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Gold on the verge of ending a four-month losing streak
Investors weighed Middle East developments and the impact they have on U.S. interest rate expectations. As of 0253 GMT the spot gold price fell by 0.6%, to $4,076.53 an ounce. However, it was on track for a 0.6% weekly increase. Prices rose by about 1.7% in the last month. U.S. Gold Futures for August Delivery fell 0.4% to $4 074.20. Tim Waterer is the chief market analyst for KCM Trade. He said that gold was showing a slight negative bias due to profit-taking, and a moderate rise in the U.S. Dollar. This follows the gains made by the metal yesterday, and the fall of the greenback. The dollar rose by 0.3% after a 2.4% drop on Thursday, its largest single-day decline since January 2023. Dollar-denominated goods become more expensive to overseas buyers when the U.S. dollar is stronger. Gold has had a better month than usual. Waterer stated that the metal has found a sort of cushion around the $4,000 mark, which has drawn buyers during dips. Kevin Warsh, Fed Chair, gave no indication of the next move the central bank will make at its Wednesday policy meeting. According to CME Group’s FedWatch tool, the markets are pricing in a 63% chance of a September rate hike. Gold is often seen by many as a hedge to inflation. However, higher interest rates can dampen its appeal because they increase the opportunity costs of holding a non-yielding investment. A drone strike in 'the Middle East that ignited fires on two vessels in Egypt’s Mediterranean port of Damietta, has created a new danger for shipping through the Suez Canal. It is one of the few major export 'routes open to Saudi oil amid an expanding U.S. Iran war. Analysts at BCA Research wrote in a report that "over the long term, the Hormuz Crisis will fade, but geopolitical... Spot silver dropped 0.8% to $58,48 an ounce. Palladium dropped 0.8% and platinum fell 1.7%, but both metals are on track for a gain in the month. (Reporting and editing by Mrigank Dahniwala in Bengaluru)
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Governor of Volgograd says drone attack causes fire at Volgograd energy plant
The'regional governor, Andrei Bocharov said that a drone attack caused a fire at an energy facility in Volgograd, causing five injuries. He did not give any details about the facility. A Lukoil oil refinery is located in the region. Bocharov said on Telegram that five people were seeking medical attention after the attacks. Regional governor Yuri Slyusar posted on a messaging app that a woman was injured in Gukovo after a drone strike. Ukraine recently intensified its attacks on Russian logistic hubs such as those of the top online retailer Wildberries. It also continues to strike energy facilities, which has triggered a crisis of supply?across much of Russia. Wildberries, which had a few warehouses damaged as recently as Thursday, announced on Telegram that it?had paid? a second tranche of financial assistance to nearly 100,000 sellers who's goods were?damaged. Ukraine says that its attacks on its neighbour, which include cities under constant Russian assault, are "long-range sanctions", designed to reduce Moscow's ability to fight and force the conflict to end. (Reporting and editing by Christian Schmollinger, Clarence Fernandez and Jekaterina Gölubkova)
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South Korean shares, notoriously volatile, soar after renewed semiconductor purchases
South Korean shares rose 16% on Friday morning, fueled by a new surge in investment in global semiconductor stocks. This is the latest swing in a market that has been thrown back and forth by leveraged bets. The benchmark KOSPI rose 919.07 or 16.43% to 6,512.63 at 0115 GMT after three consecutive sessions that saw the index drop to its lowest levels since April 7. Both chipmakers are set to record record gains. Both chipmakers are responsible for more than half the KOSPI market capitalisation. The shocking turnaround was after the Philadelphia Semiconductor?Index soared 8% in U.S.A. on Thursday. Micron Technology rose 18%. Microsoft's stock jumped 15% after it reported stellar earnings, which boosted a new vigor to the AI investment outlook. Other tech-heavy market indicators also rose sharply in broader Asian markets. Japan's Nikkei gained more than 5%, while Taiwanese stocks jumped by 7%. Foreigners bought shares in South Korea worth 4.04 billion won (5.8 trillion won) on Friday. If the current gains hold, the KOSPI would?post the biggest percentage daily rise in its history. The index remains fragile, and is down over 30% from its peak in late June. South Korea announced this week new measures to curb the volatility in the stock markets caused by?leveraged product?. However, analysts say that they may not be enough to stop the skyrocketing volatility as the public's anger and pain grows over the sharp losses of this month. Han Ji-young is an analyst at Kiwoom Securities. She said: "It's a concern there is investor sentiment that they are trying to recover their losses from the recent stock market slump through leveraged bets." The KOSPI is on course for its biggest monthly drop since 1997's Asian Financial Crisis.
