Latest News
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Trump extends U.S. Sanctions on Cuban Government
Two White House officials said that President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Friday broadening U.S. Sanctions against the 'Cuban Government. He is trying to put more pressure on Havana following his ouster of Venezuela's president from power. Officials said that the?new sanctions are aimed at people, entities, and affiliates who support the Cuban security apparatus, or are complicit with corruption or serious violations of human rights, as well agents, officials, or supporters of government. The order was reported first by. Officials said that the order authorized secondary sanctions for those who conduct or facilitate transactions with the individuals targeted by the order. The Trump administration's new sanctions against Cuba were its latest offensive. President Trump has declared Cuba to be near collapse. Since February 28, U.S. forces have waged war with Israel on Iran, launching strikes against Iran and Venezuelan vessels. Trump has stated that "Cuba will be next." He hasn't said what he intends to do about the island nation. Officials said that Trump's order was an implicit warning for Cuba. They claimed the Cuban government had aligned themselves with Iran and militant groups such as Hezbollah. Officials said that Cuba provides an environment conducive to hostile foreign intelligence, military and terrorist operations, less than 100 miles away from the American homeland. The U.S. demanded that Cuba open its state-run economic system, pay reparations to expropriated properties by the government of Fidel Castro and hold "free" and fair elections. Cuba's socialist form of government has been declared unassailable. After ousting Maduro in January, the U.S. imposed?additional pressure and sanctions on Cuba. Trump threatened to impose punishing tariffs on any country that shipped?crude oil to Cuba. This prompted Mexico, another major?supplier to stop shipments. Fuel shortages in Cuba led to three national-scale blackouts, and many airlines from abroad suspended flights to Cuba.
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Data shows that Tether purchases of gold for USDT reserves decreased in the first quarter.
In its latest quarterly report, Tether, the issuer of the?world's largest stablecoin?, revealed that it had slowed down its purchases of gold to back?Tether USDT to 6 metric tons, from 27 tons between October and December. Last year, the crypto company bought a lot of gold to use as reserves for the Tether USDT, a stablecoin that is backed by a digital currency with tokens worth $189.5 billion. It also purchased the Tether gold token, the Tether-XAUT, which has a circulation of $3.3 billion. Each Tether dollar token represents one U.S. Dollar held in reserve. Tether issues USDT when a user gives it a dollar. It also holds assets with the same value such as U.S. Treasury Bills. These reserves ensure that USDT is redeemable for dollars in the event of a need. The Tether XAUT is fully backed up by gold. The report revealed that the gold reserves?to support Tether USDT were worth $19.8 billion at the end of March. This would be equivalent to 132 metric tonnes of gold at market prices at that time compared to 126 tons at the end of December last year, according to calculations. As of the end March, Tether USDT's reserves are primarily U.S. Treasury Bills worth $117 billion. Gold represents only 10%. Bitcoin accounted for $7 billion in the reserves. Separate data revealed that Tether, the gold token, is currently backed by 22 tons of gold, an increase of 6 tons since the end of December. Tether holds a total of 154 tons gold in its two products. It would rank among the top 20 gold-holding countries if it were a central banking institution, but behind Brazil which according to World Gold Council data owns 172 tonnes. El Salvador-headquartered Tether doesn't disclose its ?total bullion holdings but they are probably larger: CEO Paolo Ardoino told in ?January that the company aimed to allocate 10%-15% of its own $20-billion investment portfolio to physical gold. Sources say that the group had planned to manage its own gold?investment by hiring two major traders in late 2025, but let them go in March. Four sources with knowledge of the situation said that the approach was not viable because a supervisory structure above the traders became an organizational constraint. One of them stated, "It didn't work." (Reporting and editing by Susan Fenton; Polina Devtt, Polina)
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Gold is a positive, as oil prices drop and hopes for Iran talks fade
Gold prices rose Friday, reversing losses of more than 1% earlier, amid hopes for a breakthrough in the Iran war. According to reports, Tehran had submitted a revised proposal for negotiation, which eased inflation fears. At 10:36 am, spot gold rose 0.3% to $4.636.72 an ounce. ET (1436 GMT), after having fallen as low as $4,59.48 in earlier sessions. The stock was still on course for a weekly loss of 1.6%. