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Shenzhen Zhaowei Machinery & Electronics raises 244,3 million dollars in Hong Kong listing
Shenzhen 'Zhaowei Machinery & Electronics, a Chinese provider of micro-drives and actuation system, announced on?Friday that it had?set the final offer price? for its Hong Kong IPO. The company raised HK$1.91billion ($244.25m) through the listing. The Shenzhen listed company sold 26,7 million H shares for HK$71.28 each, which was below the maximum price of HK$73.68 per share disclosed last week. This offering continues a 'brisk start for Hong Kong's IPO activities in 2026. In January, companies such as Eastroc Beverage or Muyuan Foods sought listings in the city. Hong Kong's stock -market had its best start to a new year since 2021. IPOs raised?about $5 billion in the first month, which is the highest since January 2021 when $7.6 billion was raised. Zhaowei began its Hong Kong share sale on 27 February, joining a number of other companies looking to list in the city after the Lunar New Year break. The company announced last week that it would use the net proceeds of?the offering to fund research and development, as well as expand global capacity. Alsco Pooling Service, a reusable packaging provider, finalised its?listing on the Hong Kong bourse on Friday. It raised HK$223.7million. Shenzhen's MeiG - Smart Technology listed its shares in the city for HK$28.86 each. According to the exchange filings, these three companies have raised HK$3.14billion in total. Zhaowei, Alsco and MeiG are expected to start trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange Monday. Reporting by Nikita Marie Jino, Bengaluru. Editing by Vijay Kishore.
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As flights to the Middle East cease, governments plan repatriations
Commercial flights have been grounded in some parts of the Middle East due to an escalating conflict after U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran. This has left foreigners stranded and prompted governments to plan for repatriations. Here is what government officials, airlines and governments have said regarding repatriation plans. AUSTRIA Austria's Foreign Ministry?said that it had helped 117 vulnerable citizens leave the UAE and Israel through neighbouring countries and planned a charter flight for?170 passengers from Muscat on 4 March. It warned, however, that travellers would have to take land departures at their own risk. BULGARIA GullivAir and Bulgaria Air, as well as the State Aviation Operator, returned Bulgarians from Dubai and Abu Dhabi on March '4 and '5 including a GullivAir flight with 326 seats from Dubai and a Bulgaria Air Boeing 737 via Oman. A 90-seat government plane from Abu Dhabi was also included. CZECH REPUBLIC According to CTK and government officials and the Czech news agency, three flights have been organised from Oman, Jordan, and Egypt for 175 people who are stranded. ESTONIA On March 4, the Estonian foreign ministry announced that it had organized a flight from Muscat to Oman on March 5. This would be open to Estonian citizens living in Oman or the United Arab Emirates. EUROPEAN UNION The European Commission announced that it is now coordinating the repatriation of citizens under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, as more and more member countries request assistance to evacuate their citizens from the Middle East. Austria, Belgium Bulgaria, Cyprus Czech Republic, France Italy Luxembourg, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovakia are the countries that have activated this mechanism. A spokesperson for the EU said that ten flights with over 1,000 EU citizens had already landed in Europe. FINLAND The?foreign minister said that Finland would organise one single flight to bring home the approximately 3,000 Finns currently living in the United Arab Emirates. The flight will leave Muscat, Oman on 8 March. Finnair announced on 6 March that it would be operating flights from Muscat in Oman to Helsinki, to help customers stranded at Dubai get home. The first flight will take place on March 10 with additional flights scheduled later in the week. FRANCE The French Foreign Minister said that several flights to bring back French nationals who are estimated to number around 400,000 in the area were scheduled for March 4. France has deployed consular teams to Israel's border with Egypt and Jordan in order to facilitate the land exits for people who want to fly onward. A similar mechanism has been put in place in the UAE, at the borders with Oman, Saudi Arabia and Oman, where airspace