Google will bid for the use of SoftBank's data center in Ohio.

Royal Bank of Canada: Raises its price target for Intel (INTC.O) to $80 from $48.

On April 24th, a senior Bank of England official warned that high asset prices failed to reflect the level of risk in the market and hinted at a potential global market downturn. Bank of England Deputy Governor for Financial Stability, Brident, stated that current share prices are not commensurate with the scale of economic pressures facing the market. She said, "There are many risks in the market, but asset prices are at historical highs. We expect this situation to eventually change." The Deputy Governor said that what kept her "sleepless nights" was the potential for multiple economic risks to erupt simultaneously. "What will happen in an environment where private credit confidence declines after a major macroeconomic shock, and valuations of artificial intelligence and other high-risk assets are readjusted? Are we prepared to deal with it?" Her remarks came a week in which market risk appetite rebounded, boosted by a series of strong corporate earnings reports and Trump's extension of the ceasefire agreement with Iran, with stocks climbing to record highs.

On April 24, Qu Fuguo, deputy director of the Debt Management Department of the Ministry of Finance, said that a total of 3.62 trillion yuan of treasury bonds were issued in the first quarter of this year, an increase of 320 billion yuan year-on-year, representing a growth rate of nearly 10%, which provides a strong guarantee for the continued implementation of a more proactive fiscal policy.