30 stories
The United Arab Emirates has quit the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, in a seismic development for global oil markets that ends the UAE's decades-long membership in the cartel and signals deepening fractures within OPEC's production coordination framework. The withdrawal is expected to trigger significant volatility in global crude prices.
Brent crude oil prices surged approximately seven percent on Thursday after reports emerged that the United States is actively considering military options to break a deadlock with Iran, sending shockwaves through global energy markets already on edge from prolonged Middle East conflict. The sharp price movement represents one of the most significant single-session spikes in crude oil in recent memory, reflecting the extreme sensitivity of energy markets to any escalation involving Iran, which sits astride the Strait of Hormuz — the world's most critical oil transit chokepoint.
Global oil prices surged past $123 per barrel on Thursday following reports that the United States is actively considering military options to break a prolonged diplomatic deadlock with Iran, injecting acute geopolitical risk premium into energy markets and sending shockwaves across commodity, equity, and currency markets worldwide. The reports, which emerged from US media citing officials familiar with internal deliberations, indicated that the Biden-era diplomatic framework has effectively stalled and that the Trump administration is now evaluating a range of kinetic options.
The United Arab Emirates has formally withdrawn from both OPEC and the broader OPEC+ alliance, delivering the most consequential structural blow to the global oil producers' grouping in decades. The UAE's departure removes one of the bloc's largest and most productive members at a moment when global oil markets are already under acute stress.
Global equities fell and oil prices climbed on Tuesday as diminishing prospects for a ceasefire between the United States and Iran rattled investor sentiment and raised fears of prolonged geopolitical instability in the Middle East. Financial markets reacted swiftly to signals that diplomatic efforts to de-escalate tensions between Washington and Tehran had stalled.
Global oil prices eased Tuesday after signals emerged that the United States may be taking steps to loosen Iran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most critical oil transit chokepoint through which approximately one-fifth of global oil supply passes. The development offered markets a cautious measure of relief after days of elevated energy prices driven by the waterway's disruption.
The United States Treasury Secretary has stated that a military or operational intervention in the Strait of Hormuz could ease the current oil supply shock gripping global energy markets, signalling Washington's readiness to consider direct action to secure one of the world's most critical maritime chokepoints. The remarks represent the highest-level US government acknowledgement to date that Hormuz operations are actively on the policy table as the Middle East conflict continues to threaten tanker traffic and regional energy infrastructure.
The United Arab Emirates has issued a formal statement clarifying that its decision to exit the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is not directed against any individual member state, as global energy markets respond to one of the most significant shifts in OPEC's membership in recent years. UAE officials stressed that the withdrawal is driven by national economic strategy and the country's ambitions to maximise its own petroleum output, rather than any bilateral friction within the cartel.
OPEC+ has agreed to a third consecutive increase in oil output quotas since the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, in a move that signals the alliance's determination to offset supply disruptions roiling global energy markets, multiple reports confirmed on Sunday. The production hike comes amid an extraordinary period of volatility triggered by the Hormuz closure, which has severely constrained the flow of Gulf crude to international markets.
OPEC+ is set to agree on a third consecutive increase in oil output quotas following the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, sources familiar with the deliberations confirmed on Sunday. The move signals the producer alliance's sustained effort to offset supply disruptions that have roiled global energy markets.
US President Donald Trump has announced his intention to raise tariffs on European Union automobiles to 25 percent, escalating trade tensions between Washington and Brussels in a move that could severely disrupt transatlantic commerce and rattle global auto markets. The announcement represents one of the most aggressive tariff threats against EU exports since Trump returned to the White House.
Iran has issued a direct threat of a painful response should the United States resume military strikes on Iranian territory, escalating an already volatile diplomatic and security standoff that has sent global oil prices into sharp oscillation. The warning marks one of Tehran's most explicit retaliatory postures in the current cycle of US-Iran tensions.
Gulf stock markets declined sharply on Thursday following reports that the United States is considering direct military action against Iran, triggering risk-off sentiment across equity bourses from Riyadh to Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The selloff reflects investor anxiety over the potential for a significant escalation in the Iran-US confrontation, which has already disrupted regional trade routes and pushed energy prices higher.
In a new development, the Pakistan Stock Exchange shed over 3,000 points during intraday trading on Thursday as bearish sentiment tightened its grip on the bourse, extending the sell-off reported in earlier sessions. The sharp intraday decline represents one of the steepest single-session drops in recent months and has rattled investor confidence across sectors.
The Pakistan Stock Exchange suffered a sharp decline on Thursday, shedding over 4,700 points as bearish sentiment dominated trading sessions. The steep fall represents one of the more significant single-session losses recorded in recent months, rattling investor confidence across multiple sectors.
