Aug. 16 — The Iranian parliament approved an anti-infiltration bill to counter penetration by foreign intelligence services, governments and organizations. Hassan Kashkavi, spokesman for the parliamentary National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said existing laws cover espionage but left a legal gap on anti-infiltration measures; the new law is intended to close that gap.

百度(09888.HK)將於週二公佈第二季度業績。根據FactSet對11位分析師的調查，百度第二季度淨利潤預計爲28.2億元人民幣，較去年同期的73.2億元人民幣大幅下降；第二季度營收預計爲313.4億元人民幣，低於去年同期的327.1億元人民幣。惠譽指出，新興的AI搜索以及各類聊天機器人競爭可能對百度搜索業務的變現能力構成壓力，百度盈利能力下降反映出其傳統業務走弱，以及非營銷業務利潤率相對較低。花旗預計，百度第二季度核心業務營收將同比下降3.6%，其中廣告收入將同比下降20%，與此同時，百度AI雲基礎設施業務營收將同比增長60%。

The biggest uncertainty for gold remains Fed monetary policy. The current rally is premised on a weaker US economy and the end of the rate-hiking cycle, but inf remains uncertain. If inf rebounds above expectations, the Fed would likely sustain higher rates, US Treasury yields would rise and the case for gold could reverse, risking a rapid pullback. Near-term rapid gains have created significant profit-taking and technical overbought risk, raising the chance of a correction. Speculative offshore flows are trading policy moves quickly, amplifying short-term volatility, while central banks continue to buy dips as a long-term strategy. The clash between fast speculative flows and steady central-bank demand makes a sustained one-way move unlikely; expect high-level choppy trading with a gradually higher base. Retail investors should not blindly chase highs and should size exposure to risk tolerance with a long-term allocation perspective.