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At least 18 people killed in blast at Pakistan coal mine complex
The Balochistan Government reported that at least 18 coal miners died after an explosion on Thursday buried parts of a mining complex in Pakistan's Balochistan province. The government said that a rescue operation was still in progress to locate and free the 14 remaining trapped miners. Shoaib. Nosherwani is Balochistan’s.Mines and Mineral Development Minister. He told earlier that 36 people were inside the collapsed area of the complex at the time of.explosion. He said that 25 of them were missing by late Thursday night. Muhammad Atif, chief inspector of mines for the province, said that rescue efforts are underway at a depth 1,219 meters (4000 feet). He said that although there is a chance of finding some miners alive, it was not likely. Abdul?Ghani?Baloch is a senior mining official from the region. He said that two mines, which were located?closely together, had been?damaged by a powerful explosion of methane. The explosion took place in a remote region called?Sorange near the provincial capital of?Quetta. (Reporting from Saleem Ahmed, Quetta; editing by Rick Noack and Susan Fenton. Rod Nickel, Stephen Coates, and Stephen Coates.
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US Cyber Defense Agency warns that hackers are increasingly targeting water system
U.S. civilian cyber defense agency warned on Thursday of an increase in hackers who target?technology that is used to maintain, control and monitor water and wastewater systems.?Operators of these systems are advised to remove them as quickly as possible from the internet. The warning comes just two days after Minnesota’s state IT agency reported that more than 30 water systems were the target of a “coordinated cyberattack” on July 26-27. In a late-night statement on Thursday, the FBI stated that at least seven state water and wastewater utilities had reported incidents to them. Some of these activities "degraded" water operations. The New York Times reported that U.S. officials are reviewing the case and believe it is probable that hackers with Iranian links are behind the Minnesota attacks. The Iranian government's representatives did not respond immediately to a comment request. The attacks come amid an intensification in the war between Iran and the U.S., as both sides have been exchanging missile attacks and are threatening to increase destruction. Hacking activity linked to Iran targeting the U.S. Water facilities date back to before the war. However, a number of groups have launched a series prominent cyberattacks against domestic U.S. organisations, including Stryker Medical Services and the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority. The FBI was contacted by the White House to answer questions regarding the Minnesota incidents. The FBI didn't immediately respond to an inquiry about the alleged Iranian involvement in these incidents. Officials from the state and local governments of Minnesota have said that these attacks do not pose a threat to water safety. However, in some cases systems had to be taken offline manually and reset. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure security agency issued an alert on Thursday warning that hackers had, in some instances, changed passwords in order to lockout operators and disconnect specific devices from networks. This resulted in "boil-water notices and sustained manually operations." According to the FBI, unidentified victims reported that the "operational effects of the attacks" included, in some places, loss of pressure and flood. Minnesota IT Services, which is the information technology agency of the executive branch in the state, said that an investigation was ongoing. The majority of confirmed incidents involved the technology used by water systems to remotely monitor equipment and control it, such as programmable logic controls (PLCs) and the computer screens that operators use to manage these. John Israel, Minnesota’s chief information security officer, stated in the statement that Minnesota has “provided relevant data to the federal government which is evaluating these activities in a broader national context, and leading efforts to determine if it can be attributed a specific threat agent.” IRAN SUSPECTED Cynthia Kaiser, a senior FBI cybersecurity official told reporters that it is highly likely that Minnesota hacking campaigns are a continuation of prior Iranian-affiliated attacks on PLCs and critical infrastructure technology, as noted by CISA and the FBI in an April advisory. The advisory was updated by CISA, the FBI, NSA and other federal agencies on July 22, to include more devices that were targeted than initially tracked as well as current techniques and hacking activities. The fact that "a new advisory" was released is indicative of either a broadening or new technical details, or a re-invigoration of the campaign. Chris Day, chief technical officer for cybersecurity firm Tenable in the public sector, said that the Minnesota incidents were "consistent" and "interesting" with previous events. He also noted the information publicly reported about some systems temporarily being taken offline. (Reporting and editing by Stephen Coates, Shri Navaratnam and AJ Vicens from Detroit)
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Fortescue targets increased 2027 iron ore exports after record-breaking annual exports
Fortescue, an Australian iron ore mining company, forecasted a 'higher level of shipments in 2027 following a record year for exports. The No. The world's No. Iron Bridge is being expanded to a capacity of 22 million tonnes, while the company explores ways to increase port capacity. This is currently seen as a key constraint for volume growth. Fortescue shipped 52,7 Mt of ore in the June quarter. This is 5% less than a year ago, but still above Visible Alpha's consensus estimate of 51,48 Mt. Hematite C1 unit costs increased 6% over the previous quarter to $19.37 per metric ton of wet material, due primarily to higher diesel prices. Dino Otranto, Fortescue Metals and Operations' Chief Executive said: "Ongoing volatility of global?diesel?prices only reinforces the...commercial case for eliminating fossil fuels from our operation."
