Oil Prices Slip as U.S.-Iran Talks Ease Middle East Tensions 
Gold and Silver Prices Slide as Dollar Strength and Easing Tensions Weigh on Metals 
Asian Markets Surge as Japan Election, Fed Rate Cut Bets, and Tech Rally Lift Global Sentiment 
Yen Slides as Japan Election Boosts Fiscal Stimulus Expectations 
India–U.S. Interim Trade Pact Cuts Auto Tariffs but Leaves Tesla Out 
Trump Signs Executive Order Threatening 25% Tariffs on Countries Trading With Iran 
Australian Household Spending Dips in December as RBA Tightens Policy 
South Africa Eyes ECB Repo Lines as Inflation Eases and Rate Cuts Loom 
Singapore Budget 2026 Set for Fiscal Prudence as Growth Remains Resilient 
U.S. Stock Futures Slide as Tech Rout Deepens on Amazon Capex Shock 
Indian Refiners Scale Back Russian Oil Imports as U.S.-India Trade Deal Advances 
Trump’s Inflation Claims Clash With Voters’ Cost-of-Living Reality 
U.S. Stock Futures Rise as Markets Brace for Jobs and Inflation Data 
Dollar Near Two-Week High as Stock Rout, AI Concerns and Global Events Drive Market Volatility 
Dow Hits 50,000 as U.S. Stocks Stage Strong Rebound Amid AI Volatility 
RBI Holds Repo Rate at 5.25% as India’s Growth Outlook Strengthens After U.S. Trade Deal 
Digital giants Google and Facebook were close to agreeing to “significant commercial deals” to pay Australian media for news, claims Australia's Treasurer Josh Frydenberg.
The Australian Parliament is scheduled to consider the draft laws that would force the digital giants to finance its news media.
A Senate committee last week retained the proposed regulations that the two tech giants deemed as unworkable.
Frydenberg, one of the ministers responsible for the legislation, had discussions with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Alphabet Inc. CEO Sundar Pichai and with Australian news media executives.
According to Frydenberg, they have made real progress and expect to see some significant commercial deals, which could benefit the domestic media landscape and financially reward journalists for generating original content.
Frydenberg pointed out that no other country has stepped in as Australia.
Google threatened to make its search engine unavailable in Australia if the news media bargaining code was introduced while Facebook plans to block Australians from sharing news if forced to pay for news.
While both companies can afford the cost for the Australian news, they are concerned about the precedent that Australia could establish.
