Real-time News

New York gold futures fell below $4,150 per ounce, down 0.42% on the day.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee: Launching delivery connection with the Shanghai Gold Exchange.

The yield on Japan's 30-year government bonds rose 2.5 basis points to 4.100%.

International oil prices remained volatile, with US crude oil holding above $69. A chart provides a quick overview of the pre-market conversion prices of crude oil between domestic and international markets.

Spot gold and silver prices continued to fluctuate. A chart provides a quick overview of the pre-market prices of precious metals, converted between domestic and international markets.

As of 8:30 AM Beijing time, spot platinum was down 0.11% and spot palladium was down 0.03%.

Data shows that two Japanese-owned supertankers are carrying Saudi crude oil toward the Strait of Hormuz, preparing to leave the Gulf region.

LG Energy (LGES), the South Korean battery manufacturer, said on Tuesday that it expects its operating profit for the April-June period to fall 77% to 113 billion won (about $73.91 million), as weak demand for electric vehicles continues to drag down battery sales. Market forecasts predicted a profit of 249 billion won. According to a filing with regulators, LGES expects revenue to increase 24.8% year-on-year to 7.6 trillion won. LGES stated that its quarterly profit guidance included tax credits for its battery production in the United States under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act. Excluding these tax credits, the company would have recorded an operating loss of 128 billion won.

Futures News, July 7th - According to foreign media reports, Malaysian crude palm oil futures on the Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Exchange (BMD) are likely to open higher on Tuesday morning, following gains in the Chicago soybean oil market. High temperatures and dry weather in the US Midwest, potentially unfavorable for soybean crop growth, have boosted the Chicago soybean and soybean oil markets, which will likely support the early performance of Malaysian crude palm oil futures. A weaker ringgit, making it cheaper for buyers holding foreign currency to purchase palm oil, also supports palm oil prices. International crude oil futures fell on Monday, closing near pre-war levels. However, Brent crude futures rose modestly during Tuesday's electronic trading session. The Malaysian Palm Oil Board will release June palm oil supply and demand data this week. A survey indicates that palm oil stocks at the end of June may rise to their highest level for this time of year on record, as production growth has outpaced demand growth.

On July 7th, the German Federal Cabinet approved the draft federal budget for 2027 on July 6th. According to the draft budget, German federal spending in 2027 is planned at €555.4 billion, higher than the €524.5 billion in 2026. Notably, the German federal defense budget will increase to approximately €109.7 billion in 2027, about one-third more than in 2026. This draft budget has drawn criticism from various quarters. The Left Party argues that the government is allocating more funds to defense spending while neglecting to alleviate the burden on the public and disaster relief; German industry believes that budget spending and debt are growing too rapidly and that fiscal planning lacks soundness; some environmental organizations criticize the government's adjustments to the climate and transition fund allocation, arguing that this will weaken support for climate protection.

U.S. memory chip stocks fell across the board in after-hours trading. SanDisk (SNDK.O) is down 3.5%, Micron Technology (MU.O) is down 2.3%, Seagate Technology (STX.O) is down 2%, and Western Digital (WDC.O) is down 2.8%.

Artificial Intelligence: 1. Tencent's Hunyuan releases the Hy3 model. 2. xAI renames its X account to SpaceXAI. 3. Meituan open-sources LongCat-2.0, simultaneously releasing inference code for domestically produced cards. 4. Qianwen's large-scale model upgrades to the real-time speech recognition model Fun-ASR-Realtime. 5. The Cyberspace Administration of China launches the first phase of its "Clean Up and Rectify the Chaos in AI Applications" special campaign. 6. The US cybersecurity agency CISA is using Anthropic's AI tools to audit government code and has discovered multiple vulnerabilities. Integrated Circuits (Chips): 1. Samsung Electronics releases its Q2 earnings forecast, with total revenue of 171 trillion won (up 129.3% year-on-year) and operating profit of 89.4 trillion won (up 1810.2% year-on-year). 2. Nvidia denies Kyber delay rumors: product roadmap unaffected. 3. South Korean telecom giant KT plans to invest 18 trillion won in AI. 4. Broadcom and Apple extend their technology collaboration to 2031 through a new multi-year agreement. 5. Reports indicate that Samsung's foundry business is expected to achieve its first monthly profit in three years in June. 6. Reports suggest that Huawei's Mate 90 series phones may be equipped with a new Kirin chip based on the "Tao Law" (a technological advancement in semiconductor technology). 7. Samsung Electronics: Semiconductor business employees will receive performance bonuses of up to 100% of their base salary in the first half of this year. 8. Intel confirms CPU price increase: It will conduct regular monitoring of the supply chain and related costs based on constantly changing market dynamics. Other: 1. Microsoft lays off 4,800 employees, with the Xbox division being the most affected. 2. Reports indicate that Samsung Heavy Industries aims to commercialize its first floating data center by the second half of 2028. 3. Scientists have discovered two new types of superconductors using AI and quantum physics, aiming to find room-temperature superconductors by 2033. 4. Microsoft plans to lay off approximately 4,800 employees, affecting sales and Xbox gaming divisions.

