On Sunday, Bitcoin $BTCUSD experienced a sharp intraday decline, falling by 4.13% to $99,237 as of 10:52 a.m. ET (1452 GMT), retreating below the closely watched $100,000 psychological threshold. Ethereum $ETHUSD, the second-largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization, also saw steeper losses, dropping 8.52% to $2,199 during the same time period.
A developing rift between OpenAI and its largest financial backer, Microsoft Corp. $MSFT, has sparked concerns over potential violations of U.S. antitrust law, according to a Wall Street Journal report. The friction reportedly stems from the structure of their ongoing strategic partnership, with OpenAI executives allegedly weighing whether to formally accuse Microsoft of anticompetitive conduct.
India’s National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has received federal approval to raise up to ₹195 billion ($2.3 billion) through deep-discount zero-coupon bonds. These long-dated instruments, maturing in nearly 11 years, mark a significant financing step for the state-owned development bank as it intensifies efforts to support rural infrastructure, agribusiness, and credit flow in underserved regions.
Meta Platforms Inc. $META has taken a bold step toward advancing artificial general intelligence (AGI) by acquiring a 49% stake in data-labeling startup Scale AI. The $14.3 billion investment, which values Scale AI at $29 billion, marks one of the most significant private-sector deals in the AI industry to date.
Asian oil markets experienced a modest decline on Wednesday as renewed concerns about increased production from the OPEC+ alliance and ongoing global tariff tensions weighed on investor sentiment. Despite underlying fears about potential supply disruptions from Canada and Iran, bearish pressures prevailed amid uncertainty over macroeconomic headwinds.
Anthropic, a leading San Francisco-based artificial intelligence developer backed by Alphabet Inc. $GOOGL and Amazon.com Inc. $AMZN, has reached an estimated $3 billion in annualized revenue, according to sources familiar with the company’s sales metrics. This surge underscores the growing commercial viability of generative AI tools, particularly in the enterprise sector, where code generation and software automation are seeing accelerated adoption.
Norway's oil and gas sector is set to reach unprecedented levels of investment in 2025, according to a recent industry survey conducted by the Norwegian Statistics Office (Statistisk sentralbyrå). The largest business sector in the country plans to inject 269.1 billion Norwegian kroner (approximately USD 26.62 billion) into exploration, production, and infrastructure projects. This figure surpasses previous forecasts from February, which estimated investments at 253.8 billion NOK, and exceeds last year’s total of 251.2 billion NOK.
Egypt is positioning itself as a critical node in the future Europe-Asia land transport network, leveraging its geographic location to become a logistics and infrastructure hub. The Ministry of Transport, led by Kamel El-Wazir, announced continued expansion of seven major railway lines, including three high-speed routes aimed at connecting key ports and regions across Egypt. However, progress on the long-anticipated bridge between Saudi Arabia and Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula—a cornerstone for full continental integration—remains stalled.
Foxconn $2354.TW, globally recognized as the electronics manufacturing titan behind Apple’s iPhones $AAPL, is now poised to make a strategic leap into the semiconductor backend sector. The Taiwanese company is reportedly among a shortlist of suitors eyeing a potential acquisition of UTAC Holdings, a Singapore-based firm specializing in semiconductor assembly and testing. The deal, valued at approximately $3 billion, signals Foxconn’s growing ambition to diversify deeper into the chipmaking value chain amid tightening global supply dynamics.
The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has officially ended its challenge against Microsoft’s $MSFT $69 billion acquisition of video game publisher Activision Blizzard, known for the blockbuster franchise Call of Duty. The announcement, made on Thursday, reflects a strategic reorientation within the agency as it reassesses ongoing litigation based on public interest considerations.
Target Corp. $TGT, one of the leading U.S. big-box retailers, revised its annual sales outlook downward following a sharper-than-expected drop in comparable-store sales during the latest quarter. The company attributed the decline to weakening consumer confidence and reduced discretionary spending — both influenced by the lingering effects of trade tensions initiated under the Trump administration.
In a move signaling deeper structural transformation, U.S. chipmaker Intel Corporation $INTC is reportedly exploring the sale of its networking and edge computing business, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter. This consideration follows CEO Lip-Bu Tan’s renewed focus on core competencies, as the company looks to divest non-strategic operations and realign toward its traditional strengths—central processing units (CPUs) for personal computers and data center infrastructure.
