World

India's inflation jump has a freight problem

India's consumer prices rose 5.54 per cent in the year to September, up from 4.83 per cent in August, according to provisional figures published by the Ministry of Statistics on October 12.

India's rate rise is bigger than it looks

The Reserve Bank of India raised interest rates on Wednesday for the first time since February 2023.

Trump dusts off a 1930 law to hit Canada

The administration imposed an immediate 50 per cent tariff on imports from Canada on 19 August, using Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930.

Long-term rates climb as Iran talks stall

The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury rose steadily to 4.705 per cent on 10 August, and the 30-year yield broke through 5.251 per cent, after diplomatic talks with Iran broke down entirely.

Hormuz reopens, on paper

The news wires announced on 23 June that the Strait of Hormuz was open again, after regional powers signed a multilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) at a formal ceremony.

Iran closes the strait again

Iran's navy closed the Strait of Hormuz completely again on 12 June, blaming unprovoked provocations at sea, and the Gulf truce was over.

Three ways the Hormuz crisis could end

International mediators published a tentative framework on 28 May for ending the maritime crisis in the Persian Gulf.

Iran charges ships a toll, in yuan

Iran says commercial ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz must now pay a "maritime security passage toll" of up to $2 million a transit, and only in Chinese yuan.

Why ships won't sail through Hormuz

The Pentagon paused its naval convoy escorts through the Persian Gulf on 4 May, an embarrassing halt to its plan to reopen the route to trade.

Asia pays the most for Hormuz

China, India, Japan and South Korea take more than eighty per cent of the petroleum that passes through the Strait of Hormuz.

Lunar New Year: China keeps the yuan steady

The Lunar New Year holiday emptied mainland China's financial centres, and the People's Bank of China kept the onshore yuan on a tight leash.

The yen nears Japan's line in the sand

The dollar climbed steadily towards 158 yen, pushing the currency close to the level the Ministry of Finance is widely believed to defend.

Trump's tariff threat over Greenland

On 20 January the White House threatened European countries with immediate 25 per cent tariffs on all their goods exports unless Denmark and its European allies formally open talks on handing sovereignty over Greenland to the United States.

Japan's 30-year bond hits a record

Yields on 30-year Japanese government bonds hit a record high as Tokyo's bond market sold off again.

Japan's last cheap-money trade

Money-market swaps put a 90 per cent chance on a 25-basis-point rise at the Bank of Japan's 19 December meeting, and currency desks are getting ready.

Japan's bond yields hit 17-year highs

Benchmark 10-year Japanese government bond yields jumped to 1.8 per cent, a level last seen seventeen years ago.

Singles' Day: A truce, but will China shop?

China's annual Singles' Day shopping festival ended on an unusually subdued note, a sign of malaise in the world's second-largest consumer economy.

America and China call a truce, again

On 4 November Washington and Beijing surprised markets once again with a broad trade de-escalation, rolling back punitive tariffs and suspending retaliatory export controls.

Diwali: The rupee hits a record low

The Indian rupee fell to a record low of 88.8 to the US dollar as millions celebrated Diwali.

China's rare earth counterpunch

On 9 October, ahead of a scheduled bilateral summit, Beijing imposed sweeping export restrictions, effective immediately, on specialised heavy rare earth refining equipment, sintered neodymium magnets and advanced metallurgy software.

Japan's new leader weakens the yen

The yen sold off after Japan elected new political leadership, sending USD/JPY back towards 150, a level traders watch closely.

Nvidia's China problem

Nvidia reported revenue of $46.7 billion for the second quarter of fiscal 2026, another very strong result.

Nvidia pays Washington to sell to China

Washington has agreed to let Nvidia resume sales of its customised H20 artificial intelligence chips to China, on condition that the company hands 15 per cent of the revenue straight to the US Treasury.

India hit with 50% tariffs

The administration has put a 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports, doubling the 25 per cent reciprocal rate in force since 7 August with a further 25 per cent that takes effect on 27 August.

Europe settles for 15%

After weeks of tense talks, the European Union agreed a trade arrangement with Washington.

