North America

This week, the cost of'shipping' oil in the largest tankers reached record levels following the most intense wave of attacks against shipping since the U.S. - Iran war began late in February. According to Baltic Exchange, the shipping rate for supertankers, also known as very large crude carriers (VLCCs), loading oil in the Gulf of Oman to be shipped to China, reached around 450 on Worldscale, which is?roughly?$11.50 per barrel. The rate is at its highest level since it was introduced earlier this year after the U.S. and Israel war against Iran. The increase in rates is a sign of...

Africa could transform itself as global competition increases for essential minerals. Although the continent has a large amount of energy transition metals like copper, manganese and cobalt but it is still far from its full potential. According to the Brookings Institution, Africa's share of global mineral revenue is only 10%, even though it holds 30% of world reserves. It's possible that there are still more hidden treasures underground. According to CSIS, the U.S. think tank, only 10% of the global mineral exploration was focused on the continent in 2024. As Africa moves to the forefront of the global battle for...

Africa could transform itself as global competition increases for essential minerals. Although the continent has a large amount of energy transition metals like copper, manganese and cobalt but it is still far from its full potential. According to the Brookings Institution, Africa's share in global mineral revenue is only 10%, even though it has 30% of the world’s reserves. It's possible that there are still more hidden riches underground. According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the U.S. think tank, only 10% of global exploration will be focused on the continent by 2024. As Africa moves to the...

The?U.S. Postal Service was urged by lawmakers to halt the work on new mail-in voting rules. Postal Service ordered the halt to "work" on new rules for mail-in voting, Friday. In a letter to the USPS, Senator Gary Peters from Michigan and six other Democrats on the Senate's Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee wrote: "The Postal Service’s continued illegal efforts to transform itself into an electoral administration agency under the direction of President Trump risk disenfranchising American voters and threatening the integrity of the upcoming elections." On Thursday night, the Trump administration requested that the Supreme Court allow it...

The French Ministry of Transport, Philippe Tabarot, announced that France had begun testing two cars in order to assess Tesla's FSD (advanced driver assistance system). This could be a major step towards Europe's approval of Elon Musk’s autonomous driving technology. The Netherlands Road Authority RDW approved Tesla’s Full Self Driving System for use on Dutch highways on a proviso basis in April. This prompted Belgium, Denmark and Estonia to follow suit in anticipation of a bloc wide vote on the plan that could happen as soon as next month. FSD is an assistance system for drivers that allows them to...

Scott Bessent, U.S. Treasury secretary, said on Wednesday that digital assets and the maritime industry as well as airlines could be targets of the Trump administration's plan to squeeze Iran’s economy. Bessent warned that "everyone" should not support Tehran when asked about Russian support of Iran during a Fox News interview following the G20 gathering in North Carolina. "My message to everyone is to'stay away. We 'all want this war to end. The fastest way to make it end is to have no one?support this regime", he said to "Fox & Friends", one day after Russian President Vladimir Putin threw...

In a memo, Antofagasta Plc, a miner in Chile, warned that gangs are raiding copper trains across the remote Atacama Desert, becoming more bold and tactically sophisticated. They have breached anti-theft measures which had been effective for years. In a meeting this year, the copper miner and railroad operator raised alarms. Chilean prosecutors claim that some 'thieves' jump from trucks to rail cars, crossing isolated desert stretches. They then throw 80-kilogram copper slabs to waiting gangs and escape into the desert. Other people use hook lines in order to remove entire stacks from slow-moving trains. Copper stolen from illegal scrap...

The European Union's?Aviation Safety Agency extended Monday its warning for airlines to avoid airspace over the waters of the Persian Gulf in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, while reducing an earlier advisory which recommended avoiding all airspace within the four countries. The latest advisory comes just hours after U.S. and Iran resumed hostilities, the first since late July. EASA's newest advisory to the Persian Gulf nations stated that "while risks remain high over the waters of this region, operations necessary for arrivals or departures at aerodromes in the affected Flight Information Regions can be carried out with enough mitigation." The agency...