Moody's rating: The conflict with Iran further underscores Australia's position as a key liquefied natural gas supplier, despite rising policy risks.

July 7th - Data released by the Japanese government on Tuesday showed that real wages in Japan rose 1.4% year-on-year in May, marking the fifth consecutive month of growth, although the pace slowed due to renewed acceleration in consumer inflation. Average nominal wages (cash income) rose 3.2% year-on-year in May to 311,165 yen (approximately US$1,917.69), lower than the revised 3.6% increase in April. As the impact of the Iran war began to be reflected in consumer prices, consumer inflation accelerated, leading to a slower year-on-year increase in real wages in May at 1.4%, lower than the revised 2.0% in April. Basic wages rose 3.0% year-on-year in May, compared to a revised 3.3% increase in April. Overtime pay rose 2.9% year-on-year, lower than the revised 4.8% in April. Although Japanese companies have achieved an average annual wage increase of over 5% for the third consecutive year, the cost of living is likely to continue to rise in the coming months as the weak yen pushes up import costs, and the impact of previous energy price increases will gradually be transmitted to the prices of various consumer goods. The Bank of Japan raised interest rates to their highest level in 31 years last month, stating that continued wage and price increases are a prerequisite for further rate hikes.

On July 7th, a conference titled "Qianjiyuan: Nuclear Energy Innovation"—a comprehensive technology achievement release conference for the entire chain of independently controllable carbon-14 nuclear batteries—was held in Lanzhou on the 6th. The conference was hosted by Northwest Normal University and organized by Gansu Zhulong Technology Co., Ltd. At the conference, two core research achievements were officially released: the new independently branded "Qianjiyuan Tianshu Carbon-14 Nuclear Battery" and the "Qianjiyuan Energy Hub Silicon Carbide Transducer." It is understood that compared to the "Zhulong-1" micro nuclear battery engineering prototype released in November 2024, the "Qianjiyuan" series of achievements has achieved five major breakthroughs, covering a new radioactive source adaptation system, high-efficiency energy conversion technology, a three-dimensional stacked packaging structure, an intelligent energy storage power management system, and a high-precision sensing and wireless transmission system. This has constructed a domestically produced, independently controllable technology system and intellectual property system. These breakthroughs have completely broken through the limitations of traditional technologies, such as low efficiency, high material usage, large size, and low power density, achieving a systematic upgrade in miniaturization, high power, low cost, and high integration, possessing extremely high industrial value.

Samsung Electronics shares fell 4.5% in pre-market trading on Nextrade.

July 7 - The French National Assembly failed to pass a motion of no confidence proposed by the opposition parties regarding the government's inadequate response to the heatwave on the 7th, allowing the government led by French Prime Minister Le Corny to continue in power.

Conflict Situation: 1. Russia claims to continue mine clearance and operations in Khelman. 2. Russian military confirms large-scale strikes against military targets in multiple Ukrainian locations. 3. Ukraine attacks two oil tankers belonging to Russia's shadow fleet in the Sea of Azov. 4. Local governor states that several Ukrainian drones have reached the Russian industrial center north of Omsk. 5. Ukrainian Air Force: Russia launched 68 missiles and 351 drones at Ukraine overnight. 6. Local governor states that infrastructure in the Russian oil port areas of Uster-Luga and Vysotsk was damaged following the drone attacks. 7. Security Service of Ukraine: Strikes have been conducted on the Russian Baltic port of Vysotsk oil terminal and refineries in the Kaluga region. 8. Zelensky: Ukraine shot down all six Kalibr missiles and 31 cruise missiles last night, and called on the United States to authorize Ukraine to produce Patriot missiles to compensate for its lack of interceptor missiles. The large-scale Russian attack on Ukraine has resulted in 22 deaths. Peace Negotiations: 1. Russian Deputy Foreign Minister: Russia will maintain contact with the United States on the Ukraine issue. Other developments: 1. Trump stated that he had a "very good call" with Putin. 2. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen: Efforts are underway to finalize the 21st round of sanctions against Russia. Ukraine urgently needs more air defense equipment.