What's in this episode:

• Unusual Business Idea: Halloween is a $13 billion business in the U.S., but Asian authorities remain wary due to past incidents.
• Top Bit: Trump-Xi Trade Truce:
  
  • Truce Duration: One year of calm; Trump to visit China in April.
• • China’s Concession: Suspension of rare earth export controls for 12 months and a commitment to import 25 million tons of U.S. soybeans annually.
• • US Concession: Tariffs on Chinese goods halved from 20% to 10%; delay of new tech export bans.
• • Left Unspoken: No progress on TikTok, Nvidia chips, or Taiwan.
• Number of the Day: $1.8 Trillion—The projected size of the Asia-Pacific private credit market by 2027. Emerging Asia faces a $1.7 trillion USD annual financing gap.
• Market Bit: Fed Cut & Asia:
  
  • Fed cut rates by 25 basis points. Nomura expects no further cut in December.
• • A stronger dollar pulls capital from India/ASEAN toward stable markets like Japan, Korea, and China.
• • HKMA cut its base rate to 4.25%.
• Startup of the Day: ZEPETO (Korean Metaverse):
  
  • 400 million registered users; 20 million monthly active users.
• • Unicorn valued at >$1 billion USD.
• • Hosted virtual stores for brands like Gucci and Walmart.
• Short News of the Day:
  
  • Space: China reaffirms goal to send astronauts to the Moon by 2030.
• • Diplomacy: Japan and South Korea reaffirmed ‘future-oriented’ relations following a “warm” summit.
• • Talent: Harvard researcher Xie Zhenfei joins China’s leading virology institute in Wuhan.
• • Japan: Authorities consider allowing police to use rifles due to 13 deadly wild bear attacks since April.