European Central Bank President Lagarde: Domestic inflation remains high. Inflation will fluctuate around the current level in the short term. Domestic inflation reflects the influence of wage pressure and service industry.Government statement: British Prime Minister Stamer will attend the informal meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on February 3rd.Iraqi security forces destroyed eight extremist strongholds in northern Iraq. On December 12, local time, the Iraqi Joint Operations Command issued a statement saying that Iraqi security forces are continuing to track and crack down on members of the extremist organization "Islamic State" in the country. Recently, in the hamlin Mountains in Kirkuk province, Iraqi security forces destroyed eight extremist strongholds, including personnel hiding places and weapons storage facilities. (CCTV News)
French Foreign Ministry spokesman: It is too early to discuss lifting EU sanctions against Syria.According to HKEx documents, iFLYTEK Medical Technology Co., Ltd. passed the listing hearing of HKEx.Australia plans to force technology giants to pay for news content. The Australian government announced a new tax plan on the 12th, which will force technology giants to pay for news content to Australian media companies, otherwise they will face the risk of being charged higher taxes. According to the Australian government's plan, all digital platforms with an annual income of more than A $250 million (about US$ 160 million) in Australia must reach a commercial agreement with Australian media organizations on the use of news content, otherwise they will face the risk of being charged higher taxes. (Xinhua News Agency)
The Prime Minister of Qatar and the Iranian Foreign Minister discussed the situation in Syria by telephone. On December 12, local time, the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of Qatar Mohammed and the Iranian Foreign Minister Alagh made a phone call, focusing on the situation in Syria. The two sides stressed that the international community must take action to prevent Israel from continuing to attack Syria's infrastructure and occupy Syrian territory. The two sides also expressed their willingness to help Syria achieve stability and establish an inclusive political system in line with the wishes of the Syrian people. (CCTV News)Spot gold fell 1% to $2,690.81. COMEX silver futures fell 1.5% in the day to $32.47 per ounce.The European Central Bank predicts that inflation will decline in 2025, and the European Central Bank currently predicts that inflation will cool down slightly faster than predicted in September. The bank's latest forecast shows that the average inflation rate in 2024 and 2025 is 2.4% and 2.1% respectively, while the previous forecast is 2.5% and 2.2% respectively. After cutting interest rates by 25 basis points, the European Central Bank said in a statement: "The anti-inflation process is on the right track." The bank said: "Domestic inflation has declined slightly, but it is still at a high level, mainly because wages and prices in some industries are still adapting to the past inflation surge, but there is a great delay." The European Central Bank maintains its inflation forecast of 1.9% in 2026, and predicts that the average inflation rate in 2027 will be 2.1%.