Leaders of China, France and the EU met
On May 6, Chinese President Xi Jinping was invited to hold a trilateral meeting between China, France and EU leaders at the Elysée Palace in Paris with French President Macron and European Commission President von der Leyen. China has decided to extend the visa-free policy for short-term visits to China by citizens of 12 countries including France until the end of 2025. During this period, the two sides signed 18 inter-departmental cooperation agreements, covering aviation, agriculture, humanities, green development, small and medium-sized enterprise cooperation and other fields.
Argentina’s central bank cut its benchmark interest rate to 50%
Argentina’s central bank has cut its benchmark interest rate from 60% to 50%. This is the second consecutive week that the central bank cut the monetary policy rate, and it is the fifth time since the new government took office on December 10 last year.
On May 7, the offshore RMB depreciated against the US dollar and the euro, and appreciated against the yen
On May 7, the exchange rate of offshore RMB against the US dollar depreciated slightly. As of press release, the exchange rate of offshore RMB against the US dollar was 7.2208, which was 94 basis points lower than the closing price of 7.2114 on the previous trading day.
Offshore RMB slightly depreciated against the euro exchange rate, as of press time, offshore RMB against the euro exchange rate of 7.7739, compared with the previous trading close of 7.7641, a depreciation of 98 basis points.
Offshore RMB strengthened slightly against 100 yen, as of press time, offshore RMB against 100 yen exchange rate of 4.6700, compared with the previous trading close of 4.6800, up 100 basis points.
On May 7, the onshore RMB depreciated against the US dollar and the euro, and appreciated against the yen
The onshore RMB/USD exchange rate weakened slightly, as of press time, the onshore RMB/USD exchange rate was 7.2176, compared with the previous trading close of 7.2077, weaker by 99 basis points.
The onshore RMB exchange rate weakened slightly against the euro, as of press time, the onshore RMB exchange rate against the euro was 7.7703, compared with the last trading day’s close of 7.7635, weaker by 68 basis points.
The onshore RMB strengthened sharply against the 100 yen exchange rate, as of press time, the onshore RMB against the 100 yen exchange rate of 4.6600, compared with the previous trading price of 4.6800, up 200 basis points.
On May7, the central parity rate of the RMB depreciated against the US dollar and the euro, and appreciated against the yen
The exchange rate of RMB against the US dollar weakened slightly, with the central parity rate of RMB against the US dollar at 7.1002, down 8 basis points from 7.0994 in the previous trading day.
The exchange rate of the RMB against the euro weakened slightly, with the central parity rate of the RMB against the euro at 7.6742, 110 basis points weaker than the previous trading day’s 7.6632.
The RMB strengthened sharply against the 100 yen exchange rate, with the central parity rate of the RMB to the 100 yen exchange rate at 4.6289, up 261 basis points from the previous trading day of 4.6550.
Global debt hit a new high of $313 trillion
In an interview at a World Economic Forum meeting in Saudi Arabia, Bolger Brende, president of the World Economic Forum, warned that total global debt is approaching total global economic output. According to data released by the Institute of International Finance (IIF), global debt in 2023 reached a new record high of $313 trillion, of which government debt has reached nearly $90 trillion, the fastest growth in nearly four years.
Foreign direct investment in Indonesia rose 15.5 per cent year-on-year
Indonesian Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said at the press conference that due to the election period and increased global uncertainty, investors are in a wait-and-see mode, and foreign direct investment increased by 15.5% in the first quarter of this year, compared with a growth of 20.2% in the same period last year.
In 2013, Vietnam’s e-commerce market grew by more than 25% year-on-year
According to data from the Vietnam E-commerce Association (VECOM), Vietnam’s e-commerce market will achieve strong growth in 2023, increasing by more than 25% from 2022 to reach $25 billion, and online retail sales volume will reach $17.3 billion. Meanwhile, the total retail sales of goods in Vietnam in 2023 will reach VND 4859 trillion (about US $191.8 billion), an increase of 8.6% over the previous year. The e-commerce market accounts for about 10% of total retail sales of goods, up from 8.5% in 2022.
eBay’s first-quarter profit plunged 23% from a year earlier
Recently, eBay announced the first quarter of this year. Earnings data show that the giant reached $18.623 billion in GMV in the quarter, a slight increase of 1% compared to the same period last year; Revenue for the quarter was $2.556 billion, up 2 percent from the same period last year. In the same quarter, however, eBay’s profit plunged 23% from a year earlier, to $439 million.
S&p cuts Peru’s foreign currency rating to BBB-
S&p recently downgraded the long-term foreign currency sovereign credit rating of the Republic of Peru (” Peru “) from “BBB” to “BBB-” and lowered Peru’s long-term local currency rating from “BBB+” to “BBB”. The long-term rating outlook was changed from negative to stable.
Chinese shipping companies sign a record 18 shipbuilding orders
Recently, China State Shipbuilding Group released news that the company and Qatar Energy Company held 18 of the world’s largest 271,000 cubic meters of super large liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier project signing ceremony in Beijing on the same day, which marks China’s LNG ship research and development design and construction from the large into the field of super large, high-end ship research and development and design capabilities to the world’s leading goal.
Maison’s first-quarter net profit rose 6.2% from a year earlier
Matson has announced its unaudited results for the first quarter of 2024. In the first quarter of 2024, Matson Ships achieved operating revenue of $720 million, an increase of 2.5%. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) were $82.8 million, an increase of 1.3%. Operating income of $36.9 million, down 4.7%; Net income was $36.1 million or $1.04 per share, an increase of 6.2%.
Samsung Electronics’ operating profit surged 933% from a year earlier
Recently, Samsung Electronics reported that Samsung’s first-quarter revenue was 71.92 trillion won (about 52.3 billion U.S. dollars), and operating profit reached 6.61 trillion won, soaring 932.8% from the same period last year. Samsung’s operating profit was widely expected to rise, but the increase far exceeded market expectations, showing the company’s ability to bounce back from industry woes.
Today, PepsiCo, the global beverage and snack food giant, announced its first quarter results for 2024. According to the financial report, the net profit attributable to common shareholders in the first fiscal quarter of 2024 was 2.042 billion US dollars, an increase of 5.69%. Revenue was $18.25 billion, an increase of 2.26%.
The flying car is coming
On May 7, 360 Group founder Zhou Hongyi was scheduled to live test drive Xiaopeng Huitian flying car with Xiaopeng Huitian founder and president Zhao Deli on the same day, but due to Xiaopeng Huitian’s test flight procedures failed to complete, the flying car Zhou Hongyi will test drive could not take off. In this regard, Zhou Hongyi said, “Today can not fly up, I am relieved, both hope to try, but also a little worried.”
