Shares skidded Friday in Asia after Brent crude shot to its highest price since May as heavy fighting in the Middle East again threatened to slow the global flow of oil and gas. U.S. futures were little changed after tumbles for two of Wall Street’s most influential companies,

Brent oil's price jumped above $100 per barrel for the first time since May as increased fighting in the Middle East threatens to slow the global flow of crude

U.S. oil just topped $90 a barrel and Brent crude is passed $100 a barrel. A number of new factors could mean this crude comeba

Brent crude oil briefly topped $100 per barrel for the first time since May as increased fighting in the Middle East threatens to slow the global flow of crude. Wall

The U.S. war with Iran escalated and global oil prices surged again Thursday as Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen attacked two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea.

The Iran-backed Houthis claimed their first attack on commercial ships in recent months, opening a new front in the US-Iran war that has already disrupted global energy supplies and rattled bond markets.

The US conducted more strikes on Iran as both sides traded threats. Meanwhile the Iran-backed Houthis claimed to have struck two Saudi oil tankers in the Red Sea. Follow for live news updates.

The Saudi authorities had yet to confirm the hits, which would be the first attacks since the Iranian-backed Yemeni group announced a blockade on Saudi Arabia.

Donald Trump is rebuilding his tariff wall. Intel’s comeback gains steam but the Magnificent Seven had a bad day. And Barclays’ trading boss is hunting for growth against Wall Street giants. Listen to the day’s top stories.

The new tariffs cover 99.4% of U.S. imports, but include numerous product exemptions, such as oil and gas, fertilizer and certain food items. Reuters, the news and media division of Thomson Reuters, is the world’s largest multimedia news provider,

New tariffs of 10% and 12.5% hit 60 trading partners Friday as the temporary global tariff expires, with Canada, India, the EU and Taiwan affected.

The Trump administration announced on Thursday that it will impose increased tariffs on dozens of countries because they permit forced labor.

HSBC has agreed to ​sell its life and health insurance business in Singapore to Allianz for S$2.7 billion ($2.1 billion), as it trims non-core ‌operations and focuses on its Asian wealth and wholesale banking operations.

HSBC and Allianz will enter into an exclusive 15-year bancassurance partnership on completion of the deal that would allow HSBC to continue distributing insurance products to its Singapore customers.

As part of the deal, Allianz will also enter a 15-year exclusive distribution partnership with HSBC Singapore to strengthen its ties in the region. Friday's announcement underscores the German insurer's push to expand in Singapore,

HSBC offloads Singapore life arm in £1.6 billion deal - Chief executive Georges Elhedery has been restructuring the lender since taking on the top post two years ago.

AI infrastructure buying shift among customers impacted z17 performance in Q2, but the Big Iron remains a critical AI platform, IBM says.

IBM (NYSE:IBM) lowered its revenue growth expectations for 2026 after weaker demand for data-centre mainframe systems weighed on quarterly performance, although the company maintained confidence in its profitability and long-term artificial intelligence strategy.

Many on Wall Street anticipated that IBM would cut its outlook after the company reported preliminary earnings last week that showed weak sales for its infrastructure and associated software.

While other tech giants spend on AI data centers, Big Blue aims to keep selling mainframes and pour profits into quantum computing.

Gold (XAUUSD:CUR) slipped further on Friday in Asian trading following a 2% drop in the prior session, as Brent crude (CO1:COM) rising above $100 a barrel renewed inflation worries and bolstered expectations for higher interest rates ahead of next week's Fed meeting.

Gold prices traded close to a two-week high on Thursday as markets balanced rising geopolitical tensions in the Middle East against growing expectations that higher energy prices could keep inflation elevated and influence the Federal Reserve’s next policy decision.

Front-month gold and silver futures both declined, with gold falling 2.4% to $4,046.50 a troy ounce and silver down 3.7% to $57.798/oz.

Gold fell more than 2% on Thursday, ‌retreating from the previous session’s two-week high, as the Middle East conflict drove up energy prices, fuelling inflation concerns and reinforcing expectations of U.