Dollar holds gains as markets focus on peace talks, Fed minutes

TOKYO – The dollar held its ground on Wednesday as geopolitical risks kept markets on edge and investors awaited minutes from the Federal Reserve for signals on future rate cuts.

The yen was steady after data showing a rebound in Japanese manufacturer sentiment and President Donald Trump announced the first tranche of mega-investments Tokyo is making in the US The kiwi held gains before a decision by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand, which is widely expected to hold on rates.

Iran said progress had been made in nuclear talks with the US in Geneva, while peace negotiations between Ukraine and Russia continued. With many markets in Asia remaining closed for Lunar New Year holidays, investor focus remained on the Fed’s readout of its last meeting and key US economic data due on Friday.

“Weaker risk sentiment, because of concerns around renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and volatility in US equity markets, briefly supported the USD,” Samara Hammoud, a currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia, wrote in a note. “However, reports that the US and Iran made progress and reached a ‘general agreement’ during nuclear negotiations in Switzerland helped ease those concerns.”

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies, was little changed at 97.11 after a two-day advance. The euro EUR= was steady at USD 1.1852.

The yen strengthened 0.1% to 153.12 per dollar. Sterling held at USD 1.3563, after a 0.5% slide in the previous session.

Iran and the US reached an understanding on the main “guiding principles” in a second round of indirect talks over their nuclear dispute on Tuesday, although a deal is not imminent, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said.

Elsewhere in Geneva, negotiators from Ukraine and Russia concluded the first of two days of US-mediated peace talks in Geneva, with Trump pressing Kyiv to act fast to reach a deal to end the four-year conflict.

The Fed’s Open Market Committee issues minutes from its January meeting later on Wednesday, while the Commerce Department on Friday will issue its first estimate for US gross domestic product for the fourth quarter.

In Japan, data showed exports rose for a fifth consecutive month in January, while the Reuters Tankan poll showed that confidence among the nation’s manufacturers improved in February for the first time in three months.

The International Monetary Fund urged Japan to keep raising interest rates and avoid loosening fiscal policy further. The Trump administration announced three projects valued at USD 36 billion to be financed by Japan, the first of some USD 550 billion in projects Tokyo agreed to undertake in order to lower US tariffs.

The Australian dollar was steady at USD 0.7083, while the kiwi traded little changed at USD 0.6047. New Zealand’s first female central bank chief Anna Breman chairs her debut meeting on Wednesday, with rates widely expected to stay on hold.

In cryptocurrencies, bitcoin fell 0.08% to USD 67,597.50, while ether declined 0.18% to USD 1,995.63.

(Reporting by Rocky Swift; Editing by Stephen Coates)

US Treasury yields mixed amid Fed rate cut speculation

NEW YORK – US Treasury yields rose from multi-month lows on Tuesday as traders evaluated likely Federal Reserve policy, with no other major catalysts to drive market direction.

Yields dipped earlier after data showed that Britain’s jobless rate rose to its highest in more than a decade outside the pandemic period, while German investor morale fell unexpectedly in February. But they rose back again as traders refocused on the outlook for the US economy.

Traders have increased bets that the Fed will keep rates on hold for the coming few months after data last week showed that job gains accelerated in January while inflation slowed.

Market participants also continue to expect interest rate cuts later this year, with January’s jobs data showing the economy added much fewer jobs in 2025 than previously estimated.

“Overall, I think the Treasury market is taking (the mixed data) as a sign that the Fed is not in a rush to ease, but they will get to a rate cut in the middle of this year,” said Will Compernolle, macro strategist at FHN Financial in Chicago.

Compernolle notes that 3% is seen as the neutral rate, and market positioning is mostly about how soon the US central bank is likely to reach that level.

“The pace to get there is maybe changing with the data, but that destination isn’t changing much,” Compernolle said.

Fed funds futures traders are now pricing in 60 basis points of cuts by year-end, with the benchmark interest rate expected to approach 3% by then and remain in that area through at least June 2027.

Fed Governor Michael Barr said on Tuesday that another central bank interest rate cut could come somewhere well down the road amid ongoing risks to the US inflation outlook.

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said that the Fed could approve “several more” interest rate cuts this year if inflation resumes a decline to the central bank’s 2% target.

