Real-time News

On July 15th, ship tracking data showed that two oil tankers carrying Iranian crude oil changed their destination signals to Pakistan, a rare move that may indicate these vessels are seeking a relatively safe anchorage to await developments following the reimposition of a US maritime blockade. The tankers "Rani" and "Amil," carrying a combined 1 million barrels of crude oil, changed their destination signals to Karachi, Pakistan, on Tuesday. However, it is unlikely that these two tankers will unload their cargo in Pakistan, as doing so could expose Pakistan to violating US sanctions. Kpler data shows that Pakistan has not imported Iranian crude oil for at least 10 years. Vortexa senior market analyst Xavier Tang stated that the ships "may choose to sail closer to Pakistan to avoid US naval vessels and mark Karachi as a transit destination along their route."

On July 15, Zou Lan, spokesperson and vice governor of the People's Bank of China, said at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office that in the first five months of this year, the proportion of enterprises using foreign exchange hedging rose to 34.4%, an increase of 4.5 percentage points compared with 2025, and the proportion of cross-border trade settlement in RMB was about 30%.

July 15th - Marine Le Pen, the far-right leader of France, has restarted her presidential campaign, which investment institutions see as yet another reason to avoid French government bonds. Institutions believe that France's deteriorating fiscal situation, coupled with the presidential election potentially exacerbating political divisions, further weakens the prospects of this already heavily indebted and economically weak country. Polls show Le Pen currently leading in the presidential election next year to succeed incumbent President Macron. Her rising approval ratings will also make it more difficult for Prime Minister Le Kohn's government to control fiscal spending. Annalisa Piazza, portfolio manager at MFS Investment Management, stated that Le Pen's low emphasis on fiscal discipline means "the risk is that the yield spread between French and German government bonds will remain high for a longer period." Ajay Rajadjaksha, global head of research at Barclays, said, "The market is worried about Le Pen's populist fiscal policies, especially given that France's debt-to-GDP ratio is already close to 120%. We expect Le Pen's campaign to further increase the difficulty of fiscal consolidation in France."

On July 15, Xie Guangqi, Director of the Monetary Policy Department of the People's Bank of China, stated at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office that as of the end of April 2026, banks had issued 1.5 trillion yuan in loans for technological innovation and technological upgrading, with 21,000 small and medium-sized technology enterprises that had previously had no loans receiving their first loan, and a total of 8,250 key equipment upgrade projects receiving financial support.

On July 15, Zou Lan, Vice Governor of the People's Bank of China, stated at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office that as of the end of June, inclusive micro and small enterprise loans increased by 8.3% year-on-year, industrial medium- and long-term loans increased by 5.9% year-on-year, and the balance of medium- and long-term loans to the service sector (excluding the real estate industry) increased by 9.2% year-on-year. All of these figures were higher than the overall loan growth rate.

On July 15, Zou Lan, Vice Governor of the People's Bank of China, stated at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office that at the end of June, the outstanding amount of social financing increased by 7.4% year-on-year, and the broad money supply (M2) increased by 8% year-on-year. Both indicators continued to grow faster than the nominal GDP growth rate.

ECB Governing Council member Nagel: Monetary policy will remain cautious.

The People's Bank of China reported that at the end of June, China's foreign exchange reserves stood at US$3.42 trillion. At the end of June, the exchange rate was 6.8109 yuan to 1 US dollar.

ECB Governing Council member Nagel: From a geopolitical perspective, the past few weeks have been filled with both hope and disappointment.

July 15th - In the first half of the year, the amount of cross-border RMB settlement under current account items was 9.83 trillion yuan, of which goods trade, services trade and other current account items were 7.71 trillion yuan and 2.12 trillion yuan respectively; the amount of cross-border RMB settlement for direct investment was 4.17 trillion yuan, of which outward direct investment and foreign direct investment were 1.5 trillion yuan and 2.67 trillion yuan respectively.

ECB Governing Council member Nagel: From a monetary policy perspective, it is wise to remain cautious, but decisive action should be taken when necessary.

July 15th - Lower-than-expected U.S. inflation data for June weakened market expectations for further Federal Reserve rate hikes, causing the dollar to remain weak on Wednesday. Federal Reserve Chairman Warsh reiterated his commitment to maintaining price stability during his congressional testimony on Tuesday. Jefferies economist Mohit Kumar stated in a report that Warsh's efforts to strengthen his credibility in combating inflation should be distinguished from whether further rate hikes are needed. He stated, "Unless oil prices continue to rise and further transmit to consumer prices, we expect inflation to continue to decline in the coming quarters."

China's new yuan loans so far this year reached 10.72 trillion yuan in June, exceeding the expected 11.06 trillion yuan and the previous value of 9.11 trillion yuan.

China's M1 money supply grew at an annual rate of 4% in June, below the expected 4.9% and the previous value of 5.5%.