Category: Semafor

Big Oil is making money but losing sleep. Sure, high oil prices are nice; we’ll find out next week exactly how nice when the majors report first-quarter earnings. But what goes up must eventually come down. And even though US oil executives and insiders are worried that energy market disruption ...

China appears to be stuck in a deflationary trap, with even the pressures sparked by the Iran war failing to boost prices. Beijing has long struggled to drive domestic consumption, while brutal competition in many industries has pushed producers to cut prices, triggering a vicious cycle in which people hold ...

Russia is expanding its military presence across West Africa, aiming to fill a vacuum left by the breaking of ties between the region and the US and Europe. An investigation by The Sentry showed that Moscow was using its shadow fleet to transport heavy equipment to its African allies, bypassing ...

A Beijing-based space startup secured $8.4 billion in financing commitments from state-owned or -linked banks, part of China’s efforts to explore building orbital data centers. The funding, SpaceNews wrote, speaks to China’s broader space ambitions and strategy of injecting state capital into private industry. China is reportedly aiming to put ...

US stocks hit record highs on Wednesday, a day after President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire with Iran, even as energy executives grew more worried about the conflict’s long-term ramifications. The stock market’s animal spirits are returning, CNBC wrote, further evidence that “traders are moving past the Iran war as ...

Indian political elites are discomforted by regional rival Pakistan’s outsized role in US-Iran peace talks, but there are some bright spots for New Delhi, analysts argued. While India’s prime minister has sought to portray himself as a global leader, the Iran crisis suggests India “remains stuck as a middle power,” ...

US allies should pay more for critical minerals sourced from outside of China, the White House’s trade representative said, as Washington looks to break Beijing’s dominance in the sector. The EU and US are reportedly nearing an agreement to coordinate on mining, setting up a club of countries to trade ...

Germany vowed to take on more “responsibility” for Europe’s defense, in the country’s first-ever postwar military strategy. The new 35-page report calls for quickly boosting troop numbers and military capabilities, and is primarily aimed at deterring Russia, analysts said. Germany was long seen as hesitant to appear overly militaristic or ...

Argentinian President Javier Milei’s popularity plunged to a new low, as rising unemployment and a burgeoning corruption scandal threatened his ambitious economic program and prospects for reelection next year. Since taking office in 2023, Milei has overseen a remarkable transformation of South America’s second-largest economy: Annual inflation has plummeted, while ...

A Japanese regional government is offering residents ¥20,000 ($125) subsidies for using dating apps, to try to address the country’s population decline upstream of actual baby-making. Kochi prefecture’s initiative aims to reduce the barriers to finding suitable partners. Whether or not the plan works, it may be aiming at the ...