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Bitcoin Rally Peaks $50,000 – Top 10 Global News

1. Stocks Set for Longest Winning Streak in 17 Years

Global stocks are in the midst of the longest run of gains in 17 years as optimism over the economic recovery sweeps across markets. The MSCI benchmark for emerging and developed market stocks has risen for 12 straight sessions, while U.S. equities were set to open higher after a public holiday. In Japan, the Nikkei 225 Stock Average extended its advance past the 30,000 level. European markets steadied after a rally on Monday. At the same time, investors are riding a wave of speculative euphoria from penny stocks to Bitcoin amid abundant policy support.

2. Bitcoin Jumps to $50,000 as Record-Breaking Rally Accelerates

Bitcoin blew through another milestone, surging past $50,000 for the first time as the blistering rally in the largest cryptocurrency continues to captivate investors worldwide. The world’s largest cryptocurrency reached about $50,191 as of 7:32 a.m. in New York and is now up about 73% so far this year. Ether, a rival crypto, hit a record on Friday and is up about 140% year-to-date. After ending last year with a fourth-quarter surge of 170% to around $29,000, Bitcoin token jumped to $40,000 seven days later. It took just nearly six weeks to breach the latest threshold, buoyed by several endorsements.

3. Plummeting Cases in U.S. Show a Path to Crushing Covid-19

Covid-19 cases and hospitalizations are dropping dramatically across the U.S., suggesting that measures to interrupt transmission are working, at least for now. More than 27.6 million Americans have tested positive, likely giving them some degree of immunity. A rising number — 11.8% of the population — has now received at least one dose of a vaccine. And data gathered from mobile phones suggest people are being more cautious day-to-day. If cases keep falling, it could buy time for the vaccination effort to take hold in the warm summer months ahead, potentially underpinning a long-sought economic recovery. Health experts, though, anticipate challenges. Inoculations need to outpace highly contagious variants from the U.K. and South Africa.

4. Swiss Wealth Tax Rakes in Cash as Covid Stokes Global Debate

Switzerland’s wealth tax offers a rare real-world example of how a levy on assets can work, just as such ideas gain traction elsewhere in the wake of the coronavirus crisis. The measure forces residents in one of the world’s richest nations to tally the value of their investments, real estate, cars, fine art, Bitcoin, and even beehives and cows. A percentage is then skimmed off by cantonal governments, varying in size and method depending on the canton. With the Covid-19 fallout causing government debt to swell, and hurting poorer people most, wealth taxes are being debated from California to the U.K. as a tool both to pay down debt and address inequality.

5. Sunak May ‘Go Big’ On Stimulus Spending in U.K. Budget

Rishi Sunak can afford to follow the U.S. and “go big” on spending to bolster a post-pandemic recovery in the U.K., a Citigroup economist said as the chancellor of the exchequer prepares his annual budget. At the same time, the British measures should be “better targeted” than the ones President Joe Biden set out, according to Ben Nabarro, the bank’s U.K. economist. He warned that many years of deficits mean that the U.K. Treasury has less room for manoeuvre than the U.S. “We have the capacity to go big for sure, but at the same time, it’s important that we do keep a medium-term anchor on the public finances,” Nabarro said at a briefing on Tuesday organized by the Institute for Fiscal Studies in London.

6. GS Opens Investing App to Anyone With as Little as $1,000

Goldman Sachs Group took another step toward going mainstream, launching an investing app for customers that want to put at least $1,000 to work. Investors using the service, which went live Tuesday, can put money into automated portfolios rather than individual stocks and bonds. The move expands the Marcus platform, which also offers a high-interest savings account. Goldman, which has traditionally served a wealthier client base, is taking steps to broaden its reach through new digital products. The investing platform features exchange-traded funds that focus on traditional stock and bond benchmarks, impact investments and smart-beta products designed by Goldman.

7. World’s Fastest Vaccine Pushes Return to Normal in Israel

Israel’s world-leading vaccination campaign is poised to achieve what millions in the country and many more outside it have desperately sought for a year: a return to normal life. In the six weeks since Israel began administering the second dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, about 80% of those at highest risk have been inoculated. As the numbers have grown, hospitals have reported a steady decline in seriously ill coronavirus patients and the rate of overall spread. The Pfizer vaccine led to 94% fewer symptomatic illnesses and 92% fewer critically sick cases, according to a study of 1.2 million people by Israel’s largest health maintenance organization. That success has spurred the government to ease restrictions on movement that have been in place for months.

