Asia / Pacific

The Iran War and the global energy crisis it unleashed could have "killed" the idea of an asset that fits all. It is not a novel concept given the poor performance of the U.S. Treasuries did well after the Russian invasion of Ukraine four years earlier. The extraordinary fall in gold prices since the U.S. and Israeli strike on Iran, February 28, has brought it into the spotlight. In times of increased economic, geopolitical or financial uncertainty, investors tend to flock to gold, Swiss franc, Treasuries and the dollar. These are the assets that will most likely serve as a...

Local media reported that despite assurances from Australian ministers, the market was well-supplied. The Sydney Morning Herald reported on Tuesday that New 'South Wales, Australia’s most populous state, had 165 petrol stations without diesel and 298 with no gasoline at all. This is as consumers stockpile fuel in anticipation of the U.S./Israeli war against Iran. Chris Bowen, the Energy Minister, confirmed in Parliament that there were shortages at petrol stations across multiple states. Bowen announced on Tuesday that fuel standards would be relaxed again, allowing more diesel to enter the market. This comes after Bowen had already lowered sulphur limits....

Sources from Bharat Oil Corp. said that Manoj Heda, the international trade head of Bharat, had been appointed to lead its Singapore-based trading division. Bharat Oil Global Energy Services (Singapore), Pte, is expected to begin operations in April, with a staff size of four, according to the company. Manish Parikh, who will be "the chief financial officer," was also named. Amit Bilolikar, Vaibhav gandhi and others will also join as crude traders. BPCL didn't immediately respond to a'request for comments. Sources declined to be identified because the appointments had not yet been made public. Heda joined BPCL as a senior...

Donald Trump, the U.S. president, said on Monday that the United States had held talks with Iran in the last day and the two sides "had major points of agreement." He added that a deal to end the war could be reached soon. Trump said that his Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, and Jared Kushner, his close adviser and son-in law had met with the Iranians Sunday. Discussions would continue Monday. We have had very intense discussions. We'll have to see how they go. We have major points of consensus, or almost all of them, as I'd say. Mr. Witkoff,...

The British government announced on Monday that the Iranian ambassador in the UK was summoned. Last week, an Iranian national and a British-Iranian dual citizen were arrested on suspicion of aiding Iran's spy services. Two men were accused in a London Court last week of 'being involved in gathering information from Iranian spy services and conducting reconnaissance of Jewish targets within?Britain over a five-week period in the summer of last year. The British Foreign Office said that "national security is our number one priority and we take the threats posed by Iran and those who follow its orders 'extremely serious."...

Despite the fact that the markets were bouncing and oil prices were near $100 a barrel due to the U.S./Israeli war against Iran, U.S. Energy Sec. Chris Wright said on Monday, at the CERAWeek conference in Houston, Texas. After the attacks in the Middle East on energy infrastructure and the closure of an important shipping channel, the world is experiencing one of its worst energy crises. The oil prices are at multi-year highs, and fuel prices in the U.S. have surged. This could cause problems for the Republican Party of President Donald Trump ahead of the midterm elections. The Trump...

The Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday told the government to take "balanced" decisions on how to use newly increased'state revenue' from?energy exports in light of a surge in global prices. He also stressed that the economy and the public accounts must be protected from external risks. He asked Russia's energy companies to use their additional revenues to pay back the massive debts they owe to banks. Prior to this month's dramatic rise in energy and?oil prices, due to the conflict in the Middle East, Russia had been experiencing falling budget revenues due to a greater discount on its oil...

Narendra Modi, the Prime Minister of India, said that the fundamentals of Indian economy were strong, and that the country had enough petroleum, fertilizers, and coal to weather the trade and energy disruptions brought on by the U.S. and Israeli 'war on Iran. The conflict, which started last month, has affected sectors ranging from air travel, shipping, and gas supplies. It also caused the Strait of Hormuz to be almost closed, which is a major conduit for 40% of India’s crude oil imports. Modi, the lower house of parliament, said that India had enough petroleum reserves, with strategic reserves exceeding...

