Market

Falling coal prices are shifting the profitability of China’s chemicals sector, away from traditional oil-based producers to the growing number of plants that use the solid fuel as their feedstock. China’s biggest coal-to-chemicals producer, Ningxia Baofeng Energy Group Co., saw first-half profits surge 73%, while top miner China Shenhua Energy Co. reported a near 20-fold increase at its Inner Mongolia chemicals facility. Meanwhile, oil refining giant Sinopec lost 4.5 billion yuan ($630 million) at its chemicals unit over the first six months of the year, even worse than the 3.6 billion yuan it shed in the same period in 2024. The diverging fortunes of the old and new guard are reflected in their outlooks, as overproduction of lower-value, bulk chemicals slashes prices and margi...

Asian share markets rose on Monday as investors gave a cautious welcome to the likely resumption of U.S. interest rate cuts, while hoping AI-superstar Nvidia's results this week will help justify the sector's stratospheric valuations.Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell's dovish change of course has seen futures price in an 84% chance of a quarter-point rate cut in September, and at least 100 basis points of easing to 3.25-3.5% by the middle of next year. The shift shoved Treasury yields and the dollar lower, flattering the outlook for corporate earnings, though it also implies policymakers now see more danger of a downturn in employment and the economy."The news reinforces our view that the Fed will ease in response to softening labor demand and that risk to our forecast for a mate...