Tennessee plans to name Nashville International Airport after country music icon Dolly Parton. The singer passed away in the 'country music capital' earlier this week at age 80. After Parton's death, fans launched a social media campaign to change the name of the airport. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee discussed the change with Parton's staff this week, according?to statements from the airport and Lee’s office. Lee stated in the statement that "Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life will forever be woven into the fabric of our State." Nashville International Airport is named after 'our favorite daughter' Dolly Parton, who has left a legacy...

The Trump administration appealed on Friday a court order that required it to pay for the $16 billion Hudson Tunnel Project?after losing their latest bid to halt funding for 'the New York - New Jersey Rail Link. The project will build a new commuter train tunnel between Manhattan and New Jersey, and repair an old tunnel that is used daily by over 200,000 passengers and 425 trains. The funding dispute is a new clash between the Trump administration and the congressional Democrats on one of the largest infrastructure projects in the country. Trump has stated that he is against the...

Three traders reported that Caspian CPC blend oil exports were 'planned at 1.5m barrels per day for September. This is a steady decrease from the 1.6m bpd of?August due to maintenance?at?the Karachaganak Oilfield. Weather-related disruptions, and drone strikes in Black Sea could affect actual CPC Blend oil loads next month. About 2% of global oil is supplied by the CPC pipeline, which transports Kazakhstani crude to a terminal near the Black Sea port in Russia, Novorossiysk. Shipowners prefer the CPC terminal to the Novorossiysk Sheskharis Terminal, according to traders, following Ukraine's pledge to stop?strikes against non-Russian ships leaving Black Sea...

On Tuesday, the?head of Federal Aviation Administration announced that an antenna had been relocated and procedures changed after a military helicopter carrying President Donald Trump came too close to a passenger jet departing Reagan Washington National Airport. The incident on August 4 raised serious concerns about the reason why the passenger plane was allowed to leave while Marine One was near, at a time commercial traffic would normally be halted. After an aviation event, FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford assured reporters that?the issue of communication had been resolved. The National Transportation Safety Board investigates the incident. After a crash in January...

The railroad fuel surcharges on U.S. grain shipment have more than doubled in the last year. This has impacted the entire farm belt, increasing transportation costs at a time when many farmers are also struggling with higher production costs. According to U.S. Department of Agriculture statistics, the average fuel surcharge on grain shipments rose to 48 cents per mile for rail cars in the second?week of September. This is a?153% increase compared to the weighted averaging rate a year ago. Surcharges are used by railroads to recover the majority of fuel costs and add them to long-haul rates. According to...

Tesla will bring its Semi-electric truck to Europe, expanding its reach beyond North America. It is looking to gain a foothold in the heavy-duty market where competitors already sell battery-powered models. Elon 'Musk-led 'automaker will reveal European specifications and launch information at the IAA Transportation Trade Fair in Hanover Germany next week. It said in a posting on X. The European push comes almost a decade after Tesla unveiled the Semi back in 2017. The company initially planned to produce the Semi by 2019, but this timeline was continually delayed because the company prioritized the supply of battery cells for...

These are the top stories from the Wall Street Journal. The Wall 'Street Journal has not?verified?these stories or?cannot?guarantee?their accuracy. - The Pentagon is in talks to lend roughly $5 billion to AI cloud-computing startup Fluidstack, adding the U.S. military ?to the growing list of financiers of artificial-intelligence infrastructure. - 'Lineage, world's biggest cold-storage operator based on capacity, is suing Altus Power, a solar-panel supplier, and Pearce Services. They claim that their negligence led to a fire in a Los Angeles warehouse. The prediction markets platform Kalshi plans to apply for regulatory approval in order to offer the first U.S. perpetual...

According to a government announcement posted on Thursday, the Trump administration is proposing to eliminate a grace period of 60 days that allowed certain immigrants to remain in the U.S. and find a new employer after losing their jobs. This includes skilled workers on H-1B visas. According to the proposed rule change published by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in the Federal Register, those with H-1B visas and certain other temporary work permits would be required to leave the United States as soon as they finish their employment. This could cause a major blow to American tech companies who...

