U.S. consumer sentiment stays steady

Shoppers are seen at Whole Foods Market on October 14, 2022, in Atlanta, Georgia. Elijah Nouvelage | Afp | Getty Images This report is from today’s CNBC Daily Open, our international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Like what you … Read more

Oil settles lower as Russia fuel export ban boosts, rate hikes weigh

This aerial photo shows the Enping 15-1 oil platform 200 km southwest of Shenzhen, south China, May 31, 2023. Mao Siqian | Xinhua News Agency | Getty Images Oil prices settled lower after choppy trading on Thursday, rising as much as $1 a barrel after a Russian ban on fuel exports snatched the focus from … Read more

Global rice markets are in crisis amid ‘artificial’ shortage

Rice is a crucial staple for over half the global population and the world is bracing for its most significant shortage in 20 years. India’s export ban on rice is reverberating through global rice markets, threatening food security if developing nations cannot afford or access rice. “The only shortage out there right now would really … Read more

Southeast Asia looks to renewable power for energy security

The floating solar photovoltaic power plant by EDPR Sunseap Group, a unit of Energias de Portugal SA, in Woodlands, in Singapore, on Wednesday, Dec. 7, 2022. Bryan van der Beek | Bloomberg | Getty Images Southeast Asia is home to some of the world’s fastest-growing economies. As energy demand grows, the region is turning to … Read more

Indonesia’s China-backed high-speed train sparks concerns of debt trap

Indonesia is starting trial runs for its first high-speed train, which will connect the capital Jakarta to a neighboring city of Bandung, after years of delays and cost overruns plagued the project. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images A $7.3 billion high-speed electric rail line between Indonesia’s two biggest cities is set to be launched … Read more

Asia food inflation fears rise as rice prices surge

An undated stock photo of a market stall with piles of many varieties of Vietnamese rice in Ho Chi Minh city grocery. Vietnam is one of the largest exporters of quality rice, Asia’s most important staple food. Bicho_raro | Istock | Getty Images A perfect storm may be brewing in Asia. Rice prices surged to … Read more

Central banks in Asia could soon diverge from the Federal Reserve: Nomura

A food stall in Gwangjang Market in Seoul as South Korea’s central bank is seen to be among the first in the region to cut its benchmark interest rate. Francois Lochon | Gamma-rapho | Getty Images Central banks in Asia could start cutting rates earlier than the Federal Reserve, economists at Nomura predicted. A dovish … Read more