remains open. GERMANY Johoann Wadephul, German Foreign Minister, announced that two more flights, each carrying about 250 passengers, are planned for the 5th and 6th of March from the Gulf after the first flight landed in Frankfurt on March 5. The commercial air traffic has increased, and Germany is evaluating how it can offer more support. GREECE Greece announced on 6 March that it had repatriated on 5 March 315 nationals who were in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Jerusalem. Earlier this week, 162 people had returned to the Middle East. HUNGARY The foreign ministry of Hungary said that 87 people had been repatriated from Amman in Jordan on March 4. Another flight carrying 88 passengers is scheduled for March 5. On March 6, a flight will depart from Sharm es Sheik in Egypt. Hungary signed a deal with Flydubai to rent a plane on March 5 and 6 for Hungarians returning from Dubai. On March 7 and 8, Hungary will be departing from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia with two flights. The Italian Foreign Ministry said that about 2,500 Italians had returned from Abu Dhabi and Riyadh on commercial flights organized by the ministry. The consulate has increased its staff in Oman and in the UAE, and it is also coordinating the return of large groups from the UAE, and other transiting via land through Qatar Kuwait Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Additional Italians living in Oman Israel the Maldives, Thailand and Oman are receiving assistance or being given priority for transport. Netherlands The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that repatriation from the Middle East would resume on 6 March. Flights include a KLM flight to the Omani capital Muscat and a TUI service from Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. POLAND Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces reported that the first group of Polish citizens evacuated from the Middle East by military airlift arrived in Poland early on 6 March morning. PORTUGAL The foreign ministry of Portugal said that a charter TAP flight carrying 140 Portuguese and eight foreigners would land at Lisbon at 11 am local time on March 6th. ROMANIA The Romanian Foreign Ministry announced on 4 March that FlyDubai had scheduled two flights from Dubai to Bucharest for March 4 and 5. The ministry has received over 3,000 requests for repatriation and there are around 16,000 Romanians in the region. SERBIA Air Serbia's flight from Sharm el-Sheikh landed at Belgrade in the early hours of March 4 with 67 passengers. All were evacuated from Israel. SLOVAKIA The Slovakian government has "conducted six repatriation flight with 248 passengers. Of these, 189 were Slovaks and the remainder of different nationalities. The Foreign Ministry announced late Thursday that eight additional evacuation flights from Jordan, Oman, and Saudi Arabia were scheduled by the end the week. SLOVENIA The prime minister's office announced that on March 3 four buses were organized by Slovenia to transport Slovenian citizens, including families with children, from Dubai to Muscat Airport in Oman. Two more flights are scheduled for the afternoon and evening of March 4. Jose Manuel Albares, the Foreign Minister of Spain, announced on March 3 that Spain had begun to evacuate its citizens from the Middle East. On March 3, evening, more than 175 Spanish citizens arrived in Abu Dhabi via Istanbul. Further flights are expected to arrive from the UAE. Albares said that Spain would also reinforce its embassies located in the UAE and Saudi Arabia to support and facilitate future repatriations. SWEDEN Sweden will charter an aircraft to bring 180 Swedes back home who have been identified as vulnerable. The flight is scheduled to leave Dubai on 7 March. THAILAND Thailand will evacuate its citizens from Iran to Turkey by land on 7th and 10th March, while those stranded are either returning to their home countries or will do so once the airspace is reopened. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES State news agency WAM reports that the UAE Civil Aviation Authority will start operating "special flight" across all airports in the country to assist some of the tens and thousands of passengers stuck in the region. UNITED KINGDOM The British Foreign Office announced that British chartered flight will leave Oman on 5 March after technical delays on 4 March, prioritising vulnerable UK citizens who want to depart the region.
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The Middle East turmoil may delay the delivery of overseas votes for the Danish election.
