Your Morning Fix

• The US Federal Reserve on Wednesday cut key policy rates by 25 basis points (bps) to 3.75%-4.00%, as markets anticipated, to temper any further weakening of the job market.
• Hong Kong’s de-facto central bank on Thursday lowered its base interest rate by 25 bps to 4.25%, tracking a cut by the US Fed.
• Newly imposed US and EU sanctions targeting Russia and its oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil have yet to disrupt physical crude shipments from the country’s western ports, as October exports from ports of Primorsk, Ust-Luga, and Novorossiisk are seen at about 2.33 million bpd, in line with Russia’s program, according to LSEG data and market sources.
• A 5% limit which Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman proposed on unprogrammed appropriations (UAs) in the government’s proposed budget modernization bill holds the potential to deter budget “insertions”.
• The Department of Agriculture said consultations have wrapped up on planned amendments to the Rice Tariffication Law of 2019, with reforms designed to curb high rice prices while offering farmers a fair return on their harvest.