Economy & Finance

Global Inflation Scare: Chinese Exporters Hike Prices As Iran War Triggers Ethane Shortage, Plastics Crunch Chinese exporters are finally passing on the pain – right as they’re experiencing a major shortage of a key industrial material. After years of cutting prices amid overcapacity and cutthroat competition, manufacturers are now raising prices on everything from swimsuits […]

EU Ministers Fail To Suspend EU-Israeli Cooperation Agreement; Germany Calls ‘Inappropriate’ Via Remix News, A move to end the EU-Israel Association Agreement has been struck down, led by objections from Germany, Austria, and Italy. The accord, in existence since 2000, has served as the framework for EU-Israeli relations pertaining to both trade and foreign policy,

Interceptor-Drone Arms-Race Emerges The next type of aerial system likely to be stockpiled at scale by militaries worldwide is the interceptor drone. We’ve already seen early evidence of this across Eurasia, with Ukraine selling its interceptor drones to the highest bidder. The Russia-Ukraine war accelerated the development of cheap one-way attack drones. Early in the

The EU ‘Democracy Shield’ Is The End Of Freedom In Europe Via Remix News, The year 2026 will go down in the history of European integration as a special moment. The European Union, under the banner of protecting democracy, has begun systematically restricting freedom of speech and real political pluralism. Thus, it embarks on the

Where Homosexuality Is Still Punishable By Death The latest data from ILGA – the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association, a global federation that monitors laws and rights affecting LGBT people – show that consensual same‑sex relations remain criminalized in a significant number of countries, with a small but deadly minority still prescribing the death penalty. You

Muted Demand During India’s Second-Biggest Gold-Buying Festival, After Prices Surge Gold demand during one of India’s key buying festivals stayed muted on Sunday as record prices curbed jewellery purchases, ​offsetting a modest uptick in investment demand, according to Reuters.  Indians celebrated Akshaya Tritiya, the ‌second-biggest gold-buying festival after Dhanteras, when purchasing precious metals is considered auspicious.

Google Deepens Anthropic Bet With Up To $40 Billion Investment The AI funding frenzy continues, with Google planning to invest $10 billion in Anthropic at a $350 billion valuation, deepening its relationship with the San Francisco-based AI company best known for building Claude. Bloomberg reports that Google’s deal with Anthropic includes an initial $10 billion

Pentagon Email Seeks Ways To Suspend Spain From NATO, Brussels Says Not Possible Washington is eyeing how to pressure Spain out of the NATO alliance, after the Spanish government has taken firm anti-Israel positions, as well as come out strongly against Trump’s Iran war, even disallowing some base and logistics access to the US armed

Trump Administration Seeks Pause Of Lawsuit Challenging Vaccine Recommendations Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Trump administration lawyers on April 23 said they are still considering whether to appeal a ruling that blocked the rollback of guidance on some vaccines. Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. on Capitol Hill in Washington on