Happy New Year!
Andrew Sheves Good morning and a Happy New Year from windy Washington, DC. Wishing you a successful, safe and fulfilling 2025.
Just the numbers and regional info today and tomorrow, but the full SITREP will be back on Friday and next week I’ll be sharing the 2025 look-ahead.
Key Metrics
WTI is $70.38 (Down)
Low |— < —————-| High
Wheat is $185.735 (Down)
Low |—— < ————-| High
EuroDollar is $1.04 (Down)
Low | < ——————-| High
YuanDollar is $0.14 (Unchanged)
Low |———- < > ———| High
Graphs are illustrative to show comparative price over last 180 days
Metrics via AlphaVantage updated Jan 01 2025 08:05 UTC
Europe Stability Ratings and News Summary
More Unstable
🇦🇱 Albania, 🇧🇾 Belarus, 🇧🇪 Belgium, 🇧🇦 Bosnia And Herzegovina, 🇪🇪 Estonia, 🇫🇷 France, 🇩🇪 Germany, 🇬🇷 Greece, 🇭🇺 Hungary, 🇮🇪 Ireland, 🇮🇹 Italy, 🇲🇰 Macedonia, 🇲🇩 Moldova, 🇲🇪 Montenegro, 🇳🇱 Netherlands, 🇳🇴 Norway, 🇵🇱 Poland, 🇷🇴 Romania, 🇷🇺 Russia, 🇷🇸 Serbia, 🇪🇸 Spain, 🇸🇪 Sweden, 🇹🇷 Turkey, 🇺🇦 Ukraine, 🇬🇧 United Kingdom
More Stable
No countries were more stable over this period
Unchanged
🇦🇩 Andorra, 🇦🇹 Austria, 🇭🇷 Croatia, 🇨🇾 Cyprus, 🇨🇿 Czech Republic, 🇩🇰 Denmark, 🇫🇮 Finland, 🇮🇸 Iceland, 🇱🇻 Latvia, 🇱🇮 Liechtenstein, 🇱🇹 Lithuania, 🇱🇺 Luxembourg, 🇲🇹 Malta, 🇲🇨 Monaco, 🇵🇹 Portugal, 🇸🇲 San Marino, 🇸🇰 Slovakia, 🇸🇮 Slovenia, 🇨🇭 Switzerland
Regional News Summary
Switzerland’s banking sector is under scrutiny as Novartis faces bribery allegations related to its Multiple Sclerosis treatment, Gilenya. This controversy comes at a time when the Swiss National Bank has opted for a cautious stance in foreign exchange markets, despite a rally in the Swiss franc during the third quarter [SOURCE - Swissinfo].
In the realm of foreign relations, Switzerland’s foreign minister emphasizes the importance of maintaining stable relationships with neighboring countries. The nation has also played a pivotal role in facilitating high-level diplomatic efforts, including peace talks between Ukraine and Russia, with Slovakia confirming its willingness to host these discussions [SOURCE - VOA News].
As Switzerland navigates these challenges, it is also grappling with the balance between climate protection and renewable energy development in the Alps [SOURCE - Swissinfo].
In France, the government is actively engaging in diplomatic efforts concerning Ukraine, despite skepticism from the European Union regarding the deployment of peacekeepers. French Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has revealed that France has offered to conduct secret talks with Russia on the Ukraine issue [SOURCE - RT]. Meanwhile, France has begun its military withdrawal from Chad, handing over its first military base as part of this process [[SOURCE - France 24]](https://www.france24.com/en/africa/20241226-france-hands-over-fir
Carpe tomorrow!