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To tackle plastic scourge, Philippines makes companies pay

Long one of the world’s top sources of ocean plastic, the Philippines is hoping new legislation requiring big companies to pay for waste solutions will help clean up its act.Last year, its “Extended Producer Responsibility” (EPR) statute came into force — the first in Southeast Asia to impose penalties on companies over plastic waste.The experiment has shown both the promise and the pitfalls of the tool, which could be among the measures in a treaty to tackle plastic pollution that countries hope to agree on by December 1 at talks in South Korea.The Philippines, with a population of 120 million, generates some 1.7 million metric tons of post-consumer plastic waste a year, according to the World Bank.Of that, a third goes to landfills and dumpsites, with 35 percent discarded on open land.The EPR law is intended to achieve “plastic neutrality” by forcing large businesses to reduce plastic pollution through product design and removing waste from the environment.They are obliged to cover an initial 20 percent of their plastic packaging footprint, calculated based on the weight of plastic packaging they put into the market.The obligation will rise to a ceiling of 80 percent by 2028.The law covers a broad range of plastics, including flexible types that are commercially unviable for recycling and thus often go uncollected.It does not however ban any plastics, including the popular but difficult to recover and recycle single-use sachets common in the Philippines.So far, around half the eligible companies under the law have launched EPR programmes.Over a thousand more must do so by end-December or face fines of up to 20 million pesos ($343,000) and even revocation of their operating licences.- ‘Manna from heaven’ -The law hit its 2023 target for removal of plastic waste, Environment Undersecretary Jonas Leones told AFP.It is “part of a broader strategy to reduce the environmental impact of plastic pollution, particularly given the Philippines’ status as one of the largest contributors to marine plastic waste globally.”The law allows companies to outsource their obligations to “producer responsibility organisations”, many of which use a mechanism called plastic credits.These allow companies to buy a certificate that a metric tonne of plastic has been removed from the environment and either recycled, upcycled or “co-processed” — burned for energy.PCX Markets, one of the country’s biggest players, offers local credits priced from around $100 for collection and co-processing of mixed plastics to over $500 for collection and recycling of ocean-bound PET plastic. Most are certified according to a standard administered by sister organisation PCX Solutions.The model is intended to channel money into the underfunded waste collection sector and encourage collection of plastic that is commercially unviable for recycling.”It’s manna from heaven,” former street sweeper Marita Blanco told AFP.A widowed mother-of-five, Blanco lives in Manila’s low-income San Andres district and buys plastic bottles, styrofoam and candy wrappers for two pesos (3.4 US cents) a kilogram (2.2 pounds).She then sells them at a 25 percent mark-up to charity Friends of Hope, which works with PCX Solutions to process them.”I didn’t know that there was money in garbage,” she said.”If I do not look down on the task of picking up garbage, my financial situation will improve.”- ‘Still linear’ -Friends of Hope managing director Ilusion Farias said the project was making a visible difference to an area often strewn with discarded plastic. “Two years ago, I think you would have seen a lot dirtier street,” she told AFP.”Behavioural change is really slow, and it takes a really long time.”Among those purchasing credits is snack producer Mondelez, which has opted to jump directly to “offsetting” 100 percent of its plastic footprint.”It costs company budgets… but that’s really something that we just said we would commit to do for the environment,” Mondelez Philippines corporate and government affairs official Caitlin Punzalan told AFP.But while companies have lined up to buy plastic credits, there has been less movement on stemming the flow of new plastic, including through redesign.”Upstream reduction is not really easy,” said PCX Solutions managing director Stefanie Beitien.”There is no procurement department in the world that accepts a 20 percent higher packaging price just because it’s the right thing to do.”And while PCX credits cannot be claimed against plastic that is landfilled, they do allow for co-processing, with the ash then used for cement.”It’s still linear, not circular, because you’re destroying the plastic and you’re still generating virgin plastic,” acknowledged Leones of the environment ministry.Still, the law remains a “very strong policy”, according to Floradema Eleazar, an official with the UN Development Programme.But “we will not see immediate impacts right now, or tomorrow,” she said.”It would require really massive behavioural change for everyone to make sure that this happens.”

