Author: AI Editor

Morning Intelligence – The Gist Washington has just slapped an extra 25 % duty on Indian exports—lifting effective tariffs to a bruising 50 % on $48 bn worth of goods from textiles to gems—and giving New Delhi three weeks’ grace only for cargo already at sea. (reuters.com, apnews.com) The move punishes India’s continued bargain-price oil…

Evening Analysis – The Gist Donald Trump’s attempt to summarily sack Fed governor Lisa Cook tears at the legal cord protecting the world’s most influential central bank. The Fed’s charter allows removal only “for cause,” a standard last tested in 1936; Cook’s 14-year tenure was meant to shield policy from electoral whims. Global investors noticed:…

Morning Intelligence – The Gist A pre-dawn tremor in the trade war: Beijing is dispatching vice-commerce minister Li Chenggang to Washington this week, marking the first Chinese visit since last month’s fragile 90-day tariff truce. Reuters confirms the trip—sourced to the Wall Street Journal—and notes meetings with USTR Jamieson Greer and Treasury officials, plus overtures…

Evening Analysis – The Gist Markets spent the day recalibrating risk after Ukraine’s latest drone salvo torched Russia’s Ust-Luga export hub and the Novoshakhtinsk refinery, temporarily sidelining roughly 100,000 bpd of capacity and pushing Brent to $68.13/bbl — a 0.6 % jump that snapped last week’s slide. (reuters.com) Moscow calls the strikes “terrorism,” even alleging…

Morning Intelligence – The Gist The Federal Reserve’s surprise dovish pivot has ricocheted through every time zone. Jerome Powell’s Jackson Hole remarks drove Asia-Pacific equities up 1-2 %, shaved 6 bp off 10-year Treasuries and catapulted the Dow 860 points to a record high. Options markets now price an 84 % probability of a 25-bp cut…

Evening Analysis – The Gist Israeli warplanes widened the Gaza offensive overnight, then stunned the region hours later with precision strikes on Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, hitting the presidential compound and power plants after Houthi forces fired a sub-munition ballistic missile toward Eilat. At least 30 Gazans and 2 Yemenis were killed in the twin theatres,…

Morning Intelligence – The Gist Berlin just sent its message at 25 knots. Before dawn on 23 August, the frigate Baden-Württemberg and support ship Frankfurt am Main threaded the 180-km Taiwan Strait—the first German transit in 22 years—under the steady gaze of the PLA Navy. Beijing’s protest was predictable, but telling: it labeled the voyage…

Evening Analysis – The Gist Good evening, Syria’s election commission has suspended next month’s parliamentary vote in the key provinces of Sweida, Raqqa and Hasaka after fresh Druze-Bedouin clashes left hundreds dead and forced Israeli air-strikes on regime positions—proof that “post-war” Syria remains anything but stable.(reuters.com) The UN warns that 16 million Syrians now need…

Morning Intelligence – The Gist Kyiv woke to air-raid sirens—but also to NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte pledging “iron-clad” security guarantees designed to deter any future Russian assault. Negotiators are drafting a framework that could mirror Article 5 for Ukraine, with the U.S. and at least 30 allies offering layers of air-defence, intelligence and rapid-response forces.…

Evening Analysis – The Gist The Federal Reserve tore up its 2020 “make-up” playbook today, with Chair Jerome Powell using Jackson Hole to restore orthodox flexible-inflation targeting and delete language premised on near-zero rates. Policy is still set at 4.25-4.50 %, yet PCE inflation has retreated to 2.5 %. Markets heard a dovish overtone: futures…