EconomicsAustralia's Fair Work Commission has ruled that nearly 3 million minimum wage workers will receive a 4.75% pay rise, while around 100,000 of the lowest-paid workers will get a 6% increase - falling short of what unions demanded.
EconomicsChina has begun construction on a $1 billion pumped-storage hydropower station in Cambodia's Koh Kong province, as disruptions to global fuel supplies from the Iran conflict push developing nations toward renewable energy alternatives.
EconomicsDutch trade minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma, freshly removed from China's sanction list, is heading to Beijing in early July to lead a business delegation - with ASML export controls and the Nexperia ownership mess firmly on the agenda.
EconomicsAmerica's wealth gap has reached generational highs, with lower-income households struggling under high gas prices and employment challenges while the wealthiest Americans benefit from tax cuts and a booming stock market, according to The Independent.
EconomicsUzbekistan is simultaneously deploying EBRD-backed solar projects, upgrading its grid, and planning its first-ever nuclear plant - making it one of Central Asia's most ambitious energy investment stories right now.
EconomicsChina has spent years diversifying its energy suppliers and building overland pipelines, but analysis from The Diplomat reveals its oil supply still depends dangerously on the Strait of Hormuz - a chokepoint it cannot control.
EconomicsThe Strait of Hormuz blockade has exposed Japan and South Korea's alarming dependence on maritime trade routes for food and fuel, forcing both governments into a long-overdue strategic rethink.
EconomicsThe Strait of Hormuz closure is disrupting fertilizer and natural gas shipments, putting pressure on farmers - but experts say U.S. grocery prices are unlikely to spike dramatically, for now.
EconomicsUS stocks surged on June 16, with the Nasdaq jumping 3.1% and the S&P 500 rising 1.7%, as hopes for a US-Iran deal stoked optimism about potential relief in global energy markets.
EconomicsEvery time Trump declared the Iran war over, markets lost their minds - and then found them again, briefly. The Independent tracked the full chaotic loop.
EconomicsWhile the Iran war spells economic misery for most of the globe in 2026, Wall Street, defense contractors, AI firms, and green energy companies are quietly having a very good year, according to Al Jazeera.
EconomicsThe Trump administration is planning a fresh round of tariffs on around 60 countries over forced labor concerns, potentially upending trade deals that partners spent months negotiating.
EconomicsJapan built one of the world's most elaborate energy contingency systems over five decades. The Gulf crisis is finding its blind spots anyway, per a Foreign Policy analysis.
EconomicsChina's rare earth dominance gets hyped as a geopolitical superweapon, but analysis from The Diplomat suggests that threatening to use it mostly accelerates the world's efforts to not need it anymore.
EconomicsEuropean chemical producers are urging the EU Commission to investigate Chinese firm LB Group over its planned acquisition of a UK plant, fearing it could be used to bypass anti-dumping duties on exports into the EU.
EconomicsA planned Samsung strike has been suspended while union members vote on a tentative deal - but workers are making it very clear that 'suspended' does not mean 'cancelled.'
EconomicsTrump arrived in China with over a dozen top executives in his delegation, as talks on trade, technology, and rare earth minerals take center stage. Back home, the Senate confirmed Kevin Warsh as the next Fed Chair.
EconomicsIndia's state-run fuel retailers have raised petrol and diesel prices for the third time in eight days, as refinery losses mount and US-Iran ceasefire tensions keep global crude markets volatile.
EconomicsIran survived 40 days of US and Israeli bombing plus a two-month naval blockade, but now faces an estimated $270 billion in damages against a GDP of just $371 billion. The war may be over - the economic crisis is just warming up.
