InsightSphere

BP Flags $1 Billion Writedown From Low Carbon Business

BP has warned investors of another $1 billion impairment tied to its gas and low-carbon businesses, a move that lands alongside what otherwise looks like a fairly encouraging second-quarter update. The company has stopped short of naming the specific assets involved, leaving analysts to fill in the blanks. What makes this update interesting is the contrast it presents. On one hand, there is a fresh accounting hit in the transition portfolio, and on the other there are clear signs of strength in trading, debt reduction and pricing that suggest the core business is performing well even as BP trims parts of its cleaner energy ambitions. Shares still managed to rise more than 2% in early trading, a sign that investors are reading this update as more positive than negative overall.

Strategists See Boost to Japanese Assets After Katayama Comments

NZ Economists Trim Inflation Forecasts, Still Expect Rate Hikes

New Zealand just got a small piece of good news on inflation. Fuel prices are coming down, airfares are cheaper, and economists are trimming their near-term forecasts. But do not mistake a slight moderation for a turning point. Inflation is still heading well above 4%, and the Reserve Bank of New Zealand is almost certainly going to raise interest rates. The only real question is whether that happens in July or September.

BOK Holds Rates, Signals Hawkish Shift on Inflation Concerns

Merz Pushes Back on US Drug Probe, Citing EU Trade Pact

Exclusive

The United States has opened a fresh trade investigation into Germany's pharmaceutical pricing policies, accusing Berlin of persistently underpaying for innovative medicines even as the country moves to rein in its rising healthcare bill. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has pushed back, insisting that the probe will not unravel the broader trade relationship between the United States and the European Union. The dispute is the latest example of how healthcare regulation and global trade policy are increasingly bleeding into one another, with pricing decisions once made strictly at home now drawing scrutiny from across the Atlantic.

GSK to Buy Nuvalent for $10.6 Billion to Expand in Cancer Drugs

Energy

Australia's Largest Green Hydrogen Project Secures Green Light

Australia's largest proposed green hydrogen project has secured a key environmental approval, clearing one of the most significant regulatory hurdles standing between concept and construction. The milestone lands at the same time as fresh investment momentum, with mining and explosives company Orica confirming a final investment decision on its Hunter Valley Hydrogen Hub in regional New South Wales. Backed by a $432 million commitment from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, the project arrives at a moment when several other hydrogen ventures across the country have been shelved, making this progress all the more notable for an industry searching for proof of commercial viability.

War Rewrites the Energy Equation for Indonesia and Beyond

Global Aluminum Rally Could Draw Record Exports From China

The Global Aluminum Rally is no longer just a pricing story. It is quickly becoming a trade story, and the momentum behind it is hard to ignore. The gap between what aluminium fetches on the London Metal Exchange and what it commands inside China has stretched to its widest point in over three years. That kind of divergence does not sit idle for long. Producers on the Chinese side of that equation are already responding, and if early shipment trends are any indication, the world could be looking at record Chinese aluminium exports before the year is out. What began as a market reaction to a regional crisis is steadily taking on a life of its own.