San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said the central bank must dig deep on the data to assess whether artificial intelligence is boosting productivity growth and enabling faster economic growth without igniting inflation or requiring the Fed to tap the brakes with tighter policy.

The 2-year note yield, which typically moves in step with Fed interest rate expectations, was last up 2.7 basis points at 3.437%, after earlier reaching 3.385%, the lowest since October 17.

The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes fell 0.4 basis points to 4.052% and earlier reached 4.018%, the lowest since November 28.

The yield curve between two- and 10-year notes flattened by around two and a half basis points to 61 basis points.

The yields also came off their earlier lows after they approached levels that are likely to provide technical resistance against further declines. This includes the key 4% level on 10-year yields.

Geopolitical risks are also in focus as the United States and Iran undergo nuclear talks.

Iran and the United States reached an understanding on Tuesday on the main “guiding principles” in talks aimed at resolving their longstanding nuclear dispute, but that does not mean a deal is imminent, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said.

(Reporting by Karen Brettell; Editing by Nick Zieminski and Will Dunham)

Gold drops as investors brace for US jobs and inflation numbers

Gold fell more than 1% on Tuesday as the market consolidated ahead of US jobs and inflation data that could offer further clues to the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate outlook.

Spot gold fell 1% to USD 5,013 per ounce by 01:32 p.m. ET (1832 GMT). US gold futures for April delivery settled about 1% higher at USD 5,031 per ounce.

“We’re seeing a light pullback or consolidation ahead of a bevy of key economic data coming out later this week,” said David Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures.

January’s nonfarm payroll data is due on Wednesday, with economists expecting 70,000 jobs to have been added last month, according to a Reuters poll. January’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) is due on Friday.

US retail sales were unexpectedly unchanged in December, putting consumer spending and the overall economy on a slower growth path heading into the new year.

A softer economic outlook has strengthened expectations of lower interest rates, with traders pricing in two 25-basis-point rate cuts this year. Lower rates typically support non‑yielding bullion by reducing the opportunity cost of holding the metal.

Meger said the “weakness in the US dollar will likely continue to underpin prices,” noting that geopolitical tensions and expectations for lower interest rates still provide support for gold, alongside the psychological USD 5,000 level.

Indian investors piled into gold exchange-traded funds in January as prices soared, surpassing flows into equity funds for the first time, industry data showed on Tuesday.

Silver held in London vaults totaled 27,729 metric tons at the end of January, down 0.3% from December, while gold stocks rose 0.6% to 9,158 tons, the London Bullion Market Association said.

Spot silver slipped 3.3% to USD 80.63 an ounce, after rising nearly 7% in the previous session.

“Silver (exchange-traded product) outflows are keeping silver vulnerable to volatility in the near term and are key to track, but an undersupplied market suggests a recovery in the coming months,” Standard Chartered said in a note.

Spot platinum shed 1.8% to USD 2,084.42 per ounce, while palladium lost 2.1% to USD 1,709.82.

(Reporting by Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D’Silva and Vijay Kishore)

Stocks mixed but world index hits record high; Treasury yields fall

NEW YORK – Major stock indexes were mixed on Tuesday, with a world equity index and the Dow hitting record highs, although other key US indexes weakened, while Treasury yields fell after US data suggested the economy may be softening.

The yen was up again in the wake of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s decisive weekend election victory. Earlier, the Nikkei 225 hit a fresh peak.

The dollar traded mostly lower against major currencies following the US data and after US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said he viewed the weaker dollar to be at a “more natural” level to promote US exports and expand economic growth.

Among the day’s reports, the Commerce Department said retail sales were unchanged in December, falling short of a forecast by economists polled by Reuters for a rise of 0.4% and below the unrevised 0.6% increase in November. Some investors say weaker data could allow the Federal Reserve more leeway to cut interest rates.

As investors digested the economic news, they braced for the nonfarm US payrolls report for January, which is due on Wednesday.

Peter Cardillo, chief market economist at Spartan Capital Securities in New York, said he suspects the jobs report may be weaker than expected.

“If that comes to fruition, that brings us closer maybe to a rate cut in the second half of the year or maybe the latter part of the first,” he said.

The Dow edged up to register its seventh record close so far this year. But a 1.8% drop in shares of Alphabet weighed on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. The Google parent said it sold bonds worth USD 20 billion in a seven-part offering.

Investors have been concerned recently about the amount of money technology companies say they must spend to support the artificial intelligence boom, and software names have been hit by fears they could be upended by AI tools. The S&P 500 technology index ended down 0.6% on Tuesday.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 52.27 points, or 0.10%, to 50,188.14. The S&P 500 fell 23.01 points, or 0.33%, to 6,941.81, and the Nasdaq Composite fell 136.20 points, or 0.59%, to 23,102.47.

Among the day’s gainers, shares of Marriott International jumped 8.5% after the company released fourth-quarter results.

MSCI’s gauge of stocks across the globe was up 0.75 points, or 0.07%, at 1,054.72, and hit another record high. The pan-European STOXX 600 index ended down 0.07%.

The yen has rallied this week, seemingly on hopes that political stability in Japan and stimulus will boost growth and drive investor optimism.

Against the Japanese yen, the dollar was down 0.94% to 154.4 in late afternoon trading.

The dollar index, which measures the greenback against a basket of currencies including the yen and the euro, fell 0.1% to 96.85, with the euro down 0.15% at USD 1.1895.

The yield on benchmark US 10-year notes fell 5.1 basis points to 4.147%, on track for its fourth straight day of declines. The yield has dropped more than 13 basis points over that time frame, its biggest four-day drop since mid-October.

White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Monday that job gains could be lower in the coming months as the Trump administration’s immigration policies slow labour growth and new AI tools boost productivity.

In commodities markets, US crude fell 40 cents to settle at USD 63.96 a barrel, and Brent fell 24 cents to settle at USD 68.80. Investors were watching for any news on diplomatic relations between the US and Iran.

Other areas of recent market stress were calmer on Tuesday. British government bonds slightly outperformed peers, having lost ground on Monday as Prime Minister Keir Starmer came under increasing pressure.

(Reporting by Caroline Valetkevitch in New York, with additional reporting by Alun John and Dhara Ranasignhe in London, and Gregor Stuart Hunter in Singapore; Editing by Sam Holmes, Kevin Liffey, Chizu Nomiyama, and Edmund Klamann)

Foreign investors pull from Asian stocks as AI-driven tech rout spreads

Foreign outflows from Asian stocks rose sharply in the first week of February as South Korea and Taiwan came under pressure from a global selloff in high-growth technology shares on concerns over the hefty AI-related capital spending.

Foreign investors sold a net USD 9.79 billion worth of stocks in the week ended February 6, compared with roughly USD 3.9 billion net disposals in the whole of January, according to LSEG data for stock markets in South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, and the Philippines.

The US Nasdaq Composite fell as much as 4.27% last week. Amazon slid about 12.11% on worries over a jump of more than 50% in its 2026 capital expenditures forecast, intensifying worries over AI-driven investment across the tech sector.

“This shift in sentiment weighed on Asia tech stocks as well,” Nomura said in a report.

Foreigners sold USD 7.48 billion worth of South Korean stocks in the week, compared with a monthly inflow of USD 446 million in January.

Taiwan stocks also suffered a net USD 3.43 billion foreign divestment in the most recent week after having received USD 306 million in foreign inflows last month.

“This past week’s moves in stocks reinforce, in our view, the message of maintaining some diversification and balance in portfolios, especially when positioning is crowded in some popular thematics,” the Nomura report said.

Cross-border investors, meanwhile, added a net USD 897 million worth of Indian stocks on optimism over a trade deal with the United States that cuts US tariffs on Indian goods to 18% from 50%.

Foreigners had sold USD 3.98 billion worth of Indian stocks in January, the most in five months.

“As such, it has to be assumed that the geopolitical cloud overhanging Indian equities, especially for foreign investors, has eased,” said William Bratton, the head of cash equity research, APAC at BNP Paribas.

“We see the near-term risk/reward balance (for India) as now firmly skewed to the upside,” BNP Paribas’ Bratton said.

Equities in Thailand, Indonesia, and the Philippines, meanwhile, attracted USD 332 million, USD 103 million, and USD 23 million, respectively, in foreign inflows last week.