Trump threatens trade war on Mexico, Canada, China

China and Mexico lashed out Tuesday after Donald Trump threatened to begin his presidency with an immediate trade war against the top three US economic partners.Trump made his threat in social media posts, announcing huge import tariffs against neighbors Canada and Mexico and also rival China if they don’t stop illegal immigration and drug smuggling into the United States.China responded that “no one will win a trade war,” while Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum warned that “for every tariff, there will be a response in kind.”A Canadian government source said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called Trump and had a “productive” discussion, without giving further detail.Such tariffs threaten to disrupt the global economy, deepen already fierce tensions with China and upend relations with the United States’ two huge neighbors.Nervous stock markets saw “volatile trading conditions” as they digested the news, said Fawad Razaqzada, analyst at City Index.On his Truth Social platform, Trump said late Monday that he would enact the tariffs the moment he takes office on January 20 if his — vaguely worded — demands were not met.The posts signal Trump’s intention to return to the governing style of his first presidency, when he regularly shocked Washington and US partners with abrupt, major policy shifts which he announced on social media.They also confirmed that Trump is serious about his major campaign promise to use US economic muscle as leverage on issues having little to do with trade — namely his claim that the United States is under siege by foreign crime and dangerous migrants.On Tuesday, Trump named two important figures to his economic team: Jamieson Greer as his trade representative and Kevin Hassett as his top economic advisor, heading the White House National Economic Council.Both had roles in his first administration, with Greer serving as chief of staff to former US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.”I will sign all necessary documents to charge Mexico and Canada a 25 percent tariff on ALL products coming into the United States,” Trump earlier posted.”This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!” he said.In another post, Trump said he would be slapping China with a 10 percent tariff, “above any additional Tariffs,” because the world’s second biggest economy was failing to execute fentanyl smugglers.Liu Pengyu, spokesman for China’s embassy in the United States, told AFP that “China believes that China-US economic and trade cooperation is mutually beneficial in nature.”Mexico’s Sheinbaum fired back at Trump, saying his tariffs diplomacy was “not acceptable” and based on erroneous claims.”It is not with threats or tariffs that the migration phenomenon will be stopped, nor the consumption of drugs in the United States,” she said.Sheinbaum pointed out that the Mexican narcotics industry largely exists to serve demand in the United States.”Seventy percent of the illegal weapons seized from criminals in Mexico come from your country,” she said. “Tragically, it is in our country that lives are lost to the violence resulting from meeting the drug demand in yours.”- Bluster or serious? -William Reinsch, senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Trump’s online threats may be bluster — a strategy of “threaten, and then negotiate.”However, Trump’s first White House term was marked by an aggressive and protectionist trade agenda that also targeted China, Mexico and Canada, alongside Europe.While in office, Trump launched an all-out trade war with China, imposing significant tariffs on hundreds of billions of dollars of Chinese goods. China responded with retaliatory tariffs on American products, particularly affecting US farmers.Economists say tariffs can hurt US growth and fuel inflation, since they are paid by importers bringing the goods into the United States, who often pass those costs on to consumers.Trump has said he will put his commerce secretary designate Howard Lutnick, a China hawk, in charge of trade policy.

