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B2B Asia News
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This is a B2B Asia News Daily Update for 22 October 2026, reviewing regional and global markets, and covering the daily business news you shouldn’t miss.
Watch the video in English above.
- We start with a quick look at regional markets. Asian stocks retreated on Thursday as technology shares led a broad selloff, with Wall Street earnings failing to quell worries over soaring AI investment costs, while escalating Gulf tensions boosted oil and weighed on risk sentiment.
- MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slumped 1.8% to the lowest level in nearly three months and was on track for a fourth straight week of decline.
- Japan's Nikkei gave up earlier gains to trade 2% lower, Korean shares tumbled more than 4%, while China's blue-chip CSI300 fell 2%, pushing it to the brink of a technical bear market. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index lost more than 3%.
- Zooming in on Cambodia’s market—the Cambodia Securities Exchange Index was down 1.41 points or 0.23% to 616.15.
- Total trade volume was down with 187,539 shares changing hands at a total value of 868 million riel or nearly $214,000 US dollars.
- On the main board, three stocks were up, led by Grand Twins International, while two stocks were down with Phnom Penh Water Supply Authority as the biggest loser of the day.
- Over on the growth board, DBD Engineering and JS Land were up, while Picasso City Garden stayed flat.
- Shifting to the exchange rate, the Khmer riel to USD weakened slightly to 4,077 riel per US Dollar, while the US Dollar index hovered around 101.53.
- Looking at global commodities, Brent prices rose to their highest since May on Thursday after more Houthi attacks in Saudi Arabia stoked concerns over a broader escalation of conflict and further disruptions to crude oil supplies from the world's key exporting region.
- Brent crude futures climbed 3.08% to $112.17 US dollars a barrel, the highest since May 18. They hit $112.55 US dollars a barrel earlier in the session. US West Texas Intermediate crude gained 2.76% to $99.83 US dollars. (0818 GMT)
- Gold fell more than 1% on Thursday as rising oil prices stoked inflation concerns and reinforced expectations that interest rates could stay higher for longer.
- Spot gold slid 1.1% to $4,095.75 US dollars per ounce, after hitting its lowest since October 7 earlier in the session. US gold futures for December delivery dropped 0.9% to $4,112.10 US dollars. (0721 GMT)
Looking at the crypto market, Bitcoin retreated below $82,000 US dollars, as renewed pressure across global markets weighed on cryptocurrencies, erasing gains from earlier in the week. The original cryptocurrency fell as much as 2.4% in early Asia trading, standing around $82,700 US dollars. Smaller tokens ether, solana and XRP also saw falls of roughly 2% to 3.5%.
- Moving on now to other business related news,
- EuroCham Cambodia, through its Healthcare Committee, hosted the EuroCham Health Innovation Forum 2026 on October 22 at the SUN & MOON, Riverside Hotel. The forum centred on public-private collaboration in the healthcare sector, and aimed to bolster market confidence, and drive actionable solutions across Cambodia’s healthcare ecosystem. The morning sessions focused on elevating patient safety through national and international accreditation frameworks while exploring synergies between NSSF coverage and private insurance to optimise financial protection. In the afternoon, delegates addressed regulatory pathways to enhance market access for quality medicines, analysed the impact of digital health and modern education on the future healthcare workforce, and engaged in targeted networking to establish key commercial partnerships.
- Cambodia has sought support from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for the Ministry of Water Resources and Meteorology to strengthen agrometeorological networks and early warning systems, mobilise key resources, and develop local human capacity to ensure sustainable, high-quality public services. The request was made by H.E. Thor Chetha, Cambodian Minister of Water Resources and Meteorology, during a meeting with the FAO Representative to Cambodia on October 22. The Minister affirmed a commitment to further strengthening collaboration with FAO in the future and also expressed gratitude for FAO's long-standing partnership with Cambodia in enhancing agrometeorological services, strengthening climate resilience, and supporting institutional and human resource development through the Public-Community-Private Partnerships for Eco-Friendly Agriculture and Climate-Resilient Livelihoods in the Northern Tonle Sap Basin (PEARL) Project.
- Foreign cruise ship, Viking Venus, arrived at the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port on Thursday, bringing over 800 international tourists to Cambodia for a two-day visit from October 22 to 23. According to immigration officials at the international port, the Norwegian-flagged vessel carried 856 passengers representing 27 nationalities, along with 467 crew members from 35 nationalities. Among the passengers, Americans accounted for the largest group, with 686 people, followed by 52 Australians. Viking Venus’ arrival marks the second foreign cruise ship call during the current rainy season. As the dry season approaches, cruise ships are expected to bring more international visitors to Cambodia, particularly European tourists visiting Preah Sihanouk province.
Watch the 22 October 2026 Daily Update in Khmer below: