Russia rolls out digital ruble as Kremlin tightens financial control

"Russia is ready to launch the digital ruble for broad use starting Sept. 1, Central Bank

Governor Elvira Nabiullina said, The Moscow Times reported on July 2.
Starting Sept. 1, all 12 systemically important banks must process digital ruble transactions, and major retailers will also accept the currency as payment. “Technologically, everything is ready. We did a great deal of preparatory work before this stage,” Nabiullina said.
It is unclear which other banks will work with the digital ruble. The Central Bank unexpectedly withheld the list of banks participating in the digital ruble platform." NV

Sri Lanka stuns with 100-bp rate hike as Iran war rattles currency, fuels inflation

"Sri Lanka's central bank stunned markets by raising its policy rate by an outsized 100 basis points on Tuesday, the biggest hike in four years, as policymakers scrambled to stem inflation and support a currency buckling under soaring energy prices." msn

Miliband vows permanent shutdown of the North Sea

"Labour is to ban new oil and gas fields in Britain, making it far harder for any future government to reopen the North Sea.

A legal prohibition on new drilling will be included in the energy independence bill, part of the raft of new legislation set out by the King in his speech opening Parliament.
The bill will make Ed Miliband’s temporary moratorium on new drilling permanent, ensuring it would be far harder for a future government to reverse the ban. Labour also plans to legally ban onshore fracking.
A detailed note released by the Energy Secretary’s officials after the King’s Speech said the bill would “meet [Labour’s] manifesto commitment not to issue new licences to explore new fields, including delivering the commitment to ban fracking”." 

msn

European stocks open higher after Trump extends Iran ceasefire deadline

"European stocks opened higher on Wednesday as traders assessed the Iran ceasefire extension

and the prospect of further peace talks.
Shortly after the opening bell, the pan-European Stoxx 600 was about 0.2% higher, with most sectors and major regional bourses in positive territory. London's FTSE 100 traded flat.
U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday extended the two-week U.S. ceasefire with Iran, saying the extension was warranted due to Tehran's government being "seriously fractured." msn

Brent crude tumbles to $90 a barrel, stocks and bonds jump after Iran says Strait of Hormuz is open

"The price of oil tumbled and stocks and government bonds rallied on Friday after Iran's foreign minister said that the Strait of Hormuz was open for passage while a ceasefire is in force.

The price of benchmark Brent crude futures tumbled to $90 a barrel, down 9% on the day, U.S. crude fell 10% to $81.5 a barrel.
While still above pre-war levels, that is down significantly from late March's highs, which, for Brent, were close to $120 a barrel.
Stocks around the world, which had already been trading around record highs, jumped further on the news. Europe's broad STOXX 600 was last up 1.3% having been close to flat before the announcement, S&P futures were 0.9% higher.
"If we move to a situation where the path is still towards de-escalation - but we now have the bonus of commodity flows through Hormuz getting back to something resembling a normal level that we saw pre-conflict - then that's obviously removing a pretty chunky tail risk for the economy," said Michael Brown, senior research strategist at Pepperstone." 

msn

IMF Warns Australia Set For One Of Highest Inflation Rates In Developed World

"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Australia is on track to have one of the highest inflation rates in the developed world.
It predicted that Australia’s GDP growth would remain flat this year at 2025’s level of 2.0 percent and would fall in 2027 to 1.7 percent.

While declining to offer his own forecast of GDP, John Quiggin, professor of economics at the University of Queensland, said he agreed that the Australian Labor government’s cut to fuel excise was “giving the wrong signals.”
“The only merit is that it is temporary,” he said. It is due to end in 3 months.
Graham Young, executive director of the Australian Institute for Progress, said the government was giving “a masterclass in how to repeat the 1970s and 80s and turn a price increase into an inflation increase.
“On its own, the oil price will redirect spending largely from non-essentials to fuel, but if the government tries to soften the hit, and they do that without corresponding savings somewhere else, then it will turn into inflation,” he explained." ZH

U.S. waiving oil-related sanctions to reduce prices, Trump says

"President Donald Trump said that the United States is preparing to waive certain oil-related

sanctions in an effort to stabilize global energy prices, which have skyrocketed amid the war in Iran.
"We're ... waiving certain oil-related sanctions to reduce prices," Trump said at a news conference in Florida. "So we have sanctions on some countries. We're going to take those sanctions off until this straightens out."
"Then who knows, maybe we won't have to put them on," he added. "There'll be so much peace." KI

German cities grind to halt amid massive strike

"Tens of thousands of public transport workers have gone on strike in Germany, leaving cities

across the country paralyzed. The employees are demanding higher pay and better working conditions.
Meanwhile, freezing temperatures have arrived in many parts of the country, with commuters having to seek alternative modes of transportation.
Starting from 3am local time on Monday, most bus, tram, and subway services have been disrupted across almost all German states, except for Lower Saxony.
The strike was called by the Verdi trade union, which represents approximately 100,000 workers." RT

Cost of Anti-Russia Policies: Chancellor Merz Admits German Economy Teeters on Edge

"Europe: Own sanctions’ biggest loser
Instead of hurting Russia, “rising oil and gas prices as a result of both sanctions and the Ukraine conflict have destroyed the EU’s industrial competitiveness and led to some de-industrialization in Europe’s biggest economy – Germany.”