A Democratic lawmaker called for a U.S. agency responsible for auto safety to take action against misuse of Tesla Autopilot and Full Self-Driving Systems, citing videos that appeared to show drivers sleeping or disengaged. In a letter sent to Sean Duffy, the U.S. Transportation secretary, Illinois Representative Raja Krishnamoorthi cited a report by NBC News that identified 43 videos of individuals sleeping in the driving seat of Teslas moving, including 17 of them this year. Krishnamoorthi, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's director of safety policy and research, said that "the agency must ensure that manufacturers provide adequate safeguards for...

Gregor Stuart Hunter gives us a look at what the future holds for European and global markets. The summer is officially over. Buckle up! Carry trades are starting to fail as the markets expect a path of rate increases from the Bank of Japan. The?Japanese?currency?traded as much as 1 percent firmer at 152.89. This is its highest since February. Just weeks after it hit a four-decade low, the U.S. government and Japanese authorities intervened to stabilize the currency. The yen was also boosted by data released on Wednesday showing that Japan's economy expanded faster than originally estimated from the previous...

The Nikkei reported that GLP - Japan has raised 600 billion dollars ($3.76 billion) to create a fund for building logistics centers. This is a result of an influx in overseas capital. GLP Japan is a Japanese subsidiary of Singapore-based logistics firm GLP. The?Tokyo GLP Japan fund's investments, including borrowings, will total 1.7 trillion yen. This makes it the largest real estate fund in the country, according to?Nikkei. The report stated that the majority of investors are from outside Japan. The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board allocated 150 billion yen. The funds raised are expected to be used for the...

A drone attack overnight?caused?minor damage and??temporarily???closed? a logistics complex operated by Russian online retailer Ozon, according to the company on Thursday. Ukraine has been 'attacking' several Ozon facilities in the city of Ufa since Saturday as it continues its campaign against Russia by targeting ecommerce giants who are?key employers in an?expanding?sector. The company stated that no fire broke out at the Ufa Complex in Bashkortostan Region, but the complex sustained minor damages. The area is temporarily closed as it undergoes an inspection. The company said that a second Ozon facility in the southwest city of Orenburg had been evacuated due...

U.S. railroad Union Pacific made $91.1 million in fuel surcharges more than it paid out for fuel during the second quarter. This is according to an?company filing at the Surface Transportation Board, first reported by. These excess surcharges increased Union Pacific's profits, despite criticisms from shippers who believe that the surcharges are excessive. The only U.S. transport companies to report fuel costs as well as fuel surcharge revenues to regulators is railroads. This rare insight provides insights into how fuel surcharges improve company profits. Union Pacific has said that its fuel surcharge increases are in line with industry standards. STB...

Third Point, the hedge fund of billionaire investor Daniel Loeb, has taken a stake in Warner Bros. According to a Friday regulatory filing, Discovery took a stake in Warner Bros. during the second quarter. According to LSEG, the fund's position of 20,000,000 shares would make it one of the 20 largest investors in the media company. This is at a time when the $110 billion Paramount Skydance acquisition has been halted due to court challenges. Third Point is a long-time investor in the media industry. In 2022, it will push for changes at The Walt Disney Company. The New York-based...

Sinograin, a Chinese company, announced on Friday that it will auction 360,000 metric tonnes of imported soybeans on August 19. Industry experts believe that the state stockpiler is clearing out space for incoming U.S. soyabeans, as evidenced by its fourth sale since July. According to a?notice from the National Grain Trade Centre, a?sale is scheduled for 1:30 pm (0530 GMT) on Wednesday. It will include soybeans produced between 2022 and 2025. After a 'May summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, China agreed to purchase 25 million tons of U.S. soya beans annually until 2028. Two traders in 'Asia' said...

Alexander Gusev said that a drone attack killed a person and injured two others overnight in the Voronezh region of 'Russia. Gusev, a Telegram user, said that Russia's air defense units destroyed 15 drones in the area of Voronezh. "A drone crashed caused fires in two warehouses of a large company. The fire at one warehouse has been contained within an area of 16 square meters. At the other, a fire covering 20,000 square metres is currently being put out. "Emergency Services are on the scene," said?the governor. He didn't identify the company that was affected. On?Tuesday?, Russian online retailer...