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Maguire: Five charts showing how the US clean electricity output continues to climb.
The U.S. energy system continues to set new milestones in clean power nine months after President Donald Trump's administration gutted many clean energy policies and pushed more fossil fuels. U.S. utilities are on track to increase clean electricity supply by more than four times in the next four years. They have also increased total electricity production and given clean-power sources an unprecedented share of utility-supplied power generation. U.S. utilities have also reduced fossil fuel-fired generation to the greatest extent since 2023. This has resulted in?the?lowest emissions from coal-fired plants since 2018. Here are five charts that show how the U.S. power mix is getting cleaner, despite federal funding for renewables being cut and fossil fuels receiving more support. CLEAN CUT Data from the energy think-tank Ember show that in March 2026, clean-power sources will generate more electricity than fossil fuel power plants for the first time. In March, 182.6 terawatt-hours (TWh), a record amount of electricity, was produced from clean power sources. This compares to 166 TWh from fossil fuel power plants. The clean power surge was primarily driven by the record-breaking output of wind and solar farms in March. This accounted for 52% of the total electricity produced last month. The total clean electricity supply for the quarter of January to March surpassed 500 TWh for the first. It weighed in at 512.3 compared with 582 TWh coming from fossil fuel sources. Comparing the quarter of 2025 to that of January-March 2019, clean-power production was up by 6.5%, while fossil fuel output fell 5%. In January-March, clean-power sources represented a record share of the total utility supply. This is up from 44%. HIGH AND RISING As the summer approaches, the share of clean power in the utility mix is expected to increase as the combined output of solar and wind farms reaches its annual peak at the same time as the use of fossil fuel power plants reaches an annual low. Solar farms have already contributed to a record 11 percent of the total electricity produced by utilities in March. However, they tend to reach a peak in their output each year in July when the solar radiation is at its highest. The readings of monthly solar shares could thus reach new heights this summer, as solar assets continue to grow in size and capture a larger portion of the energy mix. Battery systems for utility-scale applications, which are often charged during peak solar production and discharged when the sun sets, will also likely capture a record share of electricity supply this year. The output from wind farms peaks around March or April. Utility systems should then play a decreasing role until the fall. The increased wind farm area and upgraded blades on several sites in the country will boost the output of wind farms, even though wind speeds are slower during the summer. Utilities will be closely monitoring this component. COAL VS NUCLEAR The U.S. nuclear fleet is becoming more prominent thanks to the high-profile support of policymakers for the sector. The new nuclear support will take years to increase electricity supply, but the fleet of reactors currently in operation is able to achieve new generational milestones. In the last eight months, for example, the electricity produced by coal-fired power plants has been surpassed, which is a record. This helps the electricity sector to become cleaner. Ember data show that coal-fired power output between January and March was 169 TWh. This is down from the 196 TWh produced during the same period in 2025. It compares with the 194 TWh produced by nuclear reactors this year. The coal-fired emission for the first quarter of 2026 was around 177 millions metric tons of carbon dioxide and other equivalent gases. This compares to an average 219 million tons for the same period in the previous three year. The coal-fired power plant will continue to reduce until summer when the demand for air conditioners, which are energy-intensive, increases and utilities must increase their output. The overall clean-power supply is expected to continue growing until then. This will allow utilities to increase total electricity while reducing their reliance on fossil fuel?plants, and keep power pollution levels under control. Since renewables and?battery system can be deployed more quickly, cheaper and efficiently than new gas-fired power plants, the momentum of clean power in the U.S. electric grid will continue to grow despite Trump's antirenewables stance. These are the opinions of a columnist who writes for. You like this column? Check out Open Interest, your new essential source for global financial commentary. Follow ROI on LinkedIn, X and X. Listen to the Morning Bid podcast daily on Apple, Spotify or the app. Subscribe to the Morning Bid podcast and hear journalists discussing the latest news in finance and markets 7 days a weeks.