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery rose 0.4% to $4649.60. The potential 'peace breakthrough', as Iran has signaled that it is willing to resume talks, likely boosted risk appetite among investors, pushed the U.S. dollar index and pushed gold prices higher. "The potential?peace breakthrough, with Iran signalling that it wants to talk again, probably boosted investor risk appetite and pressured the?U.S. dollar index," said Jim Wyckoff. Dollars are cheaper to buyers of other currencies. IRNA, the Iranian state news agency, reported that Iran had sent its latest proposal for negotiations with America to Pakistani mediators. The news caused oil prices to drop, but they were still on track to make weekly gains. This is continuing the trend of fuel prices rising and fueling concerns about an economic slowdown in the world. Central banks could be prompted by rising costs to keep interest rates high for longer. This would put pressure on assets that do not yield, such as gold, as investors look at alternatives like Treasury yields. The U.S. 'Federal Reserve' kept interest rates the same this week, and struck a hawkish stance that caused?markets to abandon expectations of a rate reduction this year. The price of gold has fallen significantly since the beginning of the Iran conflict, in late February. This is despite its traditional role as a hedge against geopolitical uncertainties. Silver prices have risen 3.4%, to $76.26 an ounce. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He wrote: "Long-term prospects (for silver), remain supported by a sixth consecutive year's market deficit. Palladium rose 0.9%, to $1,537.12, while platinum was up by 0.8%. (Reporting by Anjana Anil in Bengaluru. (Editing by Nia William and Mark Potter.
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Marchers demand the reopening Bosnia's final steel mill
On Friday, hundreds of workers marched in Zenica, the central city of 'Bosnia.' They protested against the closing of the country's 'last steel mill' which they said marked the end of 'an era of heavy industries.' Protesters say that the shutdown of Zenica Steel Factory, which has been in operation for 130 years, put thousands of jobs on the line. This followed the February closure of Lukavac Coke Factory. Avdija halilovic, a marcher from Zenica, said that the city would not exist if it were not for the steel plant in Zenica. Demonstrators blew whistles while carrying union flags and shouted slogans calling for the reopening. Bosnia's Pavgord Group, which purchased the plant from ArcelorMittal in 2011, blamed its closure on logistics problems, cheaper steel imported and the failure of the government to take measures to protect the industry. There was no immediate comment available on the public holiday of May Day, which fell on Friday. The N1 website reported that the Bosniak-Croat Federation Prime Minister, 'Nermin Niksic', stated?on Friday that the regional government is interested in taking ownership of a?the factory and helping it to continue production. This week, the Nova Ljubija Iron Ore Mines, a key supplier to the steel mill that employs 600 people, declared bankruptcy. (Reporting and writing by Amel Emric, Ivana Sekularac and Andrew Heavens).
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Gold drops as inflation fears fuel expectations of higher rates
Gold prices fell on Friday and were headed for a loss of a week as inflation concerns reinforced expectations that rates would rise in the future. Oil prices remained near $110 per barrel. At 9:30 am, spot gold was down by 0.7% to $4,588.32 an ounce. ET (1330 GMT), after having fallen as low as $4,559.48 earlier in session. It was on course for a loss of 2.3% per week. U.S. Gold Futures for June Delivery fell by 0.6% to $4600.00. Chris Gaffney is the president of EverBank's world markets. He said: "Precious Metal Traders continue to sell Gold after the Fed signaled that U.S. Interest Rates would remain on Hold for the Near Term Due to Inflation Concerns." He added that this downward trend could continue as long as these concerns remain and oil prices remain high. As fuel prices rise, Brent prices are expected to continue their upward trend. Cost increases could encourage central bankers to keep interest rates high for longer. This would put pressure on non-yielding investments like gold, as investors look to other options such as Treasury yields which offer higher returns. The U.S. Federal Reserve?kept rates unchanged this past week, and took a hawkish stance that caused markets to give up any hope of a rate reduction in the United States this year. The price of gold has fallen significantly since the start the conflict with Iran in late February, despite the fact that the metal is regarded as a hedge for geopolitical uncertainties. IRNA, the state news agency, reported that Iran's latest proposal for negotiations with the United States was sent to Pakistani mediators on Thursday. Silver spot prices increased 1.4%, to $74.78 an ounce. Ole Hansen is the head of commodity strategy for Saxo Bank. He wrote: "Long-term prospects (for'silver') remain supported by a sixth consecutive annual market deficit, declining above-ground inventories, and firm demand from private investors and solar." Palladium was down 0.1% at $1,522.25 and platinum rose 0.3% to $1,991.80. (Reporting by Anjana Anil in Bengaluru; Editing by Nia Williams)
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TMC claims seabed mining application meets US standards, expects regulatory decision in Q1 2027
