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Israeli strikes kill 9 in Gaza; Israeli minister says there is no deal to stop attacks
Israeli airstrikes in Gaza continued for a second day in a row on Sunday. At least nine Palestinians were killed, despite U.S. president Donald Trump's?announcement that a breakthrough had been made in efforts to implement the Gaza ceasefire accord of last year. Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen stated on Sunday that no agreement had been reached to stop the attacks on Gaza. He also said that Israel, which controls over 70% of Gaza, should take control of Gaza in its entirety. Cohen is a minister in the security cabinet of Prime Minister Netanyahu, a group of ministers who oversee security and diplomatic policies. Palestinian health officials confirmed that Israeli warplanes conducted separate strikes in different parts of the Gaza City enclave, including the central city of Deir al-Balah and the southern area Khan Younis. According to medics, a man and his spouse were killed, and four others were injured, in an airstrike that hit an apartment in Deir al-Balah. Two more people including a child were also killed in another strike in Gaza City. Around dawn, a father, mother and their nine-year-old child were killed after a strike was made on a home in the Mawasi neighborhood of Khan Younis. A second person was also killed in northern Gaza, near Jabalia. Israeli military claimed that the attacks in Deir al-Balah targeted two Hamas commanders from its elite "Nukhba force". The Gaza City and Jabalia attacks also targeted "military operators" but the military said it was still reviewing the situation. Since the ceasefire in October, Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 1,230 Palestinians. Trump said that there was a breakthrough on Thursday after Hamas agreed disarming under an initiative backed by the United States to implement a ceasefire agreement signed last year in Egypt. Trump's Board of Peace is the U.S. body that oversees the ceasefire. They published a 15 point roadmap on Friday, outlining the final steps to implement the agreement. ROADMAP YET TO BE ?IMPLEMENTED The roadmap is still not implemented. Hamas said that it would only hand over weapons to be stored after Israel ceases military operations, and withdraws its troops in accordance with the agreement of last year. A senior Israeli official said that the military would not be able to leave its current positions until Hamas underwent "genuine dearmament". Cohen, speaking to Army Radio, said he didn't believe that Hamas would disarm but rather try and hide its weapons. Itamar Bin-Gvir, the National Security Minister of Israel, has described it as 'inacceptable' and stated that Israel should continue to assassinate Hamas leaders. Mohammed Dahlan, a former senior Fatah official based in the United Arab Emirates said on Facebook that Jared Kushner was Trump's son in law and a senior advisor involved in the U.S. Initiative. He had told him Jared Kushner would be working with the Israeli side in order to stop the attacks against Gaza. Dahlan said that contacts were being maintained with the U.S. to ensure the agreement is fully implemented. He added that the success of the agreement now depends on Israel ending its daily attacks against Gaza. The U.S. State Department has been contacted for comment regarding Dahlan's remarks. Israel did not immediately comment. Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo, Hatem Maher and Steven Scheer. Editing by Rod Nickel & Alex Richardson
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Governors claim that Ukrainian drones have killed two people in Russia and struck a Wildberries warehouse.
Officials in the region said that Ukrainian drone strikes had killed two people overnight. The targets included a warehouse owned by 'Wildberries', Russia's biggest online retailer. The Russian Defence Ministry reported that it had shot down 635 Ukrainian drones in the middle of the night. Samara Governor Vyacheslav Federishchev confirmed that drones from Kyiv attacked a Wildberries storage facility in the Samara area, about 800 km (500 mi) away from Ukraine's advanced military positions. The governor said that there were no injuries and that the fire, which had started as a result, was being extinguished. Ukrainian forces are expanding their strikes against economic and energy targets in Russia, aiming to weaken Moscow's capacity to continue its more than four-year old war in Ukraine. Since July 18, they have attacked around a dozen Wildberries websites in an attempt to disrupt operations. The company is often referred to as Russia's Amazon. Roman Busargin, the governor of Engels said that a strike on a building in the neighboring Saratov region killed two people. He said that civil infrastructure had been damaged in both the city of Saratov and Engels. Saratov, the city that hosts a major refinery of oil, as well as Engels, the home to a military base, have both been repeatedly attacked by Ukraine in recent years. Radiy Khabirov said that the air defence units of the Bashkortostan region in?Russia had foiled a massive drone assault?on industrial installations. He said that one of 'the drones' was shot down over the industrial area in the regional capital Ufa, and a fire is being extinguished.
