Iraq Financial News

LONDON—British judges ruled that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange can’t immediately be extradited to the U.S. to face spying charges, opening the way for months of further legal wrangling over the fate of the former hacker. Assange, 52, who has spent the past five years in a London prison, is fighting a drawn-out legal battle with the British government to avoid being sent to the U.S.

By Timour Azhari

The United States and its liberal democratic allies may be facing off with authoritarian powers Russia, Iran and China as wars in Ukraine and Gaza inflame global rivalries. But to Islamic State, they’re all enemies of the Muslim faith that should be annihilated.

Islamic State group has taken responsibility for a devastating assault on a concert hall in suburban Moscow, resulting in the deaths of at least 133 individuals, marking one of the deadliest incidents in Russia in recent years. Despite assertions from the US regarding evidence supporting the jihadists' involvement, both Moscow and Kyiv engaged in mutual accusations on Saturday amidst the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. As reported by The Spectator Index, ISIS released bodycam footage of the Moscow terrorist attack.In the comment section, few replied with the videos.

Over the first quarter of 2024, WTI crude oil is expected to rise by at least 15%. This uptick marks the end of a downward trend observed in the third and fourth quarters of 2023, which was part of a broader trend that began in mid-2022.

US elections 2024: Joe Biden and Donald Trump secure primary wins in Illinois Last month, Trump acknowledged that at least five high-profile Republicans and one former Democrat are on the shortlist for potential running mates in the general election. According to the New York Post, the names included, Tulsi Gabbard, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Tim Scotte, Byron Donalds, and South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem.

Authorities say that Iraq’s former defense minister, who holds dual Iraqi-Swedish citizenship, has been arrested in Sweden

Also Read: Oil prices rise amid attacks on Russian energy facilities, brent crude at $86/bbl On Monday Iraq announced its intention to reduce crude exports in the coming months by over 100,000 barrels per day compared to the previous month, aiming to counter any increase above its OPEC+ quota recorded in January and February. Iraq remains committed to the voluntary cuts established with the OPEC+ coalition, which have been extended into the second quarter. On the other hand, ongoing Ukrainian drone attacks targeting Russian oil refineries are exacerbating concerns about supply stability.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) -Oil prices dipped on Tuesday due in part to the prospect of rising supply from Russia, slower-than-expected downstream demand in sectors such as jet fuel, and cautious trading ahead of the Fed's decision on U.S. interest rates.

Investing.com-- Oil prices hovered near a 4-½ month high in Asian trade on Tuesday as softer exports from Iraq and Saudi Arabia furthered the notion of tighter markets this year, although sentiment remained on edge before a Federal Reserve meeting. 

NEW DELHI : Russia remained the top supplier of oil to India in January, accounting for nearly a third of the crude brought into the country, according to data from the commerce ministry. At $4.47 billion, the value of the crude oil supply from Russia jumped 41% year-on-year. Sequentially, crude imports from that country increased 14% from $3.92 billion in December 2023, the data showed.

Narendra Modi on Friday alleged that the INDIA bloc wanted to assume power only to engage in 'loot and corruption.' He attacked the Congress in Kerala over the solar case of 2013 and the DMK-Congress alliance in Tamil Nadu. Addressing a BJP rally in Kanyakumari, Modi alleged DMK-Congress have 'history of scams' and the aim behind their efforts to come to power is to 'loot the people.' He underlined that while the Centre has launched several infrastructure development projects in Tamil Nadu and the people benefited from a slew of welfare schemes, the DMK government was 'steeped in corruption.' Referring to the consecration of Ram temple at Ayodhya on January 22, Modi said the DMK government boycotted it and tried to 'prevent telecast' of the event. Modi said this showed the DMK government had 'no respect' for traditions and culture of India. He said in the run-up to the main event, he had visited several historical temples of Tamil Nadu. Modi also tried to take credit for restarting Jallikattu, though it was done by cultural organisations after the Supreme Court lifted the ban. He alleged that while the DMK-Congress dispensation was 'caught napping' when Sri Lankan authorities arrested some Tamil Nadu fishermen recently, he used diplomatic clout to bring them back safe, overlooking the point that the Centre oversaw external affairs. Referring to the attack on AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa in the Tamil Nadu assembly several decades ago, Modi said it showed DMK 'did not respect' women.

Travejar Tourism LLC says, “ Years ago while going through such a hefty process and waiting for my visa approval, I set out to create a platform where a traveller doesn’t have to go through exhausting steps." He even added, “With such intention, me and my team created this opportunity to provide a visa in 4 hours". With OnlineDubaivisa, we are set to revolutionize the way an individual applies for a Dubai visa. Our user-friendly interface and easy navigation assist in completing visa applications with comfort.

Barrons Roundtable discusses the price of oil and the demand for natural gas.

GPS signals that deceive on-board plane systems and complicate the work of airline pilots are surging near conflict zones, industry employees and officials told AFP. A ground collision alert sounds in the cockpit, for instance, even though the plane is flying at high altitude — a phenomenon affecting several regions and apparently of military origin. This includes the vicinity of Ukraine following the Russian invasion two years ago, the eastern Mediterranean and the air corridor running above Iraq, according to pilots and officials interviewed by AFP.

Joe Biden is one of the most unpopular presidents in modern American history. In Gallup polling, his approval ratings are lower than those of any president embarking on a reelection campaign, from Dwight Eisenhower to Donald Trump. Yet an air of mystery hangs around his lousy polling numbers. As The Washington Free Beacon's Joe Simonson noted recently, just surfing around most U.S. media and pop culture, you probably wouldn't realize that Biden's job approval ratings are quite so historically terrible, worse by far than Trump's at the same point in his first term.

Canada’s biggest banks are more than twice as exposed to the fossil-fuel business as their European and United States counterparts, according to a report from climate-change think tank InfluenceMap.

Russia expanded its share in India's crude oil imports to 32% in February from 27% in the previous month, little affected by Red Sea tensions and helped by rising demand from state-run refiners in India. Saudi Arabia became India's second-largest crude supplier in February, with its share rising to 19% from 14%. Iraq was a key loser, falling to 18% from 24%. In November, Russia had a share of 35%, which fell in both December and January before recovering in February. State-run refiners accounted for 61% of total 1.41 million barrels per day (mbd) of crude India received from Russia in February, according to energy cargo tracker Vortexa. These companies' combined share expanded from 52% in January as their daily import volume jumped by a quarter in a month while private sector refiners' intake fell by 12%.

Mint explains why the Opec+ has curbed output and the demand outlook for the world. Crude oil price (Brent) has stayed below $100 a barrel since August 2022, after the sharp rise in the early days of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. While it has largely held above $80, the price dipped to the low seventies a few times in the past year.

Some members of oil cartel OPEC, led by Saudi Arabia, and allied producers like Russia are again deepening their voluntary crude supply cuts

By Richard Cowan