Israel Financial News

Investing.com-- Oil prices moved little in Asian trade on Tuesday as traders turned cautious ahead of key U.S. inflation data that is expected to factor into the path of interest rates, while an OPEC monthly report was also in focus. 

Houthis fired two missiles on Monday at an Iran-bound cargo ship in the Red Sea, causing minor damage to the vessel but no injuries, U.S. military officials said. The early morning strikes appeared to be the first time the Houthis have targeted an Iran-bound vessel since starting attacks on international shipping in solidarity with Palestinians over the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, shipping sources said. «Iranian-backed Houthi militants fired two missiles from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen toward the Bab al-Mandeb,» U.S Central Command said on the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter.

Israeli forces rescued two hostages early Monday, storming a heavily guarded apartment in a densely packed town in the Gaza Strip as airstrikes carried out to cover the raid killed more than 60 Palestinians, including women and children. The rescue in Rafah briefly lifted the spirits of Israelis shaken by the plight of the dozens of hostages held by Hamas. The nation is still reeling from the militant group's cross-border raid last year that started the war. The overnight bombardment brought devastation in Rafah, which is packed with some 1.4 million people, most of whom fled their homes elsewhere in Gaza to escape fighting. Associated Press footage showed a large area of flattened houses, tattered tents and lines of bloodied bodies brought into nearby hospitals.

By Stephanie Kelly

Israeli Minister of Transport and Road Safety, Miri Regev, paid tribute to the victims of the 26/11 terror attacks at Mumbai's Nariman House on Monday. After laying flowers at a column raised in memory of the 26/11 victims, the minister also interacted with members of the Indian Jewish community at the Keneseth Eliyahoo Synagogue. In one of the deadliest terror attacks to have been perpetrated on Indian soil, 10 members of Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba infiltrated India's commercial capital by the sea on the night of November 26, 2008, opening fire on unarmed civilians at some prominent public spaces across Mumbai.

By Richard Cowan and Patricia Zengerle

IMF) is now «very confident» the global economy will see a soft landing, its managing director Kristalina Georgieva said on Monday, adding that interest rates would start coming down around mid year. «We are very confident that the world economy is now poised for this soft landing we have been dreaming for,» after some of the sharpest interest rate hikes in decades, Georgieva said at the World Governments Summit in Dubai.

India's quiet multifaceted diplomatic efforts through formal channels and informal talks, besides a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Emir of Qatar, helped New Delhi secure the release of eight Navy veterans who were sentenced to death last year. Achieving the release of the eight Indians, accused of spying for Israel, was a key item on the agenda of the Ministry of External Affairs since last year. The concerned division in the ministry and the Indian embassy in Qatar had worked quiet channels to gain the reprieve, ET has learnt. The presence of veteran Gulf hand as India's ambassador to Qatar — Vipul — helped New Delhi leverage several channels to successfully secure the objective, according to observers. Vipul served as the head of MEA's Gulf division before heading to Doha last year. Simultaneously, the National Security Council Secretariat led by NSA Ajit Doval worked on its channel of contacts in Doha. The matter was handled deftly, and secrecy was maintained till the veterans returned.

Dutch government on Monday to halt the export of F-35 fighter jet parts to Israel, citing a clear risk of violations of international law. A trio of human rights organizations brought a civil suit against the Netherlands in December, arguing authorities needed to reevaluate the export license in light of Israeli military action in the Gaza Strip. «It is undeniable that there is a clear risk that the exported F-35 parts are used in serious violations of international humanitarian law,» Judge Bas Boele said in reading out the ruling, eliciting cheers from several people in the courtroom. The exports must cease within seven days.

Gaza Strip deeper into trouble, the Israel Defence Force has captured 20 Hamas terrorists from a hospital in the Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis. With these arrests, Tel Aviv may further emphasize that Hamas has used hospitals for terror attacks. The Hamas fighters were hiding inside a Khan Younis hospital in Gaza. They were arrested by the Jewish troops aided by medical staff waiting on a delivery of oxygen tanks.

markets. Brent crude futures were down 54 cents, or about 0.7%, at $81.65 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures slipped 32 cents, also about 0.4%, to $76.52 a barrel at 1426 GMT.

IMF and World Bank warned on Monday that the Gaza war and the related attacks on shipping though the Red Sea pose threats to the global economy. The Israel-Hamas war raging since October has already hit the Middle East and North Africa region's economy, said the International Monetary Fund's managing director Kristalina Georgieva.

Crude oil has started Monday on a slow note following a highly volatile last couple of weeks when losses of more than 7% were recouped from one week to the next.

By Sudarshan Varadhan

Gaza hospital officials told AP. Notably, Israel managed to rescue only two of the claimed 136 Hamas hostages in this airstrike. The Israeli raid took place in Rafah, the city on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where 1.4 million Palestinians have fled to escape fighting elsewhere in the Israel-Hamas war.

Bab el-Mandeb Strait on Monday, the latest assault believed to have been carried out by Yemen's Houthi rebels. No one was wounded in the attack and the ship was continuing on its journey, the British military's United Kingdom Trade Operations centre said in a statement. It wasn't clear how much damage was done to the ship.

Israeli hostages in Rafah amid air strikes early on Monday, which killed 37 people and wounded dozens in the southern Gaza city, said local health officials. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), the Israel Defence Force said, “Two Israeli hostages rescued during an overnight mission in Rafah. During a joint operation between the IDF, ISA, and Israel Police, two Israeli hostages from Kibbutz Nir Yitzhak were rescued: Fernando Simon Marman (60) and Louis Har (70)." “They are both in good medical condition and were transferred for further medical examination in Israel," it said.

Like most years, this year too commenced with the global business and intellectual elite making their way to the World Economic Forum at Davos this January in an attempt to demystify the world around and provide some answers to the challenges that abound. But by the time the Davos spectacle came to an end, there were more questions than answers for the world at large.

Investing.com-- Oil prices fell in Asian trade on Monday as investors locked in some profits after stellar gains over the prior week, with focus now turning to any more developments in the Israel-Hamas war and cues from key industry reports. 

Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed. The eight former Indian Navy officials were condemned to death in October, had been accused of spying for Israel. Seven of the eight released former Indian Navy personnel returned to India on Monday.

Oil prices fell in early Asian trade on Monday after Israel said it had «concluded» a series of strikes in southern Gaza, slightly easing concerns about supply from the Middle East. Brent crude futures were down 43 cents, or 0.5%, at $81.76 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures were 46 cents, or 0.6% lower, at $76.38 a barrel at 0135 GMT.