Japan's deal: 15% and $550bn

Japan's bond market turns nervous

Yields on 30-year Japanese government bonds (JGBs) rose to about 3.2 per cent, a sharp jolt for what has long been the calmest and most tightly managed government bond market in the world.

America bombs Iran. Oil falls

American forces struck Iranian facilities on 21–22 June, after days of speculation and rising energy prices.

Oil jumps as Israel strikes Iran

Israel struck Iranian military infrastructure and strategic installations on 13 June, and crude oil shot up.

China's rare earths are its best weapon

When trade talks reconvened in London on 9–10 June, Beijing played its strongest card.

America and China call a truce

Washington and Beijing surprised markets with a 90-day trade truce that rolls back their triple-digit tariffs to an interim level.

Britain gets the first trade deal

Up to 100,000 British-built cars will enter the United States at a 10 per cent tariff under a new agreement, instead of the 25 per cent levy hanging over other European carmakers.

China holds the yuan steady

The People's Bank of China is holding the onshore yuan near 7.20 per dollar, using firm daily fixings and dollar sales by state banks to keep it from weakening.

Germany rewrites its debt rules

The Bundestag has passed a constitutional amendment that loosens Germany's strict debt brake and sets up a €500 billion off-budget fund for infrastructure and modernisation, to be spent over several years.

Germany opens its wallet, and bonds tumble

German 10-year Bund yields jumped by roughly 30 basis points in a single day after Berlin announced a framework to reform its constitutional debt brake ('Schuldenbremse').

Tariffs on Canada and Mexico go live

After weeks of stays and diplomatic manoeuvring, the 25 per cent tariffs on all imports from Canada and Mexico have taken full legal effect, along with a duty on Chinese goods that has been raised to 20 per cent.

Valentine's Day: America and Europe's trade breakup

Washington picked Valentine's Day to publish its Reciprocal Trade Memorandum, a cold message to its main trading partners across the Atlantic.

Lunar New Year: DeepSeek and China's tech comeback

Britain's borrowing costs hit a 27-year high

The yield on British 30-year government bonds has risen above 5.47 per cent, its highest in twenty-seven years, and the Treasury in Whitehall has noticed.

New Year's Eve: The dollar's big year

The US Dollar Index (DXY) ends 2024 up more than seven per cent, beating major developed and emerging-market currencies alike.

China finally promises to loosen up

After a Politburo meeting on 9 December, Beijing changed its official monetary stance from 'prudent' to 'moderately loose', the boldest shift in its policy language for a decade.

Trump threatens Mexico and Canada

Donald Trump threatened on 25 November to put a twenty-five per cent tariff on all imports from Mexico and Canada on his first day in office, tying it to border enforcement and drug trafficking.

Singles' Day: China fixes its local debt, not its shoppers

Beijing unveiled a RMB 10 trillion ($1.4 trillion) debt-swap programme on the eve of Singles' Day, meant to help local governments refinance hidden off-balance-sheet debt over five years.

Diwali: India's record IPO rush

Hyundai Motor India raised ₹27,870 crore ($3.3 billion) this Diwali season, the largest IPO in the country's corporate history.

How Chinese goods reach America through Mexico

China’s share of US merchandise imports has fallen from twenty-one per cent in 2017 to under fourteen per cent today.

China finally fires its stimulus bazooka

Beijing has given up on piecemeal stimulus. The property slump shows no sign of ending, deflation is deepening and growth targets are slipping away.

The carry trade that blew up

The yen carry trade unwound in early August, and markets around the world lurched.

Japan hikes into the world's most crowded trade

The Bank of Japan surprised markets on 31 July by raising its benchmark interest rate to 0.25 per cent and announcing plans to halve its monthly bond purchases.

Japan steps in to save the yen

Japan's Ministry of Finance intervened in the currency market again on 11 July, moving straight after softer-than-expected US consumer price figures came out.

China's cheap EVs meet Europe's tariffs

The European Commission has imposed provisional countervailing duties of up to 38.1 per cent on battery electric vehicles (EVs) imported from China.