Bolivia announces $1 bn deal with China to build lithium plants

Bolivia said Tuesday it had signed a $1 billion deal with China’s CBC, a subsidiary of the world’s largest lithium battery producer CATL, to build two lithium carbonate production plants in the country’s southwest.Bolivia’s state-owned Bolivia Lithium Deposits (YLB) said the plants — one with an annual capacity of 10,000 tons of lithium carbonate and the other of 25,000 – would be situated in the vast Uyuni salt flats.Lithium, nicknamed “white gold,” is a key component in the production of batteries for electric vehicles and mobile phones.Bolivia claims to have the world’s largest lithium deposits.President Luis Arce, who presided over Tuesday’s signing ceremony, said it paved the way for Bolivia to become “a very important player in determining the international price of lithium.”The deal follows an earlier agreement reached last year between Russia’s Uranium One Group and YLB to build a $970 million lithium extraction facility, also in Uyuni.Both deals have yet to be approved by Bolivia’s parliament.Arce announced that negotiations were underway with China’s Citic Guoan Group for a third contract. “We hope to close that deal as soon as possible,” he said.

US stocks rally despite Trump tariff threat but European stocks fall

US stock indices pushed to fresh records Tuesday, shrugging off tariff threats from President-elect Donald Trump while European equities retreated.Trump, who doesn’t take office until January 20, made his threat in social media posts Monday night, announcing huge import tariffs against neighbors Canada and Mexico and also rival China if they do not stop illegal immigration and drug smuggling.Both the Dow and S&P 500 notched all-time highs, with investors regarding the incoming president’s words as a bargaining chip.”In theory, higher tariffs should not be good news for stocks. But, you know, I think the market’s chosen to think of (it) as a negotiating tactic,” said Steve Sosnick of Interactive Brokers.”You have bullish sentiment,” said LBBW’s Karl Haeling. “People are tending to look at things as positively as possible.”But General Motors, which imports autos from Mexico to the United States, slumped 9.0 percent, while rival Ford dropped 2.6 percent.Overseas bourses were also buffeted by the news. European stocks followed losses in Asia, despite Trump excluding Europe as an immediate target for tariffs.”These are his first direct comments on tariffs and tariff levels since becoming president-elect, and they have roiled markets,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group, ahead of the Wall Street open.”It is early days, and there are plenty of opportunities for Trump to direct his attention to Europe down the line,” Brooks added.The US dollar rallied against its Canadian equivalent, China’s yuan and Mexico’s peso, which hit its lowest level since August 2022.In other economic news, the Conference Board’s consumer confidence index rose to 111.7 this month, up from 109.6 in October, boosted by greater optimism surrounding the labor market.”November’s increase was mainly driven by more positive consumer assessments of the present situation, particularly regarding the labor market,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board.Pantheon Macroeconomics chief US economist Samuel Tombs added in a note that the increase in consumer confidence overall “likely was driven by euphoria among Republicans.””The index also jumped in late 2016, when Mr. Trump was elected for the first time,” he said.Federal Reserve meeting minutes showed policy makers expect inflation to keep cooling, signaling a gradual approach to interest rate cuts if price increases ease further and the job market remains strong.- Key figures around 2150 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 0.3 percent at 44,860.31 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 0.6 percent at 6,021.63 (close)New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.6 percent at 19,174.30 (close)London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.4 percent at 8,258.61 (close)Paris – CAC 40: DOWN 0.9 percent at 7,194.51 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 19,295.98 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 38,442.00 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 19,159.20 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,259.76 (close)Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0482 from $1.0495 on MondayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2567 from $1.2568Dollar/yen: DOWN at 153.06 yen from 154.23 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.41 pence from 83.51 penceBrent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.3 percent at $72.81 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.3 percent at $68.77 per barrel

