Flash News

TREE NEWS reports: White House adviser Kevin Hassett said US external debt may be around $15 trillion. He added that much of the debt the US carries is owed to itself. The remarks frame the composition of US government obligations, distinguishing externally held debt from intragovernmental holdings.

TREE NEWS update: Zimbabwe’s central bank lowered its key interest rate to 27.5%, down from the previous 30%. The rate cut reduces the country’s benchmark policy rate by 2.5 percentage points. No further details on the timing or rationale were provided.

TREE NEWS reports: Iranian officials are pessimistic about reaching an agreement with the United States before the US midterm elections. The assessment, conveyed by officials, points to little expectation of a near-term deal between Washington and Tehran ahead of the vote.

TREE NEWS update: Ukraine’s agriculture minister, Taras Vysotskyi, said no positive signs point to a ceasefire covering Black Sea grain exports in the coming months as attacks in the region continue, sharply reducing the country’s ability to export agricultural products vital to global supply. Kyiv has been told by mediating countries that Russia has so far rejected all proposals put forward by Ukraine’s partners, and Vysotskyi said every possible round of talks has been tried without result. He plans to brief EU counterparts on the situation later on Monday.

TREE NEWS reports: President Trump is open to easing sanctions on Iran over the nuclear issue, CNN reported. WTI crude fell $1.15 a barrel within five minutes to $92.19, while Brent dropped $1.19 in the same span to $97.11. The move reflects traders pricing in the prospect of additional Iranian supply reaching the market.

TREE NEWS update: White House adviser Kevin Hassett said US productivity growth is currently projected at about 2.5%, with the underlying assumption for GDP growth at roughly 4%. The figures were given as the administration’s working baseline for the US economy.

TREE NEWS update: US officials said Washington is continuing active discussions with Iran through intermediary channels, and that no deal will be reached unless the nuclear issue is resolved. President Trump is prepared to ease sanctions on Iran and unfreeze its frozen assets in exchange for progress on the Iranian nuclear issue.

TREE NEWS reports: WTI crude fell 66 cents a barrel in five minutes to $93.35, while Brent dropped 56 cents to $98.12 over the same span. The S&P 500 pared its decline to 0.5%, having earlier been down as much as 1%.

TREE NEWS reports: Deutsche Bank expects copper prices to rise more than 50% over the next six months to $22,050 a ton as buyers compete for shrinking inventories. Head of metals research Daniel Ghali wrote that an unprecedented scramble for the metal is under way, with markets vying to keep copper within their own jurisdictions. Expectations of possible US tariffs on refined copper have already pulled large volumes to the United States, tightening supply elsewhere.

TREE NEWS update: US officials said Washington is continuing active discussions with Iran through intermediary channels, adding that no agreement will be reached unless the nuclear issue is resolved. President Trump is prepared to ease sanctions on Iran and unfreeze its frozen assets in exchange for progress on the Iranian nuclear issue.

TREE NEWS update: Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei will attend a Tuesday lunch between US President Donald Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson. The meeting places the head of the AI company at a sit-down with the president and the top House Republican.

TREE NEWS reports: Germany’s 10-year government bond yield rose 4.1 basis points to 3.643% on Monday, approaching its highest level since the third quarter of 2009. Two-year yields gained 3.0 bps to 3.308% and 30-year yields added 5.5 bps to 3.965%. French, Italian, Spanish and Greek 10-year yields rose roughly 7-8 basis points, with Italy’s up 8.1 bps to 4.592%.

TREE NEWS update: Russia plans to increase defense spending to 17.1 trillion rubles in 2027, up from an original plan of 13.5 trillion rubles. The 2026 budget deficit forecast was raised to 3.2% of GDP, or 7.3 trillion rubles, from a previous 1.6% of GDP. Total 2026 budget spending will rise 13.2% to 48.6 trillion rubles, or 20.9% of GDP, while 459 billion rubles — about 11% of the liquid part of the fiscal reserve fund — will cover the 2026 deficit. Government debt is projected to rise from 19.9% of GDP in 2026 to 21.7% in 2027.

TREE NEWS update: Rio Tinto said it will exclusively sell the steel billet produced at RevoCast’s newly commissioned casting plant in Langley, British Columbia. Under the arrangement, the mining group becomes the sole sales channel for output from the new facility. No financial terms or production volumes were disclosed.

TREE NEWS update: SpaceX’s Starship spacecraft splashed down in the ocean, the company said. The splashdown marks the latest test flight of the vehicle. No further details were provided.

TREE NEWS update: Lebanese Prime Minister called for a modernized partnership with Washington to support national reconstruction and strengthen legitimate institutions, stressing the need to implement the tripartite framework that covers both security arrangements and backing for the government’s rebuilding efforts. US Senator Marco Rubio reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to Lebanon and its legitimate institutions, pledging continued support for the Lebanese army and the implementation of the tripartite framework to achieve stability and security.

TREE NEWS reports: Investors pulled $610 million from BlackRock’s iShares J.P. Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF (EMB) last week, the fund’s biggest weekly outflow since March and the fastest pace of withdrawals in six months. The roughly $13 billion fund is being hit as a selloff in US Treasuries deepens. If outflows hold at this level for the month, it would mark the worst month since the Iran war broke out.

TREE NEWS reports: The European Union is considering drawing up dedicated accession roadmaps for Montenegro, Ukraine, Moldova and Albania to speed up their membership bids, according to two senior European Commission officials involved in drafting the plans. The roadmaps would set out specific reform priorities and timelines for each country, along with indicative dates for completing key stages of accession negotiations.

TREE NEWS reports: In late European trading on Monday, September 28, ICE UK natural gas futures rose 2.04% and the TTF benchmark Dutch natural gas futures gained 4.06%. ICE EU carbon emission allowance futures fell 0.68%.

TREE NEWS update: Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, met in Beijing on the 28th with Iwaya Takeshi, chairman of the Japan Association for the Promotion of International Trade. Wang said the association has upheld its belief in friendship with China even as bilateral ties faced challenges, and called on Japan to learn from history, noting this year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Trial.