2025-12-26 06:01

BEIJING, Dec 26 (Reuters) - China on Friday said it will continue to regulate crude steel output and prohibit the addition of illegal new capacity from 2026 to 2030. In 2021, the world's largest steel producer and consumer put an end to growth in crude steel output as part of a plan to limit carbon emissions. Sign up here. The mandated output control also came as domestic steel consumption was hit by a protracted property market downturn, which left the industry plagued with overcapacity. In the first 11 months of 2025, China's crude steel output fell 4% from a year earlier, keeping the annual total on track to fall below 1 billion tons, the first time in six years. "The raw materials industry including steel is currently facing the problem of an insufficient supply-demand balance," said the National Development and Reform Commission, the state planner, in a statement. "The raw material industry needs to deepen supply-side reform during the Fifteenth Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) ... survival of the fittest is promoted," it added. Since 2023, China's steel exports have been robust, partly offsetting falling demand at home. But they have sparked a protectionist backlash worldwide with trade barriers being enforced by a growing number of countries that say China's cheap products damage local manufacturers. On December 12, Beijing unveiled a plan to roll out a licensing system from 2026 to regulate exports of some 300 steel-related items. (This story has been corrected to show China unveiled a plan for an export licensing system on Dec. 12, not last week, in paragraph 8) https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/climate-energy/china-pledges-control-steel-output-during-2026-2030-period-2025-12-26/

2025-12-26 05:15

MUMBAI, Dec 26 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee was little changed on Friday, hovering sideways in holiday-thinned trading, which traders said was characterised by routine corporate dollar demand alongside intermittent presence of state-run banks. The rupee was nearly flat at 89.8325 against the dollar, as of 10:30 a.m. IST. Sign up here. While traders pointed to state-run banks in India intermittently offering dollars, their Chinese counterparts were seen lapping up dollars instead, underscoring the divergent fortunes and outlooks for the currencies of the two Asian giants. The yuan was hovering at the 7 per dollar mark, up about 4% on the year against the greenback and more than 9% against the rupee so far in 2025. While securing a trade agreement with the U.S. is "critical" for the rupee's performance, increased repatriation of earnings by Chinese exporters could raise the odds of yuan appreciation, analysts at ING said in a note. Meanwhile, dollar-rupee forward premiums extended their slide from the previous session on Friday, with the one-year implied yield declining 8 bps to 2.75% and the 1-month forward premium edging lower to 39.50 paisa after surging earlier in the week. Other Asian currencies were mostly range-bound as well, while the dollar index wallowed near a two-month low and was on course for its worst annual drop since 2017. Expectations of further interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve, despite divergent outlooks from some of its peers, have weighed on the dollar. Investors are also waiting for President Donald Trump to nominate a Fed chair to replace Jerome Powell, whose term ends in May. Elsewhere, markets in Australia, Hong Kong, and most of Europe are closed on Friday, with liquidity expected to be thin as traders turn their focus to 2026. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/rupee-track-subdued-asian-peers-shuffle-around-corporate-flows-2025-12-26/

2025-12-26 05:00

Silver hits record $77.40/oz; gold surges to all-time high of $4,549.71/oz All precious metals post weekly gains Silver up 167% YTD vs. gold's 72% gain, platinum jumps 169% Palladium climbs 3-year peak Dec 26 (Reuters) - Silver breached the $77 mark for the first time on Friday, while gold and platinum hit record highs, buoyed by expectations of U.S. Federal Reserve rate cuts and geopolitical tensions that fueled safe-haven demand. Spot silver jumped 7.5% to $77.30 per ounce, as of 1:53 p.m. ET (1853 GMT), after touching an all-time high of $77.40 earlier today, marking a 167% year-to-date surge driven by supply deficits, its designation as a U.S. critical mineral, and strong investment inflows. Sign up here. Spot gold was up 1.2% at $4,531.41 per ounce, after hitting a record $4,549.71 earlier. U.S. gold futures for February delivery settled 1.1% higher at $4,552.70. "Expectations for further Fed easing in 2026, a weak dollar and heightened geopolitical tensions are driving volatility in thin markets. While there is some risk of profit-taking before the year-end, the trend remains strong," said Peter Grant, vice president and senior metals strategist at Zaner Metals. Markets are anticipating two rate cuts in 2026, with the first likely around mid-year amid speculation that U.S. President Donald Trump could name a dovish Fed chair, reinforcing expectations for a more accommodative monetary stance. The U.S. dollar index (.DXY) , opens new tab was on track for a weekly decline, enhancing the appeal of dollar-priced gold for overseas buyers. On the geopolitical front, the U.S. carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria, Trump said on Thursday. "$80 in silver is within reach by year-end. For gold, the next objective is $4,686.61, with $5,000 likely in the first half of next year," Grant added. Gold remains poised for its strongest annual gain since 1979, underpinned by Fed policy easing, central bank purchases, ETF inflows, and ongoing de-dollarization trends. On the physical demand side, gold discounts in India widened to their highest in more than six months this week as a relentless price rally curbed retail buying, while discounts in China narrowed sharply from last week's five-year highs. Elsewhere, spot platinum rose 9.8% to $2,437.72 per ounce, having earlier hit a record high of $2,454.12 while palladium surged 14% to $1,927.81, its highest level in more than three years. All precious metals logged weekly gains, with platinum recording its strongest weekly rise on record. https://www.reuters.com/world/india/silver-tops-75-gold-platinum-surge-records-2025-12-26/

