Europe

The Dutch government announced temporary tax breaks on Monday to compensate for the rising cost of fuel. It also said it was preparing a broader package of measures in case energy prices worsen. The government allocated around 1 billion euro ($1.2 billion) to temporary tax relief measures for commuters and truck drivers, but did not lower fuel taxes as many of them requested. These measures include targeted support to lower-income people with energy bills and a?support for homeowners to reduce their consumption. The government stated that there are no immediate fuel shortages as European oil, jet fuel and diesel supplies...

The World Bank announced a new strategy on Friday that focuses on jobs to help small island states, and other small countries address challenges like remoteness, shock exposure and a limited economic base. World Bank President Ajay Banga spoke about the initiative in a closed door meeting of 50 ministers and governors of central banks from small countries, held during the spring meetings for the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. He explained that the idea was to use different tools to help smaller states attract more investment, implement policy and regulatory changes to make it easier to run...

The oil prices fell by 13% after Iran's Foreign Minister said that the Strait of Hormuz would remain open to all commercial vessels for the remainder of the ceasefire period. U.S. president Donald Trump also said Iran had agreed not to close the strait ever again. Brent crude futures dropped $12.87 or 12.95 percent to $86.52 per barrel at 10:50 am EDT (1450 GMT) after hitting a session's low of $86.09. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude Futures fell $13.50 or 14.26% to $81.19 per barrel after reaching $80.56. Both contracts traded at their lowest since March 10 and were set...

Early Friday morning, oil prices dropped on the optimism that the Middle East conflict could be coming to an end. A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon went into effect after the inauguration of the ceasefire. Moreover, 'President Donald Trump' said the U.S. may hold talks with Iran over the weekend. Brent crude futures fell $1.34 or 1.35% to $98.05 per barrel at 0021 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude Futures declined $1.65 or 1.74% to $93.40 per barrel, reducing gains from the previous day. Trump addressed a major sticking point in talks to end the Iran War, which has...

Analysts and traders say that U.S. crude cargo prices have fallen from recent price spikes, while in Europe and Asia prices continue to reach record highs, seven weeks after the Iran 'war. The war in Iran disrupted the global oil flow with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz - a vital trade route - and caused damage to oil facilities in the entire region. This pushed the price of crude oil in Europe, the Middle East and Asia up to record highs. As the world's largest oil producer, the U.S. has been able, through its refineries, to access the...

The Kremlin announced on Thursday that President Vladimir Putin had scolded the top Russian economic officials for a decline in the economy during the first two month of the year. Since 2023 the Russian war economy has been outperforming the G7 average, even though it slowed last year. Putin announced on Wednesday that Russia's economy contracted between January and February. Putin said the economic trajectory was below expectations at the beginning of a Kremlin meeting with Russia's top economic officials on Wednesday. He asked the officials to provide him with detailed options for how to rectify the situation. Dmitry Peskov,...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said to reporters that the United States would not be renewing waivers which allowed some Iranian and Russian oil to be purchased without facing U.S. sanctions. Reports on Tuesday stated that Washington will not renew the 30-day waiver for sanctions against 'Iranian Oil at Sea' that expires in this week and that a similar waiver would expire on sanctions against Russian oil over the weekend. We will not renew the general license for?Russian oil and we won't be renewing the?general?license for Iranian oil. This was oil which was in the water before March 11. All of...

Data from Kpler & LSEG revealed that Europe was experiencing record-breaking inflows of Jet Fuel from the United States. The region is trying to replenish fuel supplies as a result of the Middle East's disruption. Due to the U.S. and Israeli war against?Iran, the Strait of Hormuz has effectively been closed. This has prevented the Middle East from supplying Europe with nearly 75% of their?jet fuel, or about 375,000 barrels a day. According to a document viewed by, this has caused European airlines to call on the European Union (EU)?to take emergency measures including widespread airspace closings. Based on vessels...

On Wednesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin scolded top officials after the economy shrank by 1.8% during the first two months of the year. He asked them to 'come up with new measures that will boost the economic growth. The tight monetary policies of the central bank and Western sanctions that target the oil revenues of the country are the main reasons for the slowdown in Russian growth. The International Monetary Fund has raised its estimate of Russia's GDP growth in 2026 from 0.8% to 1.1% after the Middle East crisis spiked oil prices in March. The government has forecast growth...

Russian news agencies reported that Sergei Lavrov, the Foreign Minister of Russia, said on Wednesday in Beijing at a press conference that Russia was'ready to increase its energy supply to China before an expected visit by President Vladimir 'Putin. Vedomosti cited sources who said that it would be during the week of May 18th. President Xi Jinping and Lavrov met on 'Wednesday', assuring Moscow that China is a friend of Russia and saying that China and 'Russia' must work together, trust each other and protect each other's interest. Lavrov said at the press conference that Russia is ready to provide...

Wale Edun is the Nigerian Finance Minister, and the Chair of the G-24 coalition of developing nations. He said that multilateral institutions should do more to help vulnerable countries weather the economic shocks caused by the Middle East war. Edun stated during the briefing for the G-24 at the IMF/World Bank Spring Meetings in Washington that "we would like them do more. We definitely like them provide, especially at this time additional liquidity risk management instruments that lower the cost of funding." The G-24 is a group of countries that coordinates the stances taken by developing nations on issues related...

Austria ordered an official review to determine if the 'partially-state-owned oil and natural gas company OMV' is complying with new rules on lowering fuel prices. The company, however, denied that it had broken them on Tuesday. The 'U.S. and Israeli?war on Iran has caused the biggest oil supply disruptions in history, sending oil prices soaring. European governments are scrambling to protect their consumers. Austrian government introduced the so-called "petrol-price brake", under which the value-added tax increase?from increased petrol prices are passed on to the consumers in the form a reduction?in tax, initially set at 6 U.S.-cents per litre. The national...

The U.S. is hosting further discussions in the coming weeks for the Group 20 major economies about the impact of war in the Middle East on food and fertiliser, as they 'continue to push for coordinated actions. The U.S. will make this pledge in a statement by the chair of the G20. It will be made during a meeting between G20 finance minsters and central bankers held on April 16 at the Spring Meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. Before its official release on Monday, a copy of the statement was released instead of a communiqué...

The gold price fell Monday due to the stronger dollar. Dollar and inflation fears after another closure of the?Strait of Hormuz drove oil prices higher. As of 1103 GMT spot gold was down 0.8% to $4,790.59 an ounce after reaching its lowest level since April 13 earlier in session. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell by 1.4% to $4.811. Oil's rise after the weekend chaos surrounding the Strait of Hormuz ensures that inflation risks are palpable and offsets gold's appeal as a safe haven asset. Han Tan, Bybit's chief market analyst, said that the dollar has been the safest...

Agnico Eagle Mines announced on Monday that it would 'acquire Rupert Resources, Aurion Resources and buy a majority stake in a joint venture with B2Gold. It is consolidating a major gold district located in northern Finland. The Canadian miner stated that the three transactions would 'give it full control over a large land parcel?in Central Lapland Greenstone Belt. Building a multi-asset platform anchored by the existing Kittila?mine and the Ikkari?gold?project. The deals include a C$481,000,000 all-cash purchase of Aurion and a C$325,000,000 purchase of B2Gold’s 70% stake in Fingold. The Ikkari Gold Project and Agnico's Kittila Mine, the largest primary...

Eurasian Resources Group announced on Monday that it would 'cut cobalt hydroxide production in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 2025 because of an export ban and quota system. It plans to only a partial recovery this year. DRC, which is the largest producer of cobalt - a key component in electric vehicle batteries - imposed an export ban for several months at the beginning of 2025, before switching to a quota system. The country was facing a glut of the metal and a slump in prices. It also established a cobalt strategic reserve. ERG intentionally reduced cobalt-hydroxide output by...

Gold prices dropped on Monday due to the stronger U.S. dollar and renewed inflation concerns?after a second closure of the Strait?of?Hormuz?pushed oil prices higher. As of 0930 GMT spot gold was down 0.7% to $4,792.89 an ounce after reaching its lowest level since April 13 earlier in session. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell by 1.4% to $4.812.60. Oil's rise after the weekend chaos surrounding the Strait?Hormuz ensures that inflation risks remain tangible, offsetting the allure of gold as a safe haven asset. Han Tan, chief analyst at Bybit, said that the precious metal has taken a backseat in...