Denmark's Government said on Friday that the ongoing turmoil in the Middle East may prevent some overseas votes from being counted in the country's general election of March 24. The war in Iran has caused major disruptions to global air travel, including the closure of Middle Eastern hubs such as Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi. This has left passengers and cargo stranded. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that under these circumstances, it could not guarantee that postal ballots cast in countries affected will arrive on time for general elections. It said that the risk was for 'votes cast' in countries of 'the Middle East' and potentially in Asia, where mail passes through the Middle East on its route to Europe. The ministry didn't say how many Danes were expected to vote overseas. (Reporting and editing by Terje Slsvik, Anna Ringstrom)
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Causeway Capital, an activist investor, raises its stake in Wizz Air
Causeway Capital Management increased its stake in Wizz Air from 4.98% to 5.04%. A regulatory filing was filed on Friday. This puts the activist investor among the top investors of the European budget airline. According to the filing, the investor had increased its stake in Wizz Air from 2.04% to a total of 5.16% on Wednesday. The 'carrier' warned Wednesday that the Middle East conflict would likely reduce its net profit by 50 million euros for fiscal year 2026. This is on top of pressures due to engine groundings, and a softening in demand. Since the conflict began, its shares have fallen steadily. They hit a new record low on Friday of 915 pence. Causeway, a Los Angeles-based company, did not respond immediately to a comment request. Causeway, Britain's largest shareholder, backed WH 'Smith's decision earlier this year to appoint Leo Quinn, former Balfour Beatty CEO, as executive 'chair' in a leadership revamp. In 2021 the investor had urged Rolls-Royce, as one of its largest shareholders, to restructure the board. Wizz Air announced a separate?on? Friday that it had received permits for flights to the U.S.A. from the UK. This?opened the door to offering charter 'flights? to European football teams and fans attending soccer World Cup. Reporting by Nithyashree R B in Bengaluru and Raechel Thankam Job; editing by Shilpi Magumdar
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Russian Urals oil prices top Brent for the first time on Indian market, traders claim
The price of Russian Urals oil in Indian ports is higher than the Brent benchmark for the first ever time, fueled by the increased demand due to the Iran War, traders reported on Friday. The U.S. and Israeli war against Iran?which started a week back has?choked Strait of Hormuz - the'main route for oil in the world. Since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine, in 2022, Russian oil has traded in Indian ports at a discount by several U.S. Dollars per barrel compared to Brent. This is because Russia diverted its oil sales to Asia following the EU's embargo against Russian sales. In recent years, Indian refiners used Russian oil to make their feedstock. The Kremlin announced on Friday that the war in Iran had fueled a significant increase in demand for Russian gas and oil. Reports on Thursday said that traders are selling Russian Urals at a premium to Brent of $4 to $5 per barrel upon delivery at Indian ports between March and April. This is after the United States granted Indian refiners waivers to resume buying Russian oil. Calculations showed that the grade's discount on Brent at the Russian Baltic Sea Port of Primorsk has narrowed by?about $5 per barrel, to?around $ 20 per barrel on a FOB basis (free on board), on Friday. The price of Russian Urals oil has risen by 50% in the last week, from $45.7 to $68.6 per barrel FOB Primorsk. According to LSEG, Urals oil has now surpassed the G7 price limit of $60 per barrel in the port of loading. It is also above the new EU price cap at $44.10 per barrel. The G7 and EU price cap were both imposed after Russia's invasion in Ukraine. This means that sellers of Russian oil who are above these caps cannot use Western shipping services and insurance. INCREASING COSTS CAN IMPACT PROFIT Two traders say that the rising costs of freight will reduce profits for Russian oil sellers. It costs $15 million to charter an Aframax vessel with a deadweight around 100,000 metric tonnage to transport oil from Russian Baltic ports to India. This is an increase of around $10-$12 millions in February. The cost of cargoes loaded from the Russian Black Sea port Novorossiysk - which resumed loadings on Friday following recent drone damage - is lower than at Baltic ports, at $13million, traders reported. Calculations show that the discount for Russian Urals loaded from Novorossiysk FOB for India has risen to $14 per barrel against dated Brent. This is up $10 per barrel from previous estimates. Reporting by Elaine Hardcastle; Editing by Susan Fenton and Elaine Hardcastle
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MOL Hungary says that capacity tests will begin on the Adria pipeline next week