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Vale reports 35% drop in Q2 Net Profit; reduces nickel and copper output forecast
Vale, a Brazilian miner, announced on Thursday a 35% drop in its second-quarter net profits compared to a year ago. Vale also revealed new shareholder remuneration as well as a narrowing of the range for copper and nickel production estimations for 2026. Vale, a major iron ore producer in the world, reported a net profit of $1.38 billion for the quarter April-June, which was below the $1.85 billion that an LSEG poll had predicted. EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization) increased 9% in comparison to the previous year, while revenue grew 19%. Vale also projected that copper production in 2026 would be between 360,000-380,000 metric tonnes, up from the previous range of 350,000-380,000. The firm estimates nickel production to be between?185,000-200,000 tons in this year. This is compared to a previous range of?175,000 - 200,000. Vale announced that it would be implementing a share buyback of up to 100 million shares over an 18-month period. It will also pay dividends and interest of 2.03 reais per share. (Reporting and editing by Chris Reese, Natalia Siniawski, and Andre Romani)
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Scientists say that climate change has made it more likely for Spain and France to experience 'fire-prone weather' conditions.
Scientists said that climate change caused by humans made extreme weather conditions in southwest France twice as likely. They also made the conditions driving fires in central Spain twenty times more likely. The ongoing wildfires that are raging in Spain and France forced thousands to flee and have scorched vast areas of land. Scientists from the World Weather Attribution Group used historical weather data to determine how conditions that are "fire-prone", such as hot, windy, and dry, have changed over time. According to the World Meteorological Organization, greenhouse gas emissions, mainly from the burning of coal, oil, and gas, has increased the average temperature on the planet to around 1.4 Celsius higher than pre-industrial times. The analysis said that extreme fires this intense are likely to occur once every 20 or so years in southwest France and once every 6 years?in central Spain. Clair Barnes is a research associate at Imperial College London who has co-authored a WWA analysis. Barnes said: "We have seen how climate change can increase hot, dry and flammable conditions, which are very conducive to wildfires." Barnes said that the findings were "extremely?scary" because it was still early in season and another heatwave is looming. A wet winter, which encourages vegetation growth, is followed by a dry spring and summer that dries this vegetation out, leaving large amounts of flammable fuel in the forests. WWA's analysis stated that reducing wildfire risks requires more than just emergency firefighting. It also calls for "risk-sensitive landscape planning and management" to help prevent fires. This could include clearing forests of dried-out plants before the wildfire season. Spain's'meteorological agency' has declared that this summer was the hottest on record. France is also experiencing its fourth heatwave this year. Recent scientific studies confirm that climate change caused by humans is to blame for the hot and dry weather in Europe. (Reporting and editing by Kate Abnett)
Oil drops more than $1 despite greater flows
The oil price fell on Friday, but remained on track to a?monthly rise of around a fifth? as more supplies flowed via crucial maritime chokepoints. This was despite the?absence of major breakthroughs? in talks between the?United States? and Iran?
Brent futures dropped $1.03 or 1.2% to $88 per barrel at 0215 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI), however, fell $1.50 or 1.8% to $82.09 per barrel. Both benchmarks were expected to increase by about 20% on a monthly basis.
Analyst at ING, Daniel?Hynes said that signs of increased flow in the Strait of Hormuz are 'offsetting' Middle East tension.
Since the U.S. and Israel war against Iran began on February 28, the strait has become a focal point of the?oil market.
Saudi Arabia wants to lead a coalition that will boost defence co-operation in the Bab El-Mandeb Strait and Red Sea, as well as the Gulf of Aden. These are all choke points for energy supply.
Saudi Arabia's defence ministry announced that 14 countries, including Djibouti and Egypt, Pakistan, Sudan, and Turkey, support the multinational maritime defense coalition.
Last week, Houthi militants aligned with Iran in Yemen declared a 'naval blockade' on Saudi Arabia. They threatened the Red Sea route used by Saudi Arabia to export oil, a "alternative" to the Strait of Hormuz.
Priyanka Sackdeva, an analyst at Phillip Nova, stated that although tanker traffic continues through the Strait of Hormuz, the increased security risks have boosted insurance rates and freight costs, resulting in a geopolitical premium embedded into oil prices.
Sachdeva stated that "while prices have eased off recent highs, the overall trend is still positive." (Reporting and editing by Clarence Fernandez; Sudarshan Varadhan)
(source: Reuters)