The Shibuya pedestrian intersection in Tokyo, Japan. Marco Bottigelli | Moment | Getty Images Large Japanese manufacturers indicated their highest level of business optimism in over four years, despite uncertainties brought about from the Iran war. That’s according to the Bank of Japan’s quarterly Tankan survey, a closely-watched poll that measures business sentiment among domestic…
Almonty’s tungsten mine in Sangdong, South Korea, in March 2026. Almonty BEIJING — The Iran war is squeezing a global commodities market already pressured by China’s export controls and stockpiling efforts. Prices of three niche elements — tungsten, sulfur and helium — have climbed sharply in recent weeks. While none of the commodities are traded…
French AI startup Mistral said Monday it has secured $830 million in debt financing to fund a data center powered by thousands of Nvidia chips. Founded in 2023, Mistral is one of the few European startups building foundational AI models, looking to compete with the likes of OpenAI and Anthropic, albeit with a far smaller…
A ticker and a screen display stock prices at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) building in Mumbai, India, on Thursday, July 31, 2025. Photographer: Dhiraj Singh/Bloomberg via Getty Images Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Foreign investors are on track to pull a record $12 billion from Indian equities this March as the Iran war…
People stand in a queue to refill fuel at a gas station in Guwahati, India, on March 26, 2026. David Talukdar | Anadolu | Getty Images The Indian government’s tax revenues have taken a “huge hit” after New Delhi slashed central excise duties on fuel for domestic consumption, Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh…
Harvey co-founders Winston Weinberg and Gabe Pereyra. Courtesy of Harvey With OpenAI and Anthropic soaring to a combined valuation of more than $1 trillion, some in the artificial intelligence industry fear that the two big model companies are sucking up so much of the value that there won’t be much left for other startups. Harvey…
MANGALURU, INDIA – SEPTEMBER 05: A general view shows a section of the Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) refinery on September 05, 2025 in Mangaluru, India. India’s vast oil refining complexes are among the largest in the world, processing millions of barrels of crude daily to meet rising domestic and export demand. Abhishek Chinnappa…
Hello, I am Priyanka Salve, writing to you from Singapore. Welcome to the latest edition of Inside India — your one-stop destination for stories and developments from the world’s fastest growing large economy. This week, I unpack what’s driving the rapid surge in gold‑loan growth in the world’s second‑largest bullion market. Loans against gold are…
This report is from this week’s “Inside India” newsletter which brings you timely, insightful news and market commentary on the emerging powerhouse. Subscribe here. The big story India rarely ties its foreign policy to a single partner or bloc. But war has a way of forcing choices. The escalating U.S.–Israel war with Iran is now compelling…
A road closure sign leans against a wall outside Royal Exchange in the heart of the City of London, on 13th June 2022, in London, England. Richard Baker | In Pictures | Getty Images Before the war in Iran erupted, the Bank of England was widely predicted to be on course to cut interest rates…
