{"id":58623,"date":"2026-02-16T23:08:29","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T03:08:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-trump-signals-iran-deal-hopes-while-china-corporate-bonuses-slump\/58623\/"},"modified":"2026-02-16T23:08:29","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T03:08:29","slug":"global-markets-trump-signals-iran-deal-hopes-while-china-corporate-bonuses-slump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-trump-signals-iran-deal-hopes-while-china-corporate-bonuses-slump\/58623\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Markets: Trump Signals Iran Deal Hopes While China Corporate Bonuses Slump"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>President Trump predicts a new Iran nuclear deal within a month<\/strong> but warns of &quot;traumatic&quot; consequences and a &quot;phase two&quot; escalation if negotiations in Geneva fail.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Chinese corporations are significantly slashing year-end bonuses<\/strong> as narrowing profit margins and economic headwinds force widespread cost-cutting across the private sector.<\/li>\n<li><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/metal\/gold\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"4\" title=\"gold price today\">Gold prices<\/a> have retreated below the $5,000 per ounce mark<\/strong>, driven by thin liquidity as Chinese markets remain closed for the Lunar New Year holiday.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The US Dollar is maintaining a dominant position in forex markets<\/strong>, pushing the Pound Sterling (<a href=\"\/stock\/GBPUSD\">GBP\/USD<\/a>) toward the <strong>1.3600<\/strong> support level ahead of critical UK labor data.<\/li>\n<li><strong>European regulators are facing renewed pressure to include long-haul flights<\/strong> in the Emissions Trading System (ETS) to address the aviation industry&#39;s growing climate footprint.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Trump Issues Ultimatum Ahead of Geneva Nuclear Talks<\/h2>\n<p>President Donald Trump has signaled optimism regarding a potential nuclear agreement with Tehran, predicting a deal could be reached <strong>within the next month<\/strong>. Speaking aboard Air Force One, Trump confirmed he would be &quot;indirectly&quot; involved in the talks set to resume this Tuesday in Geneva.<\/p>\n<p>However, the President coupled his prediction with a stern warning, stating that failure to reach an accord would lead to &quot;very traumatic&quot; consequences for Iran. This &quot;phase two&quot; escalation reportedly includes the potential deployment of a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East and follows previous military strikes on Iranian facilities.<\/p>\n<h2>China Corporate Austerity Hits Employee Bonuses<\/h2>\n<p>The traditional &quot;bonus season&quot; in China has taken a somber turn as companies grapple with squeezed profit margins and overcapacity. A recent market report indicates that <strong>26% of white-collar workers<\/strong> expect to receive no year-end bonus for 2025, a sharp departure from the lavish payouts seen during previous tech booms.<\/p>\n<p>While most sectors are tightening belts, high-growth exceptions remain. E-commerce giant JD.com (<a href=\"\/stock\/JD\">JD<\/a>) reportedly increased its bonus pool by <strong>70%<\/strong>, and tech firms like ByteDance and battery maker CATL (300750.SZ) continue to offer competitive incentives to retain top-tier talent.<\/p>\n<h2>Forex and Commodities: USD Strength Weighs on Gold and Majors<\/h2>\n<p>The US Dollar is trading with a firm bias, keeping major currency pairs under pressure. The Pound Sterling is eyeing the <strong>1.3600<\/strong> handle as traders await UK wage growth and claimant count data, which will likely dictate the Bank of England&#39;s next move. Similarly, the EUR\/USD pair remains subdued below <strong>1.1850<\/strong>, with technical indicators suggesting limited immediate upside.<\/p>\n<p>In the commodities space, spot gold fell over <strong>1% to approximately $4,988 per ounce<\/strong>. Trading volumes for the SPDR Gold Shares (<a href=\"\/stock\/GLD\">GLD<\/a>) and spot markets have been significantly hampered by the week-long closure of Chinese exchanges for the Lunar New Year, alongside the recent Presidents&#39; Day holiday in the United States.<\/p>\n<h2>Brussels Targeted Over Long-Haul Aviation Emissions<\/h2>\n<p>Environmental advocates and low-cost carriers are ramping up pressure on Brussels to reform the EU&#39;s aviation climate policy. Currently, long-haul flights\u2014which account for over <strong>50% of European aviation emissions<\/strong>\u2014are largely exempt from the most stringent carbon costs under the Emissions Trading System (ETS).<\/p>\n<p>Airlines like Ryanair (<a href=\"\/stock\/RYA\">RYA<\/a>) and EasyJet (<a href=\"\/stock\/EZJ\">EZJ<\/a>) argue that the current exemption unfairly penalizes short-haul operators. Meanwhile, legacy carriers such as Air France-KLM (<a href=\"\/stock\/AF\">AF<\/a>) and Deutsche Lufthansa (<a href=\"\/stock\/LHA\">LHA<\/a>) are expanding &quot;Green Fares&quot; and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) initiatives to mitigate their environmental impact ahead of potential regulatory shifts in 2026.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways President Trump predicts a new Iran nuclear deal within a month but warns of &quot;traumatic&quot; consequences and a [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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