{"id":74049,"date":"2026-11-03T00:38:16","date_gmt":"2026-11-03T04:38:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-update-rba-hikes-rates-as-kospi-plunges-and-energy-deals-expand\/74049\/"},"modified":"2026-11-03T00:38:16","modified_gmt":"2026-11-03T04:38:16","slug":"global-markets-update-rba-hikes-rates-as-kospi-plunges-and-energy-deals-expand","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-update-rba-hikes-rates-as-kospi-plunges-and-energy-deals-expand\/74049\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Markets Update: RBA Hikes Rates as KOSPI Plunges and Energy Deals Expand"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raised its cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.85%<\/strong>, the highest level since 2008, as Governor Michele Bullock warned that persistent inflation required further tightening.<\/li>\n<li><strong>South Korea&#39;s KOSPI index plummeted nearly 4% intraday<\/strong> before paring some losses, driven by a massive sell-off in semiconductor heavyweights <strong>Samsung Electronics<\/strong> and <strong>SK Hynix<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>ADNOC Gas (<a href=\"\/stock\/ADNOCGAS\">ADNOCGAS<\/a>) secured a major five-year LNG supply deal with TotalEnergies (<a href=\"\/stock\/TTE\">TTE<\/a>)<\/strong>, while also announcing a Final Investment Decision (FID) for the Ruwais Diyab project to boost production capacity.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Thailand is moving to protect its domestic auto industry<\/strong> by proposing a significant tax hike on fully imported electric vehicles, increasing the rate from <strong>10% to 35%<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>A US Federal Court blocked a Trump administration demand<\/strong> for states to withhold votes of alleged noncitizens, a critical ruling just hours before the 2026 midterm elections.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Monetary Policy and Economic Indicators<\/h2>\n<p>The <strong>Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA)<\/strong> delivered a hawkish surprise on Tuesday, increasing the official cash rate to <strong>4.85%<\/strong>. Governor <strong>Michele Bullock<\/strong> stated that higher interest rates were &quot;required&quot; to bring inflation back within the <strong>2%\u20133% target range<\/strong> after recent data showed headline CPI surging to <strong>4.3%<\/strong>. This marks the fifth rate hike in 2026, as the central bank struggles to balance a tight labor market against persistent supply shocks.<\/p>\n<p>In the Middle East, <strong>Saudi Arabia&#39;s<\/strong> economic momentum showed signs of cooling as the <strong>October Composite PMI declined to 54.0<\/strong>. While still in expansionary territory, the figure signals a slower pace of business activity growth compared to previous months. Analysts suggest the dip reflects a normalization of demand following a period of rapid post-pandemic industrial expansion.<\/p>\n<h2>Equity Markets and Corporate Developments<\/h2>\n<p>Asian markets faced significant volatility, led by a sharp downturn in Seoul. <strong>South Korea\u2019s benchmark KOSPI<\/strong> dropped as much as <strong>3.77%<\/strong> during Tuesday&#39;s session, falling to the <strong>5,600 level<\/strong>. The decline was fueled by a rout in tech stocks, with <strong>Samsung Electronics (<a href=\"\/stock\/005930\">005930<\/a>)<\/strong> and <strong>SK Hynix (<a href=\"\/stock\/000660\">000660<\/a>)<\/strong> seeing heavy selling pressure amid global concerns over AI profitability and upcoming US political shifts.<\/p>\n<p>In the UK, <strong>JPMorgan (<a href=\"\/stock\/JPM\">JPM<\/a>)<\/strong> analysts turned bullish on <strong>Whitbread (<a href=\"\/stock\/WTB\">WTB<\/a>)<\/strong>, raising the price target for the Premier Inn owner to <strong>3,100p<\/strong> from <strong>2,740p<\/strong>. The upgrade follows a favorable UK Autumn Budget that introduced caps on business rate increases for the hospitality sector, which the company expects will have a <em>&quot;significant positive impact&quot;<\/em> on its bottom line.<\/p>\n<h2>Energy and Infrastructure<\/h2>\n<p><strong>ADNOC Gas (<a href=\"\/stock\/ADNOCGAS\">ADNOCGAS<\/a>)<\/strong> dominated energy headlines at the ADIPEC conference in Abu Dhabi. The company signed a <strong>five-year agreement<\/strong> to supply up to <strong>1.6 million tons<\/strong> of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to <strong>TotalEnergies (<a href=\"\/stock\/TTE\">TTE<\/a>)<\/strong>. Simultaneously, ADNOC announced a <strong>Final Investment Decision (FID)<\/strong> for the <strong>Ruwais Diyab unconventional gas development<\/strong>, which is expected to produce <strong>345 million standard cubic feet per day<\/strong> by 2029 to meet growing global demand.<\/p>\n<p>Thailand is also restructuring its industrial landscape, with the Finance Ministry proposing to raise the tax on <strong>fully imported electric vehicles (EVs)<\/strong> by <strong>25 percentage points<\/strong>, bringing the total rate to <strong>35%<\/strong>. The policy aims to force international manufacturers to establish local production bases rather than relying on completely built-up (CBU) imports, primarily from China.<\/p>\n<h2>Political and Legal Landscape<\/h2>\n<p>On the eve of the US midterm elections, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking the <strong>Trump administration<\/strong> from pressuring states to segregate or withhold ballots of alleged noncitizens. The court ruled that the federal demand risked disenfranchising eligible naturalized citizens and overstepped federal authority over state-run elections.<\/p>\n<p>Meanwhile, in a move to bolster international mobility, <strong>South Korea and Italy<\/strong> have entered formal discussions to recognize each other\u2019s driver\u2019s licenses. The agreement is expected to simplify bureaucratic hurdles for expatriates and business travelers, strengthening bilateral ties between the two G20 economies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) raised its cash rate by 25 basis points to 4.85%, the highest 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