Lebanese presidential office said President Aoun instructed the negotiation delegation to uphold Lebanon’s position: secure a permanent ceasefire, Israeli withdrawal and deployment of the Lebanese army to the international border.

China A-share power sector slid further in afternoon trade; Shennan Electric A hit the daily limit down, with Xichang Electric Power, Guangdong Electric Power A, Henan Yuneng Holdings, Huadian Liaoning, Guiguan Power and Jinkong Power also falling.

Fed officials signaled on Wednesday they may need to raise rates soon rather than cut, a sharp pivot amid rapidly rising inflation. Evercore ISI analyst Krishnan Guha said falling energy prices could ease inflation in coming months, but warned the rate outlook has decoupled from oil and the key uncertainty is whether underlying inflation will cool enough to avert eventual hikes. Guha flagged two additional upward pressures beyond energy: ongoing tariff pass-through and cost spillovers from a surge in AI infrastructure investment. Claudia Sahm, chief economist at New Century Advisors and a former Fed economist, said she does not yet see the usual triggers that would prompt a Fed response to supply-driven inflation — an overheated labor market or unanchored inflation expectations — but conceded the case for action is accumulating and that the Fed should be prepared to raise rates if conditions worsen. She added the Fed could move faster than it did during the pandemic inflation spike because the debate is already underway.