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Kazakhstan blames Ukrainian strikes for the cancellation of oil exports from Germany to Germany via Russia in May
The 'energy minister' of Kazakhstan said that no Kazakh oil would be flowing via the 'Russian Druzhba Pipeline' to Germany in 'May'. He said this disruption was likely caused by Ukrainian drone attacks. Erlan Akkenzhenov, Minister of Erlan's Erlan, said that Russia has informally informed Kazakhstan that they do not have the technical capability to ship Kazakh oil into Germany and that exports will resume "once the capacity is restored." He didn't provide any more specific details. He said that the transit of Kazakh oil would resume as soon as the technical feasibility issue was resolved. Most likely, it is related to recent attacks on Russian infrastructure. Kazakhstan will export 2 million tons of oil per year to Germany by 2025. That's more than 40,000 barrels every day. The PCK refinery supplies Berlin with the exports. On Tuesday, it was reported that Russia is planning to stop oil exports to Germany via the Druzhba Pipeline starting May 1. Akkenzhenov said that Kazakhstan will 'not reduce oil production due to the suspension of exports to Germany.' He also stated that the Caspian Consortium, which is responsible for the bulk of Kazakh oil exports through Russia, continues to operate as usual.
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Chinese crypto tycoon targets Hong Kong capital for bitcoin asset management
Li Lin, a Chinese crypto-tycoon, plans to transfer a trading system and 'team from his family office to Hong Kong listed Bitfire Group where he is the biggest holder in order to tap into demand for digital assets among investors and institutional buyers. Bitfire, an investment firm, announced on Wednesday that it had purchased the trading systems and investment team of Avenir Group (Li's family office) for $1.6million. Li, a Hunan native, transformed Huobi – now called HTX – into one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world, before a Beijing crackdown reshaped this industry. Hong Kong has been working to make it a virtual asset hub. After selling his controlling stake in Huobi to crypto-entrepreneur Justin Sun for $1 billion in 2022, Li shifted his attention to his family business. Livio Wong, Bitfire's CEO, stated in an interview that Bitfire will?raise external money? to?provide regulated asset management services using bitcoin-denominated currency, called the "Alpha BTC strategy". Weng stated that the strategy would aim to attract an investment equivalent to over 10,000 bitcoins, worth $760 million. This is to be achieved within one year. Weng stated that "market demand for such products are huge", as an increasing number of local companies hold bitcoins, but lack the means to profit from it. He said that the strategy would generate profits through derivatives, such as options trading, with bitcoin or IBIT ETF used as an underlying asset. Crypto-native investors as well as Hong Kong-based companies were his target clients. According to Bitfire estimates, at least 40 Hong Kong listed companies hold bitcoin. Bitcoin last traded at $76,000. This is a rebound from the first quarter's weakness amid high volatility. Avenir is Asia's biggest?bitcoin ETF Investor since?2024. According to its filing, the firm owned?18.3 millions shares of BlackRock’s iShares Bitcoin Trust valued at $908 million by 2025. (Reporting and editing by Summer Zhen, Sumeet chatterjee, and Thomas Derpinghaus).
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Trump extends Iran ceasefire with peace talks in doubt
Donald Trump, U.S. president, said that he would "indefinitely" extend the ceasefire agreement with Iran in order to facilitate further peace talks. However, it was unclear on Wednesday whether Iran or Israel, a U.S. allie during the two-month conflict, would agree. Trump stated in a social media statement that the U.S. agreed to the request of Pakistani mediators, "to delay our attack on the country?of Iran" until their leaders and representatives could come up with an unified proposal... and discussions were concluded. Pakistani leaders hosted peace talks at Islamabad in order to put an end to a war which has claimed thousands of lives and shook the global economy. Trump, who announced what appeared unilaterally to be an extension of the ceasefire, also stated that he would maintain the U.S. Navy’s blockade against Iran’s maritime trade, which Iran considers a war crime. The Iranian government did not respond to Trump's statement until Wednesday morning, but some early reactions in Tehran indicated that the remarks were being treated with skepticism. Tasnim News Agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said Iran has?not requested a ceasefire and repeatedly threatened to break the U.S. Blockade by force. The adviser of Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Trump's statement had little meaning and could be a ploy. Trump's wartime rhetoric has been erratic. Trump's wartime rhetoric has veered between extremes. Trump's announcement was a last-minute retreat from his threat to bomb Iran’s bridges and power plants. Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations and others condemned these threats. They noted that international humanitarian law prohibits attacks on civilians and civil infrastructure. Next Peace Talks Uncertain On February 28, the U.S., Israel and Iran began the war with aerial bombardments against Iran. The conflict spread quickly to Gulf States that house U.S. bases, and then to Lebanon when the Iran-allied militant Hezbollah group joined the fight. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has been trying to oust Iran’s leadership for decades. But Trump has offered shifting and at times contradictory rationales as to why he is joining Israel in launching this war, and how he sees it ending. This has caused confusion on global markets. After Trump's announcement, U.S. stocks futures rose and the dollar weakened. Oil prices also fell. The war has caused more than 5,000 deaths and displaced hundreds of thousands of people, mostly in Iran, Lebanon and Syria. It also led to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz between Iran and Oman. This sparked a spike in oil prices and raised fears of a global recession. Iran has exploited the ability to control oil tankers, and other ships, in the Strait of Hormuz in response to U.S. Trump stated in his statement that he would be willing to extend the truce because "the government of Iran is seriously fragmented, and not unexpectedly," a reference the U.S./Israeli assassination of several leaders of the country in the first weeks of the war, including the late Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei who was succeeded by his own son. Trump told CNBC a few hours before he made his announcement that he did not intend to continue the temporary ceasefire and the U.S. Military was "raring for go." These comments were made as tentatively planned peace talks in Islamabad appeared to be on the brink of collapse: U.S. vice president JD Vance whose presence had been'requested by the Iranians', was planning?to return back to Pakistan on Tuesday, but a White House Official said that he hadn’t yet left Washington and had taken part in other policy meetings. A senior Iranian official said that Iran's negotiators were willing to continue talks with the U.S. if they abandoned their policy of threats and pressure, and if they rejected any negotiations that would lead to surrender. Iran's foreign ministry has accused the U.S. government of "state terrorism" and "piracy at Sea" for seizing and intercepting two commercial Iranian vessels at sea, the second on Tuesday. Iran has been condemned by the U.S. and other countries for preventing freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. After extending the ceasefire for another 24 hours, Trump has redoubled his efforts to lift the U.S. Blockade. He said in a post on social media that lifting it would undermine any chances of a peaceful deal, "unless we blow up their entire country, including their leaders." The first round of talks, which took place 10 days ago, did not produce an agreement. Much of the attention was focused on Iran's high-enriched uranium stockpiles. Trump wants to remove the uranium from Iran to stop the country enriching it to the point that it could produce a nuclear bomb. Iran claims it only has a civilian peaceful nuclear program, and that the country has a sovereign right as a signatory to the nuclear weapons nonproliferation agreement to continue this.
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FAA investigates close call between 2 passenger jets at New York JFK Airport
U.S. Federal Aviation Administration'said Tuesday that it was investigating a close call between?two passenger planes at New York John F. Kennedy International Airport. The?crew?of Republic Airways Flight 4464 made a go-around after they missed the intended approach path at John F. Kennedy International Airport and flew too close to Jazz Aviation Flight 554 which was cleared to land on a parallel?runway. The FAA released a statement on Monday about the?incident. Both crews responded to the?onboard alarms. The FAA is currently investigating the incident, it said. According to Flightradar24, the two planes were within 350 feet (106.68 meters), vertically, and 0.62 miles (997.79 metres), horizontally. According to an ABC News affiliate, the two planes landed safely after circling. The?ABC affiliate reported that anti-collision alerts could be heard in both the cockpit and tower of the air traffic control audio. The report states that controllers instructed pilots of both planes to abort the landing and then the jets made safe 'landings. Report: The pilots informed the controllers that they were responding to RA alarms, also known as "resolution advisory", the most serious anti-collision alerts for pilots. The report said that last month at New York's LaGuardia Airport, an Air Canada Express jet collided with a firetruck, killing both pilots. (Reporting and editing by Don Durfee in Washington, Kate Mayberry and Kanishka Singh)
