Fed's Paulson said he does not see pressure to accelerate tightening.

A U.S. official said Washington is 'cautiously optimistic' about upcoming Russia-Ukraine peace talks in Abu Dhabi, saying there is an opportunity to make significant progress and that recent weeks have shown some flexibility from both sides on territorial issues. The official warned territorial agreements are unlikely before security guarantees are settled. The U.S. said European allies will play a key role in any post-war security arrangement and wants Russia to agree to include European representatives in the next round of talks after Abu Dhabi.

Guangzhou Housing Provident Fund Management Center issued a notice optimizing withdrawal rules. Account holders may withdraw balances to pay property management fees for owner-occupied housing within Guangzhou; the annual cap is calculated as housing area × 3 yuan/sq m × 12. Each account holder may apply for a property-fee withdrawal once per calendar year; unused entitlement does not roll over. Account holders who have already made other withdrawals may, if eligible, apply for property-fee withdrawal concurrently. Withdrawals from the provident fund for rent have been adjusted to a monthly frequency.