The benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) attracted fresh buyers in Asian trading on Wednesday and reversed a part of the previous day’s retracement slide from the $81.65 area, or a nearly two-month top. The US crude oil currently trades around $81.00/barrel, up over 0.50% for the day amid persistent geopolitical tensions stemming from Israeli strikes … Read more
– In 1940, Belgium’s King Leopold surrendered to the invading Germans in World War Two, and the evacuation of defeated Allied armies from Dunkirk began, saving a total of 224,585 British and 112,546 French and Belgian troops.
Ukraine launched a major attack on Crimea and Russian regions with missiles and drones, causing an oil refinery in southern Russia to halt operations. Russian air defenses shot down the missiles and drones. The Ukrainian-launched drones carried bigger charges than previous attacks, including steel balls. Russia has reported a rise in Ukrainian attacks on its territory, prompting President Putin to carve out a buffer zone in northeastern Ukraine. The White House reiterated its policy of not encouraging Ukraine to use U.S. weapons against Russian territory. Russia captured a village in Kharkiv region and considers Crimea and other regions part of Russia, while Ukraine and its allies reject this stance. President Zelenskiy is determined to eject all Russian troops from Ukraine and expects Russia to escalate its offensive. Ukraine lacks sufficient air defenses to defend itself, and the West is concerned about the outcome of a potential defeat for Russia.