Finance news

Investment: Less AI and USA, more returns – these three ETFs succeed

A lower tech and US share does not automatically mean lower returns. ETFs investing worldwide manage to beat the MSCI World with very different concepts.

Castlelake: US investor offers 4.74 billion pounds for Easyjet

So far, the British low-cost airline has rejected all takeover offers. Now the US financial investor Castlelake is stepping up – with a strong premium.

Trade dispute with the USA: China hits back after US sanctions

The USA and China are once again imposing sanctions on each other. Beijing is now targeting America's hope for rare earths.

Trade dispute: China puts ten US companies on export control list

Beijing is tightening its countermeasures in the dispute with the USA. Affected are defense companies and companies in the strategic raw materials sector.

Nikkei and Topix Topix: AI boom and US-Iran talks are driving Asia's stock exchanges

In Tokyo, euphoria over investments in artificial intelligence outweighed geopolitical uncertainty. The Japanese leading index Nikkei surpassed the 72,000 mark for the first time.

Malaysia’s nationwide diesel subsidy gets citizens all pumped up

Malaysian consumers and small business owners have welcomed the government’s decision to introduce subsidised diesel at 2.10 ringgit (50 US cents) per litre (0.3 gallons) nationwide from July 1, although some are seeking greater clarity on fuel allocations under the MyKad-based scheme. Malaysian Tamilan Tow Truck Association president Matheva­anan Mohanaraja said the effectiveness of the initiative would ultimately depend on how much subsidised diesel each identity card holder was entitled to...

China hits dozens of US companies with export controls, procurement bans

Zhipu AI market cap tops HK$1 trillion as shares of GLM-5.2 developer soar

The market capitalisation of Hong Kong-listed artificial intelligence pioneer Zhipu AI surpassed HK$1 trillion (US$128 billion) on Monday, fuelled by investor optimism as the company goes head-to-head with its American rivals. Shares of Zhipu, which trades under the name Knowledge Atlas Technology, skyrocketed as much as 42 per cent on Monday morning to a peak of HK$2,980. The surge follows the release of Zhipu’s open-source GLM-5.2 model last week. Featuring a massive 1-million-token context...

Blockade lifted, assets to be returned to Iran in Swiss talks breakthrough

The US-Iran talks in Switzerland have led to the lifting of the blockade and the release of frozen assets for Iran, Tehran said, but the real test remains deconfliction in Lebanon. “Tireless Pakistani and Qatari mediation has delivered major progress to end Lebanon War,” Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said in a social media post on Monday. “Oil and petrochem exports are waived, blockade lifted, some frozen assets released, and major reconstruction & development plan launched for..

Trump-backed candidate wins razor-tight Colombia presidential vote

A flamboyant US-backed lawyer who has never held public office narrowly won Colombia’s presidential run-off on Sunday, swinging the country hard to the right on a promise to wage war against drug-running guerrilla groups. With more than 99 per cent of polling centres reporting, Abelardo de la Espriella had 49.65 per cent of the vote, an unassailable lead over his rival, left-wing Senator Ivan Cepeda who trailed at 48.70 per cent, according to official results. Cepeda said on Sunday he will await

People caught vandalising Washington Reflecting Pool to be fully prosecuted

People ⁠caught vandalising the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting ⁠Pool on Washington’s National Mall will be fully prosecuted, US Attorney Jeanine Pirro said on Sunday. US President Donald Trump has blamed vandalism for recent problems with the newly renovated pool, including its new ‌blue paint peeling off. Citations for vandalism have been issued, Pirro said on Sunday, adding that even minor crimes must be prosecuted to keep the US capital safe. The peeling paint was visible in the 610-metre-long...

