Morning Edition · Friday, July 3, 2026
Macro
Weak US jobs data pulls gold off its lows and cools bets on more Fed rate hikes
June payrolls of 57,000 fell far short of forecasts, prompting investors to lower the odds of another Federal Reserve increase and to shift back toward assets such as gold.
Markets
Brent holds near a four-month low as Hormuz shipping recovers and Iran tensions ease
Daily ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has risen sharply, and the return of Gulf oil supplies has pushed crude prices lower.
Geopolitics
Iran begins days of funeral ceremonies for assassinated former leader Khamenei
Representatives from more than 100 countries are expected as Tehran mourns Ali Khamenei, killed in an Israeli strike in February, while a managed truce with Washington holds.
Macro
China signals it will buy more European goods as Brussels hardens its trade stance
Beijing's commerce minister told the European Union it is open to purchase agreements to narrow a trade surplus running near 360 billion euros a year.
Macro
Japan's largest labor group secures a third straight year of wage gains above 5%
Rengo's final tally showed an average increase of 5.01 percent, but rising prices mean many workers are still falling behind once inflation is taken into account.
Geopolitics
Deadly strikes hit both sides of the Ukraine war as civilian toll mounts
Russian officials reported a Ukrainian drone attack on a market in Tokmak that killed five, a day after what Kyiv called the deadliest Russian assault of the year.
Geopolitics
Trump heads to Ankara with an F-35 overture as Turkey and Israel trade accusations
Washington has moved to bring Turkey back into the F-35 program even as Turkish and Israeli officials escalate their public dispute over regional influence.
World
Indonesia courts Belarus and the Pacific trade bloc in a widening balancing act
Jakarta welcomed Belarusian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko while opening accession talks with an 11-nation trade pact, signaling a deliberately non-aligned economic strategy.
Markets
Mali tightens state control over gold as prices trade near record levels
The military-led government created a new body to oversee artisanal gold sales, part of a broader effort by resource-rich states to capture more mining revenue.
Tech
Alarum Technologies shares collapse after FBI seizes domains tied to its proxy unit
The Israeli data company's dual-listed stock fell more than 70 percent in Tel Aviv after US authorities targeted infrastructure linked to its NetNut subsidiary.
Crypto
IMF warns that tokenizing finance brings speed but also new fragility
Putting traditional assets on blockchain networks could make markets faster and cheaper while leaving them more exposed to sudden shocks, the fund said.
World
UN forecasters warn of intensifying extreme weather as El Niño strengthens
The World Meteorological Organization sees a greater likelihood of heatwaves, droughts and heavy rain, with dangerous heat already threatening World Cup matches in North America.