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On January 13th, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ) announced that its newly formed Financial Policy Committee has finalized its seven members, including two external appointees. The committee will hold its first meeting in February. This move stems from several surveys conducted last year regarding competition in New Zealand's banking sector, which recommended that the RBNZ strengthen its financial policy-making capabilities. With the support of Finance Minister Willis, the RBNZ Board of Governors established the committee to enhance the professionalism of policy decisions. The committee's responsibilities include setting prudential regulatory requirements for financial institutions and making decisions on macroprudential policy. In addition, the committee will advise the Finance Minister on legislative reforms, regulatory measures, or other regulatory activities, and will be responsible for approving the central bank's semi-annual Financial Stability Report.

On January 13th, former Bank of Japan (BOJ) policy board member Makoto Sakurai stated that the BOJ may raise interest rates as early as April due to the continued weakness of the yen caused by escalating market concerns about Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's "dangerous" fiscal policies. "The BOJ must raise rates at least once before June or July, but the action could come in April." (The market generally expects the BOJ to raise rates approximately every six months, so an April rate hike would be earlier than the market consensus.) These remarks came as the yen further depreciated following reports in Japanese media that the Takaichi municipal government was considering holding an early general election next month. Sakurai's comments indicate that he believes the BOJ will not take action to support the yen at its next two meetings, and if the yen continues to depreciate, the responsibility for maintaining the exchange rate during this period will fall on the Ministry of Finance.

On January 13th, Zhou Haibing, Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), stated at a regular press conference that it is necessary to clarify the boundaries of responsibility between the government and enterprises, adhere to the principle of "whoever pollutes, cleans up," and prevent situations where "enterprises make money but leave behind pollution," making the government and the public pay the price. Going forward, the NDRC will work with relevant departments to improve supporting systems, issue management measures for the comprehensive utilization of power batteries for new energy vehicles, revise the guidance catalog for industrial restructuring, and intensify restrictions and elimination of outdated technologies and equipment.

On January 13, Zhou Haibing, Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), stated that this year the NDRC will lead the formulation of the 15th Five-Year Plan for the Development of the Circular Economy, clarify the development goals and tasks for the circular economy in key areas, deploy key measures for the recycling and utilization of traditional renewable resources, rare and precious metals, and "new three types" of solid waste, improve the guarantee system, further improve resource utilization efficiency, strengthen resource security, support green and low-carbon transformation, and promote new achievements in the high-quality development of the circular economy.

On January 13th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs held a special press conference. Jiang Wei, Deputy Director of the Trademark Application and Promotion Department of the State Intellectual Property Office, stated that the office will strengthen guidance and services for trademark use, continuously regulate irregular trademark use such as "brand imitation," strengthen trademark and brand protection, and support elderly care service operators in cultivating trademark brands for elderly care services. Going forward, the State Intellectual Property Office will further strengthen communication and cooperation with the Ministry of Civil Affairs to fully support the implementation of the "Several Measures on Cultivating Elderly Care Service Operators and Promoting the Development of the Silver Economy," vigorously promote the in-depth implementation of trademark and brand strategies by elderly care service operators, leverage the leading role of trademarks and brands, cultivate more well-known trademark brands supported by technology, quality, and reputation, increase publicity and promotion of elderly care service brand image, and enhance the social benefits and market value of elderly care services.

On January 13th, Alibaba Cloud announced the completion of a further strategic investment in ZStack, achieving a controlling stake. According to reports, the two companies will leverage the "Apsara + ZStack" full-stack ecosystem to create an integrated cloud-edge solution.

On January 13th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs held a special press conference. Li Qiang, Deputy Director of the Consumer Goods Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, stated that the Ministry will focus on key areas such as elderly care service robots, with manufacturers and downstream application companies jointly conducting research on core technologies and product development. The focus will be on promoting the large-scale application of humanoid robots, health monitoring equipment, and rehabilitation assistive devices in homes, communities, and elderly care institutions. The Ministry will also implement a high-end medical equipment promotion and application project, supporting clinical trials, technological iterations, and market promotion of products such as cochlear implants and rehabilitation training systems, enabling more elderly people to benefit from high-end medical equipment and share the dividends of modern technological innovation.

On January 13th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs held a special press conference. Li Qiang, Deputy Director of the Consumer Goods Department of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, stated that the Ministry will adhere to a demand-oriented and problem-oriented approach, continuously promoting the deep integration of new-generation information technology with elderly care services, focusing on four key areas: First, continuing to carry out the "High-Quality Elderly Products Benefit Enterprises" campaign, updating and releasing a directory of excellent cases of age-friendly products and services, and researching and promoting the silver-age certification of elderly products; Second, focusing on the pain points of the elderly, increasing R&D efforts in products such as elderly care service robots, age-friendly shoes and clothing, and easy-to-swallow foods; Third, continuously optimizing the standard system construction in the fields of elderly products and smart health and elderly care, accelerating the release and implementation of key standards in areas such as smart terminals, smart communities, and smart homes; Fourth, continuously deepening the application of the Internet and the age-friendly transformation of smart terminals, constantly improving the convenience of life for the elderly, and providing strong support for the high-quality development of the silver economy.