8. Shots Are Helping Control Covid Worldwide: Virus Update

Vaccination drives have begun delivering results, with a report in the U.K. suggesting that people over age 80 — a high-priority group — were the most likely to test positive for Covid antibodies. That followed an Israeli study showing a 94% drop in symptomatic cases among the vaccinated. In Romania, which has immunized most of its health-care workers, infection rates in hospitals have plummeted 87% in recent weeks. U.S. cases and hospitalizations are also dropping dramatically. In Hong Kong, a panel recommended approval of Chinese developer Sinovac Biotech Ltd.’s vaccine, paving the way for a second shot.

9. Gulf Fund Raises $75 Million for Mideast, North African Startups

A Gulf venture capital firm created a year ago has raised $75 million to deploy in startups across the Middle East, as rich Saudi companies and families seek to monetize on the boom in technology firms. Nuwa Capital, based both in Dubai and Riyadh, has finished the first round of investment in its Nuwa Ventures Fund I and targets reaching the $100 million mark this year. The appetite for tech firms has been increasing among Gulf investors as governments in the region step up efforts to steer their economies away from oil. 

10. Singapore Trims Deficit, Digs Deeper Into Reserves for Covid Aid

Singapore plans to rein in its budget deficit as the economy recovers while digging deeper into government reserves for a new S$11 billion ($8.3 billion) package to help households and businesses rebound from the Covid-19 pandemic. The new package comes after Singapore’s economy endured its biggest-ever contraction in 2020, with gross domestic product shrinking 5.4%. Growth is expected to rebound to 4%-6% this year, but the outlook remains challenging for some important sectors including aviation, transport and hospitality.

Curated from Bloomberg.com

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Editorial

What is Bitcoin? How it Works, Advantages and Legalities

Since its ‘mysterious’ entry almost 12 years ago, Bitcoin has become one of the most highly discussed topics in the world. Let us take a look into the why’s and how’s of Bitcoin’s popularity.

Bitcoin is a digital currency that was created in January 2009. It provides secure global transactions very quickly and without third-party manipulations. The concept was introduced through an online document by ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’, which was an alias or pseudo-name. Till date, the identity of the person (or persons) who created Bitcoin is a mystery. People from all over the world have been trying to find out the brains behind this revolution in financial technology. 

The document titled “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” explained a unique way to create transactions without a regulatory third party. This meant that people could exchange values or conduct transactions on the internet without having to rely on an entity to validate it. Unlike normal currencies, Bitcoin would not be issued by any government, and banks would not manage accounts or validate transactions. It would be based on a cryptographic system that uses certain codes and numbers to keep information safe and secure. 

Bitcoins can be accepted as a means of payment for products sold or services provided. It also offers the promise of lower transaction fees, as compared to traditional online payment mechanisms. 

How Does Bitcoin Work?

Bitcoin is created, distributed, traded, and stored with the use of a decentralized ledger system, known as a blockchain. A blockchain can be thought of as a collection of blocks. In each block, there would be a collection of transactions. There are specific computers (or nodes) that run Bitcoin’s code and store its blockchain. In simple terms, each transaction is a ‘block’ that is ‘chained’ to the code, creating a permanent record of each transaction. 

A bitcoin wallet contains a public key and a private key, which work together to allow the owner to initiate and digitally sign transactions. This ultimately helps in providing proof of authorization. More importantly, there are bitcoin miners that independently confirm the transaction using high-speed computers. Bitcoin mining is the process of creating new bitcoins by solving certain complex math puzzles. It is necessary to maintain the ledger of transactions upon which bitcoin is based.

Source: Praxent

There are no physical bitcoins, and all balances are kept on a public ledger that everyone has transparent access to. No one can hack into the network and alter records. Bitcoin developers often reveal security concerns to the public to produce robust solutions. 

How Does a Person Obtain Bitcoins?

