logo
Oil prices jump as Israel-Iran conflict keeps markets on edge

Oil prices jump as Israel-Iran conflict keeps markets on edge

Time of India6 hours ago

Representative Image
Oil prices rose on Thursday as a week-old air war between Israel and Iran escalated and uncertainty about potential US involvement kept investors on edge. Brent crude futures were up $1.48, or 1.9%, to $78.18 a barrel.
US West Texas Intermediate crude for July was up $1.72, or 2.3%, at $76.86.
Trading volumes were light on Thursday due to a US federal holiday. Goldman Sachs said on Wednesday that a geopolitical risk premium of about $10 a barrel is justified, given lower Iranian supply and risk of wider disruption that could push Brent crude above $90. Reuters
Stay informed with the latest
business
news, updates on
bank holidays
and
public holidays
.
AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Canada may raise counter-tariffs on US metals as trade talks continue
Canada may raise counter-tariffs on US metals as trade talks continue

Time of India

time43 minutes ago

  • Time of India

Canada may raise counter-tariffs on US metals as trade talks continue

Canada could increase its counter-tariffs on US-produced steel and aluminium if it does not reach a broader trade agreement with the United States within 30 days, Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday. Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump raised import duties on steel and aluminium from 25 per cent to 50 per cent, leading to calls from the metals industry in Canada for a formal response. Canada is the largest exporter of steel and aluminium to the US. Carney said he and Trump had agreed to aim for a new economic and security agreement by 21 July, according to Reuters. 'Canada will adjust its existing counter-tariffs on US steel and aluminium products on 21 July to levels consistent with progress made in the broader trading agreement with the United States,' Carney told a press conference. Procurement rules, market stabilisation measures announced Rather than immediately matching the US tariff hike, Carney said he would wait to see how the ongoing discussions progressed. Canada had earlier imposed 25 per cent retaliatory tariffs on steel products worth C$12.6 billion and aluminium products worth C$3 billion on 13 March. Carney also announced new procurement rules. Under these, Canadian producers and trading partners with reciprocal tariff-free access will be eligible to compete for federal steel and aluminium contracts. Canada will introduce tariff-rate quotas equivalent to 100 per cent of 2024 import levels on steel products from countries without free trade agreements. Carney said this was to 'stabilise the domestic market and prevent harmful trade diversion.' According to the Royal Bank of Canada, Canada exports over 90 per cent of its steel and aluminium to the US, while it imports around 20 per cent of US steel exports and 50 per cent of its aluminium exports. Carney said the federal government would prioritise the use of Canadian steel and aluminium in public projects, including defence, pipelines and housing. 'We are united in working on all forms of support for the industry... that starts with buying Canadian steel and aluminium for federal projects,' Carney said. The government also plans to support the use of Canadian metals in domestically manufactured products and will establish a task force to monitor developments in the steel and aluminium markets under the current tariff regime.

Air India Plane Crash: Parliament panel had flagged 'discrepancy' in aviation funding, months before Ahmedabad tragedy
Air India Plane Crash: Parliament panel had flagged 'discrepancy' in aviation funding, months before Ahmedabad tragedy

Mint

time44 minutes ago

  • Mint

Air India Plane Crash: Parliament panel had flagged 'discrepancy' in aviation funding, months before Ahmedabad tragedy

Air India Plane Crash: A parliamentary standing committee report flagged a 'distinct imbalance' and 'discrepancy' in the allocation of funds across key aviation bodies in March, about three months before the tragic Air India plane crash in Ahmedabad. The panel observed that the discrepancy raised important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The panel recommended the adoption of performance-based budgeting for aviation regulatory bodies, linking allocations to specific performance indicators and outcomes. 'The Committee observes that the Capital Outlay for BE 2025 distinct imbalance in the allocation of funds across key aviation bodies. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), entrusted with regulatory oversight, commands the largest share of ₹ 30 Crore, nearly half of the total budget,' reads the report by the Department-related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture. Air India Plane Crash: The 32-member standing committee, headed by Janata Dal United MP Sanjay Jha, presented its report in the Rajya Sabha on March 25, 2025. The London-bound Air India flight AI-171 carrying 242 passengers and crew members crashed in Ahmedabad on 12 June. All but one on board the plane died along with nearly 29 on the ground when the aircraft smashed into a medical complex. 'While its role in ensuring compliance with aviation standards is indisputable, the justification for such a significant allocation must be carefully examined to ensure efficiency and accountability,' the report reads. Air Indai Plane Crash: According to the report, while the DGCA was allocated ₹ 30 crore for the financial year 2025-26, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) got ₹ 20 crore, and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) received only ₹ 15 crore According to the report, while the DGCA was allocated ₹ 30 crore for the financial year 2025-26, the Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau (AAIB) got ₹ 20 crore, and the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) received only ₹ 15 crore. The AAIB is probing the Ahmedabad Air India plane crash. 'In contrast, the BCAS and AAIB receive ₹ 15 Crore and ₹ 20 Crore, respectively. While regulatory compliance remains essential, the rapid expansion of aviation infrastructure – with airports increasing from 74 in 2014 to 147 in 2022 and a target of 220 by 2024-25 – necessitates proportional growth of security capabilities and accident investigation resources. In view of the growing complexity of aviation security threats and the critical nature of accident investigations, the Committee finds these allocations relatively modest," the report reads. The 32-member standing committee, headed by Janata Dal United MP Sanjay Jha, presented its report in the Rajya Sabha on March 25, 2025. Apart from Jha (Chairman), the other members of the panel included M Mohamed Abdulla, M Nadimul Haque, Jaggesh, Sudha Murty, Imran Pratapgarhi from the Rajya Sabha and Mina Altaf Ahmad, Rajiv Pratap Rudy, Manoj Tiwari, KC Venugopal from the Lok Sabha to name a few. The report said the 'funding discrepancy' raises important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The panel recommended that aviation regulatory bodies adopt performance-based budgeting, linking allocations to specific performance indicators and outcomes. 'This approach would enhance accountability and ensure that funds are utilised efficiently to address the most pressing challenges within each domain. Regular performance audits should be conducted to assess the effectiveness of allocated resources and inform future budgeting decisions," it said. Air India Plane Crash: The report said the 'funding discrepancy' raises important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The discrepancy raises important questions about prioritising regulatory compliance over security infrastructure and accident investigation capabilities. The panel, as reported by LiveMint earlier, also raised serious concerns over the limited manpower in the DGCA, BCAS, and the Airports Authority of India (AAI). More than 53 per cent of positions are vacant in the DGCA, 35 per cent in the BCAS, and 17 per cent in the AAI, which manages airport infrastructure, according to the 375th report on Demands for Grants (2025–26) of the Ministry of Civil Aviation.