Trump tariff vow drives choppy day for markets

European markets closed lower on Tuesday while Wall Street bounced as investors digested incoming US president Donald Trump’s warning that he would impose huge new tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada, raising fears of a trade war.Trump said on his Truth Social account that he would hammer the United States’ largest trading partners with tariffs in a bid to force them to curb the illegal drug trade and immigration.”While his warnings appear to be negotiation tactics ahead of his January 20 inauguration, markets remain highly reactive to headlines, creating volatile trading conditions,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at City Index, in a note.Europe’s top indices fell while Wall Street’s were mixed, following gains a day earlier on Trump’s nomination for Treasury secretary, hedge fund manager Scott Bessent — seen as a safe pair of hands.Trump’s tariffs announcement fanned fears of a trade war with China and warnings that the duties — along with promised tax cuts — would reignite US inflation.”These are his first direct comments on tariffs and tariff levels since becoming president-elect, and they have roiled markets,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group, ahead of the Wall Street open.European stocks followed losses in Asia on Tuesday despite Trump excluding Europe as an immediate target for tariffs.”It is early days, and there are plenty of opportunities for Trump to direct his attention to Europe down the line,” Brooks added.Trump vowed to charge Mexico and Canada 25-percent tariffs on all products coming into the United States and would slap China with a 10-percent levy on top of existing tariffs.Capital Economics analysts noted that “Trump is likely to move much more quickly with tariffs than during his first term”.The US dollar rallied against its Canadian equivalent, China’s yuan and Mexico’s peso, which neared its lowest level since 2022, and also strengthened against the euro and pound following earlier declines.Elsewhere on Tuesday, bitcoin held above $94,000 despite falling further.A Trump-fuelled rally that had seen the world’s largest cryptocurrency surge about 50 percent to within a whisker of $100,000 has run out of steam.Oil prices rebounded slightly after Monday’s losses of around three percent, as Israel’s security cabinet convened to discuss a proposed ceasefire in its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.- Key figures around 1640 GMT -London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.40 percent at 8,258.61 pointsParis – CAC 40: DOWN 0.87 percent at 7,194.51Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.56 percent at 19,295.98Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 38,442.00 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 19,159.20 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,259.76 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 0.34 percent at 44,583.88New York – S&P 500: UP 0.36 percent at 6,009.16New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.52 percent at 19,154.00Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0485 from $1.0495 on MondayPound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2553 from $1.2564Dollar/yen: DOWN at 153.497 yen from 154.23 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.53 pence from 83.51 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.63 percent at $72.94 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.74 percent at $69.45 per barrel

US lawmakers warn Hong Kong becoming financial crime hub

US lawmakers have urged the government to rethink banking ties with Hong Kong, citing its “increasing role” in money laundering, sanctions evasions and reported funneling of banned technology to Russia.The bipartisan US Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party called Monday on outgoing President Joe Biden’s treasury secretary to reevaluate Hong Kong’s unique trade privileges, which treat the financial hub as distinct from the rest of China.Since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the semi-autonomous Chinese city in 2020, “Hong Kong has shifted from a trusted global financial center to a critical player in the deepening authoritarian axis of the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Iran, Russia, and North Korea,” the committee said in a letter to Janet Yellen.The security law — put in place after huge democracy protests roiled the city — “effectively subjects Hong Kong to PRC control,” the lawmakers said.”We must now question whether longstanding US policy towards Hong Kong, particularly towards its financial and banking sector, is appropriate,” the letter said.According to the committee, Hong Kong has become a leading player in shifting banned Western technology to Russia, creating front companies for purchasing barred Iranian oil, facilitating the trade of Russian-sourced gold and managing “ghost ships” that engage in illegal trade with North Korea.It cited “recent research” estimating that “nearly 40 percent of goods shipped from Hong Kong to Russia in 2023″ were on US and EU lists of banned goods, including semiconductors and other technology Moscow needs for its war in Ukraine.Hong Kong authorities on Tuesday said the letter had no factual basis and defended the city’s financial institutions and rights protections.”(The Hong Kong) government strongly disapproves of and firmly rejects malicious slander of Hong Kong’s reputation as an international financial centre in the letter,” a spokesman said.”The letter is a crude and reprehensible attempt to spread lies and misinformation about Hong Kong for personal political gain.”The city has been enforcing sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council but does not enforce unilateral sanctions, the spokesman added.After the British handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the city was promised semi-autonomy, including judicial independence, for 50 years under the “One Country, Two Systems” agreement. But Washington has repeatedly warned the national security law — as well as a subsequent security law known as Article 23 — eroded that firewall, effectively silencing dissent in the city and curtailing the freedoms that allowed it to operate as a global financial center.In September, the US State Department issued an advisory warning about “new and heightened risks” for businesses operating in Hong Kong because of Article 23.China and Hong Kong have, however, maintained the laws were needed to restore order and protect the financial hub’s economy after the massive and at times violent democracy protests in 2019.

