WORLD
Asia set to pledge $30 billion in energy, mineral deals with US
The flurry of activity comes in the run-up to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s visit to Washington on March 19 and US President Donald Trump’s planned trip to Beijing to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping in roughly three weeks.
WORLD
Asian stocks slide as Iran war fears keep oil near $100 and rattle global markets
A gauge of Asian shares dropped 0.6% after the S&P 500 slid 1.5% to its lowest since November.
MARKETS
Rush into leveraged bets sparks fears of fresh Asian stock rout
In China, Taiwan and South Korea, the amounts of margin loans sat near the highest in decades, with Japan’s at a record, data as of the end of last week show.
WORLD
Investors hunt for hedges as war shatters decades-old strategies
Government bonds, which typically rise during periods of market stress to cushion equity losses, are now moving in the same direction with stocks as oil markets are going through unprecedented turmoil.
BUSINESS
Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen to step down in face of investor concerns over AI
Narayen oversaw a period of huge growth at the company.
WORLD
India in talks with Iran over safe passage of 20 oil tankers through Hormuz
Traffic through Hormuz has dropped dramatically, but ships do occasionally manage to transit, including tankers bound for India, according to Sumit Ritolia, lead analyst at Kpler.
WORLD
US puts $11.3 billion price tag on the first week of Iran war
The actual cost is likely much higher because the number doesn’t include the expense of operating ships and maintaining personnel deployed in the region.
BUSINESS
India plans new $11 billion fund to support local chipmaking
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is trying to accelerate India’s chip campaign, which is in early stages with just a handful of major projects under way.
WORLD
Iran war exposes cracks for airlines that connect the world
Gulf carriers have spent decades positioning themselves at the center of global air travel and places like Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha are now key stopover points for long-haul trips.
BUSINESS
Aluminum extends rally as Iran war risks 'acute supply squeeze’
Prices settled at the highest close since April 2022 on Wednesday after the conflict forced output cuts at smelters in the region that accounts for about 9% of global output.
MARKETS
Stocks slide, crude jumps as energy assets targeted
WORLD
Wall Street wobbles as oil rally deepens and Iran war clouds rate-cut hopes
Contracts for the S&P 500 Index were down 0.8% while a gauge of Asian shares dropped as much as 1.1% in early trading.
WORLD
Trump officials set to announce new trade probes in Tariff push
Among the issues that will be investigated are taxes on digital services and alleged currency manipulation
WORLD
Epstein used NYC’s Fekkai Salon for himself, his ‘girls’ and Kathy Ruemmler
The bookings show not only how important physical appearance was to Epstein, who paid for teeth whitening procedures and Botox for people in his network, but also how loyal he was to the high-end New York businesses that acted as cogs in his perks machine over multiple years.
BUSINESS
IEA to release record 400 million barrels of oil from stockpiles
“The oil market challenges we are facing are unprecedented in scale,” IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol Wednesday said in a statement.
WORLD
Iran’s production of Shahed-136 drones slowed down but not halted
The US and Israel have made hitting production facilities a priority. Iran has drones in storage, but its ability to produce more is limited
BUSINESS
Wall Street is optimistic that worst of software wipeout is over
A Goldman Sachs software basket is trading for 22 times forward earnings, compared with 21 for the S&P 500 Index.
WORLD
Moscow internet shutdowns test Russia’s expanding web controls
Reports of disruptions in Moscow, a city of more than 13 million people, began early last week and intensified in the following days, according to data from outage-tracking service Sboy.rf.
WORLD
North Korea tests missiles as US reportedly moves arms to Mideast
Kim Jong Un oversaw the test on TV, accompanied by his daughter, Ju Ae, on Tuesday, a photo released by state media showed.
BUSINESS
Zara billionaire Amancio Ortega to draw record dividend of €3.2 billion
Inditex announced Wednesday that it plans to increase its dividend by 4% this year to €1.75 a share.
BUSINESS
Walmart-backed Flipkart plans to invite banks to pitch for IPO in April: Report
Moneycontrol reported last week that Flipkart was in preliminary discussions with investment banks about the listing
BUSINESS
Qatar’s LNG export halt extends to longest since at least 2008
A loaded tanker hasn’t left the Ras Laffan facility in five days, according to a Bloomberg analysis of Kpler ship-tracking data. No LNG ship traversed the Strait of Hormuz after February 28, when the US and Israel began strikes on Iran.
BUSINESS
Indian urea producers shut plants as Iran war cuts LNG flows
Restarting a paused plant could take as long as a month, provided LNG supplies resume, according to people familiar with the matter.
BUSINESS
IEA proposes largest-ever oil stockpile release: Report
The proposed release, circulated during an emergency meeting of energy officials on Tuesday, would exceed the 182 million barrels that member countries released in two tranches in 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine.
