US operation in Venezuela seized Maduro; AI rally renewed. Hassett tipped as Trump’s next Fed chair. Russian crude exports hold up via Asia; Korea offers repatriation tax breaks to support won. Argentina passes Milei budget; Fitch: Ukraine up, Gabon down.
ECB held; BoE cut 25bp; BoJ hiked 25bp; Thailand/Chile/Mexico eased. US announced $11bn Taiwan arms & blocked Venezuelan oil; EU okayed €90bn Ukraine loan. Fitch/S&P upgrades; Colombia downgraded; Argentina unveiled new FX plan.
Fed cut 25bp plus $40bn/month T-bill buys. BOE set to cut, BOJ to hike; EM MPCs in focus. $52bn tech investment in India; IMF okays $1.2bn for Pakistan. Chile elects Kast; Vietnam FDI 5y high; ratings mixed (Oman up, Hungary down).
In the latest in US-China tensions, a US court blocked the proposed closure of WeChat, while Bytedance kept a majority shareholding position and control over its algorithm in TikTok.
Equity markets declined on the back of a sharp correction in US technology stocks, but EM assets outperformed. Brazil renewed emergency support for poor families and presented an administrative reform to Congress.
Ecuador recently undertook a successful sovereign debt restructuring in record speed, followed by Argentina after a somewhat more long-winded and volatile process.