Stocks, dollar mixed on Trump tariff warning

Choppy trading hit stock markets on Tuesday as investors digested Donald Trump’s warning that he would impose huge new tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada when he takes over as US president in January.Trump said on his Truth Social account that he would hammer the United States’ largest trading partners with tariffs in a bid to force them to curb the illegal drug trade and immigration.Wall Street was mixed at the open, following gains a day earlier on Trump’s nomination for Treasury secretary, while European markets broadly fell.”While his warnings appear to be negotiation tactics ahead of his January 20 inauguration, markets remain highly reactive to headlines, creating volatile trading conditions,” said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at City Index, in a note.The news dampened earlier market optimism that Trump’s pick to lead the Treasury, Scott Bessent, could temper the tycoon’s assertiveness.It fanned fears of a trade war with China and warnings that the tariffs — along with promised tax cuts — would reignite US inflation.”These are his first direct comments on tariffs and tariff levels since becoming president-elect, and they have roiled markets,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group, in a note ahead of the Wall Street open.European stocks followed losses in Asia on Tuesday despite Trump excluding Europe as an immediate target for tariffs.”It is early days, and there are plenty of opportunities for Trump to direct his attention to Europe down the line,” Brooks added.The US dollar rallied against its Canadian equivalent, Mexico’s peso and the yuan.However, it dropped against the euro, pound and yen, with the latter benefiting from its status as a haven investment, analysts said.Ahead of Wall Street’s reopening, the administration of outgoing US President Joe Biden said it had finalised a $7.9 billion award to Intel, cementing part of his legacy in bringing semiconductor production to the United States.The world’s largest economy is scrambling to ease its dependence on China and other countries in Asia for these devices essential for everything from refrigerators to weapons systems.Elsewhere on Tuesday, bitcoin held above $93,000 despite falling further.A Trump-fuelled rally that had seen the world’s largest cryptocurrency surge about 50 percent to within a whisker of $100,000 has run out of steam.Oil prices rebounded slightly after Monday’s losses of around three percent, as Israel’s security cabinet prepared to vote on a proposed ceasefire in its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.- Key figures around 1440 GMT -London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.38 percent at 8,260.53 pointsParis – CAC 40: DOWN 0.42 percent at 7,227.01Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.35 percent at 19,338.20Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 38,442.00 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 19,159.20 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,259.76 (close)New York – Dow: DOWN 0.47 percent at 44,528.14New York – S&P 500: UP 0.24 percent at 6,001.57New York – Nasdaq: UP 0.53 percent at 19,154.92Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0497 from $1.0495 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2572 from $1.2564Dollar/yen: DOWN at 153.58 yen from 154.23 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 83.50 pence from 83.51 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.61 percent at $72.92 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.71 percent at $69.43 per barrel