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Holcim sells Philippines unit to Huaxin for $807 million
Holcim Group, a Swiss building materials company, announced on Sunday that it intends to sell its Philippines business to China’s Huaxin Building Materials. The deal could generate at least $807 million. Holcim is selling a 68% initial stake at $527 million. The remainder will be sold in the next 3 to 5 years for $290 million. Holcim stated that the total valuation would be $807 million. However, this figure could increase "based on incremental values created during?this time period". The money raised will be used for?large acquisitions as well as further investments in Holcim’s existing business. After spinning off their North American operations last year, the Swiss company is reshaping its business and focusing more on Europe, Latin America. North Africa, and Australia. Holcim has identified acquisitions as a critical part of its growth strategy. The company plans to close 15 deals by 2026. Holcim said last year that it has 3 to 4 billion Swiss Francs ($3.72 to $4.95billion) available to spend on acquisitions until 2030. It could also raise an additional 6 billion Swiss?francs through divestments, extra borrowing and share buybacks. Holcim CEO Miljan Gutovic said on Friday that the company had a "very good pipeline" of projects for acquisitions in Latin America, Europe, Middle East, Africa and parts of Asia. He also stated that large deals were being considered. He told analysts that the company was constantly screening its landscape. "From walling and flooring solutions companies to roofing, we believe that there are some attractive markets," he said after the second-quarter results. Gutovic said: "I am confident that the M&A market will be?in a good place in the second half this year." ($1 = 0.8074 Swiss Francs) (Reporting from John Revill in Zurich, and Sumedha mukherjee in Bengaluru. Editing by Kate Mayberry & Joe Bavier).
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Sources say that OPEC+ will increase its quota in September, followed by a pause.
OPEC+ 'plans to approve a quota for production increase of around 188,000?"barrels a day" on Sunday. After that, it will halt further increases in output, according to sources, until the voluntary cuts are completed. Saudi Arabia, Russia and Kuwait are the core members of OPEC+. They have been increasing their monthly production quotas since most of this year. These increases are largely a paper exercise, due to the disruptions caused by the wars in Ukraine and Iran. One OPEC+ 'delegate' and an OPEC+'source, both of whom said that the group would pause production increases after September as it faces difficult discussions over new production quotas. The September increase will complete a phased rollback on a 1,65 million bpd cut in supply originally agreed upon in 2023 when?the group included the United Arab Emirates which left OPEC last May. OPEC+ has been reviewing the oil production capacities of its members to determine quotas for 2027. After September, OPEC+ 'cuts' will continue to be in effect for a period of approximately?2 millions barrels per day until 2022 when the group decides on how to distribute extra?supply to its members. Iraq and other members of the group are pushing for higher quotas that reflect their increased capacity. Reporting by Alex Lawler and Ahmad Ghaddar, Writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov, Editing by Joe Bavier
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Governors claim that Ukrainian drones have killed two people in Russia and struck a Wildberries warehouse.
Officials in the region said that Ukrainian drones killed two people overnight in regions along Russia's Volga river. The strikes hit targets such as a warehouse owned by Wildberries, Russia’s largest online retailer. The Russian Defence Ministry reported that it had shot down 635 Ukrainian drones in the night. Kyiv's drones targeted a Wildberries warehouse located in the Samara Region, approximately 800 km (500 mi) away from Ukraine's "most advanced military positions" on Ukrainian territory, according to regional governor?Vyacheslav Federishchev. He said that the information about potential casualties is still being clarified. Ukrainian forces are launching more strikes inside Russia, as they intensify their attacks on energy and economic targets. They hope to weaken Moscow's ability to wage its four-year long war in Ukraine. Since July 18, they have targeted about a dozen Wildberries websites in an attempt to disrupt operations. The company is a key component of Russia's consumer economy, often described as Amazon's Russian answer. Roman Busargin, the governor of Engels said that a strike on a building in the nearby Saratov region killed two people. Both in Engels and in Saratov's city, civil infrastructure was damaged. Saratov, the home of a major refinery and Engels, which is a military airbase, were both repeatedly attacked by Ukraine in recent years. Ukraine has not yet commented on the recent strikes.