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Investors assess the prospects for US-Iran Peace Talks and lower oil prices
Investors weighed the outlook for U.S. peace talks with Iran after?the U.S. Extension of the ceasefire. Brent crude futures fell 21 cents or 0.2% to $98.27 per barrel at 0039 GMT after reaching $99.38 in the previous session. West Texas Intermediate futures dropped 28 cents or 0.3% to $89.39 after reaching as high as $90.71. On Tuesday, both benchmark contracts increased by about 3%. U.S. president Donald Trump announced that he would extend the ceasefire indefinitely with Iran, just hours before it expires, so as to allow for talks to continue and end a conflict that has claimed thousands of lives and shook the global economy. It was unclear whether Iran or U.S. allies Israel would agree to extend a truce that began two weeks ago. The market is unable to make a clear decision because the Strait of Hormuz has been closed and the outcome of the talks are still uncertain, said Hiroyuki Kikukawa. He was the chief strategist of Nissan Securities Investment. Kikukawa said that prices will likely remain near the current levels until fighting resumes. Trump said that the U.S. Navy will continue to blockade Iran's ports, shore and coastline. Iranian leaders have called this a war crime. The most senior Iranian leaders did not immediately comment on Trump's extension of the ceasefire. Tasnim News Agency affiliated with Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Iran did not ask for the extension. It reiterated its position that it would break the U.S. Blockade using force. Only three ships passed through the Strait?Hormuz in the last 24 hours. This is a waterway that normally channels around 20% of the world's oil and gas. The Israeli military also claimed that Hezbollah had fired rockets on its troops in the southern part of Lebanon. They accused the Iran-backed movement of violating a ceasefire before the U.S.-mediated negotiations with Lebanon scheduled for this week. Hezbollah did not immediately comment. Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian president, said that the Druzhba pipeline pumping Russian oil into Europe is ready to resume operations. However, three industry sources said that Russia will stop oil exports to Germany via Druzhba from Kazakhstan on May 1. The?U.S. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) will publish inventory data. Market sources cited American Petroleum Institute data on Tuesday to say that U.S. crude stock fell by 4.5 mn?barrels after three consecutive weeks of gains. Gasoline and distillate stocks also decreased. Analysts predicted a crude oil draw of 1.2 million barrels for the week ending April 17.
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US will extend ceasefire indefinitely, but it is unclear whether Iran agrees
?U.S. Donald Trump announced that he would extend the ceasefire indefinitely with Iran in order to facilitate further peace talks. However, it was unclear on Wednesday whether Iran or Israel, a U.S. allie in the two-month conflict, would agree. Trump stated in a social media statement that the U.S. agreed to the request of Pakistani'mediators' "to delay our attack on the Country of Iran" until their?leaders or representatives could come up with an unified proposal... and discussions were concluded. Pakistani leaders hosted peace talks at Islamabad in order to put an end to a war which has claimed thousands of lives and shook the global economy. Trump said that he would not only continue the U.S. Navy blockade on Iran's maritime trade, which Iran considers an act of warfare, even though he appeared to announce a unilateral ceasefire. Early on Wednesday, senior Iranian officials did not respond to Trump's statement. However, some early reactions from Tehran indicated that Trump's remarks were being treated with skepticism. Tasnim News Agency affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said Iran did not ask for a ceasefire and repeatedly threatened to break the U.S. Blockade. The adviser of Iran's chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Trump's announcement carried little weight, and could be a ploy. Trump's wartime rhetoric has been erratic. Trump's wartime rhetoric has veered between extremes. Trump's announcement was a last-minute retreat from his threat to bomb Iran’s bridges and power plants. Antonio Guterres, Secretary General of the United Nations and others condemned these threats. They noted that international humanitarian law prohibits attacks on civilians or civilian infrastructure. Next Peace Talks Uncertain On February 28, the U.S., Israel and other countries began a war by bombarding Iran with air strikes. The conflict spread quickly to Gulf states which host?U.S. The conflict quickly spread to Gulf states that host?U.S. military bases, and then to Lebanon when the Iran-allied militant group Hezbollah entered the fight. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has been trying to remove Iran's leadership for decades. Trump, however, has provided shifting and contradictory reasons for joining Israel in launching this war, and for how he sees it ending. This has caused confusion on global markets. The war has caused more than 3,000 deaths and hundreds of thousands of displacements in the region, mainly in Iran and Lebanon. It also led to a virtual closure of Strait of Hormuz - a crucial chokepoint between Iran and Oman in the global energy market. This sent oil prices skyrocketing and sparked fears of a global recession. Iran has used its control over oil tankers, and other ships in the strait to respond to U.S. attacks and Israeli strikes. Trump stated in his statement that he would be willing to extend the truce because "the government of Iran is severely fractured, and not unexpectedly," a reference the U.S./Israeli assassinations in the first weeks of the war of some of Iran's leaders, including the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who has now been succeeded by his child. Trump told CNBC a few hours prior to his announcement that the U.S. Military was "ready to go" and he did not intend to continue the temporary truce. These comments were made as tentatively planned peace talks in Islamabad appeared to be on the brink of collapse: U.S. vice president JD Vance was scheduled to return to Pakistan, on Tuesday, after the Iranians had requested his presence. A senior Iranian official said that Iran's negotiators were willing to continue talks with the U.S. if they abandoned their policy of?threats and pressure, and rejected any negotiations that would lead to surrender. Iran's foreign ministry has accused the U.S. government of "state terrorism" and "piracy at Sea" for seizing and intercepting two commercial Iranian vessels at sea, the second on Tuesday. Iran has been condemned by the U.S. and other countries for preventing freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. The first round of talks, which took place 10 days ago, failed to produce an agreement. Iran's high-enriched uranium stockpiles were the main focus. Trump wants the uranium to be removed from Iran to stop the country enriching the material to the point that it could produce a nuclear bomb. Iran claims it only has a civilian peaceful nuclear program, and that the country has a sovereign right as a signatory to the nuclear weapons nonproliferation agreement to continue this.
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EU finds Chinese bidder for Lisbon subway line benefitted from unfair subsidies
The European Commission revealed on Tuesday that a Chinese company, which was among those selected to build a new subway line in Lisbon, had received unfair foreign subsidies. This forced consortium leader Mota-Engil, to hire a Polish firm instead. The Commission issued a statement saying that the Metropolitano de Lisboa - which commissioned the Violet Line - was authorized to hire a consortium led by?Mota - Engil, provided the Chinese rolling stock maker Portugal CRRC - Tangshan is replaced with the Polish rival PESA. In late 2025, the Commission?began a thorough investigation that?found that the unit CRRC of the Chinese state-owned CRRC benefited from foreign subsidies which distorted the procurement process and gave it an "unfair competitive edge" at the expense of other bidders. In a statement issued after the announcement, the China Chamber of Commerce to the EU stated that the EU's rules on foreign subsidies "grant the European Commission an excessively wide and?unenforceable" discretionary power. Portugal?CRRC Tangshan has not responded to a comment request immediately. The Violet Line is a surface light-rail metro that connects Odivelas to Loures in the north of Lisbon. The project is expected to be completed in 2029. It has a price of around 700 million euros.
Wall Street Journal April 22,
These are the most popular stories from?the Wall Street Journal. These stories have not been verified and?has no?guarantee for their accuracy.
Iraqi and U.S. officials said that the Trump administration has frozen security programs with Iraq's military as well as suspended U.S. dollars shipments. This is a way to increase pressure on Baghdad, to demantle powerful Iranian backed militias.
Kevin Warsh, the Fed's nominee for chair, told senators that he would make a radical departure from recent monetary policy. He also promised to maintain independence from President Obama who has frequently expressed his desire for looser monetary policies.
Amazon.com is launching a GLP-1 treatment program through its One Medical primary healthcare arm.
United Airlines has said that it has already adjusted its schedule to take into account the volatile and high fuel prices. These are partly due to disruptions caused by the war in Iran.
Attorney General Letitia J. James of New York filed lawsuits against the crypto exchanges Coinbase & Gemini accusing them of operating prediction market that violates state gambling laws.
Medicare will extend its short-term program that pays for weight-loss medications such as Eli Lilly's Zepbound or Novo Nordisk Wegovy. This will ensure seniors will have access to these popular drugs next year.
(source: Reuters)