China-Asean relations are bigger than mere geopolitics

China-Asean relations are usually described in two ways. One emphasises danger: the South China Sea, US-China rivalry, military pressure and risk of Southeast Asia being pulled into China’s orbit. The other emphasises opportunity: trade, infrastructure, investment, supply chains and shared growth. Both are true. Neither is enough. I recently joined a study tour by the University of Hong Kong’s Centre on Contemporary China and the World to Chengdu, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta. During the trip, I was

Revolutionary Guard claim is ‘outright lie’, says Iran’s football federation

US claims that an individual with ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) tried to join the Iran team’s flight to the United States on Saturday are “fabricated and entirely baseless allegations”, the country’s football federation (FFIRI) has said. Markwayne Mullin, the US Homeland Security Secretary, told Fox News on Sunday that someone under the guise of being the Iranian federation (FFIRI) president tried to board the team’s flight to Los Angeles from Mexico for Sunday’s World Cup

Iranians walk out of Swiss talks venue after Trump threat to ‘hit Iran very hard again’

Iran’s delegation on Sunday walked out of the Swiss venue where it held talks with the United States towards permanently ending the Middle East war, after Donald Trump threatened to strike the Islamic republic over its support for Hezbollah. The negotiations to end a war that sowed chaos across the region and rattled the global economy are meant to trigger a 60-day period to settle broader issues that have dogged US-Iranian relations for decades. But disagreement over key sticking points and the

Domino Pizza stock value now that Pizza Hut is being sold?

Correct me if I'm wrong but now that Pizza Hut is being sold, Domino and papa John are pretty much the only pizza chains leading the market now in the US and Domino is the more prominent of the 2 imo. Shouldnt this be a huge catalyst in the upcoming days for Domino stock if Domino can climb to be the top Pizza seller in the US? submitted by /u/Hugh_Mungus94 [link] [comments]

Pope Leo exalts first American saint as a model for Christians for her care of migrants

Pope Leo on Saturday exalted the first American saint, Mother Frances Cabrini, as a model for Christians today to care for migrants in need, as he visited her birthplace during a day trip to northern Italy. Leo, who has clashed with the Trump administration over its migrant crackdown, urged young people in particular to learn about Cabrini’s life and service, once again confirming history’s first US pope as the heir to Pope Francis in prioritising the plight of migrants. Leo prayed before...

'Your Civilization Will Die': Trump Threatens Iran and Demands US Tolls on Waterway Moving 20% of Global Oil

Donald Trump has taken the fight over the Strait of Hormuz into stranger territory still, floating the idea of American tolls on the vital shipping lane in a Truth Social post on Friday, 20 June 2026, as the fragile US-Iran ceasefire entered its 60-day window. The president said there would be no tolls during the ceasefire period or after it, unless the United States itself imposed them, a line that put Washington, not Tehran, at the centre of the dispute. The news came after Trump had already u

China’s Iran strategy an exercise in power without projection

The spectacle of US President Donald Trump thanking China for staying “neutral” with regard to the US-Israeli war against Iran would have been unthinkable a year ago. Yet at the Group of Seven summit in Evian-les-Bains, France, on June 17, he credited Beijing – alongside Moscow – with preventing a full-blown catastrophe. His observation that China “could have sent in an oil ship with six destroyers alongside of it, on each side” but chose restraint, captured the essence of Beijing’s strategic...

Iran - Hormuz must stay shut until $12B released, Israel leaves Lebanon

The Iranians press their advantage following the US defeat and Iranian dictates in the MOU. This is only the beginning as the US defeat continues creating negative geopolitical consequences for the US, Israel and the Gulf States. submitted by /u/RBZRBZRBZRBZ [link] [comments]

World Cup: German football wants to conquer the US market

In the USA, football is growing into a billion-dollar business. Germany wants to earn money: By switching to US supplier Nike and a football center in New York, the DFB is looking to catch up.

Iran, US claims conflict over Hormuz as three Indian crude tankers emerge

Three fully laden India-linked supertankers have re-emerged in the Gulf of Oman, adding to increased reports of traffic moving both ways across the northern and southern routes of the Strait of Hormuz, while conflicting narratives over the status of transits persist. The Desh Vibhor, Desh Vaibhav and Sanmar Herald were observed in the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea on Sunday, after having been last seen signalling their attempt to cross the Strait of Hormuz late on Friday, according to...

