12th February 2026

MACRO

US: House Rebukes Trump Tariffs, Passes Voter Registration Bill

The GOP-led House passed a resolution to roll back Trump’s tariffs on Canada, with six Republicans joining Democrats to rebuke the administration’s signature economic policy. If it passes the Senate (where it needs only a simple majority), it would move to Trump who would almost certainly veto it.

The House also passed legislation significantly tightening federal voter registration requirements, advancing a GOP election priority over heated Democratic objections. Trump lashed out at a Republican governor organising a coming White House meeting with state leaders.

(Wall Street Journal)

Japan: Wholesale Inflation Slows, BOJ Could Hike in March

Annual wholesale inflation slowed for a second consecutive month in January, but yen-based import costs rose, highlighting the weak yen’s impact on prices and policy. Analysts expect wholesale price growth to moderate on fuel subsidies, though yen fluctuations may offset that.

The BOJ could raise rates as early as March and deliver up to three hikes this year given persistent inflation and yen weakness, Mizuho’s markets chief told Reuters. On bond yields: “In an era of 3-4% nominal growth, a 10-year yield in the 2% range isn’t surprising. It could rise further.”

(Reuters)

China: New AI Models Coming, Auto Price War Crackdown

DeepSeek, Alibaba and ByteDance are set to release new AI models around China’s Spring Festival holiday, echoing DeepSeek’s playbook from a year ago.

China’s market watchdog released guidelines for the auto industry aimed at regulating pricing behaviour, curbing price wars and preventing unfair competition. A Chinese metals industry body will hold a policy briefing next month on rare earth and critical minerals exports as Beijing tightens controls on strategic materials.

(Reuters)

Europe: Leaders Seek “Big Bang” Moment

EU leaders are due to hold frank discussions in a Belgian castle on how to ensure the bloc isn’t left trailing the US and China economically or squeezed by tariffs and export curbs. The European Council president called for a “big bang” moment where capitals set aside national interests and tackle regulatory inertia.

(Reuters, Financial Times)

UK: Economy Barely Grew in Q4, Blockchain Gilt Pilot Coming

Britain’s economy barely grew in late 2025, faring worse than initially estimated during the run-up to Reeves’ budget. Manufacturing drove what growth there was, services were flat, and construction contracted 2.1%. December did show a notable services uptick.

Britain has moved closer to becoming the first G7 country to issue a sovereign bond on the blockchain, after the Treasury appointed a bank and law firm to handle a digital gilt pilot this year.

(Reuters, Bloomberg, Financial Times)

GEOPOLITICAL

US-Iran: Turkey Warns Against Expanding Talks

Turkey’s top diplomat said both the US and Iran appeared ready to compromise on a nuclear deal, but warned that broadening talks to cover Tehran’s ballistic missiles would risk “nothing but another war.”

Israel has joined Trump’s “Board of Peace” initiative, Netanyahu said during his Washington visit where he met Trump and Secretary of State Rubio.

(Financial Times, Reuters)

Russia-Ukraine: Strikes Continue, Oil Industry Squeezed

Russia pounded Ukraine with drones and ballistic missiles overnight, targeting energy systems and injuring at least seven people in Kyiv, Dnipro and Odesa.

Millions of barrels of Russian oil are afloat waiting for buyers at record price discounts - a sign of Moscow’s growing difficulties selling oil. Tens of thousands of cars are being exported from China to Russia under grey-market schemes circumventing sanctions. Russia blocked Meta’s WhatsApp messaging service.

(Reuters, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times)

Venezuela & Regional Developments

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright met with Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez to discuss transforming the oil industry and a transition to democracy.

The Netherlands should “create favourable conditions” for settling internal disputes regarding chipmaker Nexperia as soon as possible, China’s foreign ministry said. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un appears to be consolidating his daughter’s position as successor, with signs she is providing input on policy matters.

(Wall Street Journal, Reuters)

EQUITIES

AI & Tech

SoftBank logged a net profit of ¥248.6 billion ($1.62 billion) in Q4, boosted by rising OpenAI valuations. Shares rose 5%. Musk announced a reorganisation of xAI just days after merging the AI startup with SpaceX.

AppLovin fell 6% despite a strong quarter and above-forecast guidance, as management attempted to downplay AI threats to its advertising platform. HubSpot rose 3.7% after Q4 beats and stronger-than-expected full-year guidance, though some analysts said investors hoped for more.

Apple was warned by the FTC not to stifle conservative content on its Apple News platform. Chinese consumers are snapping up Apple’s new iPhones, with a “Hermès orange” premium model going viral and helping reverse a lengthy sales decline.

Chinese AI stocks rose after Premier Li Qiang called for a comprehensive push in technological innovation. Robotaxi company WeRide wants to at least double its fleet this year as AI slashes costs.

(Reuters, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Bloomberg)

Semiconductors & Memory

Cisco fell 8% - the company is getting more AI business, but high memory costs are pressuring margins despite strong sales. Full-year revenue and EPS guidance beat forecasts.

Lenovo warned of mounting pressure on PC shipments as a worsening memory chip shortage grips the industry.

(Wall Street Journal, Reuters)

Data Centres & Industrials

Siemens surged 6% after saying data centre demand exceeded expectations, with sales up more than a third in Q1. “We’re confident we’ll maintain this pace throughout fiscal 2026.”

Thyssenkrupp unveiled €401 million in expenses to fund job cuts at its steel division as talks continue with India’s Jindal Steel over a sale of the business.

(Reuters, Wall Street Journal)

Asset Management

US asset manager Nuveen has agreed to buy British firm Schroders for £9.9 billion ($13.5 billion), creating a group with combined AUM of nearly $2.5 trillion. Schroders shares jumped 30%.

(Reuters)

Autos

Mercedes-Benz fell 4.6% after guiding revenue beneath expectations, though it said earnings should significantly improve this year on new model launches and competitiveness efforts.

(Wall Street Journal)

Consumer & Healthcare

McDonald’s said its multiyear quest for affordability is working. Q4 beat on EPS ($3.12 vs $3.04), revenue ($7.01bn vs $6.83bn) and comps (+5.7% vs +3.76%), though Q1 sales are expected to decelerate.

Unilever’s Q4 underlying sales beat expectations on strong demand for Dove and Vaseline, though it warned slowing markets could hurt growth this year. Sanofi appointed Belén Garijo as new CEO after deciding not to renew Paul Hudson’s mandate.

AB InBev said it’s confident of continued earnings growth after beer sales volumes fell less than expected. South32 doesn’t expect to supply critical minerals to Trump’s proposed $12 billion stockpile.

(Wall Street Journal, Reuters)

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