Hungary's Oil and Gas Company?MOL announced on Friday that capacity testing on the Adria oil pipeline will begin on March 11, and last for 10 months. The company is attempting to find alternative routes as Russian crude oil supplies are set to cease at the end 2027. MOL, the operator of refineries in Hungary, Slovakia and Romania, has expressed concerns about whether or not the Adria Pipeline can meet their needs. JANAF, a Croatian operator, dismissed these concerns. Hungary and Slovakia want to continue receiving supplies from Russia, and are exempted?from the current European Union sanctions. Adria is a viable alternative to the EU's plan to ban all Russian oil imports in response to Moscow's invasion into Ukraine. MOL stated on Friday that it was in everyone's best interest to let the facts speak for themselves after contradictory testing and a wide range of public statements. The report said that although Croatia's annual capacity was estimated between 11-15 million metric tons, only 2.2 millions tons of crude were ever transported through this pipeline section. A series of tests with a team of international and independent monitors will be conducted in various weather conditions, using different types and grades crude. MOL stated that they would "see what it takes to make the?Adria Pipeline a fully-fledged route". DRUZHBA ERROR RAISES ADRIA RELIABILITY MOL is already relying more on 'Adria, with the Druzhba Pipeline - which transports Russian crude oil and runs through Ukraine - being out of operation since the end January following what Ukraine claimed was a Russian Attack. Hungarians and Slovaks have accused Kyiv for delaying the restoration. Ukraine has stated that repairs will take some time. MOL asked JANAF during the outage to deliver Russian crude oil via 'the Adria route. But Croatia is assessing if it can do this 'legally because of sanctions. MOL has said that, under EU sanctions exemptions for Hungary and Slovakia, they can source Russian crude by maritime routes in the event of an inoperative Druzhba Pipeline. (Reporting from Anita Komuves & Jason Hovet. Mark Potter edited the article.
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As flights to the Middle East cease, governments plan repatriation
Commercial flights have been grounded in some parts of the Middle East due to an escalating conflict after U.S. and Israeli attacks on Iran. This has left foreigners stranded and prompted governments to plan for repatriation. In alphabetical order, here is what government officials and representatives have said about the repatriation plan: AUSTRIA Austria's Foreign Ministry said that it has helped 117 citizens leave the UAE via Israel and neighbouring countries. It is planning to launch a charter flight for 170 passengers from Muscat, on 4 March. BULGARIA GullivAir and Bulgaria Air, as well as 'the State Aviation Operator', returned Bulgarians from Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Oman on March 4 and 5. This included a GullivAir flight with 326 seats from Dubai, an Bulgaria Air Boeing 747 rotation via Oman, and 90-seat aircraft for the government from Abu Dhabi. CZECH REPUBLIC According to the CTK news agency, government officials and Czech government officials, three flights have been organised so far from Oman, Jordan, and Egypt in order to evacuate 175 people who were stranded. ESTONIA On March 4, the Estonian foreign ministry announced that it had organized a flight from Muscat to Oman on March 5. This would be open to Estonian citizens living in Oman or the United Arab Emirates. EUROPEAN UNION The European Commission announced that it is now coordinating the repatriation of citizens under the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, as more and more member countries request assistance to evacuate their citizens from the Middle East. Austria, Belgium Bulgaria, Cyprus Czech Republic, France Italy Luxembourg, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovakia are the countries that have activated this mechanism. A spokesperson for the EU said that ten flights with over 1,000 EU citizens had already landed in Europe. FINLAND The Finnish foreign ministry announced that Finland would?organise' a single flight of about 160 seats to bring home the approximately 3,000 Finns currently living in the United Arab Emirates. The flight will leave Muscat, Oman on March 7th and 8th. FRANCE According to the French Foreign Minister, several flights of repatriation for French nationals in the region (around 400,000) are planned for March 4. France has deployed consular teams to Israel's border with Egypt and Jordan in order to facilitate the land exit so that people can continue their journey by air. A similar mechanism has been implemented in the UAE, at the borders with Oman, Saudi Arabia and Oman, where airspace remains open. GERMANY After the first flight landed in Frankfurt on March 5, German Foreign Minister Johoann Wadephul announced that two more flights, each carrying about 250 passengers, are scheduled to depart from the Gulf on March 5 and 6. He said that commercial air traffic was increasing and Germany is looking at how it can provide further assistance. GREECE Greece announced on 6 March that it had repatriated 315 nationals who were in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Jerusalem on 5 March. 