
China exchanges to expand commodities trading for foreign investors
Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors (QFIIs) and RMB Qualified Foreign Institutional Investors can participate in trading of a bulk of commodities futures and options contracts.
The Shanghai Futures Exchange includes stainless steel, fuel oil, pulp and container freight (European line) futures contracts and silver and steel rebar options contracts on the list.
The Guangzhou Futures Exchange allows the participation of trading industrial silicon, lithium carbonate and polysilicon futures and options contracts.
The Dalian Commodity Exchange is open for polypropylene, polyvinyl chloride and styrene futures and options contracts for foreign investors.
Qualified foreign investors can participate in the trading of paraxylene, silico-manganese, rapeseed meal, peanut futures contracts and options contracts of paraxylene, bottle flakes, silico-manganese, rapeseed meal, peanuts and staple fiber on the Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange.
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Reuters
30 minutes ago
- Reuters
Stablecoins fuel liquidity, not yet money
LONDON, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Treasury market bulwark or catalyst for a liquidity bubble? No one's sure whether the now government-blessed "stablecoin" explosion will juice or destabilise the economy. When Congress passed the so-called "Genius Act" on stablecoin legislation last month with bipartisan support, it triggered another wave of speculation about just how much havoc these dollar-pegged crypto tokens might wreak, including fears of fraud, tax evasion and instability. Those pushing back on the crypto-Cassandras have put forward much more benign forecasts, arguing that stablecoins, given their limited retail use, will remain firmly encased in the esoteric financial world, muffling any potential negative impact on the wider economy. But these instruments are connected with arguably the most important part of the financial system: the U.S. Treasury market. Key to the new legislation is a requirement that stablecoins - so far mostly used by crypto traders to move funds between tokens - are fully backed by liquid assets such as cash or short-term Treasury bills. Issuers are also required to disclose the composition of those reserves monthly. And with a market cap in excess of $250 billion that could explode to some $2 trillion within three years based on some estimates, stablecoins have the potential to pack a serious systemic punch. Perhaps ironically, the link to Treasuries actually offers one of the more positive takes on the stablecoin phenomenon. Some of its proponents argue that it will generate commensurate demand for U.S. Treasury bills as stablecoins expand and allow the U.S. government to more easily front-load its rising new debt issuance, shortening the maturity profile of its debt. In doing so, it could leave long-term debt yields relatively undisturbed even as U.S. deficits expand. That seems like a neat twist. As it stands, the amount of bills outstanding totals about $6 trillion, just over a fifth of outstanding Treasury debt and still below historic averages as a share of the overall market. All else equal, if both stablecoin demand and bill issuance were to expand by $1 trillion over the next three years, then the bill share of the Treasury market would only rise back to where it was about 20 years ago - an outcome that seems fairly unexceptional. There's a catch though. A large chunk of the cash going to stablecoins is merely redirected from elsewhere, such as bank deposits or money market funds already directly or indirectly underpinning Treasury debt. Stablecoins' effect on the Treasury market, therefore, may be far more limited than first thought. Harder to parse is the degree to which mushrooming stablecoins might impact liquidity in the broader financial system. As analysts at Cross Border Capital point out, creating a token that can be spent instantly like a banknote but is backed by securities with average maturities of several months or more could, theoretically, have a significant impact on market liquidity. In effect, the stablecoin transforms a basket of Treasury bills and notes into an instantaneous asset with zero duration. Two big offsetting features apply, however. The lack of retail use for them means the impact on real-world liquidity or consumer prices may be limited and the fast-money liquidity boost is left within the financial world - most clearly in crypto markets themselves and wider asset prices at the margins. Dangerous bubbles can blow here of course, but at least participants are there at their own risk. The second point is that even though stablecoins might add liquidity, they, unlike banks, don't actually expand the money supply via lending and credit creation. And if the money flowing to them is merely coming from bank deposits anyway, then there's a risk that the expansion of stablecoins could actually reduce credit expansion at banks and weigh on the velocity of money in the economy at large. "The GENIUS Act is unlikely to unleash a 1970s-style credit boom, but it does signal a shift in who controls the supply of money from banks to a more explicit public-private hybrid system," the Cross Border report concluded. "Most action will be in financial markets, not in the high street." Ardent critics of stablecoins fear this risks turning into a government-sanctioned return to privately issued money that could be as prone to corruption, fraud, panics and instability as when it was last in vogue in the 19th century. And crucially, disintermediation of the regular banking system could in time undermine the Federal Reserve's ability to regulate liquidity and money in the wider economy. But as long as this phenomenon remains largely the preserve of the esoteric financial world, those thornier issues remain largely theoretical. The size and growth of this universe is less the concern than its integration with the real world. The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters -- Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. Follow ROI on LinkedIn. Plus, sign up for my weekday newsletter, Morning Bid U.S.


