Citing two sources with knowledge of the matter, Reuters reported on Monday, China is on course to downgrade its management of COVID-19 as a top-level Category A infectious disease to a less strict Category B disease as early as January.

Additional takeaways

“China may announce 10 new COVID-19 management measures as early as Wednesday.”

“These supplement the 20 measures unveiled in November that set off a wave of COVID-easing steps across the nation.

Market reaction

Encouraging headlines from China fail to provide any lift to the souring risk sentiment, as the US S&P 500 futures drop 0.36% on the day while the US Dollar Index looks to stabilize at around 104.50.