A container ship said to be the largest in the world is on course for the Suez Canal, months after its sister ship Ever Given blocked Egypt’s crucial waterway, halting traffic for six days and disrupting global trade. The Ever Ace – currently docked in Suffolk, in the UK – …
Read More »White House, Democrats tangle over Biden bid to raise taxes
US President Joe Biden has a simple message for fellow Democrats about his plan to raise taxes to remake large swaths of the American economy: look beyond the bottom line. Biden is trying to persuade Democrats to embrace a more emotional argument, namely that the plan is fair, that it …
Read More »Oil dips on China plan to tap reserves, small U.S. crude draw
Oil prices eased on Thursday on China’s plan to release state oil reserves to reduce pressure on domestic refiners and a smaller than expected U.S. weekly crude draw. Traders said losses were limited by the slow return of U.S. output after Hurricane Ida and higher than expected U.S. gasoline demand. …
Read More »Treasury Reiterates Warning US Government Could Run Out of Money to Service Debt By October
The US government could run out of money as early as next month to service its debt, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Wednesday, reiterating her warning that emergency measures put in place to raise cash could be exhausted soon. “Given this uncertainty, the Treasury Department is not able to …
Read More »Iraqi Minister of planning says the 2022 budget bill is being prepared
The Iraqi Minister of Planning, Khaled Battal, said that the 2022 general budget law is being prepared by the Ministry of Finance. Battal said in an interview, “There is a strategy for preparing the draft budget law, which is now in its final stages and will require some time to …
Read More »Four Louisiana oil refineries restarting after Ida, 5 still shut
Four oil refineries in Louisiana have initiated the restart process since Saturday after Hurricane Ida knocked out most of the state’s oil processing, while five have yet to resume operations. In the last 24 hours, all three oil refineries in the Baton Rouge area and one near New Orleans have …
Read More »Iraq and France sign an agreement to invest in gas and develop oil fields
Under the sponsorship of the Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kadhimi, the agreement for optimal investment projects for associated gas and developing oil fields between the Iraqi Oil Ministry and the French Total was signed today. The agreement includes, according to a statement by Al-Kadhimi’s office, “three contracts between the Iraqi …
Read More »Brazil suspends China beef exports after confirming two mad cow disease cases
Brazil, the world’s largest beef exporter, has suspended beef exports to its No. 1 customer China after confirming two cases of “atypical” mad cow disease in two separate domestic meat plants, the agriculture ministry said on Saturday. The suspension, which is part of an animal health pact agreed between China …
Read More »Western Union is resuming money-transfer services to Afghanistan
Western Union Co is resuming money-transfer services to Afghanistan, a senior executive told Reuters on Thursday, a decision he said was in line with a US push to allow humanitarian activity to continue after the Taliban’s takeover. The world’s largest money-transfer firm and MoneyGram International Inc, another global remittance provider, …
Read More »Oil rises on declining inventories and weaker dollar
Oil prices edged higher on Thursday, supported by a sharp decline in U.S. crude stocks and a weaker dollar, though gains were capped by an OPEC+ decision to stick to its policy of gradually increasing output. Brent crude was up 45 cents, or 0.6%, at $72.04 a barrel by 1101 …
Read More »Iraq reached about 14 percent of unemployment rates
The Ministry of Planning announced, on Thursday, that it will conduct a new survey of unemployment in Iraq. Ministry spokesperson Abdul-Zahra Al-Hindawi said in an interview, “It is hoped that a new survey of unemployment in Iraq will be conducted soon,” noting that “the Ministry is still dependent on previous …
Read More »Russia calls on US to release Afghan central bank reserves
Russia on Monday called on the United States to release Afghan central bank reserves that Washington blocked after the Taliban’s takeover of Kabul earlier this month. “If our Western colleagues are actually worried about the fate of the Afghan people, then we must not create additional problems for them by …
Read More »Libya oil minister says he suspends NOC chief
Libya’s oil minister said on Sunday that he was suspending the head of the state oil company, escalating a dispute between the two – but with a move that he may struggle to enforce. Oil Minister Mohamed Oun said in a letter, confirmed by ministry sources, that National Oil Corp …
Read More »Oil rises as storm approach Gulf of Mexico production hub
Oil prices rose on Friday, on track to post big gains for the week, on worries about supply disruptions as energy companies began shutting production in the Gulf of Mexico ahead of a possible hurricane forecast to hit on the weekend. Brent crude futures rose 72 cents, or 1%, to …
Read More »Oil rally ends amid COVID-19 concerns, returning supply
Oil fell on Thursday for the first session this week as renewed concerns about demand amid rising COVID-19 infections cut short a three-day rally, and as production returned in Mexico. Oil rally ends amid COVID-19 concerns, returning supply Thursday, 26 August 2021 9:37 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 26 August 2021 9:37 AM ] …
Read More »Bitcoin’s 60 percent rally since its July lows may be fading
The largest cryptocurrency fell as much as 4.9 percent Thursday to $46,322. Bitcoin’s burst above the $50,000 level didn’t last long, and chart patterns signal its rally since July is at risk of fading. The largest cryptocurrency fell as much as 4.9% Thursday to $46,322, with other tokens including Ether …
Read More »Oil recovery ends amid COVID-19 concerns, returning supply
Oil fell on Thursday for the first session this week as renewed concerns about demand amid rising COVID-19 infections cut short a three-day rally, and as Mexico restored some oil production. Brent crude was down 71 cents, or 1%, at $71.54 a barrel by 0939 GMT, having risen 1.7% on …
Read More »Iraq yields +6 billion dollars from crude oil sales in July, SOMO survey
Iraq collectively grossed more than 6.5 billion dollars from oil sales last July, according to a survey by the state oil marketer, SOMO. Crude oil exports amounted to 90,467,794 barrels, yielding 6,513,792,969 dollars, SOMO survey said. Exports from Oilfields in Mid and south Iraq were 87,455,359 barrels, while Kirkuk oilfields …
Read More »Iraq signs agreement with POWERCHINA to build 2,000-megawatt solar plants
Iraq has signed an initial agreement with POWERCHINA to build solar power plants with a capacity of 2,000 megawatts, the government said on Wednesday. The first stage of the project will have a capacity of 750 megawatts, the Iraqi cabinet added in a tweet. Power from Iraq’s main grid suffers …
Read More »Russia says working on alternative to SWIFT, but disconnection not imminent
The Russian Foreign Ministry has ruled out any imminent plan to disconnect his country from the SWIFT interbank payment system, warning that such as move would affect all parties. “There is no visible danger of us getting disconnected from SWIFT. I think that the hypothetical disconnection is not a market …
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