Weekend News Round Up - Newsquawk Asia-Pac Market Open

• US stocks rallied on Friday as post-Powell shorts covered into the weekend despite an extension of Thursday's hawkish Fed pricing shift seen in treasuries, while the advances were driven by the mega-cap names with outperformance in the Nasdaq 100 as the likes of Microsoft hit all-time highs.
• US House Speaker Johnson unveiled a GOP stopgap funding bill which includes January and February end dates, while the White House said Republicans are wasting time on an un-serious proposal for a two-step stopgap measure.
• Looking ahead, highlights include Japanese PPI, Speech from RBA's Kohler, Holiday Closures in Singapore & Malaysia.

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LOOKING AHEAD

• Highlights include Japanese PPI, Speech from RBA's Kohler, Holiday Closures in Singapore & Malaysia.
• Click here for the Newsquawk Week Ahead.

US TRADE

• US stocks rallied on Friday as post-Powell shorts covered into the weekend despite an extension of Thursday's hawkish Fed pricing shift seen in treasuries, while the advances were driven by the mega-cap names with outperformance in the Nasdaq 100 as the likes of Microsoft hit all-time highs.
• SPX +1.53% at 4,414, NDX +2.25% at 15,529, DJI +1.15% at 34,283, RUT +0.98% at 1,704.
• Click here for a detailed summary.

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• US House Speaker Johnson unveiled a GOP stopgap funding bill which includes January and February end dates, while the White House said Republicans are wasting time on an un-serious proposal for a two-step stopgap measure.
• Moody’s affirmed US at AAA; Outlook Cut to Negative from Stable on Friday.

COMMODITIES

• Iraq's Oil Minister Abdel-Ghani said on Sunday that he expects to reach an agreement with the Kurdistan Regional Government and foreign oil companies to resume oil production from the Kurdish region’s oilfields within three days.
• Iraq and ExxonMobil (XOM) signed a settlement agreement allowing PetroChina (857 HK) to become a lead contractor at the West Qurna 1 oil field.
• Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company said there was a sudden interruption of fuel supplies at Kuwait’s Al Zour Refinery due to a defect in one of the main valves which almost halted production operations, according to state media.

GEOPOLITICAL

MIDDLE EAST

• Staff at the Al-Shifa Hospital which is the largest in Gaza said patients and refugees were trapped in horrific conditions amid heavy fighting in nearby streets and it was also reported that the hospital had run out of water, food and electricity. Furthermore, WHO’s Tedros said they managed to get in contact with staff at the hospital and that it is no longer functioning as a hospital, according to BBC and Reuters.
• Israel PM Netanyahu said they offered Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital fuel but Hamas refused to receive it, according to an interview with NBC. It was also reported that Hamas suspended hostage negotiations over Israeli forces’ handling of Al-Shifa Hospital and denied refusing any amount of fuel from Israel, while it added that Israel’s offer to provide 300 litres belittles the sick and wounded and is enough to last for 30 minutes.
• Israel’s military said Hamas lost control of northern Gaza and residents have evacuated to the south despite Hamas instructions. Furthermore, the Israeli military said that civilians were wounded by an anti-tank missile near the Lebanon border and it retaliated with artillery fire, while Israel warned it was poised to impose quiet on the Lebanese front after hostilities increased on Sunday, according to Reuters.
• Palestinian President Abbas said that their people are facing a genocidal war and that they call on the US to stop the Israeli aggression against Gaza, while he added that they want international protection.
• US President Biden and Qatar’s Emir Al-Thani engaged in discussions to boost aid to Gaza. It was also reported that US Secretary of State Blinken and Qatar’s PM discussed efforts to evacuate the critically wounded and urgently increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza, as well as discussed efforts to ensure the safe passage of foreign nationals out of Gaza and immediate return of hostages during a phone call on Saturday, according to Reuters citing a State Department spokesperson.
• White House National Security Adviser Sullivan said the US does not want to see firefights in hospitals and that the US is involved in negotiations between Israel and Qatar over hostages. Sullivan also stated that President Biden is determined to see a re-establishment of military-to-military ties with China and the question of Iran’s nuclear program and the threat it poses will be on the agenda meeting with Chinese President Xi.
• EU’s top diplomat Borrell called for immediate humanitarian pauses in Gaza and the establishment of humanitarian corridors. Borrell also stated that they call on Hamas to immediately and unconditionally release all hostages, while they condemn the use of hospitals and civilians as human shields by Hamas.
• Egyptian President Sisi called for an immediate sustainable ceasefire in Gaza without restrictions or conditions. It was separately reported that Egyptian security sources said the first group of Gaza evacuees crossed the Rafah border following the reopening of Sunday.
• Iranian President Raisi said the Gaza siege should end immediately and called on Islamic countries to impose oil and goods sanctions on Israel, while he added that there is no other way but to resist Israel and that they kiss the hands of Hamas for its resistance against Israel.
• Syrian President Assad urged a halt to any political process with Israel.
• US Air Force conducted two airstrikes against Iranian proxy targets in eastern Syria, according to Fox News.
• Iraq’s Harir Airbase hosting US and international forces was targeted by an armed drone which caused damage to infrastructure.

OTHER

• German Chancellor Scholz’s government agreed to double military assistance to Ukraine for next year to EUR 8bln.
• Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said the EU isn’t hiding its intentions to push Russia out of Central Asia and that these attempts are futile, while he added that Russia has been historically present there and is not going to disappear from there, according to AFP.
• US, Japan and South Korean defence officials assessed growing nuclear and missile threats from North Korea at a meeting on Sunday, according to a US Defense Department statement. It was separately reported that North Korea criticised the UN Command meeting scheduled in South Korea as confrontational for the region and it called for the UN Command to be dissolved which it called an illegal war organisation, according to KCNA.

ASIA-PAC

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• Chinese officials met with US Treasury Secretary Yellen in the past week and raised concerns about investment restrictions, while China and the US agreed to avoid escalation of frictions.
• US and Indonesia are to discuss the potential for a deal on electric vehicle minerals with Indonesia President Widodo to meet US President Biden at the White House on Monday, according to sources cited by Reuters.

EU/UK

NOTABLE HEADLINES

• ECB’s Centeno is facing an ethics review by an independent watchdog following a failed proposal by Portugal's outgoing PM Costa for Centeno to replace him instead of holding new elections, according to FT.
• Fitch affirmed Italy at BBB; Outlook Stable and affirmed Poland at A-; Outlook Stable on Friday.