Foreigners sold shares worth USD 236 million in Vietnam.

(Reporting by Gaurav Dogra in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Patturaja Murugaboopathy; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

Dollar soft ahead of US data, yen holds onto its gains after election

SINGAPORE – The US dollar nursed steep losses on Tuesday ahead of a slate of economic data that will shape the interest rate path, while the yen held on to its gains in the wake of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s resounding election victory.

Sterling was steady in early Asian hours after a volatile Monday as investors weighed the crisis facing Prime Minister Keir Starmer and rising wagers of further rate cuts. It last fetched USD 1.3682 after rising 0.6% in the previous session.

The Japanese yen was at 155.85 per US dollar, holding onto its overnight gains when it firmed 0.8%. Verbal warnings from authorities on Monday had helped strengthen the yen after the currency weakened in the immediate reaction to Takaichi’s victory.

Analysts expect the yen to weaken in the long run, noting the spotlight will soon be on Takaichi’s fiscal policies. The yen is down 6% since she took charge of the LDP in October.

“With fiscal policy set to loosen further under a bolder Takaichi administration, I think dollar-yen will ultimately resume strengthening, and we continue to forecast dollar-yen to increase to 164 by year-end,” said Carol Kong, a currency strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

While the yen had retraced some of its recent losses against other currencies, on Tuesday it was back on a weakening trend against the Swiss franc and the euro.

“For a more sustained move lower, markets will want reassurance that fiscal policy will not become overly loose,” OCBC strategists said in a note.

“A firmer, more hawkish tone from the BoJ may also be needed to anchor expectations and drive a more durable decline in USD/JPY.”

The euro eased a bit to USD 1.19 after a 0.85% jump on Monday. The dollar index, which measures the US currency against six other units, was at 96.952, hovering near a one-week low.

Analysts said media reports that China has urged local banks to diversify from US Treasuries led to some dollar weakness.

DATA-HEAVY WEEK

Investor focus this week will be on the monthly reports on US employment and consumer prices that were pushed back slightly due to the recently ended three-day government shutdown.

White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Monday that US job gains could be lower in the coming months due to slower labour force growth and higher productivity. Investors are trying to assess whether weakening in the labour market has tapered off.

“Markets will be squarely focused on a number of key US data releases, including payrolls tomorrow and CPI later,” said CBA’s Kong, adding that the bank sees pressure on the dollar persisting as it is forecasting below-consensus payrolls.

January’s nonfarm payrolls report, out on Wednesday, is expected to show an increase of 70,000 jobs, according to a Reuters poll.

Traders are still pricing in two rate cuts by the Federal Reserve this year, with the first one expected in June, although markets remain on tenterhooks ahead of a potential shift in US policy stance following the nomination of Kevin Warsh to succeed Jerome Powell as Fed chair.

In other currencies, the Australian dollar eased 0.2% to USD 0.7079 while the New Zealand dollar was at USD 0.6045, down 0.2%.

(Reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Singapore and Jiaxing Li in Hong Kong; Editing by Sonali Paul)

Gold, silver retreat as dollar ticks up

Feb 10 (Reuters) – Gold and silver fell on Tuesday after two straight sessions of gains, as the dollar edged higher from a more than one-week low, while investors awaited key US jobs and inflation data due later this week to gauge the interest rate trajectory.

FUNDAMENTALS

* Spot gold fell 1% to USD 5,016.56 per ounce by 0055 GMT. The metal gained 2% on Monday, as the dollar weakened to a more than one-week low. It had scaled a record high of USD 5,594.82 per ounce on January 29.

* US gold futures for April delivery lost 0.8% to USD 5,041.60 per ounce.

* Spot silver was down 2.5% at USD 81.31/oz, after rising nearly 7% in the previous session. It had hit an all-time high of USD 121.64 on January 29.

* The US dollar index rose 0.2% from a more than one-week low hit in the previous session, making greenback-priced metals more expensive for overseas buyers.

* Stock indexes rose on Monday, with US technology shares leading Wall Street higher, as investors sought bargains in markets beaten down last week, while the yen strengthened following the resounding election win of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.