  • As mentioned before, people compete to mine bitcoins using high-speed computers to solve complex math puzzles. Basically, they sell their computing power to maintain the record for the chance to (maybe) earn bitcoins. This is how bitcoins are made.  
  • There are bitcoin exchanges that allow people to buy or sell bitcoins using different currencies. Coinbase, Bitstamp, and Bitfinex are prime examples of such exchanges. 
  • People can send bitcoins to each other using mobile apps or their computers. It is very similar to sending cash through digital payment apps (such as Google Pay). Internationally, this is done through tools such as Bisq, Bitquick, and LocalBitcoins.com.

High Volatility of Bitcoin

The price of a bitcoin is primarily determined by its supply and market demand. The important factor to be noted is that the supply of bitcoin is limited. There are only 21 million bitcoins that can be mined. The cost of producing bitcoin through the ‘mining’ process also affects its price. It can also be based on the reward issued to bitcoin miners for verifying transactions.

Given below is a graph showing the price of bitcoin over the past 10 years:

Source: TradingView

Historically, the value of Bitcoin has been very volatile. The first real price increase occurred in July 2010 when the valuation of a bitcoin went from around $0.0008 to $0.08 for a single coin. Bitcoin showed a huge rally in 2017. In October of that year, the price broke through $5,000 and doubled again in November to $10,000. On December 17, the price of one bitcoin had reached $19,783. However, just a few weeks later, the price fell rapidly- crashing down below $7,000 by April 2018 and below $3,500 by November 2018. 

Since 2017, many people have started to show interest in using or obtaining bitcoins. Last year, we saw that prices started at $7,200 on January 1 and closed above $28,800 on December 31. As of January 8, 2021, its price had touched over $41,900! Bitcoin has gained more popularity and acceptance as a medium of exchange. Institutional investors have been pumping in millions of dollars into bitcoin over the past few months. 

Many factors cause panic amongst bitcoin users, which ultimately leads to a fall in its price. This could include certain geopolitical tensions and the uncertainty of its future value. Cryptocurrencies are also prone to security breaches. Bitcoin could become volatile when the bitcoin community (or network) exposes security vulnerabilities.

Advantages & Disadvantages of Bitcoin

Advantages: 

  • Bitcoins are very accessible and have high liquidity. It is very easy to cash out and sell your bitcoin. 
  • There is improved security– its users can check all transactions through the transparent public ledger. Bitcoin transactions are secure, irreversible, and do not contain any sensitive or personal information of customers. 
  • Bitcoin can be transferred 24/7 to any person in any part of the world, without intermediaries in between. International money transfers with bitcoins can be faster and cheaper, as compared to traditional banking services.
  • The transaction fees paid by a user to make payments through bitcoin is very low.
  • Inflation has caused many currencies to get their value declined with time. There are only 21 million bitcoins released in the world. As the demand increases, its value will increase, which will keep up with the market and prevent inflation (in the long run).

Disadvantages:

  • The use of bitcoin is unregulated. Bitcoin has been used as a mode of exchanging money in a lot of illegal deals in the past. It is difficult for governments to track any bitcoin user or keep a tab on their data. Thus, various countries are very sceptical about their citizens investing and using such cryptocurrencies. 
  • Bitcoin has limited use, as it is currently only accepted by a few online merchants.
  • As mentioned earlier, bitcoin prices are extremely volatile. It can drop very quickly and reach very low prices. 
  • If a person forgets or loses their credentials to unlock a bitcoin wallet, their coins get locked away. There is no option to retrieve those bitcoins.
  • Mining bitcoins requires a lot of computational power and electricity input. This makes it highly energy-intensive. 
  • Cryptocurrency exchanges are not very secure. Sensitive data that is stored on these exchanges can be stolen by hackers. Exchanges, such as Bitfinex or Mt Gox, have been hacked in the past years, and bitcoin has been stolen in thousands and millions of US dollars.

Is Bitcoin Legal in India? 

Bitcoin has neither been authorized nor been regulated by any central authority in India. However, buying, selling, trading, or mining bitcoins is not illegal by any law. There are no rules, regulations, or guidelines for resolving any disputes that may arise while dealing with bitcoins. Also, cryptocurrencies are not legal tender in India. 

