Anker

The United States has seized around $600 million worth of Iranian crude oil, according to AFP reporting. Three Iran-linked tankers carrying roughly six million barrels are being quietly transferred to American custody. Two of the ships were seized in April and the third in June, as US authorities step up enforcement of sanctions on Iranian oil exports.

A Qatari liquefied natural gas tanker damaged in a strike is awaiting salvage operations, with the incident raising fresh concerns about shipping safety in the Strait of Hormuz. The waterway carries a large share of the world's LNG exports, and any escalation threatens energy supplies and freight routes. Observers are watching whether tensions in the region worsen.

Prices for second-hand supertankers have risen above the price of newly built vessels, a reversal driven by surging shipping costs. Middle East states are moving to secure their own tanker fleets, allowing state oil companies to reduce their reliance on third-party shipping firms and take direct control of how their oil is moved to market.

Gold prices have dropped sharply as central bankers delivered speeches that shifted market expectations. The declines coincide with a busy economic calendar, with traders reacting to signals about the future path of interest rates. Analysts suggest comments from policymakers prompted investors to reduce safe-haven positions, moving money back toward rate-sensitive assets.

A Dutch central banker has called on the government to show fiscal restraint, warning against loosening public spending. The appeal adds to a broader debate in Europe over budget discipline, as governments weigh costly spending priorities against concerns about inflation, debt levels and the independence of monetary policy.

London's investment bankers and lawyers have earned more than £1bn in fees from a surge in takeover deals, according to the Guardian. The windfall reflects a busy period for mergers and acquisitions activity in the UK capital, with advisers on both sides of deals collecting substantial payments as companies pursue acquisitions.

South Korea's finance minister and the Bank of Korea governor held a meeting, according to Yonhap News Agency. The regular financial chief-central banker meeting is being watched for signals on coordination between fiscal and monetary policy, particularly around inflation, currency pressures and the direction of interest rates as markets assess the country's economic outlook.

London's investment bankers and lawyers have earned more than £1bn in fees from a wave of takeover deals, according to a Guardian report. The surge in mergers and acquisitions activity has delivered a windfall for City advisers, prompting attention on executive pay and bonuses as dealmaking intensifies around the London Stock Exchange.

In January 1966, a US Air Force B-52 bomber carrying hydrogen bombs collided mid-air with a KC-135 tanker during refuelling off the coast of Spain, scattering nuclear weapons near Palomares. One bomb fell into the Mediterranean and took 80 days to recover, in one of the most complex search operations of the Cold War. Renewed attention to the accident continues to highlight the risks of nuclear-armed airborne alert missions and the long aftermath of contamination in the area.