Spot gold fell more than 1% intraday, trading at $4,062.35/oz.

The State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE) issued a Notice on Further Improving FX Management of Domestic Foreign‑Currency Loans. Key points: first, tighten account management—domestic foreign‑currency loans will use dedicated accounts; eligible loans backed by goods or services export may be credited directly to current‑account FX settlement accounts. Second, simplify FX settlement and purchase—SAFE will manage settlement of domestic foreign‑currency loans by transaction background under a principle of actual need and convenience, cancel related administrative approvals, and allow borrowers with supporting authenticity documents to go directly to banks to purchase FX to repay domestic foreign‑currency loans. Third, strengthen ongoing and post‑transaction supervision—SAFE sets out specific processing and data‑reporting requirements and will increase statistical monitoring and inspections to guard against related risks.

Despite broader regional gains, Singapore fell: the benchmark FTSE Straits Times Index dropped 0.8% to 5,629.40. RHB Research analyst Shekhar Jaiswal said the decline appears driven by profit-taking and sector rotation within Singapore, and the STI’s heavy weightings in banks, telecoms, property and industrials mean it may lag on days when regional rallies are led by tech and growth stocks.