Oil prices stabilized on Thursday (February 12th), as the market reassigned a risk premium to US-Iran tensions despite US inventory data showing swelling domestic supplies. This movement confirms one thing: geopolitical headlines are still more "noise" than signals of a short-term surplus. As of 3:50 PM WIB, Brent was at $69.60/barrel (+0.29%) and WTI was at $64.83/barrel (+0.31%). The gains were moderate, but enough to keep prices near the psychological $70 level for Brent. From a geopolitical perspective, market focus is on the potential for escalation in the Middle East. Recent reports...
European Union Council President Antonio Costa called for a "constructive position" with the United States on trade tariffs to prevent a trade war, speaking on Monday ahead of a G7 meeting in Canada. Costa emphasized that if the EU faced discriminatory measures, it would need to respond, noting that "the European Commission is prepared to respond, particularly in trade matters." "We have to keep nerves of steel. I have great hope that, in the end, some line of rationality will guide political action... as no tariff will increase U.S. exports of goods or services to Europe," Costa said in a...
Iran launched a new attack on Israel on Sunday night, with explosions seen in the coastal city of Haifa. Israel began further attacks on military targets in Iran, despite international calls for diplomacy and de-escalation, according to CNN. Local officials in both countries reported at least 224 deaths in Iran and 14 in Israel, while Iran's Health Ministry said at least 1,277 people have been injured since Israel launched a wave of attacks on Friday. In addition, Iran's semi-official Mehr News reported on Sunday that the fourth phase of Iran's operations against Israel had begun. Iranian...
US President Donald Trump said on Sunday that the United States will continue to support Israel, adding that he hopes there will be a deal between Iran and Israel but that they have to fight. Trump opposed Israel's plan to assassinate Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as the US president preferred to keep the US out of the fray for now. Key quotes Says he hopes there will be a deal between Iran and Israel, but sometimes you have to fight. Says he would not say whether he has asked Israel to stop attacks on Iran. Says the US will continue to support Israel in its...
The University of Michigan's preliminary consumer sentiment survey for June rose to 60.5 vs. 52.2 the previous month Median estimate 53.6; range 50.5 to 57.0 from 46 estimates Expectations index rose to 58.4 vs. 47.9 last month Current economic conditions index rose to 63.7 vs. 58.9 last month Median expected price change over the next year fell to 5.1% after 6.6% Largest one-month decline since 2001 Median expected price change over the next 5-10 years fell to 4.1% after 4.2%(alg) Source: Bloomberg
"There is still time to end this carnage, with the next attack already planned to be even more brutal," President Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social. Says Iran must make a deal "before it's too late" Says he has told Iran to make a deal but they "can't do it"(alg) Source: Bloomberg
Iran launched more than 100 drones toward Israel early Friday after an overnight Israeli missile attack on the country killed at least three of its senior military leaders. "We can now confirm that the Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces, the Commander of the IRGC, and the Commander of Iran's Emergency Command were all killed in an Israeli attack on Iran," Israel Defense Forces spokeswoman Effie Defrin said. "Iran launched about 100 UAVs toward Israel, which we are working to intercept." Rocket sirens sounded in northern Jordan as Jordanian state media reported the country had...
Israel launched widescale strikes against Iran on Friday, saying it targeted nuclear facilities, ballistic missile factories and military commanders and that this was start of a prolonged operation to prevent Tehran from building an atomic weapon. Iranian media and witnesses reported explosions including at the country's main uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, while Israel declared a state of emergency in anticipation of retaliatory missile and drone strikes. Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards corps said its top commander, Hossein Salami, was killed and state media reported the unit's...
The Israeli Air Force conducted a strike in Iran on Thursday, according to two sources with knowledge of the operation. It's not yet clear what Israel is targeting, but explosions were reported in Tehran. Why it matters: Israel is directly attacking its biggest and best-armed adversary, without clear backing from the U.S. President Trump publicly opposed an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear sites on Thursday, saying he still believed a nuclear deal was possible. It's not clear whether Israel has ordered strikes on Iran's nuclear program, or whether the U.S. opposed this specific...
Gold rises in the early Asian trade. There's a broad commodities uptrend, driven by macro uncertainty, a weaker dollar, and persistent demand for "hard" assets, says Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst...
Oil extended declines after OPEC+ agreed to a bigger-than-expected production increase next month, raising concerns about oversupply just as US tariffs fan fears about the demand outlook.
Brent...
The Japanese Yen (JPY) weakened against its US counterpart and reversed part of Friday's recovery from the lowest level since July 23 following Bank of Japan (BOJ) Governor Kazuo Ueda's remarks....