Weekly news summary for Jan 25 to Jan 31

Friday, Jan 25: Crude Up as US Weighs Sanctions against Venezuela

Oil prices were up on Friday, after news about possible US sanctions against Venezuelan exports boosted the expectations of tighter global supply, but latest US fuel stock data and trade talks weighed on prices.

Brent crude oil futures climbed as high as $61.92 per barrel, although it has lost about 2.4% since Monday, while US West Texas Intermediate traded at $53.34 per barrel.

Monday, Jan 28: China Industrial Profits Drops Again in December

Profits at China’s industrial sector fell for the second straight month in December, adding to signs of further slowdown in the world’s second-biggest economy.

Pressured by weakening domestic demand and US tariffs, earnings of large industrial firms were down 1.9% on year to $100.94 billion last month, the National Bureau of Statistics said on Monday.

Tuesday, Jan 29: US Files Criminal Charges against Huawei and CFO

The odds of reaching a trade deal diminished on Tuesday after the US filed a series of criminal charges against Chinese tech giant Huawei Technologies.

The Justice Department charged Huawei and CFO Meng Wanzhou with attempting to evade US sanctions on Iran by doing business with Iran through a subsidiary that Huawei and Meng has claimed to be a separate company.

Wednesday, Jan 30: Apple’s Services Business Posts Sharp Growth

Apple puts investors’ mind at ease on Wednesday after the company posted growth of $10.8 billion in its services business, sending its stock higher even though iPhone revenue slipped for the first time by 15% to $51.9 billion during the holiday shopping quarter.

Shares of Apple advanced 5.5% to $163.18 in pre-market trade. The stock had plummeted more than 30% since November due to concerns over weak iPhone sales.

Thursday, Jan 31: Asia Equities Hit Four-month Highs on Cautious Fed

Asian equities hit four-month highs on Thursday after the Federal Reserve promised to be patient with further rate increases, suggesting a possible end to its tightening cycle amid signs of a deceleration in global economic expansion.

MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan rose its highest since October 4 and was last up 0.8%, while Japan’s Nikkei added 1% and the Shanghai Composite Index gained 0.3% despite data showing China’s factory activity faltered for the second straight month.