Last week’s renewed fighting along the Persian Gulf boosted oil prices, leaving investors uncertain.
Category: 28 July 2026
THE NEW RICH REDEFINE LUXURY SPENDING
In the past, old wealth spent big on five-figure dresses and Coach leather goods.
U.S. TECH COMPANIES HAVE DUMPED 140,000 WORKERS THIS YEAR
U.S. tech companies, large and small, have laid off about 140,000 workers so far this year as spending on AI infrastructure is approaching $1 trillion.
HIGH INTEREST RATES DAMPEN U.S. HOUSING MARKET
The average U.S. interest rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage was 6.58 percent last week, rising from 6.55 percent the previous week, reaching the highest that the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp. has recorded this year.
AMERICA’S “NILFS” REACHED A RECORD NUMBER IN JUNE
U.S. adults “not in the labor force” (NILFs) numbered 105.8 million, the most on record, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.
INVESTORS YANK RECORD AMOUNT OF CASH FROM HIGH-GRADE BONDS
During the week ending 22 July, investors pulled a net $7.1 billion out of investment-grade bond funds, the largest weekly cash outflow on record, data service LSEG Lipper reported.
U.S. REFINERIES RUNNING AT CAPACITY AS OIL RESERVES SHRINK
Across the U.S., oil refineries are running at 96 percent of capacity, with those in the Midwest and Rocky Mountain regions operating at 100 percent, the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported last week.
SPOTLIGHT: BIGS GETTING BIGGER
Private equity giants Blackstone, Brookfield Asset Management, and KKR together are paying $16 billion to share a 49-percent stake in a joint venture involving all of Kuwait’s oil pipelines.
SPECIAL REPORT: THE RACE FOR RARE EARTH METALS
What lithium is to batteries, rare earth metals are to electronic technologies.
EUROPE STOCK MARKET RALLY IS DRIVEN BY JUST 10 STOCKS
The Stoxx Europe 600 Index has gained 8.8 percent this year, reaching its highest mark in more than five years.









