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The U.K. inflation rate rose to 3.4% in December, above forecasts of 3.3% from economists polled by Reuters, CNBC reported. The inflation rate had cooled sharply to 3.2% in the 12 months of November, with the data encouraging the Bank of England to cut interest rates at its final meeting of the year last month. Core inflation, excluding energy, food, alcohol and tobacco, stood at 3.2% in December, unchanged from November, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics.
Orbex’s Danish subsidiary, Orbital Express Launch ApS, is set to file for bankruptcy, with its facilities officially closing on 20 January and approximately 90 employees losing their jobs, European Spaceflight reported. U.K.-based Orbital Express Launch (Orbex) established its business in Denmark in October 2016. According to the company, its Copenhagen-based business carried out work in propulsion, testing, software, avionics and business services.
The Central Bank (CBI) of Iran bought $507 million of Tether's USDT stablecoin with the primary purpose of manipulating foreign exchange markets and bolstering the value of the rial, which recently traded at 1.4 million for one U.S. dollar, according to blockchain analytics firm Elliptic, CoinDesk reported. Elliptic said it uncovered the purchases through two leaked documents that allowed researchers to map out the central bank’s wallet infrastructure, "revealing a systematic accumulation of USDT totaling at least half a billion dollars,” a report by Tom Robinson said.
Air Antilles, a regional French airline serving the Caribbean islands, has officially filed for bankruptcy protection (cessation de paiements) at the Pointe‑à‑Pitre mixed commercial court in Guadeloupe, after failing to meet financial obligations, Aeromorning reported. In an internal letter to employees dated Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, Louis Mussington, Chairman of Air Antilles’ board of directors (and President of the Territorial Authority of Saint‑Martin), announced the filing of the cessation de paiements declaration.
The Ångermanland District Court has approved Cinis Fertilizer AB’s previously submitted bankruptcy application, placing both the parent company and its subsidiary Cinis Sweden AB into bankruptcy proceedings and appointing lawyer Johan Klåvus of Trägårdh Advokatbyrå in Malmö as bankruptcy administrator, TipRanks reported.
Global markets shifted abruptly into a defensive posture this week, with U.S. equities dropping over 2% amid a dual shock of fiscal instability in Japan and renewed trade war tensions between the U.S. and Europe, according to a market commentary published by QCP on Wednesday, Blockspace reported. Bitcoin has fallen below $90,000, failing to hold its recent reclamation of the $97,000 level as the cryptocurrency struggles to find footing.
Japan’s government bond market jolted global finance this week after yields jumped fast, forcing officials to step in, 99Bitcoins reported. U.S. Treasuries wobbled in response, while Bitcoin hovered near recent ranges as traders paused. This fits a bigger macro story where bond stress, central banks and risk assets keep colliding. For crypto beginners, this sounds distant. It isn’t. Bond markets sit under everything, including Bitcoin. Japanese government bonds are IOUs backed by the world’s third-largest economy. When investors sell them hard, yields rise.
Japan's manufacturing activity expanded in January for the first time in seven months, buoyed by the biggest rise in new export orders in more than four years, a private-sector survey showed, Reuters reported. The S&P Global flash Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) increased to 51.5 in January from December's final reading of 50.0, marking a return to expansionary territory for the first time since June 2025. Readings above 50.0 indicate growth in activity, while those below point to a contraction.
Japan's exports rose for a fourth straight month in December, government data showed on Thursday, as slower shipments to the U.S. were offset by strong demand elsewhere as well as by a boost to sales from the yen's decline, Reuters reported. Total exports by value rose 5.1% year-on-year in, data showed, less than a median market forecast for a 6.1% increase and after a 6.1% rise in November. Exports to the U.S. fell 11.1% in December from a year earlier, while those to China were up 5.6%, the data showed.
The Bank of Japan (BoJ) is expected to leave its benchmark interest rate unchanged at 0.75% after concluding its two-day monetary policy meeting on Friday, FXStreet reported. The central bank raised rates to a three-decade high in December. A pause now would allow policymakers to assess the economic impact of that move before tightening further. BoJ Governor Kazuo Ueda is expected to reaffirm the bank’s commitment to gradual policy normalization. Investors will closely scrutinize his press conference for clues on the timing and pace of future rate hikes.