The US-Israeli war on Iran has unleashed sharp swings across global energy and financial markets, fuelling demand for safe-haven assets, with Hong Kong emerging as a potential beneficiary across gold, property and capital markets. In the first of a three-part series, we examine Hong Kong’s bid to position itself as Asia’s bullion hub. War in…
April 17 (Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called on Friday for joint efforts for an effective mission to ensure freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz and said Kyiv’s wartime experience in the Black Sea could help. “Decisions made regarding Hormuz now will determine how other aggressive actors perceive the possibility of creating…
WASHINGTON, April 17 (Reuters) – The U.S. is urging G20 members and the International Monetary Fund and World Bank to take coordinated action to ensure fertilizer access amid disruptions in food trade supply chains caused by the war in the Middle East, two sources familiar with the matter said on Friday. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott…
PARIS, April 17 (Reuters) – France and Britain will chair a meeting on Friday of around 40 countries aimed at signalling to the United States that some of its closest allies are ready to play a role in restoring freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz once conditions allow. Iran has largely closed the…
Hong Kong leader John Lee Ka-chiu has met European Union representatives to discuss opportunities for cooperation, with the chief executive saying both sides highlighted a shared belief in multilateralism amid increasing tensions and market turmoil. Ambassador Harvey Rouse, head of the EU Office in Hong Kong, called for both sides to work together, describing the…
By Michaela Cabrera and Daria Sito-Sucic VILLERS-COTTERETS, France, April 16 (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron urged high school pupils on Thursday to switch off their phones and read, pushing for one “no screens day” per month for all, and a blanket social media ban for those under 15 years of age. Following Australia’s groundbreaking…
Hong Kong is navigating a period of significant economic transition. The city is seeing a surge in family offices. It is an offshore renminbi hub and has one of the world’s most meaningful capital markets. However, it needs systemic change to attract and retain top talent, bring the Hong Kong diaspora back home and lure…
PARIS, April 11 (Reuters) – French President Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday that he had discussed the Iran ceasefire https://www.reuters.com/world/iran/ talks and the situation in Ukraine https://www.reuters.com/world/ukraine-russia-war/ with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. “We initially discussed the situation in the Middle East, and called for all parties to respect the ceasefire and to make sure this…
PARIS, April 7 (Reuters) – French nationals Cecile Kohler and Jacques Paris are “free and on their way to France after three and a half years of detention in Iran”, President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday in a post on X, adding that Oman had mediated their release. The couple had been held by Iran…
MOSCOW, April 3 (Reuters) – Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of Russia’s powerful Security Council, said on Friday that Moscow should drop its “tolerant attitude” towards Ukraine’s possible EU membership. “The EU is no longer just an economic union. It can transform, and rather quickly, into a full-blown military alliance, one overtly hostile to Russia, and…