Pakistan's benchmark KSE-100 index crashed by nearly 4,300 points on Thursday morning, with sustained selling across sectors eroding investor confidence as a combination of global risk-off sentiment, surging oil prices, and domestic uncertainty triggered one of the sharpest intraday declines in recent months. The selloff was broad-based, with blue-chip stocks, banking sector names, and energy-linked equities all registering significant losses.
Global oil prices extended their gains on Thursday as the ongoing war between the United States and Iran continued to keep significant volumes of Iranian crude off international markets, sustaining supply tightness that has driven prices sharply higher in recent weeks. Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate both advanced in early trading, building on a multi-session rally.
The prospect of the United Arab Emirates potentially exiting OPEC+ is placing serious strain on the organisation's cohesion and its ability to manage collective oil output policy at a moment of significant geopolitical turbulence. Reports of the UAE evaluating a departure have unsettled energy markets, which are already dealing with supply disruptions from the US-Iran war.
The United Arab Emirates has formally withdrawn from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, a seismic shift in the cartel's composition that analysts say could redraw the dynamics of global oil supply and pricing. The UAE, one of OPEC's largest producers, had long chafed under production quota constraints that limited its ability to monetise its expanded oil infrastructure.
Oil prices climbed sharply on Wednesday after reports emerged that the United States intends to extend its naval blockade of Iran, a move that would prolong disruptions to Middle East energy supply chains and deepen the existing supply shock in global crude markets. Brent crude and WTI futures both recorded notable gains in morning trading.
The United Arab Emirates has formally withdrawn from the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, dealing a significant blow to the cohesion of the global oil producers' group at a time of already intensifying internal disagreements over production quotas and market strategy. The UAE's departure removes one of OPEC's most consequential members, a country that has in recent years dramatically expanded its production capacity and increasingly chafed against collective output limits that constrained its ability to fully monetise its oil assets.
Global oil prices breached the $110 per barrel threshold on Tuesday, triggering a cascade of market stress across Asian economies. India's 10-year government bond yield climbed to a three-week high as investors priced in inflation risk, while the Indian rupee fell to near a one-month low amid importer hedging pressure.
US President Donald Trump has expressed strong dissatisfaction with Iran's latest diplomatic proposal to end the ongoing conflict, a US official confirmed on Tuesday, further dimming hopes for a near-term resolution and sending oil prices higher on international markets. The rejection signals that negotiations between Washington and Tehran remain far from a breakthrough, with the two sides apparently still divided on fundamental issues.
Global commodity and equity markets registered sharp divergent moves on Monday as US-Iran nuclear negotiations stalled, with oil prices jumping on renewed supply risk fears while gold retreated under pressure from a strengthening dollar and inflation-driven sentiment shifts. Stock futures in major markets also slipped, reflecting broader investor anxiety over the diplomatic impasse.
Global oil markets surged sharply on Friday as the US-Iran military standoff over the Strait of Hormuz showed no signs of resolution, with crude futures jumping approximately five dollars per barrel. The spike reflected deep investor anxiety over potential disruptions to one of the world's most critical energy transit corridors.
The Indian rupee fell to a record low on Tuesday as renewed tensions between the United States and Iran triggered a broad-based selloff in emerging market currencies, compounding existing domestic economic pressures weighing on India's exchange rate. The currency's decline reflects the convergence of external geopolitical risk with internal macro vulnerabilities.
US President Donald Trump has predicted that global fuel prices will fall rapidly once the conflict involving Iran comes to an end, signalling confidence that current elevated energy costs are directly tied to geopolitical risk premiums rather than structural supply deficits. Trump made the remarks as oil markets continue to absorb a sustained conflict premium driven by Middle East hostilities and concerns over regional supply route security.
Sitara Petroleum's initial public offering book building process set a new record on the Pakistan Stock Exchange on Monday, hitting the cap price within just ten minutes of opening, underscoring exceptional investor appetite for the energy sector listing. The speed at which institutional and retail demand absorbed the available allocation broke previous benchmarks on the PSX, with analysts noting that Sitara Petroleum's entry into the listed market comes at a time of renewed investor confidence in Pakistan's oil and gas downstream sector.
Global oil prices declined on Monday after US President Donald Trump announced that the United States would take steps to assist commercial vessels stranded in the Strait of Hormuz amid ongoing US-Iran tensions, a statement that eased immediate supply disruption fears in energy markets. The Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately one-fifth of the world's oil supply transits, has been subject to intensified disruption risk as US-Iran nuclear negotiations have stalled.
Foreign investors are exiting Pakistan's treasury bill market at a notable pace, raising concerns among financial authorities about the sustainability of short-term capital inflows that have been a modest but symbolically important component of the country's external financing picture. The withdrawal signals a shift in investor sentiment at a time when the government is seeking to consolidate economic stabilisation gains.