Flash News

TREE NEWS reports: JPMorgan global head of mergers and acquisitions Bocukaert said not seeking M&A right now carries risk, in comments to Bloomberg Television. The remark signals the bank’s view that staying on the sidelines in the current deal environment is itself a risk for companies.

TREE NEWS update: India’s government lowered the import duty on crude palm oil and crude soybean oil from 10% to 5%. The duty change applies to both crude edible oils, halving the previous rate. No effective date or additional conditions were given in the announcement.

TREE NEWS update: US Energy Secretary Chris Wright called natural gas “America’s energy superpower” and said he expects natural gas prices to remain broadly flat over the next five to 10 years. Wright made the remarks in comments published Wednesday. He gave no further detail on the price outlook or the policy assumptions behind it.

TREE NEWS update: Microsoft will invest more than $10 billion in the Middle East between now and 2030, expanding cloud and AI infrastructure across four Gulf states. The company said it will deepen cybersecurity agreements in Kuwait, Qatar, the UAE and Saudi Arabia.

TREE NEWS update: Reserve Bank of India Deputy Governor Poonam Gupta said the Indian rupee has room to appreciate from its current level. The remark from the central bank’s deputy governor points to scope for the currency to strengthen. No figures or timeframe were given.

TREE NEWS reports: A Visa survey found that 36% of Americans would use stablecoins for cross-border transfers, rising to 56% if the tokens came with hypothetical bank-level fraud protection and deposit insurance. The findings indicate that consumer willingness to adopt stablecoins is closely tied to the presence of safeguards typical of traditional bank deposits.

TREE NEWS update: Oman’s Maritime Security Centre said it evacuated the crew of the merchant vessel CAPE DAO after the ship was attacked. One crew member was killed in the attack. The centre gave no further details on the vessel’s location, the nature of the assault or the nationalities of those aboard.

TREE NEWS update: White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said cabinet secretaries should distance themselves from Fox News and Fox Business. The remark, conveyed through Navarro’s official channel, did not specify which secretaries or what prompted the call. No further details were provided.

TREE NEWS update: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the 81st UN General Assembly general debate on September 23 that Iran is willing to negotiate and cooperate but will not accept being forced into concessions through power, sanctions or military threats. Peace, he said, must be built on fairness, justice, dignity and the equal rights of all nations.

TREE NEWS reports: Russia’s consumer confidence index fell to -16 in the third quarter, down from -13 in the previous quarter. The decline marks a further deterioration in household sentiment in the country. No further breakdown of the index components was provided.

TREE NEWS reports: Russia’s consumer price index rose 0.06% week-on-week in the week of September 21, bringing cumulative inflation for 2026 to 4.81%. The weekly reading tracks the pace of consumer price growth in the Russian economy.

TREE NEWS reports: Fitch said the risk of the US and Europe imposing fresh tariffs on each other remains significant following the US-Denmark Greenland agreement, warning that persistent tensions keep raising doubts about the reliability of America’s security commitment to Europe. The ratings agency flagged complexity risk in implementing the deal and said Washington could still push for more direct control of the island. It also cited uncertainty over NATO’s cohesion and collective-defense credibility.

TREE NEWS update: US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace announced a $2.45 billion Gaza recovery plan, nearly a year after Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire that formally ended the two-year war. At a briefing in New York on Wednesday, board representatives said the funds had been “directly or indirectly pledged,” a fraction of the $71 billion the board estimates full reconstruction requires. The plan covers 66 projects over six months, including temporary housing, rubble removal and repairs to hospitals and other infrastructure.

TREE NEWS reports: In late European trading on Wednesday, September 23, ICE UK natural gas futures slipped 0.20%, while the TTF benchmark Dutch natural gas futures rose 2.48%. ICE EU carbon allowance futures fell 0.86%.

TREE NEWS update: Italy’s Senate voted on September 23 to approve a “sustainable nuclear energy” authorization bill, following the Chamber of Deputies’ approval in June. The law empowers the government to set an overall legal framework for nuclear power, including a national sustainable nuclear development plan, rules for building and operating new plants, decommissioning existing facilities, and managing radioactive waste and spent fuel, along with approval, safety oversight and environmental protection regimes.

TREE NEWS update: Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said Tehran and Washington exchanged messages and clarifications again on Tuesday through Qatari mediators. In the two-hour communication, Iran set out its conditions for resuming diplomacy, including acceptance of a safe shipping corridor in the Strait of Hormuz, which the two coastal states have agreed on. Iran also demanded the US halt related actions, lift its maritime blockade, end the war and release frozen assets.

TREE NEWS reports: The MSCI Nordic Countries Index closed down 0.6% at 394.03, with the financials sector posting the steepest decline of the ten sectors tracked. Insurer Sampo Oyj fell 4.9%, the worst performer among Nordic stocks in the index.

TREE NEWS update: Turkish Airlines will purchase up to 150 Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, the carrier announced. The order covers the single-aisle family that Boeing has been rebuilding around after its safety crisis. Neither the split between firm orders and options nor a delivery timeline was disclosed in the material.

TREE NEWS reports: Brent crude rose 3.0% on the day to $98.35 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate gained 2.5% to $92.83 a barrel. The intraday moves mark a sharp session gain for both benchmarks.

TREE NEWS reports: Paramount Skydance has approached Elon Musk about taking an equity stake in the company. The outreach is at an early stage and no terms, structure or investment amount have been disclosed. Musk has not publicly commented on the approach. It was not immediately clear which entity would provide any capital or how a deal would be structured.