US job growth slowed further in December, underscoring signs that the labour market remains stuck in a prolonged period of weak hiring despite steady economic growth. Nonfarm payrolls increased by 50,000 last month, well below economists’ expectations for a 73,000 gain, according to data released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday. The unemployment
Ripple, the blockchain payments company, has taken a significant step in the United Kingdom. Its UK subsidiary, Ripple Markets UK Ltd., has officially secured an Electronic Money Institution (EMI) license from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This milestone allows the company to provide payment services and issue electronic money under UK law. The approval also
US stocks were little changed on Friday as investors digested a softer-than-expected jobs report and awaited a potential ruling from the US Supreme Court that could have significant implications for trade policy. The S&P 500 rose 0.2%, while the Nasdaq Composite hovered around the flatline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average outperformed, gaining 184 points, or
State-owned refiners in India continue to purchase Russian crude oil even as New Delhi seeks relief from US tariffs imposed over those imports, said a CNBC report citing energy analysts. The ongoing buying highlights the complexity of India’s energy strategy as it balances domestic fuel demand, pricing considerations, and growing geopolitical pressure from Washington. The
Global markets moved cautiously in Asian trading as investors digested political upheaval in Venezuela, fresh trade tensions between Japan and China, and renewed rhetoric from Washington over Greenland. Oil prices extended losses, resource stocks diverged, and currencies held steady as traders looked ahead to key US economic data later this week. Asian markets slip as
Chevron and private equity group Quantum Energy Partners are teaming up on a bid to acquire the international assets of sanctioned Russian oil producer Lukoil, Financial Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The assets are valued by Lukoil at around $22 billion and include oil and gas production, refining facilities, and an extensive
I have lived in Venezuela for nearly thirty years, through blackouts, protests, shortages, and currency resets that have come to feel like the seasons — inevitable, cyclical, and beyond our control. But last weekend was unlike anything I have ever witnessed. It was a night that cleaved time into a before and after — for
The United States captured a Russian-flagged oil tanker on Wednesday following a more than two-week pursuit across the Atlantic, according to US authorities, as part of a continued attempt to halt Venezuelan oil exports. The Marinera, originally known as the Bella-1, has previously avoided US naval blockades in the Caribbean and resisted Coast Guard boarding
US stock markets pushed to fresh intraday records on Wednesday before investors locked in early gains, leaving the Dow down roughly 0.5% and the S&P 500 essentially flat. The day’s mixed trading reflected a familiar tension: strong economic data from the services sector clashed with weak employment numbers. Energy refiners, led by Valero’s 3% gain
Asian markets traded unevenly on Thursday as investors weighed geopolitical risks, mixed signals from the US labour market, and sharp moves in commodities, while corporate earnings optimism was led by Samsung Electronics, which expects record quarterly profits on the back of an AI-driven memory chip boom. The day’s developments also included escalating US actions on