On January 13th, according to sources, U.S. Attorney Jeanne Piro of the District of Columbia issued a subpoena to the Federal Reserve without prior approval from her superiors at the Department of Justice and has no intention of halting the investigation into Jerome Powell due to external pressure. This investigation has drawn strong opposition from members of Congress, and even President Trump has publicly distanced himself from the matter. However, Piro, who was confirmed as a federal prosecutor just five months ago after transitioning from a Fox News host, still plans to continue the investigation. Current indications suggest that Piro is facing significant obstacles. U.S. media previously reported that Federal Housing Finance Agency Director Pulte was a key figure in pushing for the investigation of the Federal Reserve. However, Pulte stated on Monday that he was unaware of the subpoena. Representatives from Piro's office and Attorney General Bondi declined to comment.

On January 13th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs held a special press conference to introduce the "Several Measures on Cultivating Elderly Care Service Operators and Promoting the Development of the Silver Economy." Guo Hanqiao, Deputy Director of the Department of Aging Affairs of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, stated that in terms of financial support, the Ministry will work with relevant departments to formulate specific financial support policies, promote innovation in credit products and service models suitable for the characteristics of the aging industry, guide and drive social capital participation, and provide diversified financing support. Regarding data support, the Ministry will establish and improve the statistical monitoring system for the aging cause and the silver economy, guide qualified regions to conduct preliminary research on statistical classification standards for the silver economy, and carry out silver economy accounting to provide data support for industrial development. In terms of talent cultivation, the Ministry will collaborate with education, human resources and social security departments to promote the training of professionals in rehabilitation, elderly care, and elderly product design in higher education institutions and vocational colleges, improve vocational skill level certification, and expand the industry's talent pool.

On January 13th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs held a special press conference to introduce the "Several Measures on Cultivating Elderly Care Service Entities and Promoting the Development of the Silver Economy." Wang Bo, Deputy Director of the Department of Trade in Services of the Ministry of Commerce, stated at the conference that the Ministry will continue to create a favorable environment for opening up and cooperation. The Ministry of Commerce is actively promoting the national comprehensive pilot program for expanding the opening up of the service industry, encouraging pilot provinces and cities to explore related fields; and has revised and released the "Catalogue of Industries Encouraging Foreign Investment (2025 Edition)" with the National Development and Reform Commission, including encouraged categories such as "manufacturing of elderly products and related items." Going forward, the Ministry of Commerce will accelerate the national comprehensive pilot program for expanding the opening up of the service industry, continue to promote and interpret the new version of the "Catalogue of Industries Encouraging Foreign Investment," guide local governments to implement supporting measures, and guide more foreign investment towards the elderly care industry.

On January 13th, the Ministry of Civil Affairs held a special press conference to introduce the "Several Measures on Cultivating Elderly Care Service Operators and Promoting the Development of the Silver Economy." Guo Hanqiao, Deputy Director of the Department of Aging Affairs of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, stated that the Ministry is actively promoting the inclusion of the development of the silver economy in relevant special plans, and, in conjunction with relevant departments, is studying and formulating support measures to promote the high-quality development of the silver economy, clarifying the main goals and key tasks for industrial development in the future. The focus is on sub-sectors such as elderly care services, rehabilitation assistive devices, and age-friendly products, proposing a series of targeted support measures to optimize the industrial layout, guide the orderly investment of social capital and technology, and promote industrial upgrading.

January 13th - It is reported that, building on its local production in Europe and Southeast Asia in 2025, XPeng Motors plans to establish an independently operating overseas localized supply chain team in the European and ASEAN markets in 2026. This will support and deepen the layout and operation of overseas supply resources, improve supply chain response speed, and promote the implementation of its long-term strategy of "rooted in the local, local production, global supply".

On January 13th, Shilan Shah, Deputy Chief Economist for Emerging Markets at Capital Economics, stated that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has room for further small-scale policy easing, as inflation is expected to return to its 4% target level by 2027. While the overall CPI appears to have bottomed out in December, it should gradually rise back to the RBI's 4% target. Inflation could accelerate further as the base effect of food inflation becomes unfavorable. The RBI is expected to cut interest rates by another 25 basis points in February and maintain an accommodative policy stance throughout the year.

January 13th - At 9:30 AM on January 13th, the submission of application materials for the sixth batch of national centralized procurement of high-value medical consumables ended, with 496 products from 227 companies submitting bids.

On January 13th, Zhou Haibing, Vice Chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission, stated at a regular press conference that the Action Plan, with its problem-oriented approach, further improves policies and measures for comprehensive governance across the entire solid waste chain, building upon existing management methods across various sectors. It promotes a shift from end-of-pipe treatment to full-process prevention and control, and is my country's first dedicated document systematically deploying comprehensive solid waste management. Simultaneously, the Action Plan focuses on filling institutional gaps in key areas and addressing long-standing and challenging issues that have plagued the industry.

On January 13th, the highest 7-day annualized yield of Tencent Wealth Management's "Current Account +" was 1.4480%, and the lowest was 0.8950%. The highest 7-day annualized yield of WeChat Pay's "Lingqian Tong" was 1.2200%, and the lowest was 1.0300%. The highest 7-day annualized yield of Alipay's "Yu'ebao" was 1.2060%, and the lowest was 1.0000%.

A Japanese government spokesperson expressed concern about unilateral and sharp currency fluctuations.