The Overnight News Roundup

Jan 21, 2025

PiQ and Zack Eiseman provide you with a consolidated roundup of the overnight news that matters most to markets.

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MACRO:

The Dollar rallied and risk dipped after US President Trump said that he planned to enact previously threatened tariffs of as much as 25% on Mexico and Canada by Feb. 1st, reiterating his contention over immigration and drugs. (BBG)
Trump suggested the U.S. could impose significant tariffs on China if they don't approve the TikTok sale. Suggests they could be up to 100%, but also said he's throwing it out as a possibility (WaPo)
Trump issued an executive order that would direct the attorney general not to enforce a ban on TikTok for 75 days. Trump said a deal where the U.S. gets half of TikTok and TikTok keeps the other half is "one of many ideas." (Axios)
Trump signed the rescission of 78 Biden era actions orders and memoranda. (Newsquawk)
Trump told reporters “We’re not ready for that yet,” when asked about the idea of universal tariffs. (WSJ)
Trump laid out a sweeping plan to maximize U.S. oil and gas production, declaring a national energy emergency, stripping away regulation, and withdrawing the U.S. from an international pact to fight climate change. (RTRS)
Trump said on energy, "We will bring prices down, fill our strategic reserves up again, right to the top, and export American energy all over the world". (RTRS)
The White House said the Trump administration will prioritise the development of Alaska’s LNG potential, including the permitting of all necessary pipeline and export infrastructure. (RTRS)
Trump reiterated a call for the EU to buy more American oil and gas if the bloc wants to avoid tariffs. (BBG)
Trump announced severe new restrictions on immigration and asylum in the US hours after taking office, declaring that he will send troops to the Mexican border and attempt to end birthright citizenship. (AFP)
Trump said that a global corporate minimum tax deal "has no force or effect" in the U.S., effectively pulling America out of the landmark 2021 arrangement. (RTRS)
Trump said he could travel to China as soon as this year, saying when asked, "Yeah, could be. I've had the invite." (RTRS)
Trump said the US is “probably” going to stop purchasing oil from Venezuela, saying “We don’t have to buy their oil, we have plenty of oil”. (BBG)
Trump pardoned 1,500 people related to Jan. 6, 2021 Capital Protest. (newswires)
The US share of global cross-border investment projects has soared to its highest level on record, underscoring the country’s stronger economic momentum than Europe or China. (FT)
EU finance ministers agreed to stay united in their approach to the new US administration and that a more competitive EU economy was the best protection from potential transatlantic economic challenges. (RTRS)
ECB's Kazimir said a reduction in rates next week is all but certain and two to three more will probably follow. Said recent data suggest quarter-point, back-to-back rate cuts should continue. (BBG)
Companies that make up the backbone of the German economy are putting borrowing plans on hold, with sales of a local debt product dwindling amid a gloomy economic outlook. (BBG)
UK Chancellor Reeves will meet with JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon this week as she seeks to persuade investors to plow their cash into the UK. (BBG)
UK Chancellor Reeves launched a bid to shield car loan providers from multibillion-pound payouts, after the Treasury warned it could damage Britain’s reputation as a place to do business. (FT)
Ray Dalio warned that the UK could be heading for a “debt death spiral”, in which it has to borrow more and more money to service its rising interest costs. (FT)
South Korea’s early trade data showed weak export growth so far this month, as headwinds grow for the trade-reliant economy. (BBG)
South Korea's acting president Choi Sang-mok said he hoped for bilateral relations with Washington to develop more reciprocally under the Trump administration, citing concerns about how U.S. policies might hit Asia's fourth-largest economy. (RTRS)
South Korea is tightening its delisting rules to kick out poor performers or so-called zombie firms as part of a broader attempt to improve the quality of the stock market. (BBG)
Saudi Arabia’s investment mining fund is set to buy a 10-20% stake in Pakistan’s $9bln Reko Diq project, which will be one of the world’s largest copper mines once complete. (FT)
China’s record coal purchases last year were driven by big increases in supplies from Australia and Mongolia, while Russian cargoes actually fell. (BBG)
Indonesia is considering potential cuts to nickel ore supplies to help boost prices amid a global glut. (FT)
India will permit sugar mills to export up to 1 million tons of the commodity this season, easing restrictions that have curbed shipments for more than a year. (BBG)
Circle CEO said Trump is to soon sign an executive order easing bank ownership of digital assets. (Cointelegraph)

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GEOPOLITICAL:

US President Trump said Ukrainian President Zelensky wants to make a deal and end the war with Russia. (newswires)
Trump said he is not confident in the Gaza ceasefire. (newswires)
Trump said he thinks Denmark will come around to giving Greenland to the US. (newswires)
Trump said he will meet with Russian President Putin but no date has been set yet. (newswires)
Russian President Vladimir Putin says he's ready to talk peace in Ukraine with Trump. (AP)
South Korean prosecutors have arrested a former Samsung engineer and the representative of a China firm on charges of attempting to steal and export ‘national core semiconductor technology’ to China. (Business Korea)

EQUITIES:

Huawei is seeking to grab a larger share of the Chinese market for AI chips dominated by Nvidia, by helping local companies adopt their rival silicon for so-called “inference” tasks. (FT)
Nvidia’s latest high-end gaming GPUs, GeForce RTX 5080 and RTX 5090 are in short supply, with prices in some areas having already doubled; supplies are expected to remain tight until late Q1 or Q2. (UDN)
NVIDIA has filed a patent for a personalized language model that can be applied to in-game NPCs. (@seti_park)
Jefferies has downgraded Apple to Underperform from Hold, citing weak iPhone sales and the general downbeat backdrop in the consumer electronics market. (newswires)
Instagram is offering TikTok creators with big followings cash bonuses for exclusive content as it takes advantage of the turmoil surrounding TikTok. (The Information)
Trump rescinded the Biden administration’s executive order regulating AI, marking a significant shift in federal oversight. The move immediately halts the implementation of safety and transparency requirements for AI developers. (BBG)
Trump took aim at EVs, revoking a 2021 executive order signed by Biden that sought to ensure half of all new vehicles sold in the US by 2030 were electric. (RTRS)
Trump suspended new federal offshore wind leasing pending an environmental and economic review, saying wind mills are ugly, expensive and harm wildlife. (RTRS)
Analysts say the world’s biggest oil companies are expected to suffer a fall in LNG revenues this year as the market volatility that drove big profits in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ebbs. (FT)
Morgan Stanley is raising bonuses for some of its top investment bankers in Asia by as much as 40% this year after a jump in revenue. (BBG)
DigiTimes notes speculation emerging regarding Xiaomi potentially acquiring NIO. (Newsquawk)
Chinese property developers outperformed on Tuesday after Country Garden returned to trading having pledged to clinch a deal with creditors on a debt restructuring plan. (newswires)
Alibaba Cloud has unveiled an expanded suite of LLMs and AI development tools, upgraded infrastructure offerings, and new support programs for global developers at its annual developer summit. (EQS)
TSMC announced post-earthquake structural inspections have been completed at all sites, confirming that the structures are safe and operations are gradually resuming following the earthquake in Taiwan on Monday. (RTRS)
BHP boosted copper production during its fiscal first half as it raced to meet demand for the metal used in key technology ranging from EVs to power grids. (FT)
Bain Capital is in talks to acquire Mitsubishi Chemical Group’s pharmaceutical business in a potential multibillion-dollar deal. (WSJ)
Singapore-based Olam Group is close to announcing a deal to sell the remainder of its stake in its agricultural products business to the state-owned Saudi Agricultural and Livestock Investment Company. (WSJ)