The Metals Co announced on Friday that U.S. regulators found their consolidated application for deep-seabed mineral exploration and commercial recovery to be "fully compliant" with federal requirements. This is a major step towards approval. The company expects that the regulatory process including the environmental review will be completed by the end of the first quarter 2027. TMC reported that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) determined that the application submitted by the U.S. division met all requirements under the Deep Seabed Hard Mineral Resources Act. The decision comes ?as President Donald Trump's administrationencourages U.S. exploration ?of the deep ?sea by accelerating permits for companies seeking critical minerals in international waters, a move expected to face environmental and legal challenges. Environmental groups have opposed the practice of mining seabeds to obtain metals such as nickel, manganese and copper, which are used in electronic products, weapons, and consumer goods. TMC has applied for approval to?explore and?recover metals from polymetallic nodules that are used in energy, defense, and infrastructure applications. The company announced in January that it was the first deep sea?miner?to seek Washington's approval as part of a simplified permitting process launched earlier this year.
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Policymakers: Fed should abandon rate-cutting lean due to oil price shock
The Federal Reserve officials who disagreed with this week's statement of policy said that the rising oil prices due to the U.S. supported war against Iran mean the U.S. Central bank officials should make it clear that they cannot continue to lean toward interest rate reductions, due to the uncertainty surrounding the future of the economy and inflation. The Fed's most divided vote since 1992 kept the overnight benchmark?interest rates steady at 3.50% to 3.75% but maintained language that indicated its next likely move would be a cut. This is consistent with the process started about 18 months ago, of lowering high borrowing costs used in order to combat inflation and towards a "neutral" position. The Fed's target of 2% is still well above inflation, and it has been increasing. With the risks associated with the outcome the war being so high, policymakers are less confident that rates will fall. Some are worried that they might need to increase. The pressures on inflation are still broad, and the rising oil price is a new source. She said that she no longer considered this easing of bias to be appropriate given the current outlook. Neel Kazhkari, the Minneapolis Fed president, said that a prolonged closing of the Strait of Hormuz or any further damage done to Middle East energy infrastructure would produce a large price shock. The Fed would then need to "potentially" raise rates to keep inflation expectations under control. After the Fed's weekly meeting, the lid was lifted on its policy communications. We would have to respond with a strong response. Federal funds rate hikes, possibly a series, could be justified even at the cost of further "weakness" in the labor market. The policy statement was approved by 8-4 this week. It repeated the existing language in order to show that the easing bias felt by three voting Fed officials is no longer appropriate. Other non-voting policy committee members are likely in agreement. The fourth dissent was 'in favor of a rate reduction. MARKET MEASURES OF FUTURE INCREASEMENT EXPECTATIONS ARE ON THE RISE The closure of the Strait of Hormuz - a vital shipping route for the world's supply of energy - and threats to the infrastructure has pushed the price of oil above $100 a barrel for several weeks. It reached $126 this week, compared with $70 when the conflict began two months ago. According to the AAA group, the average price of gasoline in the United States has risen by almost 10 cents over night to $4.39 per gallon. It was around $3 at late February. Omair Sharif of Inflation Insights said it was "early days" but that the Fed could be surprised to see that the consumer price index for May is above 4%. This would echo the spike in inflation that occurred after the COVID-19 Pandemic, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine 2022. Kevin Warsh could face "not only surging energy prices that threaten to spill over into the wider economy, but also rising inflation expectations numbers," Sharif wrote in a Friday article. Donald Trump said that he expected Warsh to deliver rate cuts in a difficult environment. While Fed officials claim that inflation expectations are stable at the moment, they have seen a sharp rise in expectations of near-term inflation since the start of the war, but their expectations of the rate of inflation over the longer term have increased more modestly. The market-based measures have also begun to increase. The yields of 10-year Treasury Inflation Protected Securities have risen by 25 basis points and are the highest they've been since 2023. The rate on 5-year TIPS also increased by roughly the same amount. The 5-year, 5-year-forward rate, which is a measure for expected inflation in five years' time, and the five years following, has risen by about 20 basis points. Powell said in a press conference after the Fed meeting on Wednesday that inflation dynamics were so fluid, the "center of thinking" among Fed officials was moving away from a statement with an easing bias in favor of a neutral tone, which would open the door for a rate increase. He said this change could happen, depending on the events, at the next policy meeting on June 16-17. Kashkari, in his Friday statement, pointed out another possible issue with the language of "easing". Kashkari's analysis shows that even in a "benign" scenario, where the Strait of Hormuz is opened relatively soon, the underlying inflation rate in the U.S. will remain at 3%. This would be well above the Central Bank's target, and would allow it to stay unchanged for a long period of time.