Severe difficulties are affecting “a major part of German industry,” Chancellor Friedrich Merz acknowledged in press conference following the final meeting of the Christian Social Union (CSU) regional group.
This also concerns “much of the small and medium-sized business sector, as well as small-scale manufacturing,” Friedrich Merz added at the event broadcast by Phoenix TV.
He acknowledged that the poor state of the economy is negatively impacting the German labor market. The German labor market is stagnant, “trapped in long-term unemployment,” said Merz.
Among the structural problems facing Germany’s economy, the Chancellor cited what he called excessively high taxes and electricity costs, along with numerous bureaucratic barriers." Sputnik

Donald Trump Cuts China Tariffs as the Country Opens Up to U.S. Agriculture

"President Donald Trump is cutting tariffs on China after the country agreed to open up to United States Agriculture.
Trump met with dictator Xi Jinping at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in South Korea where they held deliberations on what foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun described as “strategic and long-term issues.”
Trump provided an update after the meeting, describing it as “truly great.”
“There is enormous respect between our two Countries, and that will only be enhanced with what just took place. We agreed on many things, with others, even of high importance, being very close to resolved,” Trump said, noting that Xi “authorized China to begin the purchase of massive amounts of Soybeans, Sorghum, and other Farm products” from the U.S."
Breitbart

Ukraine’s strikes on Russian refineries spark fuel shortages, export bans, and price hikes

"Over the past week, Ukraine's Armed Forces carried out new strikes on Russian oil refineries, forcing Russian authorities to extend a ban on gasoline exports and announce the introduction

of a partial ban on diesel exports.
Ukraine's sustained campaign of strikes on refineries is now causing mild havoc at gas stations in Russia and occupied Crimea, with prices skyrocketing and short-term shortages widely reported.
While, for now, these strikes are unlikely to cause massive disruptions to global supply chains, market experts who spoke to the Kyiv Independent say Russia's highly profitable diesel and gasoline exports are still taking an unprecedented hit.
A domestic energy crisis is also at play." KI

Germany's BREAKING POINT: Collapse or Work More? Economy Minister’s Shocking Warning

"Germany is in crisis mode — and this time, the warning is coming from the top. Germany’s Economy Minister Katharina Reiche has ignited a nationwide debate by calling for longer working hours and an extended retirement age, claiming the country’s demographic collapse leaves no other option." WA

Putin aide issues warning on Russian economy

"The Russian economy is showing signs of strain and monetary policy must be eased quickly to avoid further decline, a top Kremlin adviser has warned.

The Bank of Russia cut its key interest rate by 100 basis points in June, to 20%, citing easing inflation. This marked the first rate reduction since 2022, when the central bank adopted a tight monetary policy to stabilize the economy amid Western sanctions.
Boris Titov, Presidential Commissioner for Entrepreneurs’ Rights of Russia, sounded the alarm while commenting on a new survey by the Russian Academy of Sciences’ economic forecasting institute, which assessed industrial and infrastructure enterprises this spring.
”The results, though expected, are not too encouraging,” Titov wrote on Telegram on Monday, pointing to falling investment activity." RT

Russia blames Western sanctions for collapse of UN food deal

"Russia claimed on July 12 that its agreement with the United Nations to facilitate Russian food exports had collapsed due to Western sanctions imposed after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

A day earlier, the U.N. announced that the three-year agreement would end on July 22. The deal was first signed in 2022 in an effort to bring down global food prices. It facilitated the export of Russian food and fertilizer products despite wartime sanctions.
The deal "will not be renewed" because of disagreements, a source close to the discussions told the Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Russia's Foreign Ministry issued a statement on July 12 saying an extension on the deal was not "envisaged" and blaming the agreement's collapse on Western sanctions." KI

U.S. and China reach deal to slash tariffs

"The United States and China said on Monday they have agreed to a

deal to slash reciprocal tariffs for now as the world’s two biggest economies seek to end a trade war that has disrupted the global outlook and set financial markets on edge.
Speaking after talks with Chinese officials in Geneva, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters the two sides had agreed on a 90 day pause on measures and that tariffs would come down by over 100 percentage points to 10%." 

