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African stock market | On Thursday (December 12th), the FTSE /JSE Africa Top 40 tradable index closed down 0.18% to 78,341.48 points. The South African rand is currently down 0.58% against the US dollar, reaching a fresh low of 17.8027 rand.Sources: A few ECB policymakers initially hoped to cut interest rates by 50 basis points. Three sources said that several ECB policymakers initially hoped to cut interest rates more sharply on Thursday, and they were worried that the new US tariffs would hinder economic growth. The European Central Bank cut interest rates by 25 basis points on Thursday, and opened the door for more easing policies, as the euro zone economy was dragged down by domestic political instability and the threat of a new round of trade war in the United States. However, due to the low forecast of inflation and economic growth, about five of the 26 members of the official Committee initially advocated a 50 basis point interest rate cut. In particular, they pointed out that if the incoming Trump administration imposes new tariffs on the EU, the growth of economic output next year may be lower than the 1.1% expected by the European Central Bank. A small number of policy makers who called for greater interest rate cuts quickly gave in, adding that given the current uncertainty, people are reluctant to make a hasty decision.Morgan stanley capital international's MSCI Nordic Countries Index fell 0.4% to 381.97. Evolution AB Group, an online gambling operator, fell 3.4%, which was the worst among the constituent stocks.

The overall implementation of the personal pension system is more optimized. After two years of implementation in 36 cities (regions), the personal pension system will be officially launched nationwide on December 15th. On December 12th, Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, Ministry of Finance, State Taxation Administration of The People's Republic of China, State Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau, China Securities Regulatory Commission and other five departments issued the Notice on Full Implementation of Individual Pension System, which made it clear that from December 15th, 2024, all workers who participated in the basic old-age insurance for urban workers or urban and rural residents in China can participate in the individual pension system. China Securities Regulatory Commission said that the promulgation and implementation of the Notice is an important measure to implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the Second and Third Plenary Sessions of the 20th Central Committee and accelerate the development of a multi-level and multi-pillar old-age security system, which is conducive to giving full play to the wealth management function of the capital market and building a sound policy system of "long money and long investment". At the same time, according to the requirements of the Notice, the China Securities Regulatory Commission timely optimized the product supply and included the first batch of 85 equity index funds in the personal pension investment product catalogue. Lou Feipeng, a researcher at China Postal Savings Bank, said that the Notice put forward targeted measures based on the situation encountered in the pilot, enriching the types of personal pension products, increasing the situation of receiving personal pensions in advance and effectively improving the personal pension system on the basis of the previous pilot, which will help attract investors to actively participate in personal pension-related investments. (Securities Daily)Leader of the Houthi Movement: We cooperated with Islamic resistance organizations and conducted joint actions against Israel. The Support Front took action this week against occupied Jaffa, Ashdod and Ashkelon.Russia said that it had established direct contact with the political committee of the Syrian "Sharm el-Liberation Organization". On the 12th local time, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Bogdahn Novo said that Russia had established direct contact with the political committee of the Syrian armed group "Liberation Syria".

Middle East Stock Market | On Thursday (December 12th), the all-share index of Saudi Stock Exchange closed down 0.41% to 12,099.33 points, up 1.40% this week. ARAMCO.AB closed down 0.35% to 28.45 Saudi riyals, up 1.79% this week. Albilad Southern Dongying MSCI Hong Kong China ETF listed in Saudi Arabia closed up 1.03% to 9.78 Saudi riyals, up 3.82% this week.Smith, Governor of Alberta, a major Canadian oil town: We don't agree to cut oil and gas exports to the United States.Leader of the Houthi Movement: We cooperated with Islamic resistance organizations and conducted joint actions against Israel. The Support Front took action this week against occupied Jaffa, Ashdod and Ashkelon.