The OECD has lifted its 2026 global growth forecast to 2.9%, crediting better-than-expected energy market adjustment since the Iran war began, while cautioning that inflation, bond yields and conflict risks remain significant threats to the outlook.
Donald Trump has signalled confidence that the war in Ukraine could end sooner than widely expected, while Brussels quietly removed two Russian oligarchs from its sanctions list following protracted negotiations among member states.
Lithuania’s finance minister has warned that removing Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov from EU sanctions would make the bloc look weak, even as procedural constraints may force the move regardless of political opposition.
Emmanuel Macron visited the French archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon to highlight growing France-Canada ties, praising Prime Minister Mark Carney’s developing relationship with the European Union amid shifting transatlantic dynamics.
Moscow has placed the Russian subsidiaries of Nestlé, Auchan and other Western-linked firms under temporary state administration, raising fresh concerns about the fate of European corporate assets in Russia.
The Bank of Japan has raised its benchmark interest rate to 1.25%, the highest level in over three decades, continuing its historic shift away from ultra-loose monetary policy as inflation remains a persistent concern.
Brussels threatens to halt plastic waste shipments to Turkey unless Ankara can demonstrate meaningful progress in addressing pollution failures at waste treatment facilities across the country.
Equity markets across Asia posted broad gains in early Friday trading, drawing support from a robust session on Wall Street and a retreat in global oil prices that eased cost pressures on energy-dependent economies.
Speculation over a potential early exit by ECB President Christine Lagarde has prompted unease among staff at the Frankfurt institution, raising questions about leadership continuity at a critical moment for eurozone monetary policy.
Spain’s Supreme Court has ruled that the country’s new amnesty law does not apply to charges against exiled Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, keeping an arrest warrant active and deepening tensions between Madrid and pro-independence parties.