NYP

Trump Hails U.S.-U.K. Trade Deal As "Breakthrough", Says Lower Barriers Will Unlock Transatlantic Growth

"President Trump unveiled a U.S.-U.K. trade framework he called a "breakthrough," designed

to lower trade barriers and expand market access for American exports, especially in agriculture, energy, and industrial goods. While the full details remain under negotiation, the deal promises expedited customs clearance for U.S. products entering the U.K. and retains the existing 10% universal tariff rate, with carveouts for steel, aluminum, and automobiles (reduced to zero).
"It's very conclusive and we think everyone's going to be happy," President Trump told reporters, adding, "Many countries want to make a deal, and many countries are very unhappy that we happened to choose this one." ZeroHedge

China Panics Ahead Of Trade-Talks, Shuts Down Its Economic Data

"Starting the last several months, and, in some cases, dating back several years, China has gone dark in reporting the following: land sales, foreign investment, unemployment numbers, business confidence, numbers of investors in financial markets, real estate valuation, retail

sales, and even vital data on cremations so that health authorities have no idea what is going on. The bureaus have simply stopped reporting.
With the second largest economy, and widespread doubt about the country’s economic health, this is gravely concerning.
Close watchers have long raised doubts about China’s GDP data. We are told that the economy grew 5 percent last year, which would be extremely impressive. But such huge measures are subject to manipulation in every country but especially in one that has made the promise of extreme economic growth central to the power and permanent control by the CCP. Experts have suggested that growth rates have been exaggerated by 2 to 3 percentage points. China suddenly faces its own grave economic challenges, which could grow so substantially as to threaten even the political stability of the country. Right now, outside observers have been largely blinded as to how serious the situation has become. We just don’t have the data." ZeroHedge

China Erupts: Furious Workers Riot As Factories Collapse

"Workers throughout China are flooding the streets in revolt as U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs slam the fragile Chinese export economy.
From the cramped streets of Sichuan in the southwest to the cold outskirts of Inner Mongolia in the northeast, furious workers are demanding back pay and protesting mass layoffs as factories shutter under pressure from Trump’s tariffs.

Outside a LED light manufacturing plant near Shanghai, thousands of unpaid workers shouted furiously at company managers over wages that haven’t been paid since January.
In central China’s Dao County, a similar scene unfolded outside a sporting goods store after the company abruptly shut down last week without paying employees.
In the northeast city of Tongliao, construction workers climbed onto rooftops and threatened to jump if their wages were not paid.
The wave of unrest follows a brutal plunge in China’s export orders, now at their lowest since the COVID lockdowns. Goldman Sachs estimates up to 16 million Chinese jobs could vanish as Trump’s tariffs bite deeper into the regime’s weak underbelly.
Trump said the tariffs placed on China are having their intended effect.
“They were making from us a trillion dollars a year. They were ripping us off like nobody’s ever ripped us off,” he stated. “They’re not doing that anymore.” DailyCaller

China Escalates With 125% Tariff On US Imports, Signals Will "Ignore" Future Retaliation

"Around the close of Hong Kong trading hours, Beijing retaliated against President Trump's

tariffs by hiking levies on U.S. goods to 125%, up from the prior 84%. In a notable shift, the Chinese Communist Party announced it would "no longer respond" to any further tariff increases from Washington.
As the week concludes, the U.S. and China are locked in a heated, once-in-a-century trade war. Earlier, President Trump announced a 90-day suspension of additional country-specific tariffs for countries that have refrained from taking retaliatory measures—an apparent attempt to isolate China and use tariffs to get Beijing to strike a trade deal." ZH

Trump Outmaneuvers Markets, Allies, and China in One Day

"Whiplash: Markets Rally as Trump’s Tariff Strategy Becomes Clear--

What looked like the start of a global financial panic turned into a show of strength from the White House and a stunning rally on Wall Street.

Stocks soared Wednesday after President Donald Trump paused tariff hikes on dozens of U.S. trade partners while slapping China with a punishing 125 percent tariff. The market didn’t crash. It launched.
The Dow jumped 6.98 percent, the S&P 500 shot up 8.19 percent, and the Nasdaq exploded 10.34 percent—one of the best days for equities in a decade.
This wasn’t retreat. It was redirection. The president pulled off a flash launch, turning a tariff-induced selloff into a strategic masterstroke.
And while the door opened for negotiation, the hammer came down on Beijing.
“Based on the lack of respect that China has shown to the World’s Markets, I am hereby raising the Tariff… to 125%, effective immediately,” Trump wrote.
Less than 13 hours after new reciprocal duties went live, the president recast the entire framework: allies get breathing room, China gets the boot." 

Breitbart