162 people had already returned to the Middle East this week. HUNGARY In a press release, the?foreign minister of Hungary said that 87 people had been repatriated from Amman in Jordan on March 4, and another flight with 88 passengers was scheduled for March 5. On?March 6, a flight will depart from Sharm es Sheik in Egypt. Hungary signed a deal with Flydubai to rent a plane on March 5 and 6 for Hungarians returning from Dubai. On March 7 and 8, Hungary will be departing from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia with two flights. The Italian Foreign Ministry said that about 2,500 Italians had returned from Abu Dhabi and Riyadh on commercial flights organized by the ministry. The consulate has increased its staffing levels in Oman and in the UAE, and it is also coordinating the return of large groups from the UAE, and other transiting via land through Qatar Kuwait Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. Additional Italians living in Oman, Israel and Thailand, as well as the Maldives, are receiving assistance or being given priority for transport. Netherlands The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that repatriation from the Middle East would resume on 6 March. Flights include a KLM flight to the Omani capital Muscat and a TUI service from Sharm el-Sheikh in Egypt. POLAND Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces reported that the first group of Polish nationals?evacuated by military airlifts from the Middle East landed in Poland early on the morning of March 6, 2019. PORTUGAL The foreign ministry of Portugal said that a charter TAP flight carrying 140 Portuguese and eight foreigners would land at Lisbon at 11 am local time on March 6th. ROMANIA The Romanian Foreign Ministry announced on 4 March that FlyDubai had scheduled two flights from Dubai to Bucharest for March 4 and 5. The ministry has received over 3,000 requests for repatriation and there are around 16,000 Romanians in the region. SERBIA Air Serbia's flight from Sharm el-Sheikh landed at Belgrade in the early hours of March 4 with 67 passengers. All were?evacuees from Israel. SLOVAKIA The Slovak Foreign Ministry reported that two evacuation flights from Jordan, organised by Slovakia, landed on 3 March, carrying 127 people in total, mainly Slovaks. There are more flights planned. SLOVENIA The prime minister's statement said that Slovenia organized four buses, escorted with police, on March 3 to transport Slovenian citizens, families and children from Dubai airport to Muscat Airport in Oman. Two more flights are scheduled for the afternoon and evening of March 4. Jose Manuel Albares, the Foreign Minister of Spain, announced on March 3 that Spain had begun to evacuate its citizens from the Middle East. On March 3, evening, more than 175 Spanish citizens arrived via Abu Dhabi. Further flights are expected to arrive from the UAE via Istanbul. Albares said that Spain would also reinforce its embassies located in the UAE and Saudi Arabia to support and facilitate future repatriations. SWEDEN Sweden will charter an aircraft to return 180 Swedes who are?identified vulnerable. The flight is scheduled to leave Dubai on March 7. THAILAND Thailand will evacuate its citizens from Iran to Turkey by land on March 7th and 10th. Others stranded are returning to Iraq, Qatar and Bahrain. UNITED ARAB EMIRATES State news agency WAM reports that the UAE Civil Aviation Authority will start operating "special flight" across all airports in the country to assist some of the tens and thousands of passengers stuck in the region. UNITED KINGDOM The British Foreign Office announced that British chartered flight will leave Oman on 5 March after technical delays on 4 March, prioritising vulnerable UK citizens who want to depart the region.
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CNBC reports that United Airlines is suffering from the fuel price spike caused by the conflict in Iran.
CNBC reported that United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby expects to see a "meaningful impact" on the carrier's results in its first quarter due to the soaring fuel prices following a deterioration of the?war? in Iran. However, travel demand is still strong, CNBC said. The report stated that if the conflict continues, the airline may also see an impact on the second quarter. Kirby said this at a Thursday event held by a university. The price of jet fuel has risen 15% over the last week. This is adding pressure to an airline industry that's already been hit hard by the conflict. According to TD Cowen's estimates, United's adjusted profit per share for the first quarter could range from 5?cents up to 22 cents. These calculations take into account?current jet-fuel prices. The estimate is a far cry from the airline's forecast in January of $1 to $1.50 a share. In premarket trading, shares of the airline dropped 3.6% on Friday. As of Thursday's closing, they are down around 10% since the conflict began. United Airlines did not respond immediately to our request for comment. (Reporting and editing by Sriraj Kalluvila; Apratim Sarkar)
Take Five: the fog of war
Next week, the U.S.-Israeli conflict over Iran will continue to dominate global financial markets.
