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According to Interfax news agency, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian troops have taken control of another settlement in the Donetsk region of Ukraine.

According to RIA Novosti, the Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Russian troops have taken control of Novosoloshin in the Zaporizhzhia region of Ukraine.

BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company by market capitalization, will release its full-year results before the Australian stock market opens on Tuesday. According to analyst forecasts compiled by Visible Alpha, BHP Billiton's underlying profit for the 12 months ending in June is expected to be US$12.66 billion, up from US$10.16 billion in the same period last year. Rising prices of major commodities such as copper, iron ore, and coking coal will boost the company's earnings. Copper growth will remain a key focus for the market as the mining giant seeks to increase its exposure to this industrial metal. BHP Billiton previously stated that copper became the largest contributor to the company's overall profit for the first time in the first half of fiscal year 2026. BHP Billiton plans to organize investor tours of its South Australian copper mine later this year, which the company considers a key area for future growth.

The Indian government has signed a contract with General Atomics Aeronautical Systems to provide aircraft systems for the Indian Navy.

The 60-day deadline for negotiations between the US and Iran to reach a final agreement expired on Monday, but neither side implemented the terms of the memorandum of understanding signed in Islamabad on June 18. Mohammad Mahdi Maleki, an expert on Iranian regional affairs, told The New Arab that the memorandum of understanding was initially seen as a potential diplomatic breakthrough, but it gradually crumbled after the US reimposed the blockade and sought to open new sea lanes. Maleki stated that the agreement originally planned to achieve a ceasefire in Iran and a wider region (including Lebanon), reopen the Strait of Hormuz for one month, return Iranian assets, and begin negotiations on sanctions. However, the US violated the clause allowing Iran and Oman to discuss shipping management in the Strait of Hormuz after 23 days. Iran closed the waterway again after the US guided ships through the "southern corridor" with tracking systems disabled. Subsequently, Iran set six conditions for any resumption of negotiations, including a permanent cessation of attacks on Iran and its regional allies, lifting of the maritime blockade and sanctions, withdrawal of US troops from the region surrounding Iran, reparations for the war imposed on Iran, and the unconditional unfreezing of frozen Iranian assets. The former secretary of the Supreme National Security Council stated earlier this month that the Strait of Hormuz would not reopen until Washington “corrects its behavior.” Maleki stated that given the continued escalation of US actions and excessive demands, the likelihood of a limited military escalation is currently higher than the possibility of a diplomatic breakthrough. He added that regional countries are continuing both public and behind-the-scenes efforts to revive the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, but the chances of success remain slim.

Baidu (09888.HK) will announce its second-quarter results on Tuesday. According to a FactSet survey of 11 analysts, Baidu's second-quarter net profit is expected to be RMB 2.82 billion, a significant decrease from RMB 7.32 billion in the same period last year; second-quarter revenue is expected to be RMB 31.34 billion, lower than RMB 32.71 billion in the same period last year. Fitch Ratings points out that emerging AI search and competition from various chatbots may put pressure on the monetization capabilities of Baidu's search business. Baidu's declining profitability reflects the weakening of its traditional businesses and relatively low profit margins in non-marketing businesses. Citigroup expects Baidu's core business revenue to decline by 3.6% year-on-year in the second quarter, with advertising revenue declining by 20% year-on-year, while revenue from Baidu's AI cloud infrastructure business is expected to increase by 60% year-on-year.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Baghae: Fundamentally, the problem between us and the United States is not about mediation; the problem lies in the American way of thinking, its misjudgments, and its clinging to methods and means that have been proven to fail countless times, while the US administration continues to repeat the same mistakes. The result will inevitably be no different from the past.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bagaei: Admitting mistakes can be a prerequisite for making the right decisions, but I doubt whether US policymakers have that courage.

Market news: Apple (AAPL.O) will implement several adjustments across the European Union. Apple will modify its advertising transparency consent tool, which was previously under review by the German competition regulator.

U.S. S&P 500 E-Mini futures rose 0.18%, Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.54%, and Dow Jones futures fell 0.09%.

According to Interfax news agency: Ukrainian drones attacked industrial facilities in Russia's Astrakhan region.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bagaei: The United States violated the terms of the memorandum of understanding just weeks after it was signed.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Baghae: The memorandum of understanding we signed with the United States did not specify a 60-day period.

A political advisor to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard stated that the Strait of Hormuz will only reopen when the United States fulfills its commitments under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding.

According to Hoisington data, from December 2025 to the end of June 2026, the Federal Reserve's holdings of U.S. Treasury securities increased by approximately $290 billion, a seven-month increase approaching the approximately $320 billion increase during the pandemic, and total holdings also reached a new high. Part of this increase comes from reserve management purchases to maintain sufficient reserves, and another part is the reinvestment of principal from maturing MBS; the latter merely adjusts the asset structure and does not expand the balance sheet by an equivalent amount. The New York Fed initially conducted $40 billion in reserve management purchases per month, but this has decreased to $10 billion since the beginning of summer. According to research by the New York Fed, the current purchases have indeed increased demand for short-term debt, eased pressure in the repurchase market, and marginally lowered short-term financing costs, but they are still incomparable to the pandemic-driven QE—the Fed purchased nearly $2 trillion in medium- and long-term Treasury securities in 2020 alone. This only proves that balance sheet reduction has ended, and the Fed has once again become an important buyer in the short-term debt market, but it has not yet entered into QE or YCC.

The NI225 closed up 506.45 points, or 0.74%, at 69,220.25 on Monday, August 17.

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 index closed down 49.90 points, or 0.55%, at 9065.30 on Monday, August 17.

Ukraine's state-owned oil and gas company, Naftogaz, said Russia launched 13 attacks on its Navtogos facilities in the past week.

Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 0.32%, German DAX futures rose 0.27%, FCHI futures rose 0.24%, and UK FTSE 100 futures rose 0.2%.

The U.S. Treasury will auction $16 billion in 20-year Treasury notes on Wednesday, with a pre-sale trading yield of approximately 5.27%. If this yield holds until the auction, it will be the highest since the resumption of issuance of this maturity in 2020. Previously, 10-year and 30-year Treasury notes were auctioned at 4.683% and 5.216% respectively, the highest auction yields since 2007 and 2001. However, a "high yield" does not necessarily mean a "failed auction": last week, the bid-to-cover ratio for the 30-year note still reached 2.39, indicating that demand is not out of control. The more important factor this time is whether the winning yield is higher than the pre-sale trading level, i.e., whether there is a "tail difference," as well as the proportion of indirect bidders and the proportion of primary dealers forced to take over. If the 20-year yield continues to show a tail-end spread and dealer acceptance increases, it indicates that even with cooling expectations of interest rate hikes, investors are still demanding higher fiscal, inflationary, and term compensation, and long-term interest rates are gradually deviating from the Fed's policy path; conversely, if high yields attract long-term funds, it means the market is still willing to absorb supply.