Global Economy News and Headlines
Global Economy News and Headlines
Global Economy Pulse
EMAIL DIGESTS
Daily
Every morning
Weekly
Tuesday recap
EMAIL DIGESTS
Daily
Every morning
Weekly
Tuesday recap
Turkey’s foreign minister Hakan Fidan told the AP that while no formal US‑Iran negotiations are underway, Tehran appears willing to engage in back‑channel talks. Ankara has tried to mediate, even offering Istanbul as a venue, but Iran rejected discussions on its missile program and regional proxies. Despite three missiles intercepted by NATO over Turkish airspace, Turkey remains neutral, rejecting a military response. Fidan also highlighted Turkey’s participation in the US‑led Gaza Board of Peace and its aim to contribute to post‑war stabilization.
Jet fuel prices have spiked to $150‑$200 a barrel after the U.S.–Israel attack on Iran, more than doubling pre‑conflict levels. The surge, compounded by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, is forcing airlines such as Qantas, SAS and Air...
OPEC’s crude output jumped 640,000 barrels per day in February, the steepest rise since June, driven largely by Saudi Arabia’s production increase. The kingdom lifted output by roughly 340,000 bpd to 10.34 MMbpd and later signaled an additional boost of about...
The ongoing U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran is beginning to ripple through the global energy market, prompting concerns about oil shortages and higher prices. A panel on Washington Week with The Atlantic highlighted rising gasoline costs and the lack of a...
The Trump administration is launching a series of Section 301 investigations and new duties to recoup roughly $1.6 trillion in tariff revenue lost after a Supreme Court ruling. The probes will examine 16 economies for excess factory capacity and dozens more for...
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/shutterstock_253136563-5bfc2b98c9e77c00519aa7a8.jpg)
The Federal Reserve sets the U.S. federal funds rate, an overnight benchmark that shapes domestic liquidity, inflation, and employment. LIBOR, by contrast, is a London‑based multi‑currency benchmark derived from bank submissions and has long guided global short‑term lending. While both...
Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said India’s economy remains resilient despite the Iran‑US‑Israel war, though a short‑term dip in activity is expected. He cited strong fundamentals and a projected 7%‑plus growth rate for the next fiscal year. State Bank of...
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc()/investing17-5bfc2b8fc9e77c00519aa64c.jpg)
The U.S. dollar remains the dominant global reserve currency, accounting for about 57% of disclosed reserves in Q3 2025, down from a peak of 72% in 2001. IMF data show the euro (20%), yen (6%), pound sterling (5%), Canadian dollar (3%)...
Prices for key compound‑semiconductor metals have surged, with tungsten, tantalum and molybdenum doubling and gallium climbing 123% to $2,100 per kilogram. The spike follows China’s late‑2024 gallium export ban to the United States and is amplified by the Middle East...
The ongoing Middle East conflict is driving up oil and gas prices, prompting Bangladesh to ration fuel and face long queues at stations. Export routes are jeopardized by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, while higher shipping costs and...
James Fok, chief commercial officer of CMU OmniClear, uses the 2026 Hong Kong budget as a springboard to argue that the city must build new physical and digital bridges with mainland China. He contends that deeper infrastructure ties will reinforce Hong Kong’s...
Geopolitical tensions and rising oil prices triggered a broad market sell‑off, prompting panic‑driven declines in large‑cap Indian stocks. Sunny Agrawal of SBI Capital Markets argues the fall reflects exaggerated risk assumptions rather than weakened fundamentals, leaving valuations attractive for long‑term...
U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgess announced that the United States can provide a reliable, affordable and secure energy supply to the Asia‑Pacific amid the Middle East war that has disrupted oil flow through the Strait of Hormuz. The Trump administration’s...
Oil prices have spiked as conflict in the Persian Gulf blocks the Strait of Hormuz, the sole maritime corridor for Pakistan’s crude imports. Over 85% of Pakistan’s oil comes from Saudi Arabia and the UAE, making the country highly vulnerable...
Japan and South Korea’s finance ministers voiced serious concern over the sharp depreciation of the yen and won, saying they stand ready to act against excessive foreign‑exchange volatility. The yen slipped to its lowest level in 20 months, hovering near...