Between 2017 and 2019, it has been estimated that Indian investors have lost more than $500 million (~Rs 3,668 crore) in cryptocurrency scams. Crypto scammers also engage in creating fake crypto wallets. Innocent investors often fall into their trap and lose their hard-earned income. In 2018, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) prohibited any entity from providing banking services to anyone dealing with virtual currencies. Cryptocurrency Exchanges filed a lawsuit against RBI in the Supreme Court and won the case in March 2020. The central bank’s ban was overturned, as the RBI had not presented any empirical evidence that cryptocurrencies have negatively impacted the banking sector or other regulated entities. 

In December 2020, a scam of nearly Rs 1,000 crore involving cryptocurrency trading through multiple exchanges came to light when the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested a cryptocurrency trader in Gujarat.

There are reports which suggest that the Union Cabinet will soon introduce a law to ban cryptocurrency trading in India. Many have invested in bitcoin and hold the cryptocurrency in our country. If a ban comes into effect, reports state that individuals may be given a period of up to three months to dispose off their assets.

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Market News Top 10 News Top Global News

Ambani loses Richest Man of Asia Title – Top 10 Global News

1. Stocks Steady Near All-Time Highs; Dollar Dips

Markets are ending a tumultuous year on a quiet note, with global stock indexes holding near record highs and the dollar at the lowest in two years. U.S. equity futures dipped on the last day of 2020 and all of the industries in the Europe Stoxx 600 were in the red. Markets in Japan, Germany and South Korea were shut for New Year’s Eve. In Asia, China’s benchmark CSI 300 Index closed at a five-year high. The yuan strengthened to the highest since June 2018.

Futures on the S&P 500 Index dipped 0.1% as of early morning London time.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index fell 0.3%.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.2%.

The MSCI Emerging Market Index climbed 0.4%.

2. Bitcoin Touches $29,000 for Another Record High

Bitcoin vaulted above $29,000 to reach yet another record level on the last day of 2020, in a fitting end to a groundbreaking year for the world’s largest digital currency. It has advanced almost 50% in December, on track for its biggest monthly gain since May 2019. Bitcoin has now quadrupled in value this year amid the global coronavirus pandemic, while the wider Bloomberg Galaxy Crypto Index tracking the largest digital currencies is up about 280% as rival coins such as Ether have also rallied.

3. Slow Vaccine Campaign Raises Doubts of U.S. Dysfunction

U.S. health officials acknowledged that a Covid-19 immunization campaign is crawling out of the starting gate, raising the prospect that the nation’s all-in bet on vaccines could be afflicted by the same dysfunction that hobbled other measures to contain the pandemic. Only about 2.7 million Americans had been vaccinated as of Wednesday evening in New York. With one day remaining in the year, that represented roughly 13.5% of the U.S.’s stated goal of immunizing 20 million Americans by the end of 2020 — a number already repeatedly reduced. The task of delivering shots that could end a pandemic that has killed 341,000 U.S. residents is taxing a largely private medical system designed to maximize profit rather than deliver public health. Governments and institutions are struggling with complex logistics to keep the shots cold, organizing cohorts of people to receive them and persuading those made sceptical by a flood of online disinformation.

4. Homebuyers in the U.S. Face Worst Affordability Squeeze in 12 Years

Record-low mortgage rates were supposed to make it easier for homebuyers. Instead, they’ve helped push affordability to a 12-year low. Buyers in the fourth quarter needed to spend almost 30% of the average wage to afford a typical house, the biggest share for any three-month period since 2008. Low borrowing costs, now below 3% for a 30-year loan, have spurred a buying frenzy, driving up prices across the country as shoppers compete for a shrinking supply of listings. During the pandemic, prices have increased faster than earnings, leaping by double digits in 79% of the 499 counties included in the report. More than half of those counties are now less affordable than their historic averages.

5. Gold Heads for Best Year in a Decade With Dollar on the Ropes

Gold is set for the biggest annual advance in a decade after a tumultuous year, with gains this month aided by the dollar’s decline to the lowest level since April 2018. Bullion hit a record in August as investors feared an unprecedented wave of stimulus by central banks and governments would lead to currency debasement and inflation. Holdings in bullion-backed exchange-traded funds set an all-time high in October. While prices dropped as the roll-out of vaccines injected optimism into financial markets, the dollar’s continued weakness has helped support gold into the year-end.