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Imperial Oil's quarterly profit misses expectations as throughput volume falls
Imperial Oil, a Canadian oil company, missed Friday's analysts' expectations for the?first quarter profit. Weaker crude realizations and unplanned outages at its facilities lowered?refinery?throughput. The geopolitical tensions that have been brewing in the Middle East have tightened the global oil supply. This has led to higher fuel prices. However, the gains are not enough for the weaker realisations and reduced downstream volumes. Imerial Oil refinery's quarterly?throughput dropped to 384,000 barrels a day (bpd), from 397,000 bpd?a year ago, and capacity utilization decreased to 88% from 90%, primarily due to unplanned outages and disruptions to synthetic crude feedstock. Early trading saw shares of the Calgary-based company, which is listed in the U.S., fall 2.7%. The company reported that the average price of synthetic crude oil fell from C$98.79 to C$96.13 a barrel, compared with C$98.79 a barrel a year ago. Western Canada Select remained largely unchanged at $58.33 per barrel. The quarterly upstream production however increased marginally to 419,000 barrels of crude oil equivalents per day (boepd) compared with the 418,000 boepd produced a year ago. The company also stated that the U.S. Trade Measures introduced in 2025 and Canada's retaliatory Tariffs were not expected have a material impact on its financial situation or operations. Imperial 'Oil reported its net income dropped to C$940 ($692.96 millions), or C$1.94 a share, for the quarter ending March?31. This compares with analysts' LSEG data compiled estimates of C$995?or C$2.47 a share.
Western, Russian nuclear industries still intertwined, report says
The Russian and Western nuclear markets remain dependent on each other, a scenario that has actually protected Russia from European sanctions, a market report said on Thursday.
Cutting the West's reliance would likely increase expenses, the yearly World Nuclear Industry Status Report stated.
Since Russia's 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a few of the five European Union nations with Russia-designed VVER reactors, which utilize Russian fuel, have sought alternative fuel sources, especially U.S. business Westinghouse Electric.
Numerous of those nations, however, stockpiled Russian fuel in 2015, driving up imports.
Some Western business rely heavily on Russian state business Rosatom's building of new reactors abroad to sell their parts, the report said.
Interdependence in between Russia and its Western partners stays significant, the report said.
With Rosatom implementing all 13 nuclear-power reactor construction websites started outside China over the past five years, suppliers of parts, e.g. France's Arabelle turbines, do not have any other foreign consumer besides Rosatom, it said, referring to an unit of French state power energy EDF.
It also cited so-called instrumentation and control innovation, often referred to as the central nerve system of a. nuclear power plant, provided by Germany's Siemens Energy. and France's Framatome, majority-owned by EDF.
The close shared commercial and market interdependencies. in between the Russian nuclear market and its Western. counterparts at least partly discuss European doubts to. enforce sanctions on the nuclear sector, the report stated.
Efforts to lower or remove Russia reliances in. natural uranium, conversion, and enrichment services will likely. boost costs, it included.
The report provided an introduction of global electricity generation. from nuclear power last year, which grew by 2.2% from 2022 to. 2,602 net terawatt hours, though its share of business gross. electrical energy generation fell slightly to 9.15% from 9.18%.
(source: Reuters)