Oil prices have surged sharply this month, driven by geopolitical friction and OPEC+ output curbs, but analysts argue the rally is transitory. Global inventories remain ample and demand growth is modest, limiting upward pressure. Historical data shows oil’s price cycle...
China is intensifying a diplomatic campaign in Paraguay, offering all‑expenses‑paid tours of Chinese cities to lawmakers and journalists to showcase its economic might. The outreach aims to persuade Paraguay’s political class to abandon its long‑standing recognition of Taiwan, its last...
The Peterson Institute for International Economics hosted a high‑profile conversation titled “Decentering the Dollar,” featuring former Dutch central bank governor Klaas Knot and renowned economist Maurice Obstfeld. The panel examined how the Trump administration’s trade and geopolitical shifts could undermine...
The Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE) convened a high‑level discussion titled “International Imbalances Again? Still? Forever?” to examine why global trade and current‑account gaps persist. Moderated by Maurice Obstfeld, the panel featured Joseph Gagnon, Hélène Rey, and Alan Taylor,...
Global trade faces heightened tariffs, divergent industrial policies, and a weakened WTO, creating turbulence across supply chains. At the same time, recent free‑trade agreements and renewed multilateral efforts are opening fresh opportunities. The Peterson Institute for International Economics hosted a...
The Peterson Institute for International Economics hosted a high‑level panel on the future economic architecture of the eurozone. The discussion featured Spain’s finance minister Carlos Cuerpo Caballero, ECB Executive Board member Isabel Schnabel, and senior economists Olivier Blanchard and Ángel...
The Peterson Institute for International Economics hosted a briefing on a new World Bank report examining the resurgence of industrial policy in the 21st‑century. The study finds developing economies, especially upper‑middle‑income nations, are the heaviest users, allocating an average of...
The United Arab Emirates suspended oil‑loading operations at Fujairah, its primary oil‑trading hub, after a drone strike ignited a fire on Saturday. The blaze was quickly extinguished, opening the possibility for loading to resume. At the time of the attack,...
United Airlines warned that a 15% jump in jet fuel prices, sparked by the Iran‑Israel conflict, could dent its short‑term earnings. The spike helped push United’s stock down about 4.5% and contributed to a broader market sell‑off, with peers such...
The Philippines' Department of Finance secured an $800 million development loan from the World Bank under the Growth and Jobs Development Policy Loan. The financing targets three pillars: stronger fiscal management, enhanced private investment, and expanded labor‑force capabilities. By focusing on...
Maria Bartiromo's Wall Street aired on Friday, March 13 on Fox Business, delivering a 20‑minute episode focused on market trends and financial commentary. The broadcast was part of the network’s daytime lineup, interspersed with several paid‑programming blocks. Viewers could stream...
The US‑Israeli strikes on Iran prompted Tehran to shut the Strait of Hormuz, cutting roughly a fifth of global oil flows and pushing Brent crude above $100 a barrel. The surge in oil and LNG prices is spilling into gasoline,...
Chinese tech magnates, including the founders of TCL and Xpeng, announced plans to double their outbound investment, targeting the Middle East and Latin America. The pledge comes as the US‑Israel conflict with Iran escalates and Washington intensifies pressure on Venezuela....
Hong Kong’s upcoming five‑year plan proposes making the Sino‑Indian partnership a strategic pillar. The proposal calls for extending visa‑free entry for Indian nationals, leveraging the Indian diaspora for scholarships and AI talent, and offering tax incentives to attract Indian firms...
U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min‑seok met in Washington to discuss reviving high‑level talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong‑un. Trump asserted he is the only Western leader capable of breaking the Korean Peninsula deadlock,...
Wall Street closed lower on Friday, with the Dow, S&P 500 and Nasdaq all in the red, putting the week on a negative trajectory. The decline was driven by heightened tensions in the war on Iran, which pushed crude oil above...
The UK North Sea faces a critical juncture as high taxes, a ban on new licences and geopolitical volatility are eroding investment and jobs. An effective tax burden of about 75 % under the Energy Profits Levy has driven rigs and...
A new AidData report shows China granted or loaned $23.9 billion to finance 168 ports across 90 countries between 2000 and 2025. The investments, covering construction, expansion and equipment, often sit near Chinese‑financed mines and have hosted naval visits at more...
