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Currencies

Currencies
Currency market action focused on developments with the Chinese yuan and the Hong Kong dollar.
Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro is escorted from a US federal aircraft in New York on January 3, after being captured during a US military operation. Photo: Reuters
Banking & finance

US dollar, gold rise after Maduro abduction as investors seek safe havens

Yuan also remains relatively resilient as analysts predict the Chinese currency could strengthen to as high as 6.8 against the US dollar in 2026.

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International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Argentina targets US dollars hoarded under mattresses, eases tax evasion rules

Japan

Japan may lose GDP race to India amid weak yen, tourism woes, China row

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European Union

Bulgaria becomes 21st country to adopt euro in historic milestone

The Balkan nation, which joined the EU in 2007, retires the 19th-century lev for the single currency.

Revellers celebrate the New Year in front of the Bulgarian National Bank in Sofia as Bulgaria officially adopts the euro. Photo: AFP
Banking & finance

How China is upgrading its digital yuan for the stablecoin era

Beijing is upgrading its digital currency in response to the rise of stablecoins, but the goal is to create a fundamentally different system.

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Malaysia

‘I’m lucky’: Malaysians cash in as ringgit’s surge boosts travel budgets

Travellers capitalise on the favourable exchange rate for holidays after the currency hit a five-year high against the US dollar.

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Iran

Iran’s president urges dialogue as currency plunge sparks protests

Anger over Iran’s worsening economic situation pushes people onto the streets in Tehran and other cities.

Iranian shopkeepers and traders protest against economic conditions as tear gas is fired by anti-riot police in Tehran on Monday. Photo: EPA
Yuan

China’s offshore yuan breaks major benchmark as appreciation momentum builds

For the first time since 2024, the currency strengthened past the threshold of seven per US dollar – and did it again the next day.

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Yuan

China expands digital-yuan push to Singapore and Asean trade routes

PBOC pledges to integrate e-CNY into the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, boost adoption in Southeast Asia via China’s CIPS payment network.

Technology

Opinion | Forget the US dollar. Watch water and energy resources instead

In our increasingly hi-tech-based economy and financial systems, energy and water resources will be macroeconomically critical.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
China travel

Why South Korea is becoming China’s new bargain travel hotspot amid Japan spat

A slump in the won is making South Korea increasingly affordable for mainland tourists just as China warns against travel to Japan.

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A large crowd of tourists walks through a street in Seoul. South Korea is expected to receive an uptick in Chinese tourism over the coming months. Photo: Reuters
India

Rupee slump ‘a little relief’ for Indian exporters amid US trade talks

The lower rupee is helping Indian industries that have been absorbing tariff losses in the hopes of a US-India trade deal, analysts say.

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China jobs

Open Questions | Economist Huang Yiping on why China’s AI push must be ‘job-oriented’

Dean of Peking University’s National School of Development says ‘balance’ needed in AI development to protect employment, ‘human well-being’.

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Malaysia

‘Crowd is missing’: stronger ringgit keeps Singapore shoppers away from Johor

‘This is probably the worst year-end crowd we have seen since the Covid-19 pandemic,’ a business owner says.

A traditional market in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock
China trade

‘Strong breakwaters’: China’s central bank vows to shield from external shocks

Governor Pan Gongsheng says policy must prioritise the domestic economy, warning against ‘excessive policy swings’ that could undermine long-term stability.

People’s Bank of China governor Pan Gongsheng has said that monetary policy must balance internal and external pressures. Photo: Getty Images
Bonds

China’s currency push gains ground as Russia nears issuance of yuan bond

Foreign governments have raised a record 13 billion yuan (US$1.8 billion) via yuan bonds this year, Bloomberg-compiled data shows.

Banking & finance

Macroscope | Global stablecoin surge highlights overlooked risks in crypto finance

The politics around digital currencies have extended into the long-running battle for supremacy between the world’s major currencies.

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Yuan

China sets strongest yuan fix in over a year as Fed-cut bets rise

China’s currency is outperforming the euro and yen despite economic headwinds, with analysts pointing to Beijing’s geopolitical leverage as the driver.

China’s central bank has set the yuan’s daily reference rate against the US dollar at the strongest level in more than a year. Photo: Reuters
Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA)

Hong Kong pushes local currency use to shield Asia from global uncertainties

HKMA’s Eddie Yue calls for deeper regional financial integration amid tariff shocks, disrupted supply chains and market volatility.

Banking & finance

Yuan’s long-term hedge costs equalise for first time since 2011

The risk reversal as the yuan has fared better than expected this year and as investors brace for a weaker dollar on Fed rate cut prospects.

United States

Opinion | Trump can’t have it all: low prices, booming stocks, balanced trade

Trump wants to close the trade deficit while promising cheap goods and high asset prices. The cost? Devastating inflation or a market crash.

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US President Donald Trump signs the funding package to reopen the federal government in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on November 12. Photo: EPA
China's economic recovery

Open Questions | ‘A mistaken view’: US economist Nicholas Lardy on the ‘peak China’ hypothesis

The veteran China watcher talks Beijing’s need for financial reform and how US-China economic convergence could still be on the horizon.

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Illustration: Henry Wong
Diplomacy

Opinion | As power balance tips to China, world needs a fairer financial system

China-led macro region will have to work on independence of monetary policy and partnerships in a fairer financial and trade framework.

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South Korea

Macroscope | South Korea’s challenges a taste of what’s to come for global economy

While South Korea has been a big beneficiary of the AI boom, the surge is also highlighting its domestic and geopolitical vulnerabilities.

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Banking & finance

China’s US Treasury holdings edge up as long-term sell-off continues

The slight uptick in August and September comes as concerns mount over US debt and the White House tests the Federal Reserve’s independence.

Yuan banknote on Chinese flags and US dollar banknote on US flags. Photo: Getty Images/iStockphoto
India

India’s debt-backed stablecoin challenge to US dollar dominance explained

Advocates argue the ARC token will lower India’s borrowing costs, strengthen the rupee and stem outflows to dollar-backed cryptocurrencies.

US dollar banknotes. Analysts say India’s stablecoin move “asserts the trend towards de-dollarisation”. Photo: dpa
Japan

Japanese yen weakens to 9‑month low, hits 155 to US dollar amid uncertainties

Stocks and bond market slump as investors fret over expansionary fiscal plans, fading US rate-cut bets, and a China-Japan diplomatic row.

Banking & finance

Yuan rapidly gaining ground as Chinese firms plot global expansion

Yuan’s use in cross-border payments rose 14 per cent year on year to 35 trillion yuan (US$4.9 trillion), according to the People’s Bank of China.

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