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Evacuations are required after fires in Washington State that cover more than 250,000 acres.
State officials reported on Saturday night that wildfires covering more than a quarter million acres of Washington state have caused widespread evacuations in the Spokane area and caused power outages. Dave Upthegrove said that more than a dozen fires were burning in the'state. On Saturday morning, Governor Bob Ferguson issued a burn ban and declared an emergency in the state. Officials said that at this time, they were unaware of any injuries or deaths related to the fire. Spokane is home to 230,000 people in eastern Washington. The Old Trails Fire has been active for 3,000 acres, and threatens 4,000 buildings, according to Washington State Forester George Geissler. Mayor Lisa Brown confirmed that some major Spokane facilities have been evacuated. These include water reclamation plants, a waste energy plant, and the Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital. About 200 homes had been evacuated in Spokane as of 3:30 pm (2230 GMT) but officials expect that number to change. Brown said: "These are huge areas of the city, so I expect it will be more than 200 homes." Stacey McClain, of Washington State Emergency Management Division, said that?60,000 people in eastern Washington were without electricity. Ferguson stated that the multiple fires in the state would be a serious problem. He noted that the high winds and temperatures over the weekend will make it more difficult to fight the fires. Upthegrove stated that Washington State has burned about 450,000 acres this summer. This is not normal. "We're seeing fires raging throughout the state of Washington," he said. Geissler said that the fire in Spokane was one of five major complex fires in Washington. Kaiser Canyon Fire, located in the northeastern corner of the state, is the largest, covering approximately 134,000 acres. This summer, wildfires have caused problems in many parts of the Pacific Northwest. Last month, nearly 34,000 lightning strikes led to a series of fires in southern British Columbia. Washington officials stated that firefighters from over a dozen different states, in addition to the National Guard are also helping. "It is a tragedy that we are seeing over there," said Major Gen. Gent Welsh, the?adjutant-general of Washington National Guard. "When the sun goes down and rises again in the morning, we will be shocked to see the scenes that have emerged." (Reporting and editing by Kenrick Non; Kenrick Cai)
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Iran threatens to attack other nations' energy field if US launches new attacks
Iran warned this weekend against "adventurous actions" by the U.S. and said it would retaliate if American forces follow through on President Donald Trump’s threats to launch fresh attacks on Iranian target. Abbas Araqchi, the Iranian Foreign Minister, made his comments on Saturday in separate telephone calls with senior Turkish officials and Saudi officials. This was just hours after Kuwaiti army claimed to have destroyed Iranian drones that had attacked vital facilities. Araqchi, speaking to Pakistani Army Chief Field Marshall Asim Munir, and Turkish Foreign Ministry Hakan Fidan on Telegram, said Iran would react decisively to "aggressions" and discussed consequences of U.S. "destabilizing action" as well as prospects for?increased regional insecurity. Araqchi told Saudi Foreign Minister, Prince Faisal bin Farhan, that the U.S. or Israel would face a "proportionate" response if they attacked. Nournews, an outlet of Iran's top national security agency, stated on Saturday that U.S. strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure will prompt Iranian?strikes against oil fields in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Israel. It also said, "all?will be?burned to ashes". Trump told his cabinet on Friday at Camp David that he still believed U.S. negotiators including Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff, as well as Secretary of State Marco Rubio could reach an agreement with Iran. Trump said that he had lost faith in Iran, saying "They break their words so often." This is a charge Tehran has made against Washington on many occasions. He also stated that he would "hit them." STRAIT of HORMUZ Since U.S. forces and Israeli forces began the war on Iran with strikes on February 28, oil prices have remained high. Trump has claimed that the stated goal of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons is justified by higher fuel prices in the short term. However, the economic pain has placed political pressure on Trump to find a solution to the conflict. Benchmark Brent crude prices rose by 24% in July, and according to analysts polled at, they expect the price of oil to continue rising this year. Since the beginning of the conflict, the threat of Iranian attacks has slowed down most shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. This is an important conduit for energy supplies around the world. It's sent shockwaves throughout the global economy. The Kuwaiti Army reported that a government facility located in northern Kuwait, and a civilian property owned by a company located on Bubiyan Island were both hit Saturday. Falling shrapnel caused material damage, but there were no injuries. Add to the 'energy industry's worries, Iran's Houthi ally in Yemen has recently begun threatening Bab el-Mandeb - the strait on the opposite side of the Red Sea, from the Suez Canal - another route for Saudi 'crude' oil exports. United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations announced on Saturday that it had received reports about two maritime incidents near Oman. One of them involved a tanker being struck by an unknown object which damaged the engine room. The master of the tanker in the second incident reported seeing an explosion and a large splash close to his vessel. However, no damage was reported.