* White House economic adviser Kevin Hassett said on Monday that US job gains could be lower in the coming months due to slower labor force growth and higher productivity, weighing into a debate that is also underway at the Federal Reserve and promises to shape the central bank’s coming policy decisions.

* Investors expect at least two 25-basis-point rate cuts in 2026, with the first one expected in June. Non-yielding bullion tends to do well in low-interest-rate environments.

* Investors await the nonfarm payrolls report for January, due on Wednesday, and inflation data on Friday for more cues on the Fed’s monetary policy path.

* Spot platinum shed 1.6% to USD 2,088.71 per ounce, while palladium lost 1.7% to USD 1,710.68.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
1330	US Import Prices YY Dec
1330	US Retail Sales MM Dec

(Reporting by Ishaan Arora; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

US IPO proceeds to quadruple to record USD 160 billion in 2026 as dealmaking rebounds, says Goldman

US equity markets are set for a sharp rebound in IPOs in 2026, Goldman Sachs analysts said, forecasting proceeds quadrupling to a record USD 160 billion as marquee names such as SpaceX, OpenAI, and Anthropic edge closer to public listings.

The Wall Street brokerage also expects the number of IPOs to double to 120 this year, as improving economic growth, stronger equity prices, and easier financial conditions revive dealmaking appetite.

The forecast marks the biggest year on record in absolute proceeds, the analysts said in a note issued on Friday, adding that IPO value would still only represent a small slice of overall US market capitalization, reflecting the equity market’s growth over the past decade.

Twelve firms have raised about USD 5 billion via IPOs so far in 2026, including AI equipment maker Forgent Power and biopharmaceutical company Eikon Therapeutics. Nvidia-rival AI chipmaker Cerebras Systems, which just raised USD 1 billion in a late-stage funding round that valued it at USD 23 billion, is also in the running.

Software and healthcare firms are set to dominate the IPO pipeline by volume while a handful of late-stage tech and artificial intelligence companies are expected to drive proceeds, according to the note.

At the center of investor attention are a handful of ultra-valuable private companies, including Elon Musk’s SpaceX, artificial intelligence firm Anthropic and ChatGPT maker OpenAI, with their potential public debuts likely defining the scale and tone of the next IPO cycle.

Listings by large private companies will shape the 2026 IPO market, analysts said, with proceeds ranging from roughly USD 80 billion to almost USD 200 billion, compared with a USD 160 billion base case.

However, an early-year selloff in software stocks has underscored valuation risks, the analysts warned, especially as the sector accounts for about a quarter of the IPO backlog.

“Continued volatility in share prices and corporate confidence are the key macro risks to our forecast. The substantial weight of software in the IPO backlog is another risk,” Goldman added.

(Reporting by Rashika Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

Japan stocks surge to record, bonds slide with yen on Takaichi’s landslide election win

TOKYO – Japanese stocks swept to record peaks while bonds slid and the yen sagged to an all-time low against the Swiss franc after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi scored a landslide win in Sunday’s snap election.

Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party won 316 of the 465 seats in parliament’s lower house, giving her the mandate to push through her big spending plans and promised tax relief without negotiating with other parties. The so-called supermajority also allows the LDP to pass legislation without upper house approval.

The Nikkei 225 share average rallied 5.7% to an unprecedented 57,337.07 by 0146 GMT. Of its 225 components, 197 rose while the rest fell, underscoring the breadth of the upsurge.

The broader Topix jumped as much as 3.4% to a record 3,825.67.

Heavyweight chip-testing equipment maker Advantest, a supplier to Nvidia, vaulted more than 13% to be the Nikkei’s top performer, leading a rally among shares linked to artificial intelligence.

The market “sees greater momentum for Prime Minister Takaichi’s policy agenda,” particularly her fiscal policy, said Shingo Ide, chief equity strategist at NLI Research Institute.

“It’s not just a stable administration – What’s coming into view is the prospect of a long-term administration.”

For the Nikkei though, “I don’t think it will keep rising at this pace. If it were to shoot straight to 60,000, that would be a bit overdone,” Ide said, adding that it may eventually “settle down” around 56,000.

ELECTION MANDATE PUTS SHARP FOCUS ON FISCAL PLAN

Japanese government bond yields rose, with short-term yields reaching a three-decade peak. But the longest-dated bonds, which are most sensitive to fiscal worries, were little changed on the day after erasing an initial spike higher in yield.