6. U.K. Tells Public to Stay Home for New Year’s Eve Celebrations

Everyone in England should stay at home when they celebrate the New Year on Thursday night, the U.K. government said. People were asked to act as if they have Covid-19 to avoid spreading the virus. The advice is universal and applies to everyone regardless of which of England’s pandemic restriction tiers their region is in. The advice coincides with new rules putting 78% of the country’s population in the strictest tier 4 pandemic curbs, banning almost all household mixing and closing non-essential shops. While ministers say the rollout of vaccines will allow the country to start getting back normal by spring 2021, they have also warned the weeks ahead may be the hardest yet.

7. Bubble Tea Chain Naixue Raises New Funds at $2 Billion Value

The owner of bubble tea chain Nayuki, also known as Naixue’s Tea in Chinese, has completed a new funding round that values the company at nearly $2 billion. Shenzhen Pindao Restaurant Management Co. has raised more than $100 million in a Series C funding round led by private equity firm PAG. Billionaire Jack Ma’s Yunfeng Capital is also among the investors in the latest round. The bubble tea chain owner is considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong after the coronavirus outbreak clouded its earlier plans for a U.S. listing. The firm will spend the fresh funds on product research and supply chain digitization, while it has no IPO plan in the near term.

8. Tokyo Sets New Case Record; New Strain Spreads: Virus Update

Global deaths from Covid-19 passed 18 lakh. Tokyo recorded a record number of new infections, and Japan warned it could consider a state of emergency if the new outbreak can’t be contained. Cities that had gone weeks without new infections, including Beijing and Melbourne, are now reporting clusters, and the new, highly transmissible virus strain was found in Singapore and California. Countries around the world tightened border controls. The EU said it would bar travellers from the U.K. after Britain’s official exit on Jan. 1. Travel between Sydney and Melbourne will be blocked as of Jan. 2; both cities are seeing a resurgence in cases. Chinese authorities are urging people to stay home during the Lunar New Year holidays, which begin Feb. 11.

9. Putin Battles to Sell Russia’s Vaccine in New Rift With West

Russia is accusing the West of maligning its achievements in the global race to defeat Covid-19 as attempts to win key markets for its Sputnik V vaccine run up against the demands of regulators. Like neighbouring China, which is struggling to reassure nations testing its vaccines, Russia’s drive to convert what it calls a scientific triumph into geopolitical dividends has hit unexpected headwinds. President Vladimir Putin has pushed the inoculation in calls with other world leaders since touting Russia’s approval of Sputnik V in August as the globe’s first Covid-19 vaccine. But many countries’ regulators have been unwilling to give Sputnik V fast-track approval — even as they welcome U.S. and European vaccines that first completed comprehensive trials.

10. Ambani is no longer Asia’s richest man

Zhong Shanshan is a private billionaire who’s rarely quoted in the press. Now, after an improbable career spanning journalism, mushroom farming and health care, he’s become Asia’s richest person, eclipsing India’s Mukesh Ambani and a group of Chinese tech titans including Jack Ma. Zhong’s net worth has surged $70.9 billion this year to $77.8 billion, making him the 11th-richest person on the planet, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. It’s one of the fastest accumulations of wealth in history, and all the more remarkable considering that until this year he was little known outside of China. Zhong, 66, isn’t involved in politics and his business interests aren’t entwined with other rich families such as the property tycoons, which is why he’s known locally as the “Lone Wolf.” He owes his success to two unrelated fields. He took vaccine maker Beijing Wantai Biological Pharmacy Enterprise Co public in April, then months later Nongfu Spring Co, a maker of bottled water, became one of Hong Kong’s hottest listings. Nongfu shares have jumped 155% since their debut, and Wantai’s are up more than 2,000%.

HAPPY NEW YEAR, READERS!

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Merry Brexmas! EU-UK Trade Deal Sees Light – Top 10 Global News

1. Stocks & Equity Futures Climb; Bonds Retreat

U.S. equity futures and global stocks pushed higher after President Donald Trump backed away from earlier threats and signed a coronavirus aid package. S&P 500 Index contracts climbed after Trump’s surprise approval of the combined $2.3 trillion Covid-19 relief and government funding package. Germany’s DAX Index rose to a record and the MSCI Asia Pacific Index was up 0.3%. Bonds retreated and the dollar ticked lower.

