Federal Reserve Governor Waller: Despite robust economic growth, the labor market remains weak.

At the opening of the morning session, most domestic futures contracts rose, with synthetic rubber up over 4%, coking coal and silver up nearly 4%, coke and fuel oil up over 3%, SC crude oil, PX, PTA, and benzene up nearly 3%, and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) up over 2%. On the downside, cast aluminum alloys fell nearly 3%, and aluminum and tin fell over 2%.

Energy: 1. Reliance Industries of India plans to resume some Russian oil imports, potentially reducing purchases to 150,000 barrels per day. 2. Nigeria launches a power debt repayment plan aimed at resolving a decade-long power supply crisis. 3. Total Energy CEO: Significant growth in activity at Mozambique LNG projects is expected in the coming months. 4. Indian Steel Minister: The National Mineral Development Corporation (NMDC) is actively exploring Canadian coal resources to enhance India's steel manufacturing capacity. 5. An explosion occurred at the Tuprash Izmit oil refinery in Kocaeli province, northwestern Turkey. 6. Trump stated that Putin agreed to a one-week ceasefire in parts of Ukraine. Zelensky: The ceasefire agreed upon regarding energy facilities will begin on the night of the 29th. 7. Venezuela approves oil and gas policy reforms; the US issues operating licenses. 8. The White House: The easing of sanctions on Venezuela only applies to downstream, not upstream, oil production. More announcements regarding the easing of sanctions on Venezuela will be released. 9. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry: Japan's crude oil imports in December increased by 17.7% year-on-year, gasoline sales increased by 2.4% year-on-year, and refined oil product sales increased by 2.3% year-on-year. Metals/Mining 1. The London Metal Exchange (LME) initially delayed its opening due to technical reasons but later resumed trading. 2. Sources and government documents indicate that India is finalizing plans to provide incentives to lithium and nickel processing plants. 3. West African gold producer Endeavour Mining returned a record $435 million to shareholders in 2025 amid strong gold price increases. 4. LME deliverable aluminum inventories saw their largest decline since September last year. 5. A Reuters survey predicts a 238,500-ton supply deficit in the copper market in 2026 and a deficit of 116,000 tons in 2027. 6. US Rare Earth (USAR.O) announced the completion of a $1.5 billion private placement (PIPE) financing. 7. The CME Group raised margin requirements for gold, copper, and some aluminum futures. 8. The Japan Exchange website shows that the Osaka Exchange activated a circuit breaker mechanism for platinum futures, temporarily suspending trading. 9. Kazakhstan's gold reserves increased to 10.96 million ounces (approximately 340.89 tons) in December. 10. UBS maintained its bullish stance and raised its gold price targets for March, June, and September 2026 to $6,200/ounce (previously $5,000/ounce), expecting a moderate decline to $5,900/ounce by the end of 2026.