Bond yields move inversely to prices.

Two-year JGB yields climbed 2.5 basis points (bps) to the highest since May 1996 at 1.3%, and 10-year yields jumped 4 bps to 2.27%.

Thirty-year JGB yields climbed as much as 6.5 bps to 3.615%, but were last down 0.5 bp at 3.545%.

“I think the reaction indicates that Takaichi has successfully convinced the market that she will be a strong leader, but not be a fiscally irresponsible one,” said Zuhair Khan, a senior portfolio manager at UBP.

“But we will have to wait and see.”

From a policymaking perspective, Takaichi’s big win may be the best result for bond investors, because the LDP won’t need to compromise with opposition parties targeting even deeper tax relief and broader fiscal stimulus.

The 30-year JGB yield surged to a record 3.88% last month when Takaichi initially pledged to suspend the tax on food for two years, but has been well below that for the past two weeks.

The yen also eased in early trading, but rebounded strongly after Japan’s top currency diplomat Atsushi Mimura said the government is “closely watching currency movements with a high sense of urgency” in a warning about potential yen-buying intervention.

From being down as much as 0.3% to reach 203.30 yen per franc for the first time ever on Monday, the Japanese currency reversed direction to be up 0.4% at 201.90.

The yen had declined 0.4% to 186.55 per euro, putting it close to the record low of 186.86 from last month, but was last changing hands at 185.22 per euro, up 0.3%.

It fell 0.5% to as low as 157.95 per US dollar, a two-week trough, before rebounding to be 0.3% stronger at 156.65.

“The market has long been mindful that further yen weakness could invite intervention,” said Kumiko Ishikawa, senior analyst at Sony Financial Group.

After substantial yen declines last week amid expectations of a Takaichi victory, “the topside was already heavy” in the dollar-yen pair, she said. “Then Mimura’s verbal intervention came in and nudged the level lower.”

(Reporting by Kevin Buckland; Editing by Jamie Freed and Shri Navaratnam)

Oil drops as US, Iran pledge to continue talks

SINGAPORE – Oil prices fell on Monday after the US and Iran pledged to continue talks over the Middle Eastern producer’s nuclear programme, easing concerns about a possible conflict that could disrupt supply from the region.

Brent crude futures fell 49 cents, or 0.72%, to USD 67.56 a barrel by 0134 GMT after settling up 50 cents on Friday.

US West Texas Intermediate crude was at USD 63.13 a barrel, down 42 cents, or 0.66%, following a 26-cent gain at Friday’s settlement.

“Crude oil has eased in early trading this week, with the market breathing a sigh of relief over the constructive US-Iran nuclear talks in Oman,” IG market analyst Tony Sycamore said.

“With more talks on the horizon, the immediate fear of supply disruptions in the Middle East has eased quite a bit.”

Iran and the US pledged to continue the indirect nuclear talks following what both sides described as positive discussions on Friday in Oma,n despite differences. That allayed concerns that failure to reach a deal might nudge the Middle East closer to war as the US has positioned more military forces in the area.

Investors are also worried about possible disruptions to supply from Iran and other regional producers as exports equal to about a fifth of the world’s total oil consumption pass through the Strait of Hormuz between Oman and Iran.

Both benchmarks fell more than 2% last week on the easing tensions, their first decline in seven weeks.

However, Iran’s foreign minister said on Saturday that Tehran will strike US bases in the Middle East if it is attacked by US forces, showing the threat of conflict is still alive.

Investors are also continuing to grapple with efforts to curb Russian income from its oil exports for its war in Ukraine.

The European Commission on Friday proposed a sweeping ban on any services that support Russia’s seaborne crude oil exports.

Refiners in India, once the biggest buyer of Russia’s seaborne crude, are avoiding purchases
for delivery in April and are expected to stay away from such trades for longer, refining and trade sources said, which could help New Delhi seal a trade pact with Washington.

In a sign that rising energy prices are encouraging more production, Baker Hughes reported on Friday that US energy firms last week added oil and natural gas rigs for a third week for the first time since November.

(Reporting by Florence Tan; Editing by Jamie Freed and Christian Schmollinger)

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