2025-12-26 03:16

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Platinum jumped to an all-time high on Friday, on track for its biggest annual rise ever, as supply constraints, an unexpected EU policy U-turn on the 2035 combustion-engine ban, and shifting investor flows out of gold fuelled the rally. Platinum prices rose 8% to an all-time high at $2,413.62 per ounce by 0304 GMT. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/platinum-hits-record-high-tight-supply-eu-combustion-engine-ban-reversal-2025-12-26/

2025-12-26 03:06

Indexes close marginally lower but near record peaks, traders look for Santa Claus rally Gold and silver smash records on rate cut expectations, geopolitics Dollar under pressure as investors contemplate rates Yen softens on persistent intervention worries Dec 26 (Reuters) - Major U.S. stock indexes closed near record peaks on Friday, little changed from the start of a muted post-Christmas trading session, while expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts and safe haven appeal pushed precious metals prices to all-time highs. Public holidays kept markets closed in Australia, Hong Kong and most of Europe, but the bourses that were open pushed towards ending the year in positive territory, with Asian stocks rising to multi-week highs in their trading session earlier. Sign up here. The benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) , opens new tab, ended 0.03% lower than the open in New York, while the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI) , opens new tab fell 0.04% and the Nasdaq Composite (.IXIC) , opens new tab fell 0.09%. The small dips snapped a three-session rally but left all three higher on the week and still set for double-digit yearly percentage gains. Megacap tech companies have driven the S&P 500 higher in 2025, and investors have been branching out to cyclical sectors including financials and materials, broadening the upswing and leaving the main U.S. indexes set for a third straight year of gains. Data suggesting the U.S. economy is resilient, paired with the possibility that a new central bank chair to replace Jerome Powell could look to cut rates next year, is supporting markets. Recent pressure on AI stocks stemming from concerns over high valuations and profit-sapping capital expenditures has also lessened. Traders watched for a "Santa Claus rally" which is declared if the S&P 500 advances through the last five trading days of the current year and the first two in January. This would be considered a good omen for stocks in 2026 after a volatile year. Geopolitical tensions enhanced the safe-haven appeal of precious metals the day after the U.S. carried out airstrikes against Islamic State militants in northwest Nigeria. Silver hit an all-time high of $77.4 per ounce, on a 167% year-to-date surge, supported by supply deficits and the metal's designation as a U.S. critical mineral. A weaker dollar further burnished dollar-denominated gold's appeal for overseas investors, helping to send the metal to a record $4,549 per ounce. The gold price eased slightly in later trading but stayed 1.08% higher. Soojin Kim, commodities analyst at MUFG, said in a note the rally could continue, supported by "major banks forecasting further gains into 2026, the strength of physical demand and persistent geopolitical and monetary uncertainties". Oil prices settled more than 2% lower, dragged down by the prospect of a global supply glut and possible progress on a Ukraine peace deal. DOLLAR'S DECEMBER BLUES Investors are preparing for 2026 focused on when the U.S. Federal Reserve might cut rates and by how much. Traders are pricing in at least two cuts over the year, but they do not expect the Fed to move before June. The central bank has projected one more cut next year but divisions among decision makers has left investors on edge about the policy outlook. Markets are also waiting for President Donald Trump to nominate a Fed chair to replace Powell, whose term ends in May. Any signal of what Trump will decide could sway markets in the coming week. The U.S. dollar has been under pressure as a result, pushing the euro , sterling and the Swiss franc to highs. The dollar index , which measures the U.S. currency against six rivals, rose 0.08% to 98.03 on Friday. The Japanese yen softened against the dollar as investors remained on watch for potential intervention to shore up the currency. Analysts say year-end trading, when volumes are thin, provides an opportunity for authorities to take action. The yen has weakened despite the Bank of Japan delivering a well-telegraphed interest rate hike last week. Data on Friday showed that core consumer inflation in Japan's capital slowed in December but stayed above the central bank's 2% target, bolstering the case for further rate hikes. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/global-markets-wrapup-1-2025-12-26/

2025-12-26 02:55

Dec 26 (Reuters) - Gold prices surged to a record high in early Asian trading on Friday, buoyed by safe-haven demand and rising expectations of further interest rate cuts by the U.S. Federal Reserve. Spot gold rose 0.5% to $4,501.44 per ounce by 0209 GMT, after touching a record peak of $4,530.60 earlier in the session. Sign up here. (This story has been refiled to fix the dateline to Dec. 26, not Dec. 25) https://www.reuters.com/world/india/gold-hits-record-high-safe-haven-demand-fed-rate-cut-bets-2025-12-26/