China’s Huawei unveils ‘milestone’ smartphone with homegrown OS

Chinese tech giant Huawei on Tuesday unveiled its first smartphone equipped with a fully homegrown operating system, a key test in the firm’s fight to challenge the dominance of Western juggernauts.Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android are currently used in the vast majority of mobile phones, but Huawei is looking to change that with its newest Mate 70 devices, which run on the company’s own HarmonyOS Next.The launch caps a major turnaround in the fortunes of Huawei, which saw its wings clipped by gruelling US sanctions in recent years but has since bounced back with soaring sales.”Today, the long-awaited Mate 70, the most powerful one ever, is here,” Richard Yu, chairman of Huawei’s Consumer Business Group, told a raucous launch event Tuesday at the firm’s Shenzhen headquarters.The risks are high — unlike a previous iteration, based on Android’s open-source code, HarmonyOS Next requires a complete rewiring of all apps on the smartphones it powers.”HarmonyOS Next is the first home-grown operating system, a milestone for China to move away from reliance on Western technologies for software with performance improvement,” Gary Ng, a senior economist at Natixis, told AFP.More than three million have been pre-ordered, according to Huawei’s online shopping platform, though that does not require them to be purchased.It went on sale just after 6:00 pm (1000 GMT) on Tuesday.Around 100 people queued outside a Huawei store in central Beijing an hour before orders opened.- ‘Innovate on our own’ -Second in line was 28-year-old Zhang Nannan, who switched to a Huawei phone from Apple last year.Huawei phones take clearer photos and get better signal, he said, while “supporting domestic products” was another draw.”We must innovate on our own, and cannot let ourselves be disrupted by foreign countries,” he said.Huawei was once China’s largest domestic smartphone maker before it became embroiled in a tech war between Washington and Beijing.The company shipped more than 10.8 million smartphones in the third quarter — capturing just 16 percent of the Chinese market, according to a recent report by technology research firm Canalys.In September the firm unveiled the world’s first triple-folding phone, the Mate XT, priced at an eye-watering $2,800 which made it three times the cost of the newest iPhone.The Mate 70 has a much lower starting price of $758, the firm announced Tuesday.Those who purchase a Mate 70 smartphone will be given the choice to opt out of the fully self-developed operating system, the firm said.Yu said that there are “many application updates” taking place on a daily basis.”We expect that in two or three months, the application user experience of our HarmonyOS ecosystem will be more mature and more perfect,” he added.- ‘High expectations’ -Huawei found itself at the centre of an intense tech rivalry between Beijing and Washington, with US officials warning its equipment could be used to spy on behalf of Chinese authorities — allegations they deny.Since 2019, US sanctions have cut Huawei off from global supply chains for technology and US-made components, a move that initially hammered its production of smartphones.That is only set to intensify under US President-elect Donald Trump, who has promised huge tariffs on Chinese imports in response to what he says are Beijing’s unfair trade practices.”Rather than Huawei inspiring the tech industry as a whole, it is the self-reliance trend of the Chinese tech industry that has made Huawei’s progress possible,” Toby Zhu, a senior analyst at Canalys, told AFP.The success of Huawei’s new generation of smartphone products will be a key gauge of whether that drive has worked, said Zhu.”This generation of products cannot afford to miss the mark because everyone has high expectations for them,” he added.But it is unclear whether developers overseas will be willing to spend the money needed to build a completely new version of their apps for the latest smartphones, said Rich Bishop, co-founder and CEO of AppInChina, a publisher of international software in China.One third-party agency in China quoted a price of two million yuan ($275,500) to custom-fit a foreign app for HarmonyOS Next, he told AFP.To convince them, “Huawei needs to continuously improve the software, provide better support for developers, and convince the developer community that it is committed to the long-term development of the Harmony ecosystem”, Paul Triolo, a partner at consulting firm Albright Stonebridge Group, told AFP.

