WORLD
US says it will control Venezuela oil exports indefinitely
President Donald Trump said Tuesday evening that Venezuela would relinquish as much as 50 million barrels of its oil to the US, valued at about $2.8 billion at current market prices.
WORLD
US seizes Russia-flagged tanker after chase from Venezuela
The US Justice Department and the Department of Homeland Security “today announced the seizure of the M/V Bella 1 for violations of US sanctions,” the command said in a social media post.
BUSINESS
OpenAI challengers test appetite for China AI with twin IPOs
Zhipu and Minimax begin trading Thursday and Friday, respectively, in a litmus test of whether investors believe China’s fledgling AI industry can compete on a global stage.
IPO
Citi, JPMorgan opt out of $1.4 billion SBI Funds IPO on low fees
Shareholders selling in the IPO — the state-run State Bank of India and France’s Amundi SA — offered fees of about 0.01% of the issue size, which bankers called rock bottom
WORLD
UBS 25-year Asia veteran departs ahead of new wave of job cuts
Lafon, the global co-head of distribution in Singapore, left late last year in a mutual agreement with the bank
WORLD
China’s feud with Japan worsens as Tokyo slams export controls
Japan relied on China for around 70% of its rare earth imports as of 2024, according to the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security
BUSINESS
Nickel drops from 19-month high as metals rally takes breather
Three-month futures fell in early trading, after spiking as much as 10.5% to near $18,800 a ton on Tuesday.
WORLD
Chat platform Discord files confidentially for IPO
The San Francisco-based chat app company is working with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. on a listing
INDIA
India exporters risk losing US orders without January trade deal
This will be the decisive month for sealing the trade pact so contracts can be secured for the first half of 2026, local exporters said
BUSINESS
Gold steadies as traders look past geopolitical risk to US data
Gold is fresh from posting its best annual performance since 1979, hitting a series of record highs throughout last year with support from central-bank buying and inflows to bullion-backed exchange-traded funds.
ARTIFICIAL-INTELLIGENCE
Elon Musk’s xAI closed $20 billion funding with Nvidia backing
XAI, which did not specify individual investment amounts or break out debt or equity portions of the round, said investors also include Stepstone Group, Fidelity Management & Research Co., MGX and Baron Capital Group.
WORLD
Asian stock rally eases as Japan slips, oil falls
The Nikkei 225 Index fell 0.4% at the open, pushing the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lower after four days of gains.
CRYPTOCURRENCY
Bitcoin faithful still missing even after token reclaims $90,000
Even as fresh inflows returned to Bitcoin exchange-traded funds last week, the broader market structure has yet to follow. For now, Bitcoin’s price uptick looks more like a reprieve than a resurgence.
BUSINESS
Gold climbs as traders look beyond Venezuela risk to US data
Spot gold climbed about 1.1% on Tuesday to trade above $4,495 an ounce, after gaining 2.7% in the previous session following the US capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro injected fresh geopolitical uncertainty into markets.
BUSINESS
Berkshire’s Abel to receive 19% salary bump in first year as CEO
He is still serving as chairman of the company, whose holdings span insurance companies, utilities, railroads and a stock portfolio valued at $283 billion as of Sept. 30.
MARKETS
MSCI backs off on crypto-exclusion plan but signals wider review
In a statement Tuesday, MSCI said it would maintain current index treatment for so-called digital asset treasury companies, including those where crypto holdings exceed 50% of total assets.
WORLD
Chevron lines up 11 ships as Venezuela’s dark fleet vanishes
The Houston-based company operates in Venezuela under a license granted by the US Treasury Department and it is the only Western firm allowed to produce and export crude oil amid American sanctions.
WORLD
Emerging assets move past Venezuela risk to scale fresh highs
The Chilean peso led gains among peers as copper prices extended rallies. President-elect José Antonio Kast also told business executives that he will nominate Jorge Quiroz as finance minister.
MARKETS
Bond trader places biggest ever fed funds bet in futures market
The trade was struck in the January contracts for a size of 200,000, the largest ever as confirmed by CME Group, and stood out in an otherwise calm market at the start of the year.
BUSINESS
Oracle’s debt ‘unlikely’ to trigger cut to junk grade, UBS says
The software company’s rating could be cut one notch to the lowest investment-grade tier, but worries that Oracle may be dropped to junk status are likely overblown, UBS strategist Matthew Mish said in an interview Tuesday.
MARKETS
US stocks flirt with record as bull run extends
The S&P 500’s 14-day relative strength index also suggests that US stocks might have further room to run, in contrast with other regions that have surpassed levels typically seen as overbought.
BUSINESS
Siemens’ Busch eyes M&A in operations software, AI, life science
“We can imagine doing more there,” Busch said Tuesday in an interview with Bloomberg Television, referring to the firm’s $5.1 billion acquisition last year of Dotmatics, which is enabling AI-driven drug development.
WORLD
Nvidia CEO says he’s ‘perfectly fine’ with billionaires tax
“I’ve got to tell you, I have not even thought about it once,” Huang said Tuesday when asked about the proposed tax on Bloomberg Television.
BUSINESS
China slaps export controls on Japan military for Taiwan remarks
All dual-use items are banned from being exported to Japan for military use effective immediately, China’s Ministry of Commerce said