Reuters
30 minutes ago
- Reuters
Rupee rides US inflation relief; forward premiums perk up on Fed cut bets
MUMBAI, Aug 13 (Reuters) - The Indian rupee and forward premiums traded higher on Wednesday, lifted by tame headline U.S. inflation data that reinforced bets of a Federal Reserve rate cut next month. The local currency quoted at 87.6750 at 11.00 am IST, compared to 87.7125 on Tuesday. The U.S. consumer price index for July showed limited impact from recent tariffs. That provided a boost to emerging market currencies, with Fed rate cut odds for September climbing to 94%, and markets now pricing in 60 basis points of cuts this year. Based on the details in the CPI report, Goldman Sachs estimates that the U.S. core PCE price index - the Fed's preferred measure of inflation - rose 0.26% in July versus their expectation of 0.31% prior to the report, corresponding to a year-over-year rate of 2.88%. The inflation data has lent the rupee a bit of a reprieve ahead of the crucial Trump-Putin meeting on Friday, a currency trader at a bank said. The relief is unlikely to extend much beyond the current level — at most to 87.50 — with companies hedging more and interbank positioning expected to remain light until the outcome of the meeting is known. The stakes of the meeting, which aims to explore a resolution to the war in Ukraine, are high for the rupee. Market participants expect any resolution to the conflict to have a bearing on additional tariffs that President Trump has imposed on Indian goods in response to New Delhi's continued purchases of Russian oil. Dollar/rupee forward premiums moved higher, with the one-year dollar/rupee implied yield rising 2 bps to 2.09%, supported by the drop in U.S. yields amid Fed rate cut bets.


The Herald Scotland
an hour ago
- The Herald Scotland
Air India suspends flights between New Delhi and Washington D.C.
"The suspension is primarily driven by the planned shortfall in Air India's fleet, as the airline commenced retrofitting 26 of its Boeing 787-8 aircraft last month," the company said in a news release, adding this "extensive retrofit program, aimed at significantly enhancing customer experience," will result in unavailability of multiple aircrafts until at least end of 2026. Ban on Indian carriers in Pakistan's airspace In addition to its fleet upgrade, the closure of airspace over Pakistan "impacts the airline's long-haul operations, leading to longer flight routings and increased operational complexity," the news release said. The airspace ban is estimated to cost Air India about $600 million over 12 months, Reuters and Pakistan closed their airspaces to each other days after relations nosedived following a fatal attack on civilians in Indian Kashmir in April. New Delhi has blamed Islamabad for the attack, which Islamabad denies. Options for Air India customers While there will no direct flights between the two capitals, Air India customers will have the option to choose flights to Washington, D.C., with layovers in New York, Newark, Chicago and San Francisco with the airline's partners Alaska Airlines, United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, "allowing customers to travel on a single itinerary with their baggage checked through to the final destination," the news release said. The airline will also continue to "operate non-stop flights between India and six destinations in North America, including Toronto and Vancouver in Canada." Customers booked on flights to or from Washington, D.C. beyond September 1 will be contacted by the airline and offered alternative travel arrangements, including rebooking on other flights or full refunds, as per their individual preferences, the airline said. Phones, jewelry, linens: Which products could cost more due to Trump's India tariffs? Air India woes The suspension also comes as Air India faces heightened regulatory scrutiny after a June crash of one of its Boeing planes in Ahmedabad killed 260 people. Meanwhile, passengers on a recent Air India flight from San Francisco to Mumbai via Kolkata encountered some unwelcome visitors early this month. "On flight AI180 from San Francisco to Mumbai via Kolkata, two passengers were unfortunately bothered by the presence of a few small cockroaches on board," a spokesperson for the airline previously told USA TODAY in a statement Aug. 5. They notified a crew member who relocated them to different seats, where they were "comfortable thereafter," the airline continued. During the scheduled fuel stop at Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, the aircraft was deep cleaned by the ground crew to address the issue, and continued its journey to Mumbai as scheduled. "Despite our regular fumigation efforts, insects can sometimes enter an aircraft during ground operations," the airline added. "Air India will be undertaking a comprehensive investigation to determine the source and the cause of this incident and implement measures to prevent recurrence. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused to the passengers." Contributing: Reuters / Joey Garrison, Kathleen Wong, USA TODAY Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@ and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.