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Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 4 despite Trump's announcement of breakthrough
Israeli airstrikes in Gaza continued for the second day in a row on Sunday, killing four Palestinians despite U.S. President Donald Trump's announcement that a breakthrough had been made in efforts to implement last year's Gaza ceasefire accord. Palestinian health officials reported that Israeli warplanes carried out separate strikes in Gaza City, and Deir al-Balah. Two people, including a young child, died in a Gaza City apartment airstrike, according to medics. Trump stated on Thursday that a breakthrough had occurred after Hamas agreed disarming under an initiative backed by the United States to implement the ceasefire agreement signed last year in Egypt. Trump's Board of Peace released a 15 point roadmap on Friday that outlines?the final steps to implement the agreement. The roadmap is yet to be implemented. Hamas has said it will only hand over weapons to be stored after Israel ceases military operations, and withdraws all its forces according to the agreement of last year. Israeli officials said that there would not be a withdrawal of the military from its current positions until Hamas underwent "genuine dearmament." Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has not publicly commented on this initiative. National Security Minister Itamar Bin-Gvir called it inacceptable and said Israel should keep assassinating Hamas leaders. Mohammed Dahlan, a former senior Fatah official based in the 'Arab Emirates said in a post on Facebook that Jared Kushner - Trump's son in law and senior adviser in the U.S. Initiative - had told him he worked with the Israelis to halt attacks in Gaza. Dahlan said that contacts were being maintained with the U.S. to ensure the agreement is fully implemented. He added that the success of the agreement 'now depends on Israel ending its daily attacks on Gaza. The U.S. State Department has been contacted for a comment on Dahlan’s remarks. Israel did not immediately comment. Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, Hatem Maher and Rod Nickel. Editing by Rod Nickel
Copper drops as Middle East conflict renews inflation risk
Prices of copper fell on Monday, as the fighting between the U.S. Benchmark three-month Copper?on the?London Metal Exchange fell 0.64% to $13,398.5 per metric ton at 0701 GMT. The Shanghai Futures Exchange's most traded copper contract fell 0.68%, to 103100 yuan (15,199.54 USD) per ton. U.S. forces and Iranian forces traded heavy drone and missile assaults at the weekend. This dampened risk appetite, and reignited fears that rising energy prices and inflation could lead policymakers to raise interest rates for longer.
The pressure on industrial metals is increased by higher interest rates.
Gold and silver that do not yield any interest rose in price, but oil prices fell.
The U.S. dollar ?strengthened slightly over the weekend, making greenback-denominated commodities like copper more expensive ?for buyers using other ?currencies. Aluminium has largely brushed off any potential disruption in supply, which was expected to return to normal following an interim agreement after the war broke out on February 28.
The LME saw a drop of 0.33%, while the SHFE fell by 0.65%.
The announcements of several production restarts have put pressure on the price of aluminium. On Friday, major supplier Emirates Global Aluminium announced that it had restarted its UAE alumina refinery. The exchange data showed that visible stocks of aluminium in LME registered warehouses had fallen to their lowest level since 2022. In June, 95% of the?available stock was of Russian origin. Zinc, lead, and nickel all fell in value on the LME. Tin also dropped by 0.23%. On the SHFE, zinc fell 0.84%. Lead dropped 0.66%. Nickel dipped by 0.23%. Tin dropped 1.7%.
(source: Reuters)