Stocks retreat, dollar mixed on Trump tariff warning

Stock markets retreated and the dollar was mixed Tuesday after Donald Trump warned he would impose huge new tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada immediately on taking over as US president in January.Trump said on his Truth Social account that he would hammer the United States’ largest trading partners in response to the illegal drug trade and immigration.The news dampened optimism that his pick to lead the Treasury, Scott Bessent, could temper the tycoon’s assertiveness, with fears that a trade war with China and warnings that the tariffs — along with promised tax cuts — will reignite US inflation.”This was Trump’s most direct assertion about his tariffs plan since winning the election” in early November, noted Kathleen Brooks, research director at XTB trading group.European stocks followed losses in Asia on Tuesday despite Trump excluding Europe as an immediate target for tariffs.”It is early days, and there are plenty of opportunities for Trump to direct his attention to Europe down the line,” Brooks added.The dollar rallied against its Canadian equivalent, Mexico’s peso and yuan.However, it dropped against the euro, pound and yen, with the latter benefiting from its status as a haven investment, analysts said.Ahead of Wall Street’s reopening, the administration of outgoing US President Joe Biden’s said it has finalised a $7.9-billion award to Intel, cementing part of his legacy in bringing semiconductor production to the United States.The world’s biggest economy is scrambling to ease its dependence on China and other countries in Asia for these devices essential for everything from refrigerators to weapons systems.Elsewhere Tuesday, bitcoin held above $92,000 despite falling further.A Trump-fuelled rally that had seen the world’s biggest cryptocurrency surge about 50 percent to within a whisker of $100,000 has run out of steam.Oil prices rebounded slightly after Monday’s losses of around three percent, as Israel’s security cabinet prepared to vote on a proposed ceasefire in its war with Hezbollah in Lebanon.- Key figures around 1045 GMT -London – FTSE 100: DOWN 0.4 percent at 8,258.44 pointsParis – CAC 40: DOWN 0.7 percent at 7,208.51Frankfurt – DAX: DOWN 0.6 percent at 19,294.30Tokyo – Nikkei 225: DOWN 0.9 percent at 38,442.00 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: FLAT at 19,159.20 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.1 percent at 3,259.76 (close)New York – Dow: UP 1.0 percent at 44,736.57 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.0516 from $1.0495 on MondayPound/dollar: UP at $1.2587 from $1.2564Dollar/yen: DOWN at 153.82 yen from 154.23 yenEuro/pound: UP at 83.57 pence from 83.51 penceBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.8 percent at $73.09 per barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.9 percent at $69.56 per barrel

Vietnam death row tycoon begs court for her life

A Vietnamese property tycoon sentenced to death for multi-billion-dollar fraud begged a court to spare her life Tuesday, saying she was trying to repay the stolen funds.Property developer Truong My Lan, 68, was convicted earlier this year of embezzling money from Saigon Commercial Bank (SCB) — which prosecutors said she controlled — and condemned to die for fraud totalling $27 billion in one of the biggest corruption cases in history. She is appealing against her sentence at a court in Ho Chi Minh City, with the ruling expected in the coming days.In her final remarks before the court, Lan said: “My only thought is on how to repay the debt to the SBV (State Bank of Vietnam) and the people. I don’t think about the damage to myself and my family. “I feel pained due to the waste of national resources,” Lan said, adding she felt “very embarrassed to be charged with this crime”. “Please reconsider and reduce my sentence,” she asked the court.According to Vietnamese law, Lan could escape the death penalty if she proactively returns three-quarters of the embezzled assets and is judged to have co-operated sufficiently with authorities.But prosecutors argued Monday that she had not met the conditions, and emphasised her crime’s consequences were “huge and without precedent”.Among key points being debated in court is an estimate of Lan’s personal wealth.Lan, who founded real estate development group Van Thinh Phat, told the court that “the quickest way” to repay the stolen funds would be “to liquidate SCB, and sell our assets to repay SBV and the people”.Tens of thousands of people who had invested their savings in SCB lost money, shocking the communist nation and prompting rare protests from the victims — who demonstrated again on Tuesday outside the State Bank of Vietnam in Hanoi.  The State Bank said in April that it pumped funds into SCB to stabilise it, without revealing how much.During her first trial in April, Lan was found guilty of embezzling $12.5 billion, but prosecutors said the total damages caused by the scam amounted to $27 billion — equivalent to around six percent of the country’s 2023 GDP.A total of 47 other defendants have requested reduced sentences at the appeal, which began in early November.Last month, Lan was convicted of money laundering and jailed for life in a separate case.Â