Real-time News

February 27th - According to reports, Samsung Electronics is focusing on improving the yield rate of its 1cDRAM while simultaneously capturing market share in HBM4. Specifically, Samsung Electronics has decided to increase the size of its sixth-generation 10nm-class DRAM chips, thereby improving the stability of both DRAM and HBM4.

On February 27th, Tiangong International (00826.HK) issued a price adjustment notice stating that, given the current excessively high price increases in raw materials and restrictions on shipments from upstream powder suppliers, in order to ensure the company's stable operation and provide better service, the company has decided that, starting March 1, 2026, Jiangsu Tiangong Carbide Technology Co., Ltd.'s cutting tool products will adopt new prices, with an expected price increase of 15%-20%. Due to the recent continuous rise in raw material prices, combined with the current production costs of branded tools, starting March 5, 2026, the prices of all Tiangong brand cutting tools will be adjusted, with some products seeing price increases of 8%-10%.

Indian Trade Minister: The joint India-US statement indicated that the agreement would be readjusted should circumstances change.

Indian Trade Minister: The effectiveness of the US-India trade agreement is two-way.

Iranian Foreign Minister Araqchi: The third round of talks was more in-depth and longer than previous discussions. In this round, the two sides discussed key elements that could form the basis of an agreement.

February 27th - On February 27th, the Chengdu Tianfu International Airport Comprehensive Bonded Zone, Sichuan's first airport-type comprehensive bonded zone, officially commenced operations, injecting new momentum into the high-level opening-up of western China. Chengdu Customs stated that it will continue to explore integrated "zone-port" supervision and institutional innovation to reduce enterprise costs and improve trade facilitation through institutional dividends. Statistics show that in 2025, the total import and export value of Sichuan's comprehensive bonded zones reached 582.41 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1.9%.

February 27th - Refining sources say Saudi Arabia may raise its April crude oil prices for Asia for the first time in five months, as increased Indian demand seeks alternatives to Russian supplies and escalating concerns about supply disruptions stemming from the threat of a US-Iran military conflict. Sources indicate the official selling price of Arab Light crude oil in April could rise by about $1 per barrel, returning to December levels. Other Saudi crude oil grades are also expected to see price increases in April. June Goh, senior analyst at Sparta Commodities, stated that the spot market saw a significant increase in February, driven by India's increased purchases seeking alternatives to Russian oil. Saudi Arabia's official crude oil prices are typically announced around the 5th of each month and serve as a benchmark for oil prices in Iran, Kuwait, and Iraq, affecting approximately 9 million barrels per day of crude oil shipped to Asia.

On February 27, Merck (MRK.N) announced that on February 26, its novel non-nucleoside cytomegalovirus (CMV) inhibitor, Prumin® (letermovir), in three dosage forms—letermovir tablets, letermovir injection, and letermovir tablets (II)—has been approved by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) of China for continued use in pediatric patients aged 6 months or older and weighing ≥6 kg at risk of delayed CMV infection and CMV disease up to 200 days after HSCT.

February 27th Futures News: 1. WTI crude oil futures trading volume was 1,433,956 lots, an increase of 652,572 lots from the previous trading day. Open interest was 2,120,084 lots, an increase of 13,604 lots from the previous trading day. 2. Brent crude oil futures trading volume was 271,854 lots, an increase of 129,403 lots from the previous trading day. Open interest was 264,474 lots, a decrease of 1,412 lots from the previous trading day. 3. Natural gas futures trading volume was 409,554 lots, an increase of 68,341 lots from the previous trading day. Open interest was 1,617,525 lots, an increase of 18,335 lots from the previous trading day.

On February 27th, Meizu announced that it will suspend its self-developed hardware projects for new domestic mobile phone products and is actively contacting third-party hardware partners. Sources familiar with the matter revealed that the partner Meizu is in contact with may be Cube. The aforementioned source stated, "Cube currently has an intention to cooperate with Meizu, but specific details are still under discussion, and the cooperation will depend on product-related communications."

Statistics Finland: Finland's GDP grew 0.4% quarter-on-quarter and 0.1% year-on-year in the fourth quarter.

On February 27th, JPMorgan Chase released a research report stating that Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) (00388.HK) announced a net profit of HK$4.3 billion for the fourth quarter of 2025, a 12% decrease quarter-on-quarter but a 15% increase year-on-year, exceeding JPMorgan's forecast by 19%. Profit for fiscal year 2025 is expected to reach HK$17.8 billion, a 36% increase year-on-year, exceeding market forecasts by 2%. The bank believes the better-than-expected performance was mainly driven by revenue. Transaction fees and settlement fees performed better than expected, decreasing by 14% and 16% quarter-on-quarter respectively, despite seasonally weak trading volume and a 21% quarter-on-quarter decrease in average daily turnover of spot stocks. These factors offset weaker-than-expected custody fees and market data fees. For HKEX, this was a strong quarter, with robust earnings despite weaker trading volume in the fourth quarter. Strong net investment income was a positive surprise and could be a source of upward revisions to the 2026 fiscal year earnings forecast. Following a seasonal weakness in December 2025, trading volume has rebounded strongly, with an average daily turnover of approximately HK$260 billion year-to-date, even including the weaker Lunar New Year period last week. Furthermore, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) is expected to see over 400 active IPO applications entering 2026, a significant increase from 297 in the third quarter. The bank anticipates strong share price performance and maintains its "Overweight" rating on HKEX with a target price of HK$540.

JPMorgan Chase: European natural gas inventories remain near historic lows, but the fundamentals have improved due to factors such as warmer weather and increased LNG shipments.

BASF reported a net profit of €560 million in the fourth quarter.

Kazakhstan's Energy Minister stated that there are no issues with crude oil exports from the Caspian Pipeline Union (CPC).

February 27 (Reuters) - South Korean exports are likely to rise for the ninth consecutive month in February as a global AI investment boom drives a surge in chip sales. The median forecast from nine analysts predicts South Korean exports will grow 24.0% year-on-year in February, a bellwether for global trade. While this is lower than January's 33.8% increase (which saw the strongest export growth since August 2021), it would still be the second-fastest year-on-year growth in the current continuous growth cycle that begins in June 2025. Economists point to faster-than-expected chip price increases and persistently low inventory levels, expecting semiconductor exports to maintain strong momentum. "The possibility of semiconductor export growth exceeding 100% in the first half of the year is extremely high," said Stephen Lee, an analyst at Meritz Securities in Seoul.

February 27th - Shanghai's 2026 Special Fund for Energy Conservation and Emission Reduction and the Third Batch of Ultra-Long-Term Special Treasury Bonds Arrangement Plan were released, supporting national vehicle scrapping and replacement (fuel vehicles and new energy vehicles), with a planned allocation of 43.232 million yuan in municipal special funds for energy conservation and emission reduction.

Pakistan's state television claimed that several Taliban strongholds were destroyed in the attack.

According to RIA Novosti, Russia will consider mediation if both Pakistan and Afghanistan make a request.

The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee stated that after five years of continuous efforts, the main goals and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan have been successfully completed, my country's economic strength, scientific and technological strength, and overall national strength have reached new heights, China's modernization has taken new and solid steps, and the new journey toward the second centenary goal has achieved a good start.