Qatar
World Investment Forum examines fall in new business projects
Foreign investment is rising, but fewer new projects are being announced and funding remains concentrated in a few economies. At the World Investment Forum in Doha, officials and investors are discussing how more countries can benefit and create jobs.
Markets
Turning mercury into gold? A US start-up says it has just done it
Little-known San Francisco start-up Marathon Fusion says it has turned mercury into stable gold at ten times the rate of CERN's record, raising a question that has haunted the diamond trade: could lab-made gold one day sink the price of the mined metal?
Europe News
EU should revive talks on broader China trade deal, top MEP says
As EU lawmakers prepare to visit Beijing, the European Parliament's trade chief is calling for a broader agreement that could revive elements of a frozen investment pact and address unfair Chinese trade practices across multiple industries.
Tech News
Digital bank Revolut suffers worldwide outage: What you need to know
Revolut's app and services became inaccessible to millions of users on Tuesday. The issue, which appeared to be linked to a power outage at a Google Cloud data centre near London, has now been "fixed" and services have been "restored," the company said.
Russia
Putin seizes five European firms in ongoing hostile asset crackdown
The decree covers a flooring manufacturer, a paper packaging firm, a hygiene products maker, and two metal- and plastic-packaging companies, all of which continued operating in Russia after the all-out invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.
Azerbaijan
Middle East and Asian leaders gather in Baku despite disagreements
Middle East and Asian leaders, including those on opposing sides of conflicts, held a rare summit in Baku focusing on "confidence-building measures," addressing differences but also the opportunities of new transport corridors and economic realignments amid evolving global reshapes.
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan seeks Belgium partnership to boost Middle Corridor trade
Kazakhstan is seeking closer cooperation with Belgium on the Middle Corridor, including a potential partnership between the Port of Antwerp-Bruges and the Caspian ports of Aktau and Kuryk, as King Philippe and Queen Mathilde make their first state visit to the country.
Europe News
5 things to know ahead of crunch EU-China talks
The next ten days will be critical for EU-China relations. EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič will travel to Beijing later this week for high-level talks aimed at rebalancing the trade relationship and securing “tangible” results ahead of next week’s meeting of EU leaders.
Economy
Trump defers tax on red-dyed diesel for truckers as fuel costs bite
US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order deferring tax payments on red-dyed diesel used on public roads, as near-record fuel prices linked to the Iran war weigh on the Republican Party weeks before the midterm elections.
Markets
Why ordinary investors struggle to buy into the robotics boom
Most of the companies building the robots of the future are still private, leaving ordinary investors with limited options such as Tesla, diversified industrial groups or new vehicles like RoboStrategy, a Nasdaq-listed fund whose shares trade at more than twice the value of its assets.
Economy
US and China list goods for tariff cuts, what it could mean for Europe
Washington has published the lists of goods the US and China could tax at lower rates under their "30-for-30" framework, covering about $30bn (€26.3bn) in annual trade each way. No rates or start date have been set, but US pork, dairy and whiskey on Beijing's list could squeeze European exports.
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan agrees multi-billion-dollar deals with investment giants
Nearly $11 billion (€9.7 billion) worth in contracts have emerged from the Azerbaijan International Investment Forum, where some of the world’s biggest investment managers gathered for talks ranging from infrastructure and technology to energy and transport.
Markets
ECB launches 'Pontes' to settle tokenised assets in central bank money
The Eurosystem has launched Pontes, a system allowing banks to settle trades in tokenised assets using central bank money, and the ECB said it will invest some of its own funds in tokenised securities through it, the first concrete steps towards making the euro fit for the digital age.
Economy
Qatar rules out Hormuz bypass, launches new investments platform
Qatar said a gas pipeline to bypass the Strait of Hormuz would make no economic sense. It also launched a new investment platform to manage QIA’s domestic holdings and outlined more than $60bn in investment opportunities, in a major reshaping of its sovereign wealth strategy.
Markets
Volkswagen drops out of Euro Stoxx 50 index as pressure mounts
Volkswagen has been removed from the Euro Stoxx 50, the eurozone's benchmark index of its largest listed companies, taking effect as markets opened on Monday just days after Europe's biggest carmaker warned that one-off charges would wipe out most of its profit this year.
Economy
What to expect from the Trump-Xi summit in Washington
Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to hold talks with US President Donald Trump in Washington next week, with an expiring trade truce, tens of billions in tariff relief and AI all on the table as both economies need the relationship to hold.
Markets
Anthropic priced above $2 trillion as markets eagerly await IPO filing
Traders are pricing Anthropic above $2 trillion (€1.73tn) in pre-IPO markets, more than double the company's valuation in its last private funding round, as investors wait for the public release of the S-1 filing that could open the way to the largest flotation in history.