Saudi Aramco has cut 'crude oil supply' to Asian buyers in April for a second month,>>,>>,>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>?two sources?knowing the situation? said on Monday. This is after the U.S./Israeli war against Iran disrupted the trade via the Strait of Hormuz. Sources said that the producer will only supply 'Arab Light crude from the Red Sea port of Yanbu in April to customers on a term basis. This is to limit supplies to Asian refineries and to cap their output. Aramco couldn't be reached immediately for comment outside office hours. Kpler data shows that Saudi Arabia exported 4.355 millions barrels of crude per...

According to the preliminary results from 'the state election commission', based on?the most votes?counted?, the right-leaning Slovenian Democratic Party and liberal Freedom Movement were tied at Sunday's parliamentary elections in Slovenia. Even with their existing coalition partners, neither party appeared likely to win the 46 seats required for a majority of the 90-seat Parliament. This makes smaller parties who cross the 4% threshold potentially kingmakers. SDS won 28 seats. Based on 99.45% counted votes, GS was in a close race with SDS. With the support of the other parties, GS, led by the incumbent Prime Minister Robert Golob, would have...

The British government announced that Prime Minister Keir starmer will chair an urgent meeting on the economic impact of the war in Iran, on Monday. Finance minister Rachel Reeves, and Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey are expected to attend. Investors should prepare for another turbulent?week on the financial markets, after Iran warned that it would 'hit the energy and water system?of its Gulf neighbours' if U.S. president Donald Trump followed through on his threat to strike Iran’s electricity grid. The British are watching this situation with particular concern. The high level of inflation, the country's dependence on natural gas...

Sinopec (China Petroleum & Chemical Corp), also known as Sinopec reported a 36.8% 'decline' in its 2025 net profit, citing a rise in the substitution of?new energy resources and weak petrochemicals margins. In a filing with the Shanghai Stock Exchange, the world's largest oil refiner by capacity reported a net income of 31.8 billion Yuan ($4.62billion) based on Chinese accounting standards. The refinery's throughput dropped 0.8% to 250.33 millions metric tons last year, which is equivalent to 5,000,000 barrels of oil per day. The company predicted that refinery throughput will remain at around 250 million tons by 2026. Gasoline production...

Gold prices continued to fall on Tuesday. This was due to a combination of 'persistent Middle East tensions' that fueled inflation fears and expectations for higher interest rates worldwide. By 9:00 am, spot gold had fallen 0.6% per ounce to $4 377.93. ET (1300 GMT), having hit its lowest level since November, at $4,097.99. U.S. Gold Futures for April Delivery fell 0.6% to $4378.80. Bart Melek is global head of commodity strategies at TD Securities. He said: "If energy prices continue to rise and the war continues, this is not good news for gold." He added, "Gold is going to...

Gold prices have pared their losses after dropping by more than 2% on Tuesday. Investors remain wary of the Middle East conflict, despite conflicting signals about Iran-U.S. negotiations. Around 0820 GMT, spot gold fell 0.2% to $4396.74 an ounce. Prices fell more than 8% to $4,097.99 an ounce on Monday, the lowest level since November 24. They then pared some losses. U.S. Gold Futures for April Delivery fell?1.5%, to $4340.90. Iran denied that it had held any talks with the U.S., after President Donald Trump backed down on his threat to bomb Iran's electricity grid. He cited what he called...

Itochu Trading House announced?on Tuesday that it will form a Japanese joint venture with Electronic Recyclers International to recycle electronic equipment. Itochu plans to purchase a stake in ERI but has not disclosed the details. Japan has increased its efforts to recycle resources as geopolitical risk increases the need for recycling systems at home. Koichiro Nishimura, CEO of Itochu’s Belong used mobile device division, stated that Japan's recycling rate for electronic devices was only 20%. This means there's still significant room for growth. He added that "recovering and recycling Japan's urban mines" is essential to reduce environmental?impacts and promote sustainability....

Analysts and industry executives say that India's imports, which are a vital?raw material for steelmaking?, will reach a seven-year high in the fiscal year ending March 31. This is due to a shortage of ore of high quality and JSW Steel's demand. Analysts and trade officials have said that the total imports will likely reach 12 to 14 million tons in 2025-2026, which is more than double what they were a year ago. JSW Steel, India's biggest ?steelmaker by capacity, was a key driver of iron ore imports for its mills in the western state of Maharashtra ?and the southern...

