Critical minerals: the new arena of U.S.–China competition
The U.S. and China are locked in a growing struggle over critical minerals, the materials that power everything from electric vehicles and microchips ...
Oil prices fell for the first time in three weeks, with expectations mounting that OPEC+ will raise production in July, Bloomberg reported.
Oil markets ended the week lower, with Brent crude dipping near $64 a barrel and U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) falling below $61. Bloomberg attributes the decline to signals that OPEC+ may approve a production increase of 411,000 barrels per day at its upcoming 1 June meeting.
The potential supply boost comes amid ongoing concerns about a global surplus and weakening demand, particularly as commercial stockpiles in the U.S. continue to rise. Brent and WTI have both lost roughly 2% this week, marking oil’s first weekly drop in nearly a month.
Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg expect OPEC+ to maintain its recent shift toward prioritising market share over prices, after easing output cuts faster than anticipated earlier this year. Oil prices have already fallen around 14% since January, touching their lowest levels since 2021.
Geopolitical uncertainty remains a factor. Talks between Iran and the U.S. over Tehran’s nuclear programme continue, while tensions flared midweek over reports that Israel may target Iranian facilities. Meanwhile, the EU is considering lowering its price cap on Russian crude from $60 to $50 a barrel, citing reduced market impact from the current limit.
Rivers and reservoirs across Spain and Portugal were on the verge of overflowing on Wednesday as a new weather front pounded the Iberian peninsula, compounding damage from last week's Storm Kristin.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) unveiled a new underground ballistic missile base on Wednesday (4 February), just over a day before the start of mediated nuclear negotiations with the United States, slated for Friday in Oman.
Morocco has evacuated more than 100,000 people from four provinces after heavy rainfall triggered flash floods across several northern regions, the Interior Ministry said on Wednesday.
A second group of Palestinians receiving medical treatment arrived in Egypt from Gaza via the Rafah border crossing on Tuesday (3 February).
The World Health Organization has added the Nipah virus to its list of the world’s top 10 priority diseases, alongside COVID-19 and the Zika virus, warning that its epidemic potential highlights the global risk posed by fast-spreading outbreaks.
Wall Street ended sharply lower on Tuesday as investors worried about artificial intelligence (AI) creating more competition for software makers, keeping them on edge ahead of quarterly reports from Alphabet and Amazon later this week.
U.S. stock markets finished mixed on Wednesday (28 January) as investors reacted calmly after the Federal Reserve left interest rates unchanged, a decision that had been widely expected and largely priced in.
The S&P 500 edged to a record closing high on Tuesday, marking its fifth consecutive day of gains, as strong advances in technology stocks offset a sharp selloff in healthcare shares and a mixed batch of corporate earnings.
Chevron is in talks with Iraq’s oil ministry over potential changes to the commercial framework governing the West Qurna 2 oilfield, one of the world’s largest producing assets, after Baghdad nationalised the field earlier this month following U.S. sanctions imposed on Russia’s Lukoil.
Argentina's economic activity shrunk 0.3% in November compared with the same month last year, marking the first monthly contraction of 2025, data from Argentina's national statistics agency showed on Wednesday.
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