Futures on the S&P 500 Index rose 0.7% as of early morning in New York.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index rose 0.8%.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gained 0.3%.

The MSCI Emerging Market Index was little changed.

2. EU-U.K. Trade Deal Gets Nod From Bloc’s Envoys in Brussels

European Union ambassadors gave the go-ahead to the bloc’s draft free-trade agreement with the U.K., paving the way for the deal to take effect on Jan. 1. “EU ambassadors have unanimously approved the provisional application of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement as of January 1, 2021,” Sebastian Fischer, a Brussels-based spokesman for the German government, whose country currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency, said in a Twitter post on Monday. The thumbs-up by EU member-country envoys sets the stage for formal approval by the 27-nation bloc’s governments on Tuesday and for a vote by the U.K. House of Commons on Dec. 30.

3. Bitcoin on Longest Winning Run Since 2019 – Tops $28,000

Bitcoin is on track for its longest monthly winning streak in more than a year after touching a record above $28,000 over the weekend. The largest cryptocurrency reached an all-time high of $28,365 on Sunday before paring some of the advances. The run of outsized returns over October, November and December so far is the longest such stretch since mid-2019. “My sense is we’re very close to a top — we could hit $30,000 though,” said Vijay Ayyar, head of business development with crypto exchange Luno in Singapore. “We should definitely see a pullback, but the magnitude is probably lesser. We might only see 10% to 15% drops.” The cryptocurrency has advanced about 270% this year.

4. Europe Rushes to Boost Vaccine Output to Speed Pandemic Exit

Germany is pushing to ramp up production of Covid-19 vaccines as Europe faces pressure to close the gap with Britain and the U.S. in a bid to end the pandemic. With inoculations gradually getting started across the region, authorities are concerned about the slow pace of the rollout could force longer lockdowns and cause more economic damage for months to come. “We’re working intensely on having additional production here in Germany soon,” Jens Spahn, the country’s health minister, said Monday on ZDF television, adding that more capacity could be available at a facility in Marburg as soon as February. “That would increase the amount considerably.” The sense of urgency has grown amid concerns about a faster-spreading strain that emerged in the U.K. and has been found in Spain and elsewhere in Europe.

5. Turkey Hikes Minimum Wage by 22%; Short of Labor Demands

Turkey’s minimum wage will rise 22% next year, challenging efforts to keep down inflation while dismaying unions that found it insufficient to address the economic hardships caused by the coronavirus. The monthly net minimum wage will be 2,826 liras ($377), Labor Minister Zehra Zumrut Selcuk said in Ankara on Monday. About half of all workers in the country of 83 million people earn a monthly salary at or near minimum wage. Turkey’s largest labour confederation, Turk-Is, which represented workers at the wage negotiations, called the increase “inadequate.” But unions had no immediate plans to combat the government’s decision.

6. India Stocks Climb to Fresh Records on Steady Foreign Inflows

India stocks rose as inflows from foreign investors headed for a record quarter. The S&P BSE Sensex climbed 0.8% to 47,353.75 in Mumbai. The NSE Nifty 50 Index advanced 0.9%. Both gauges closed at fresh all-time highs. Indian equities have surged as part of a global shift by investors into emerging markets as countries begin rolling out vaccines. The inflows have shown little sign of slowing for the holiday season, as investors poured about $6.5 billion into the market this month. That would be the second-highest monthly total on record.

7. Alibaba Probe Stirs Global Worry, $200 Billion China Tech Rout

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. led a second day of frenetic selling among China’s largest tech firms, driven by fears that antitrust scrutiny will spread beyond Jack Ma’s internet empire and engulf the country’s most powerful corporations. Alibaba and its three largest rivals — Tencent Holdings Ltd., food delivery giant Meituan and JD.com Inc. — have shed nearly $200 billion over two sessions since Thursday when regulators revealed an investigation into alleged monopolistic practices at Ma’s signature company. That marked the formal start of the Communist Party’s crackdown on not just Alibaba but also, potentially, the wider and increasingly influential tech sphere. Alibaba fell 8% Monday, shedding $270 billion of value since its October peak. Tencent and Meituan both tumbled more than 6%. 

