Real-time News

Honda Motor Co., Ltd. (HMC.N): Will resume automobile production at its Saitama, Suzuka and Yokkaichi plants starting August 20.

ArcelorMittal SA: Major energy production facilities were damaged.

ArcelorMittal SA: The company's factories were operating normally at the time of the attack.

ArcelorMittal SA confirmed that its Ukrainian operations, ArcelorMittal Krivirikh, were attacked by missiles over the weekend. Three company employees and contractors were injured, and two others were killed. Experts are assessing the damage and the timeline for resuming production.

According to Japan's Kyodo News, sources say that Japan's Ministry of Defense is considering introducing U.S.-developed artificial intelligence into the command and control systems of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. This move aims to use AI to support battlefield analysis, target analysis, and command issuance, thereby accelerating decision-making. The Ministry of Defense also plans to adopt domestically developed systems to avoid over-reliance on any single country or company.

Sources say Greece plans to pay off about €13 billion ($15.1 billion) of its debt ahead of schedule in 2026 in an effort to reduce its debt stock to below that of Italy by the end of the year.

Sources say Greece will prepay approximately €13 billion of its debt in 2026.

According to CNN, U.S. Special Envoy Jared Kushner is meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in an attempt to push forward the Trump administration's stalled Gaza peace plan. This comes a day after Kushner met with Hamas representatives.

August 17th - Wildfires broke out in eastern Belgium and remained burning as of the 16th, continuing to spread towards the German border and forcing the emergency evacuation of some German residents. Data shows this is the largest wildfire on record in Belgium. Reuters, citing data from the Belgian local government, reported that a fire started on the 14th in a nature reserve in eastern Belgium, and by the 16th, the burned area had reached 3,000 hectares. Monitoring by the European Forest Fire Information System indicates this is the largest wildfire on record in Belgium.

On August 17th, Thailand is undergoing a comprehensive revision of a key factory output indicator after US officials pointed to a widening gap between surging Thai exports and declining domestic production, suggesting this could be evidence of goods being transshipped through Thailand to circumvent tariffs. Despite a 3.1% contraction in the manufacturing production index, Thailand's exports still grew by 20.8% year-on-year in June, marking the fourth consecutive month of double-digit growth. Thai officials deny the US accusations, arguing that the factory production indicator is outdated, overly focused on traditional industries, and fails to reflect rapid growth in sectors such as semiconductors and other electronics related to the artificial intelligence boom. The Secretary-General of the National Economic and Social Development Council stated that Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Ekniti hopes to complete the revision in September.

Phillip Securities maintains a "Sell" rating on SpaceX (SPCX.O) with a target price of $75. They remain cautious about high capital expenditures, AI customer concentration, and temporary cloud service contracts, and believe that a more long-term business commitment from customers is needed to drive a valuation revaluation.

According to Iran's Tasnim News Agency, some Iranian judicial officials are about to undergo adjustments and reassignments aimed at revitalizing and injecting new momentum to ensure a steadfast commitment to serving the people. These adjustments should not be interpreted or understood in any other way.

On August 17, Li Chenggang, China's Vice Minister of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, met with Jiang Zhicheng, Global President of Thermo Fisher Scientific. The two sides exchanged views on China-US economic and trade relations and Thermo Fisher Scientific's development in China.

On August 17th, Evelyn Gomez, interest rate strategist at Mizuho Securities, noted in a report that fiscal uncertainty in the UK continues to weigh on investors ahead of the October budget announcement. The UK government is expected to announce revenue-boosting measures and spending plans in its budget address on October 28th. Potentially weak UK employment and inflation data this week may support UK government bonds, but fiscal concerns remain.

On August 17th, Henlius Biotech (02696.HK) announced a strategic collaboration with Sandoz, a global generic and biosimilar pharmaceutical company, for up to 10 monoclonal antibody and/or antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) biosimilar products or ingredients developed by Henlius. The collaboration also includes terms for the initial selection of three products and an option for one more product. In April 2025, the two companies reached an exclusive commercialization agreement for the ipilimumab biosimilar HLX13 in 46 countries and regions, including Europe and the United States. This new collaboration further deepens their existing cooperation in oncology biosimilars.

On August 17th, the US dollar fell to a 10-week low against a basket of currencies as markets lowered their expectations for a US interest rate hike, while US Treasury yields also declined. Recent weak US jobs and retail sales data, along with subdued inflation figures, prompted investors to reduce their bets on rate hikes. However, BankPro CEO Paul Brocardo noted in a report that the dollar's decline may be limited if uncertainty surrounding the Middle East situation and the resulting inflation concerns persist. Any escalation of tensions could boost demand for safe-haven assets, thus supporting the dollar while simultaneously pushing up oil prices and yields.

According to Interfax news agency, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian troops have taken control of another settlement in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.

According to RIA Novosti, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian troops have taken control of Novosoloshin in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine.

On August 17th, Meet Noodles (02408.HK) released its interim report, showing revenue of RMB 939 million in the first half of 2026, a year-on-year increase of 33.6%; and profit of RMB 63.26 million, a year-on-year increase of 51.2%. As of June 30th, the company had a total of 550 restaurants, a 31.9% increase compared to the same period last year. Furthermore, the average spending per order at the same store decreased from RMB 31.3 in the same period last year to RMB 27.7, a year-on-year decrease of 11.5%.

Pakistan's Foreign Ministry: The Pakistani Foreign Minister and the Turkish Foreign Minister reached an agreement in a phone call that dialogue is the best way to address the challenges.