Israel's opposition leader Yair Lapid backs strikes on Iran, calls for global action
Israel's opposition leader Yair Lapid backs strikes on Iran, calls for global action

India Today

timean hour ago

  • India Today

Israel's opposition leader Yair Lapid backs strikes on Iran, calls for global action

LONDON (Reuters) -Rising oil prices, Middle East tensions, a NATO meeting and a testimony by the U.S. Federal Reserve chief all vie for market attention in the days ahead. Here's your heads up on the week in world markets from Alden Bentley in New York, Kevin Buckland in Tokyo, Amanda Cooper and Lucy Raitano in London and Andrew Gray in Brussels. 1/ STRAIT UP WORRIED The Israel/Iran war has lit the fuse for a possible oil supply shock for investors. Brent crude has topped $75 for the first time since January. For now, there are no signs of disruption to output. Iran produces around 3.3 million barrels a day and exports around half that, according to Reuters and LSEG calculations, a fraction of the world's roughly-100 million barrels in daily consumption. A shortfall in Iranian barrels, while jarring to markets, could be offset by other OPEC countries tapping spare capacity to fill that void. What markets are more worried about is Iran blocking the Strait of Hormuz, through which some 20% of total daily crude supply passes. Analysts say it's unlikely. But a lot of things that were considered unlikely six months ago and are now a reality. Market volatility has room to pick up. European foreign ministers were set to meet their Iranian counterpart on Friday aiming to create a pathway back to diplomacy over its contested nuclear programme despite the U.S. considering joining Israeli strikes against Iran. 2/ GO BIG NATO aims to keep Donald Trump happy, hold the alliance together and agree a big new spending target in The Hague. It's also hoping the Israel-Iran conflict won't overshadow Wednesday's summit. Trump lambasted NATO members in his first term and threatened to quit the military alliance if they did not raise defence spending. Now, NATO boss Mark Rutte wants all allies to commit to Trump's proposed target of 5% of GDP. To do that, NATO will interpret defence more broadly. It would hike its current target of spending 2% of GDP on traditional defence – weapons, troops etc – to 3.5%. And members would spend at least 1.5% of GDP on broader measures such as adapting roads, bridges and ports to handle military vehicles and protecting against cyber-attacks. Only Spain is publicly opposing the new target. Due to the focus on pleasing Trump, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy may have to settle for a seat at the pre-summit dinner rather than the meeting itself. 3/ NEXT QUESTION Markets will look to Fed boss Jerome Powell to elaborate on what his expectation for 'meaningful' inflation means for the rate outlook when he testifies before Senate and House committees on Tuesday and Wednesday. Powell told reporters after the Fed's June meeting that goods price inflation is coming as tariffs work their way to consumers. Having stressed that a solid expansion continues, Powell could also be asked how a further Middle East escalation impacts inflation. Thursday's final read on first quarter GDP meanwhile should confirm that the economy shrank. The Fed's favorite inflation indicator, the Personal Consumption Expenditures Price Index for May on Friday, will be read through the lens of the Fed's decision to leave rates alone, while predicting two cuts this year. 4/ STRONG BONDS? A month ago, Japanese government bond yields surged to record peaks as investors baulked at auctions and the prime minister ill-advisedly compared Japan's fiscal predicament to Greece's. Now, things couldn't look more different thanks to some deft team play between the Bank of Japan and Ministry of Finance. Just days after the BOJ tweaked its bond taper plans to keep buying more of the super-long debt at the heart of the yield spike, the finance ministry presents a plan to cut issuance of the longest-dated securities. The BOJ's dovish tone on future rate hikes has also helped keep yields in check this week, although Governor Kazuo Ueda left the door open to policy tightening this year by highlighting the risks from broadening price pressures. Tokyo CPI for this month and published on June 27 will give fresh hints on how soon the central bank may need to act. 5/ HOLDING UP? U.S. President Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs initially led to order front-loading, supporting global business activity, but that is fading fast with global recession creeping back up. With little forward guidance from companies, economic indicators are more vital than ever for markets, and a raft of them hit screens in days to come. Monday brings the first release of June business activity for a host of economies including the euro area, Britain and the United States. Hopes are for better news from the euro zone after May's PMI slipped to 50.2 from 50.4 in April, moving closer to the 50 mark that separates a contraction from an expansion. Particularly concerning was the bloc's dominant services sector contracting for the first time since November. Meanwhile in the UK, the May PMI showed the services sector returning to tepid growth. (Compiled by Dhara Ranasinghe; Graphics by Prinz Magtulis; Editing by)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store