Sabanci Holding, a Turkish conglomerate, announced that it would sell the remaining shares of cement maker Akcansa Cimento and exit retailer CarrefourSA. Analysts say the conglomerate is looking to streamline operations by selling assets with low margins of profit. According to a Monday filing, Heidelberg Materials purchased Sabanci's 39.72% share in Akcansa. The deal valued the company at $1.1billion on an enterprise-value basis. The transaction value wasn't disclosed. The deal will see Heidelberg Materials double its stake in?Akcansa from 69.44% to 79.44%. Akcansa has three cement plants and 26 ready-mixed?plants. It also operates five aggregate quarries, and five terminals for...

As the dollar strengthened, gold prices fell, and oil prices rose, as news spread that 'the Strait of Hormuz was closed again. This sparked inflation fears. As of 0730 GMT spot gold was down 0.7% to $4,792.89 an ounce after reaching its lowest level since April 13 earlier in session. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell by 1.4% to $4.812.20. Ilya 'Spivak is the head of global macro at Tastylive. He said that gold prices were lower today after the U.S. - Iran war ceasefire, which markets celebrated last Monday, appeared to have broken down. "This has brought back...

The Russian Property Agency said that it valued a 67.2% stake in the gold producer UGC for 140.4 billion roubles (1.85 billion), ahead of the auction to sell this stake. This will take place at the beginning of May. A Russian court ruled in July 2025 that the majority share owned by Konstantin Strukov, an entrepreneur, should be transferred to state. This was a part of a broader pattern of nationalisations by Russian companies, and Western firms leaving Russia. Last year, the Moscow law firm NSP estimated that the authorities had confiscated assets worth $50 billion since Ukraine's conflict began....

The dollar strengthened on Monday, and gold prices fell. Meanwhile, news that the "Strait of Hormuz" is once again closed pushed up oil prices, reigniting inflation concerns. As of 0537 GMT spot gold was down by 0.7% to $4,794.21 an ounce after reaching its lowest level since April 13 during the earlier session. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell 1.3% to $ 4,813.70. Ilya Spivak is the head of global macro at Tastylive. He said that gold prices were lower today because the U.S. - Iran war ceasefire, which markets celebrated last Friday, appeared to have broken down. "This...

Gold prices fell Monday as the dollar strengthened. Meanwhile, news that 'the Strait of Hormuz was closed again' pushed up oil prices and rekindled inflation fears. As of 0351 GMT spot gold was down by 0.7% to $4,793.98 an ounce after reaching its lowest level since the previous session. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell 1.4% to $ 4,813.60. Ilya Spirak, global macro head at Tastylive, said that gold prices were lower today because the U.S./Iran ceasefire that was celebrated by markets last week appears to have broken down. "This has brought back the familiar 'war-trade' dynamics that we...

The 'dollar strengthened on Monday, and gold prices fell. Meanwhile, news that the 'Strait of Hormuz was closed again drove oil prices up. Inflation fears were revived by the news that the Strait of Hormuz would be closed once more. As of 0155 GMT spot gold was down 0.4% to $4,809.71 an ounce after reaching its lowest level since the April 13 session earlier in this session. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell 1% to $ 4,829.40. Ilya 'Spivak is the head of global macro at Tastylive. He said that gold prices were lower today after the U.S. -...

In the first quarter of 2026 sales of electric cars jumped almost a third on the main European auto markets, as consumers sought alternatives to combustion engines after the war in Iran caused the highest spike in petrol prices for years. Data collected by the trade association E-Mobility Europe, and research firm, New Automotive, on Monday showed that new battery-electric vehicle registrations (BEVs), a proxy of sales, increased 29.4% in comparison to a year earlier, reaching almost 560,000 during the first quarter. They were also up 51.3% in March, with over 240,000 vehicles registered in 15 European markets. The ACEA...