Global events and international developments affecting markets.
Reporting on international affairs, geopolitical developments, and global economic trends. This category connects world events to their potential impact on financial markets, trade flows, and investor risk perception.
3,438 total articles
S&P Global Ratings has affirmed Latvia's long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign ratings at A/A-1 and left the outlook stable. The agency highlighted Latvia's resilient economy and prudent policymaking, while flagging rising government debt, widening deficits driven by elevated defense spending, and external pressures from regiona…
S&P Global Ratings has affirmed South Africa’s sovereign ratings at BB (foreign currency) and BB+ (local currency) with a positive outlook, noting improved fiscal metrics including a third consecutive year of primary surpluses and higher-than-expected revenue in fiscal 2025. The agency lowered near-term growth expectations amid inflation and intere…
S&P Global Ratings has affirmed Lithuania’s 'A/A-1' long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign credit ratings and maintained a stable outlook. The rating agency forecasts 3% GDP growth in 2026 supported by domestic demand, while higher defense outlays, rising net government debt and an expected current account deficit reflect fiscal …
S&P Global Ratings affirmed Hungary's long- and short-term foreign and local currency sovereign ratings at 'BBB-/A-3' and maintained a negative outlook. The agency highlighted fiscal and economic vulnerabilities driven by large budget deficits, elevated debt and high interest costs, projecting a general government deficit of 6.75% of GDP in 2026 li…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said intelligence shows Russia is preparing a new large-scale attack. He said Ukrainian air forces and air defenders are on constant alert and urged partners to accelerate agreed air-defence measures while calling for additional sanctions. Russia has warned of systematic strikes on Kyiv and cited a deadly dor…
A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent, Christian Castro, was taken into custody in Texas after Minnesota prosecutors charged him with shooting a Venezuelan man in Minneapolis on January 14. The arrest follows a state investigation that located Castro in Texas and involved Texas Rangers and agents from the Department of Homeland Sec…
Ukrainian experts say fragments of an Oreshnik missile that struck in January were assembled in 2017 from components manufactured in Russia and Belarus. The finding, disclosed during a presentation of recovered electronics, raises questions about assertions that the weapon is brand new. Kyiv links the Oreshnik to the older RS-26 Rubezh design and c…
U.S. negotiators have proposed increasing the required North American content for vehicles to 82% to qualify for preferential treatment under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement, and would require that half of that value originate in the United States. The proposal was presented during U.S.-Mexico discussions in Mexico City and contains no provision o…
President Donald Trump said in a social media post that he will convene in the White House Situation Room on Friday to make a final determination on a potential deal with Iran. In the post he listed a set of conditions he said any agreement must include and reiterated that no funds would change hands for the time being.
The European Commission has agreed to release €16.4 billion in previously withheld recovery and cohesion funding to Hungary after reforms by the country’s new government, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said following a meeting with Prime Minister Peter Magyar. The package includes €10 billion from the Next Generation EU recovery…
Hamas and Gaza residents have warned that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement to increase Israel’s area of control in Gaza from the ceasefire-agreed 53% toward an initial 70% represents a grave escalation. The declaration, made without a timeline or operational details, has intensified fears over displacement, humanitarian acce…
Iran said on May 29 it would judge the United States by deeds rather than promises after U.S. sources indicated President Donald Trump was weighing a deal to extend a truce for 60 days and permit oil and gas shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran’s lead negotiator warned that no steps would be taken before the other side acted. The proposed…
Brazil's economy expanded by 1.1% in the first quarter of 2026, surpassing the median analyst forecast of 1.0%. The quarter saw gains in household consumption, a notable rise in gross fixed capital formation and growth across agriculture, industry and services. On an annual basis, GDP increased 1.8%, matching market expectations. The expansion unfo…
Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar arrived in Washington on May 29 for scheduled talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. The meeting is expected to address the latest developments in negotiations aimed at ending the Iran war, including reports of an initial Iran-U.S. understanding to extend a ceasefire and relax shipping restrictions in t…
The European Commission described the bloc's trade and investment ties with China as unsustainable and held discussions on steps to shield European industries from rising Chinese imports. Proposals under review include encouraging supply-chain diversification by EU firms and creating trade mechanisms to restrict Chinese access to strategic sectors,…
Italian prosecutors have launched an investigation into the Italian branch of Alabama-based Caddell Construction, alleging that a large number of Indian workers employed at the U.S. consulate construction site in Milan were recruited through an intermediary in New Delhi and subjected to exhausting shifts, low pay, inadequate safety protections and …
A 60-year-old Canadian, accused of selling sodium nitrite online to people who later died by suicide, is expected to plead guilty to charges of counselling or aiding suicide under a deal with prosecutors that will result in first-degree murder charges being withdrawn. The case, involving alleged shipments to more than 40 countries, has prompted int…
Bulgaria will permit U.S. military aircraft to remain on its soil only until the end of June after U.S. authorities did not approve a visa-free travel arrangement for Bulgarian citizens, Prime Minister Rumen Radev said. Sofia will extend an existing hosting agreement that expires at the end of May through the end of June to give Washington time to …
Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations said his country has been added to a U.N. blacklist of parties credibly suspected of patterns of conflict-related sexual violence, alongside Hamas. The ambassador characterized the decision as political, and Israel’s foreign ministry announced it would cut ties with the office of U.N. Secretary-General Anto…
Western intelligence and government sources say Russia has escalated a range of covert actions designed to weaken Armenia's incumbent prime minister ahead of the June 7 parliamentary vote. Measures reportedly include amplified disinformation operations, plans to move Russia-based Armenians to influence the ballot, trade restrictions, and threats to…
Ukrainian officials reported that Russian unmanned aerial vehicles struck three foreign-flagged merchant ships late on Thursday and overnight as they traversed the maritime export corridor in the Black Sea. Flames aboard the vessels were extinguished by their crews, while one vessel sustained a fire that led to the evacuation of two injured crew me…
Satellite imagery reviewed by security analysts reveals a large-scale military infrastructure in northwestern China - including more than 80 concrete pads, octagon-shaped hubs, bunkers, airfields and communications facilities - clustered around the country’s longest-range ICBM silo fields. Analysts say the network appears designed to protect and op…
A Victorian court has scheduled an August hearing for appeals against the conviction and sentence of a woman found guilty of poisoning three elderly relatives and attempting to kill a fourth with a meal containing toxic mushrooms. The original trial concluded with a life sentence and a 33-year non-parole period; the appellant maintains the poisonin…
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by the U.S. Department of Justice against Boston, concluding the department lacked the legal standing necessary to challenge the city’s Boston Trust Act. The ruling emphasized existing Massachusetts law that prevents local officers from detaining non-citizens solely on federal civil immigration detain…
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago issued a public denial that it has opened - or ever opened - a criminal investigation into writer E. Jean Carroll, rejecting a report that the Justice Department had begun probing whether Carroll committed perjury in testimony related to two civil suits she won against former President Donald Trump. An anonymou…