8. Oil Gains on U.S. Stimulus and Covid-19 Vaccine Optimism

Oil climbed as the U.K. is poised to grant regulatory approval to another Covid-19 vaccine and as the U.S. passed its stimulus bill into law. Futures in New York are trading 1.2% higher after dipping in early trading. Britain’s drug regulator could clear the shot produced by AstraZeneca Plc and the University of Oxford for use as early as this week. Crude reversed losses of as much as 1.5% after President Donald Trump signed the long-awaited bill containing $900 billion of virus relief, having previously criticized the stimulus package. The bill’s approval weakened the dollar, raising demand for dollar-denominated commodities, and also raised hopes of higher oil consumption in the future.

9. Drugmakers Agree to Halve Prices to Secure Access to China

Drugmakers from AstraZeneca Plc and GlaxoSmithKline to BeiGene agreed to cut prices on some of their newest drugs in China by an average of 51% in order to be covered by the country’s national insurance fund. A total of 119 new therapies — treating ailments from pulmonary diseases and diabetes to cancers and lupus — were added for coverage by the state-run medical safety net after drawn-out negotiations, the National Healthcare Security Administration said in a notice posted on its website Monday. Companies are eager to get their treatments on the list even at steep discounts to gain access to the world’s second-biggest market for pharmaceuticals.

10. Germany Plans Vaccine Boost; Norway’s Quarantine: Virus Update

Germany is seeking to expand production of Covid-19 shots to help bolster Europe’s vaccination program. The sense of urgency has grown amid concerns about a faster-spreading strain that emerged in the U.K. and has since been found elsewhere in Europe. U.S. President Donald Trump signed a bill containing $900 billion in pandemic relief. Top U.S. health officials warned of a post-Christmas surge in infections, as cases slowed amid scattered holiday reporting. Singapore began relaxing virus rules Monday as the city-state moves into the final phase of curbs. Indonesia imposed a temporary ban on all foreigners from visiting the country, while Taiwan will increase the quarantine period for flight crews to seven days.

CURATED FROM ECONOMIC TIMES, THE NEW YORK TIMES, AND BLOOMBERG.

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Market News Top 10 News Top Global News

Saudi Invests INR 9,600 cr in Reliance Retail – Top 10 Global News

1. Tech Rebound Powers U.S. Stocks Higher

Stocks rallied globally as investors rushed back into technology and health-care firms on bets that the U.S. election results will trigger no major tax hikes or regulatory changes that would derail these sectors. Futures on the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 jumped another 2.6% after the underlying index surged on Wednesday when the vote count failed to produce a clear Democratic sweep as some had expected. The reduced likelihood of a multi-trillion-dollar stimulus package in a divided Congress helped pushed the dollar down the most versus the euro since March. Increases in tech shares and some strong corporate results lifted the Stoxx Europe 600 index. 

Futures on the S&P 500 Index increased 1.8% as of early morning New York time.

The Stoxx Europe 600 Index climbed 0.9%.

The MSCI Asia Pacific Index climbed 2.5%.

2. Biden’s Wins in Michigan, Wisconsin Put Him on Brink of Victory

Joe Biden stood on the brink of claiming the presidency from Donald Trump on Thursday, with a handful of states expecting to complete their vote counts despite Republicans opening legal fights to stop counting in at least two states. Biden held 264 Electoral College votes out of the 270 needed to win the White House, according to the Associated Press. Trump has 214. Biden needs only to win an additional outstanding state, such as Nevada, where he is narrowly leading, or Georgia, where his campaign believes mailed votes will push him over the top. He also likely needs to hold Arizona, which the Associated Press has called in his favor but which the Trump campaign says it can still win. A Biden win in Pennsylvania could also clinch the race.

3. More Americans Than Forecasted Apply for Jobless Benefits

More Americans than expected filed for state unemployment benefits last week, underscoring continued churn in a labour market that continues to recover only gradually. Initial jobless claims in regular state programs totalled 751,000 in the week ended Oct. 31, down from an upwardly revised 758,000 in the prior week, Labor Department data showed Thursday. Continuing claims – or the total number of Americans claiming ongoing state unemployment assistance – fell by 538,000 to 73 lakh in the week ended Oct. 24, the sixth straight decline. Still, the number of people claiming support in a federal program that offers extended assistance increased as more Americans exhausted their regular state benefits.

4. Saudis Cut Oil Prices for Asia as Virus Clouds Energy Market

Saudi Arabia cut most oil pricing for its customers in Asia and the U.S. as a resurgence in the coronavirus clouds the outlook for energy markets. State producer Saudi Aramco decreased December pricing for shipments of Arab Light crude to Asia, its largest regional market. Oil dropped around 10% last week as European nations including Germany and France announced new lockdowns and daily virus cases hit a record in the U.S. While crude has since recovered most of those losses, the market continues to face headwinds, OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo said.

5. Saudi Arabia’s PIF Invests About $1.3 Billion in Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Retail

Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, or PIF, plans to invest about $1.3 billion (INR 9600 cr) in Mukesh Ambani’s retail unit as Asia’s richest man continues to add marquee backers in a fundraising spree. The sovereign wealth fund will pick a 2.04% stake in Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd. The stake sale values India’s largest retailer at about $62.4 billion (INR 4.62 lakh cr). This will be the third investment for PIF into Reliance, helmed by Ambani, as he seeks to transform the company into a retail and technology behemoth and pivot away from its staple oil-refining business that he inherited in 2002.

6. TikTok’s Parent ByteDance Seeks to Raise Cash at $180 Billion Valuation

ByteDance is in discussions to raise $2 billion (INR 14,800 cr) before listing some of its businesses in Hong Kong, even as it seeks to avoid a ban on its TikTok service in the U.S. The Chinese company is in talks with a group of investors including Sequoia over funding that would boost its valuation to $180 billion. ByteDance could then start preparing some of its biggest assets including Douyin and Toutiao for an IPO in Hong Kong. The company was previously valued at $140 billion. ByteDance, already the world’s most valuable startup, is in the throes of fighting a Trump administration ban on TikTok in the U.S. after the video service was labelled a national security threat.

7. Bitcoin Extends Rally With Chart Watchers Eyeing $20,000

Bitcoin is in rally mode once more. Whether it’s uncertainty from the U.S. election, the future of the pandemic or simply more investor interest, the cryptocurrency is at the highest level since January 2018. Bitcoin was up 3.3% at $14,463 (INR 10.7 lakh). The digital currency has been benefiting from high-profile investments from the likes of Square Inc. and Paul Tudor Jones. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s JPM Coin was reportedly used to make a payment for the first time. Proponents argue bitcoin can be a diversifier in times of uncertainty, so events like lockdowns across Europe or delays of U.S. election results could be fueling its rise.

8. Indonesia slumps into first recession since the 1998 Asian crisis

Indonesia fell into recession for the first time in more than 20 years in the third quarter as the COVID-19 pandemic battered consumption and business activity in Southeast Asia’s largest economy. Gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 3.49% on an annual basis in the July-September period, data from the statistics bureau showed, slightly more than the 3% contraction expected. The economy contracted 5.32% year-on-year in the second quarter. The government says its economy is showing signs of improvement, but analysts say they see more weakness over the coming months.

9. IBM unveils cloud for 5G telcos, gets Nokia and Samsung as partners

International Business Machines Corp on Thursday became the latest U.S. technology company to launch a cloud platform directed at telecom operators deploying 5G and signed up Nokia and Samsung as partners. A cloud platform uses software instead of physical equipment to do network functions, helping telecom operators to build 5G networks faster, reduce costs and sell customised services to business clients. The U.S. government has been pushing big U.S. companies to get more involved with 5G – a technology which promises to enable everything from self-driving cars to remote surgery and more automated manufacturing. Companies such as Microsoft and Amazon have launched their own cloud platforms targeting telecom operators. IBM will supply services to its telecom partners to run their networks and also to assist them in selling custom products to their customers

10. Dutch bank ING to cut 1,000 jobs by the end of next year as virus crisis hits

Dutch bank ING said Thursday it will shed 1,000 jobs by the end of 2021 and close offices in South America and Asia as the coronavirus pandemic hits the global economy. The job losses come despite “resilient” third-quarter results, with profits down 41.4% and revenue down 7.3%, the bank said in a statement. “The pandemic continues to have a significant impact everywhere, with the second wave in Europe and the US putting further pressure on consumers and businesses,” ING CEO Steven van Rijswijk said. ING is the Netherlands’ number one bank, employing 53,000 people in more than 40 countries.