Thai rice exporters halted two ships carrying 80,000 tonnes bound for Iraq after a Thai vessel was struck near the Strait of Hormuz, effectively pausing Middle‑East shipments. The disruption comes as Thailand’s rice export outlook has already slipped 11% to...
Indonesia’s February 2026 consumer price index rose to 4.76% year‑on‑year, overshooting the 1.5‑3.5% target range. The surge is driven by Ramadan‑related food demand, a government free‑meal scheme, and sharply higher electricity tariffs. Commodity pressures are amplified by a tenfold cut...
U.S. officials, including Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, confirmed that the Trump administration has discussed using oil futures contracts to temper soaring crude prices amid the escalating Iran‑Israel conflict. While the idea was explored, Burgum said no concrete market intervention has...
The United States announced it will actively prevent Iran from closing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital artery for global oil shipments. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth downplayed the disruption but affirmed U.S. readiness, while the Trump administration lifted select sanctions...
Wall Street faced modest declines as the S&P 500 slipped 0.3% amid heightened oil price volatility and ongoing geopolitical tension in the Middle East. A federal judge dismissed subpoenas targeting the Federal Reserve Board and Chair Jerome Powell over alleged renovation...
The Center for Economic and Business Forecasting at UTCC outlined three Middle‑East war scenarios, estimating that a prolonged, wide‑scale conflict could shave 2.31 percentage points off Thailand’s GDP. In the worst case, energy‑cost burdens would rise above 200 billion baht, exports could...
The Bank of Japan is expected to keep its policy rate at 0.75% at the March 2026 meeting, postponing any hike until at least April. Market participants cite heightened volatility from the Iran‑Israel conflict and surging energy prices as key...
DoubleLine’s March 13 Minutes highlighted a market caught between lingering war‑driven energy shocks and rising inflation concerns. Eric Dhall and Ryan Kimmel noted that energy stocks remain volatile while front‑end Treasury yields climb amid jittery price data. Fed funds futures shifted...
The U.S. Trade Representative announced Section 301 investigations into 16 countries, including China, and separate probes into 60 economies over forced‑labor concerns. In response, Chinese officials warned they could reinstate rare‑earth export restrictions and halt soybean purchases if Washington proceeds with...
Enterprises are eyeing retired server hardware as a new source of rare earth elements after Korea Zinc entered talks with major U.S. tech firms to recycle data‑center waste. The initiative follows Western Digital’s pilot with Critical Materials Recycling and comes...
Morningstar DBRS reaffirmed Ireland’s long‑term sovereign rating at AA with a stable outlook, and its short‑term rating at R‑1 (high). The agency highlighted a 4.9% rise in real modified domestic demand and a 12.3% surge in real GDP in 2025,...
Economists warn that a sustained $200 per barrel WTI price would trigger a systemic shock to the U.S. economy. At that level, gasoline could top $7 per gallon, eroding over $400 billion in discretionary consumer spending and deepening energy poverty. The...
The Inter‑American Development Bank is backing the Bi‑Oceanic Corridor—a 2,300‑mile road and rail link from Brazil to Chile—with a $200 million loan for the critical Paraguay segment. The corridor, slated for completion in late 2026, promises to shave roughly two‑and‑a‑half weeks off...
In 2026, escalating Middle‑East conflict has reignited oil‑price volatility while the private‑credit market grapples with heightened redemption pressure. Economists warn that these seemingly separate shocks can compound, tightening liquidity across capital markets. War‑related fiscal outlays—about $365 billion annually—provide a short‑term economic...
FTSE Russell plans to reclassify Vietnam from a frontier market to the secondary‑emerging category, a move that will trigger substantial index‑fund inflows. Analysts estimate up to $5 billion could be redirected into Vietnamese equities once the change is implemented in September. Retail...
US exporters are scrambling to locate containers shipped to the Middle East after ocean carriers halted almost all services due to the war with Iran. Mediterranean Shipping Company invoked an “end‑of‑voyage” clause for shipments bound for Dubai’s Jebel Ali, leaving cargo...
Leaders in agriculture and manufacturing emphasized the stability of the US‑Mexico‑Canada Agreement (USMCA) as essential to North‑American supply chains. Soybean exports to Mexico have quadrupled and to Canada doubled since the pact took effect, while Canadian pork and cross‑border equipment...
