◆ The New York stock market rises amid expectations and border crossings
The major indexes rebounded this week ahead of the release of the consumer price index (CPI) and the regular meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC). As of 12 local time, the Dow Jones index was up 1.58% from the battlefield to 34,005.04, the S&P 500 index was up 1.43% to 3990.56, and the Nasdaq index was rose 1.26% to 11,143.74. As inflation expectations ease, optimism about CPI improvement is emerging and the US Central Bank (Federal Reserve System, Fed) is also expected to cut interest rate hikes by 0.75 percentage point to 0 .50 percentage points. Experts assessed that “the stock market’s rise on this day was a reflexive rebound after last week’s market crash.”
◆ China Filed a WTO Complaint Over US “Semiconductor Export Controls”
China has filed a lawsuit in the World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute settlement process over US controls on semiconductor exports. China’s Commerce Ministry stressed in a statement at 12 local time that “the WTO complaint is intended to address concerns in a legal manner and is a necessary means to protect China’s legitimate rights and interests.” Previously, the United States effectively banned US companies from exporting high-performance semiconductor equipment to Chinese companies, for example by requesting permission to export certain semiconductor chips used in artificial intelligence (AI) learning semiconductors and Chinese supercomputers.
◆ “Trade deficit for the first time in 14 years” this year…largest ever
The record for the largest trade deficit on record this year is set. It has already more than doubled its previous largest deficit in 1996 ($20.624 billion) and, according to December results, the possibility of an annual deficit of $50 billion emerges. The same annual trade deficit is also the first in 14 years since 2008, during the global financial crisis. Earlier this year, international commodity prices rose in the aftermath of the Russia-Ukraine war, and semiconductors, a major export item, were slow. The trade deficit is expected to continue next year due to the contraction in demand caused by high interest rates and the consequences of the export slowdown.
◆ BTS member Jin joins the military today
Jin, a member of the world-class group BTS, will enlist on active duty today (the 13th) at the Army Front Division Recruit Training Center. Born in 1992, Jin, the oldest of the members, joined the military, and for the time being, BTS had a hiatus due to the members serving in the military. Fans are expected to flock to him as he is the first member of BTS to enlist. The agency said, “There is no separate official event on boot camp enlistment day. To prevent security incidents due to site congestion, fans are advised to refrain from visiting the site.
◆ Snow and rain everywhere on the way to work… Even fine dust is “the worst”
Today, Tuesday, it will be mostly cloudy across the country, with snow or rain falling in many places during peak hours. In the morning, snow or rain was expected in every area in the morning and afternoon, including Seoul, Incheon, South Gyeonggi, inland South Gangwon, and North Chungcheong. The expected snowfall is 1 to 5 cm in Seoul and 2 to 8 cm in some areas. The concentration of fine powder is not good due to the yellow powder. The metropolitan area, Gangwon area, Chungcheong area, Honam area, Gyeongbuk area and Jeju area are at the “very bad” level, and Busan, Daegu, Ulsan and Gyeongnam are at the “bad” level, but are temporarily scheduled to be “very bad” in the afternoon. Daytime highs range from 1 to 11 degrees.
Reporter Kim Bong-gu, Hankyung.com [email protected]