The US town, the Chinese company and the bankrupting battle over a battery plant

Less than three years ago, residents of a small rural township in the US state of Michigan packed a community hall to celebrate what many saw as a victory for local democracy over a Chinese-headquartered battery manufacturer. The residents of Green Charter Township prayed, cheered and congratulated one another for overturning a town board that had supported Gotion’s proposed US$2.36 billion electric vehicle battery project. As the new board quickly rescinded the Gotion plan, the residents...

US and Iranian negotiators arrive in Swiss resort for latest round of peace talks

Top negotiators from the United States, Iran and Pakistan have arrived in Switzerland ahead of talks that aim to secure the fragile ceasefire and reach a deal on the future of Iran’s nuclear programme. The US team was led by Vice-President J.D. Vance, who arrived in Burgenstock near Lucerne, the resort hosting the talks on Sunday. He joined special envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, who were already on the ground, the Associated Press reported. Pakistani.

US China policy: Tough talk, tangled reality

submitted by /u/Reasonable_Play4828 [link] [comments]

South Korea jostles with Germany for US$39 billion Canadian submarine deal

The South Korean government and defence players are making last-ditch efforts to win Canada’s next-generation submarine project worth up to 60 trillion won (US$39.14 billion), as Ottawa is expected to select a preferred bidder by the end of this month. Under the Canadian Patrol Submarine Project, the Royal Canadian Navy’s ageing fleet of four Victoria-class submarines will be replaced with 12 new 3,000-tonne diesel-electric vessels. The comprehensive contract includes long-term maintenance,...

Vance in Switzerland for US-Iran talks as Strait of Hormuz closed again

A new round of negotiations over the Middle East war was set to kick off on Sunday as Iranian negotiators and US Vice-President J.D. Vance arrived in the Swiss host city, even as Tehran said it was closing the Strait of Hormuz again over Israeli attacks in Lebanon. Before boarding his flight to Europe, Vance told reporters he hoped to “make progress on the nuclear issue, make progress on the Lebanon ceasefire issue. Those are the two big things that I think we’re going to be focused...

Hong Kong only place in China that can adopt model akin to SpaceX, CY Leung says

Hong Kong is the only place in China capable of replicating the financing model of US tech giant SpaceX, which leverages market forces to grow rapidly, former leader Leung Chun-ying has said, urging the city to develop professional services for the emerging aerospace industry. Leung, a vice-chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, the country’s top political advisory body, also called on Hong Kong to make trade-offs when formulating its first five-year plan,...

Italy’s Meloni let Trump’s jibes slide for so long. Now, she’s hitting back

US Donald Trump has sparred with most of his fellow Group of Seven leaders at some point. But Italy’s Giorgia Meloni this week did something none of them dared: she escalated. Unlike Spanish Socialist Pedro Sanchez, one of the few leaders in Europe who has made political capital of being berated by Trump, the Italian prime minister had stood out as one of the few Europeans he actually liked: an outspoken conservative at ease talking Maga. But Meloni has also transitioned from a populist...

Cross-border biotech deals grow more complex as US targets China investment links

Cross-border biotech deals between China and the United States are becoming more complicated and could face a modest slowdown as Washington steps up efforts to restrict investment and technology transfers, according to industry analysts. “There will be more geopolitical scrutiny going forward. This scrutiny may lead to slightly fewer deals than without it,” said Diederik Stadig, senior healthcare economist at ING Research. Despite the growing regulatory hurdles, Stadig said the broader trend of.

How Singapore’s most notorious mall found God

Orchard Towers, a building in Singapore once notorious enough to earn the nickname “Four Floors of Whores”, has found an unlikely new tenant. On weekends, the site of former nightclubs, illegal massage parlours and at least one murder is now flooded with church-goers. Cornerstone Community Church officially opened weekly services at the Orchard Road landmark in January after buying six units on the fourth floor – formerly a nightclub – for S$54.5 million (US$42.3 million) in 2025. Experts say...