The war is not only driving up oil, gas, and shipping prices but also other important indicators, such as the U.S. Inflation releases on Wednesday and Friday, which were compiled before hostilities began, are at risk of being "overshadowed".
In Latin America, Colombia will hold congressional elections and its presidential primaries ahead of the final presidential vote on May 31.
Here is all the information you need about this week's?markets from?Amanda Cooper in London and Alun in New York. Gregor Stuart Hunter, in Singapore, will provide you with?Lewis Krauskopf and Rodrigo Campos.
The fog of war
The Middle East conflict is a reminder of just how quickly energy prices can rise. Since Israel and the U.S. attacked Iran on February 28, crude oil has gained almost 20% while European natural gases are up nearly 60%.
Investors have been rushing to cover losses in other areas as they try to recover from the recent collapse of some of the biggest trades. The dollar has gained against nearly every major currency despite losing 10% of its value by 2025. Gold has temporarily lost its role as a safe-haven and has been used to cover losses elsewhere.
Investors expect that the conflict will last for only a couple of weeks, before a resolution is reached. But the potential for a surprise is huge.
2/ PRICES PRIOR TO WAR
The U.S. will release two sets of inflation data in the coming week, just as the Middle East turmoil casts new doubts on the Federal Reserve’s plans to cut interest rates and the overall resilience of the economy.
These figures will not capture the recent spikes in oil and gas prices, but they should still be interesting to read.
A poll shows that the Consumer Price Index for February is expected to rise 0.2% from January. This follows a moderated rent inflation rate and, wait for it, cheaper gasoline, which helped to produce a modest reading in January.
The second marker is the January personal consumption expenditures price index. Together, the reports will provide a snapshot of current inflation trends, ahead of the Fed meeting in late March.
Not a good place to be.
Next week, France will host a meeting of G7 finance ministers to discuss the Middle East Crisis.
As concerns grow that rising oil and gas costs could make major central banks more hawkish, the markets will be closely watching.
Investors now believe that a rate increase by the end of the year is more likely than ever before. This is a dramatic change from the last week when a further cut was still possible. Christine Lagarde is no longer in a "good place".
Germany's two-year rate sensitive yield is set to have its largest weekly increase in a whole year. This is due to the rapid repricing of the market. For UK gilts it's the biggest since late 2024. Traders are now betting that the Bank of England will not be able cut rates this month.
On Friday, there will be a slew of European sovereign ratings reviews. This includes Germany, Italy, and Spain. Turkey's central banks rate decision will be a cliffhanger on Thursday, given the problems next door.
CHINA KEEPS BUSY
Next week, China will provide new clues about the state of its economy.
Monday will bring the February inflation data, and Tuesday the trade figures for the first two months. The timing of lending data is also fluid.
These numbers will help put decisions made at the "Two Meetings", the annual session of the National People's Congress, the national legislature and the top political advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference in context.
The event that began on Thursday, and will run until the 12th of March, has already generated its biggest headline?with an announcement of a growth target between 4.5-5%. Next week's figures will reveal the difficulties in achieving it.
5/ PRE-ELECTION POSTURING
This weekend, Colombia will hold congressional elections. The vote is seen as a preliminary to the presidential race that takes place at the end May. It coincides with the inter-party primaries for presidential candidates that will clarify who has momentum.
The polls suggest that the presidential race has shifted, with Ivan Cepeda, a left-wing candidate from the ruling Pacto Historico, gaining more ground. Meanwhile, Abelardo de la Espriella, a right-wing outsider, could gain in a run-off second round as rivals drop away.
Investors are interested in how the results will affect the next president's capacity to govern.
Markets would remain stable if May's results were divided. A stronger opposition could lift Colombia's bonds and support the peso, while gains by the left may send them in the opposite direction if fiscal concerns return.
(source: Reuters)