News

Ukrainian President Zelensky: We see no indication that Russia wants to end the war or take any de-escalation measures.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: The amount of diesel supplied by Russia will not have an impact on the global market.

German Interior Minister: The “shadow war” we are witnessing today has objectives far exceeding any situation during the Cold War.

UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs: The UAE strongly condemns the Houthi rebels' continued attacks on King Khalid International Airport in Saudi Arabia.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: We need the United States to put pressure on Russia, not ease sanctions, in order to achieve an energy ceasefire.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: Following our attack on the data centers of the Russian internet portal Yandex, the number of online bots has decreased.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Karas: EU foreign ministers have just approved a new list of nearly 1,600 sanctions against the Russian military-industrial complex.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: The Americans must ensure that Russia respects the energy ceasefire agreement.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: Russia has violated the energy ceasefire agreement announced by US President Trump.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: There was no fire at the Russian oil refinery last night.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: If Russia does the same, Ukraine is prepared to abide by the energy ceasefire agreement.

Ukrainian President Zelensky: If Russia wants us to stop attacking its oil refineries, it must stop attacking our energy infrastructure.

The Hang Seng Index (HSI) closed up 59.85 points, or 0.25%, at 24,271.2 on Monday, October 12. The Hang Seng Tech Index closed down 28.27 points, or 0.67%, at 4,169.57 on Monday, October 12. The Hang Seng China Enterprises Index (HSCEI) closed up 20.7 points, or 0.25%, at 8,168.57 on Monday, October 12. The Hang Seng Red Chip Index (HSC) closed down 4.21 points, or 0.1%, at 4,044.74 on Monday, October 12.

Polish Prime Minister Tusk: I hope to persuade our European partners to increase sanctions against Russia.

S&P 500 futures rose 0.3%, Nasdaq futures rose 0.2%, and Dow Jones futures rose 0.3%.

Barclays raised its price target for Microsoft (MSFT.O) from $512 to $600.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Baghae: Tehran is still reviewing the US position and will respond through intermediaries after the review is complete.

According to Al Jazeera, the Iranian Foreign Ministry stated that security in the Strait of Hormuz cannot be restored if the US blockade and economic war against Iran continue. The US claims regarding the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and Iran's loss of leverage in the strait are inconsistent with the facts.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kalas: Today, we are adding nearly 1,600 new entities to our sanctions list targeting Russia's military-industrial complex. This will be the largest expansion of our sanctions list since Russia launched its military action.

The CFTC has proposed classifying contracts for events such as sports and politics as swaps. This move attempts to challenge federal regulatory authority over prediction markets by redefining the regulatory boundaries of financial derivatives. The agency is seeking public comment on proposed rules to include certain event contracts in the definition of "swaps." These proposals still require publication in the Federal Register and public comment, and are not yet final rules. Simultaneously, the CFTC issued a provisional final rule explicitly excluding traditional gambling products such as sports betting and casino games from the definition of swaps. Both documents reflect a regulatory approach: bringing eligible prediction market contracts under federal derivatives regulation while keeping traditional gambling within the state-level regulatory system. However, the decisive factor remains at the judicial level. The U.S. federal appeals courts are divided over whether sports event contracts on platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket constitute financial derivatives and whether state betting laws remain applicable. The Third Circuit court supported including these contracts within the federal regulatory framework, while the Sixth Circuit ruled that Kalshi's sports contracts do not fall under the definition of swaps in the Commodity Exchange Act, and state betting laws remain in effect. Other circuit court rulings have further exacerbated legal uncertainty. The National Football League (NFL) has supported pushing the Supreme Court to intervene and clarify the regulatory authority between the federal and state governments. The core of this struggle lies in who will ultimately set the rules and bear the regulatory responsibility for the multi-billion dollar emerging trading market. The CFTC's proposal essentially strengthens its jurisdiction over the prediction market through rule interpretation, but whether it can override state betting regulations depends on public comment, the final rule-making process, and subsequent judicial rulings.