Industry executives said that record gold prices have pushed South Africa's mining industry, which is struggling to survive, to look for new methods to extract the metal. These alternatives to the old and expensive deep-shaft mining are needed. They're unlikely, however, to be able to increase production in the near future to lift the country's stubbornly low output. This is despite the fact that the country was for over a century the largest gold producer in the world. Statist South Africa reports that South Africa's gold mining has declined by nearly 90% since the 1990s. The expenditure on mineral exploration...

Australia and the European Union have signed a deal on Tuesday after eight years of negotiations. The agreement removes tariffs from almost all European goods, and nearly 'all' exports of critical minerals from Australia. Some Australian agricultural products, such as beef and lamb meat, will be subjected to export quotas. Australian farmers have sharply criticized the pact, claiming that it provides "subpar access" to the bloc. Both sides intensified their talks after the Trump administration increased U.S. Tariffs, and the West became more concerned about China's dominance in rare earths and critical minerals. Both sides signed an agreement to strengthen...

A World Gold Council executive said on Tuesday that central banks, who had been 'absent' from the market this year, are expected to purchase gold as a hedge to geopolitical and dedollarisation risks. Shaokai fan, the global head of the world banks at the WGC, said that in recent months, central banks from Guatemala and Indonesia, as well as Malaysia, have all purchased gold. This is either after a long break or for the very first time. He said, "We've seen a phenomenon in the past few months, where new central banks or central banks who have been inactive for...

An EU Commission spokesperson said that the European Union was in the "last miles" of negotiations for a trade deal with Australia. The EU is attempting to diversify its trade, reduce its dependence on China, and mitigate the impact of U.S. Tariffs. Since President Donald Trump launched his global tariff offensive in 2017 and China cut back on exports of vital minerals, the European Commission has been accelerating talks to achieve free trade agreements. In the last six months, it has already signed trade agreements with Indonesia and India. The European Commission's President Ursula von der Leyen will be visiting...

Nornickel, world's largest palladium producer, says demand for the metal could reach 0.8 million ounces annually in the future from China's fiberglass industry, helping to offset a?expected drop in demand from the?auto sector. Nornickel of Russia, which produces about 40% of the global palladium, will set up a Palladium Centre in 2023. The center's goal is to find new uses for this metal, beyond autocatalysts which consume more than 80%. Dmitry Izotov of the Palladium Center said that China purchased 20,000 ounces?of palladium to test its use for the glass industry. After successful '300-day' industrial trials, the Chinese are now...

MMK, Russia's largest steelmaker, announced on Monday that it would halt new investments and axe 10% of its management staff due to a weak domestic demand. The demand for metals in the Russian construction, energy, automobile and machinery manufacturing industries, which are the main customers, is decreasing as companies stop investing due to high interest rates, as the central bank battles inflation. Western sanctions also affected the metals industry. In a recent statement, MMK CEO Pavel Shilyaev stated that the metals industry was the most sensitive?barometer? of economic?condition. The current state of the sector is challenging. Shilyaev said, "We have...

Iron ore miner's fuel costs could rise by billions of dollars if diesel prices keep rising, said a senior executive at Australia's Fortescue on Monday. The 'U.S. and Israeli 'war on Iran' has almost stopped shipments across the Strait of Hormuz. This has sent oil and gas prices up and reduced the supply of diesel fuel, a key transport fuel in the mining industry. Benchmark Singapore Diesel swaps traded at slightly over $180 a bar on Monday. This is up from $92.5 a bar before the outbreak of war, according to LSEG. Dino Otranto said in an interview with a...

Iron ore futures rose on Monday due to higher freight rates. Other steelmaking ingredients such as coking coal and coal also gained a lot of ground. This is because countries have been booking coal cargoes in order to meet their energy needs. The May contract for iron ore on China's Dalian Commodity Exchange traded at 819 Yuan ($118.57), a difference of 0.92%. As of 0706 GMT, the benchmark April iron ore price on the Singapore Exchange had increased by 0.02% to $108.25 per ton. Shanghai Metals Market reported that despite the Middle East conflict?iron ore, coke and coal substitution energy...