Category: News
Hallan a candidatos al Congreso desaparecidos en medio de alerta de violencia política en Colombia
Associated Press
BOGOTÁ (AP) — El ministro de Defensa colombiano Pedro Sánchez reportó el viernes el hallazgo con vida de dos candidatos al Congreso que estuvieron desaparecidos por varias horas, a pocos días de las elecciones legislativas en las que se mantiene un alerta por violencia política en parte del país.
Se trata de Andrés Vásquez, miembro del opositor Partido Conservador, quien fue reportado como desaparecido el miércoles en el departamento de César, en el noreste del país; y de Ana Guetio, una candidata indígena cuyo rastro se perdió en la noche del miércoles en Cauca, en el suroeste.
El ministro aseguró que Vásquez y Guetio regresaron sanos y salvos a sus hogares, sin especificar los detalles de la liberación o los responsables de la retención. Indicó que las autoridades iniciaron investigaciones.
“Este resultado es fruto de la presión sostenida de nuestra fuerza pública y del acompañamiento decidido de las comunidades, que no cedieron ante el miedo”, indicó Sánchez en la red social X.
Vásquez, aspirante al Senado, relató el viernes a Noticias RCN que fue abordado por una persona armada que lo llevó contra su voluntad en una motocicleta mientras lo amenazaba. No identificó a sus captores.
Mientras que Guetio, candidata a los curules de paz que buscan dar representación a las víctimas del conflicto armado en el país, fue reportada como desaparecida cuando se movilizaba en zona rural del municipio de El Tambo en un vehículo de protección y junto a sus escoltas.
La liberación de Guetio fue confirmada la noche del jueves por la Unidad Nacional de Protección, la entidad encargada de brindar seguridad a las personas en riesgo, que indicó que “apareció sana y salva”, luego de que activaran la búsqueda entre las autoridades y las comunidades indígenas.
Sus casos se reportan a pocos días de las elecciones legislativas en las que se advierte una coacción de los grupos armados en algunas zonas del país.
En Colombia persisten grupos armados ilegales pese a que hace una década el Estado firmó un acuerdo de paz con la guerrilla Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC). El vacío dejado por la guerrilla fue copado por otros grupos ilegales, incluyendo disidencias de las FARC, que se disputan las economías ilícitas.
La estatal Defensoría del Pueblo, que vela por los derechos humanos, advirtió esta semana que 69 municipios requieren una acción inmediata por riesgo de violencia política y registró 457 casos de amenazas de muerte contra defensores de derechos humanos y actores políticos en el contexto preelectoral.
Mientras que la oficina del Alto Comisionado de las Naciones Unidas para los Derechos Humanos en Colombia advirtió que la violencia se agravó por la proximidad de las elecciones. El año pasado verificaron el asesinato de 18 líderes políticos, incluyendo el del precandidato presidencial opositor Miguel Uribe Turbay, quien fue baleado en un acto de campaña en Bogotá.
US Begins Evacuating Some Embassy Staff In Israel ‘While Flights Still Available’
US Begins Evacuating Some Embassy Staff In Israel ‘While Flights Still Available’
“Persons may wish to consider leaving Israel while commercial flights are available,” the US State Department announced Friday, signaling that US strikes on Iran could be imminent,.
It provided confirmation the US government has begun evacuating “non-emergency” personnel from the embassy in Israel and their family members, citing “safety risks” amid growing tensions with Iran.
The new urgent announcement also strongly suggests that whatever military action ensues, it will mostly likely involve a joint operation between the US and Israel. Some have warned that Washington is essentially about to go to war on behalf of what are fundamentally Israel’s interests in the region.
People in Israel would further be at risk given the potential for Hezbollah to renew strikes on the country’s north, and then there’s the threat of Houthi attacks from the south – as happened in the last conflict in June and prior.
Fox correspondent Lucas Tomlinson has noted that the last time the embassy issued such an evacuation notice it occurred just eight days before Operation Midnight Hammer (the June strikes).
Another regional journalist, Idrees Ali, as observed: “Many of the things that happened before the United States and Israel struck Iran last year are happening now.”
But this time around the military build-up by the United States is much, much bigger – and days ago hit levels not seen since the 2003 Bush-ordered invasion of Iraq.
On February 27, 2026, the Department of State authorized the departure of non-emergency U.S. government personnel and family members of U.S. government personnel from Mission Israel due to safety risks.
In response to security incidents and without advance notice, the U.S.… pic.twitter.com/aWzX6Gk36x
— U.S. Embassy Jerusalem (@usembassyjlm) February 27, 2026
Axios also confirms that while the US Embassy is still operating for now, “US ambassador Mike Huckabee wrote in a message to embassy staff that whoever wants to leave the country should do so Friday.”
The State Dept. notice states further, “The ambassador, diplomats and U.S. personnel working on assistance to U.S. citizens, security, military, political and intelligence affairs will stay in the country.”
Canada has also newly issued a warning Friday for its citizens to leave Iran and the Mideast region, warning about the near future availability of commercial travel.
Starting the countdown to yet another major US initiated war in the Middle East?…
Everything appears to be in place. Additional F-35s have been deployed, refueling tankers have reached their designated positions with more en route, and the USS Gerald R. Ford has arrived in Israeli waters. And no deal on the nuclear issue still. https://t.co/YP9t8oQ3AL
— Levent Kemal (@leventkemaI) February 27, 2026
This adds to a growing list of countries telling their population to avoid the region or leave, including: Finland, Serbia, Poland, Sweden, India, Greek Cyprus, Singapore, Germany, Brazil, and others. China has also told its citizens in Israel to be prepared for an emergency and to prepare to leave the country. Any Chinese traveling in Iran are also being told to depart immediately.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/27/2026 – 08:50
US advises embassy staff in Israel to leave now if they want, as risk of war hangs over Middle East
TEL AVIV, Israel — The U.S. Embassy in Israel on Friday told its staff that it could leave the country and urged anyone considering departure to do so immediately, as the threat of an American strike on Iran looms.
U.S. Ambassador Mike Huckabee told embassy employees in an email that discussions with officials in Washington had led to a decision authorizing departures for those who wished to leave.
The email was recounted to The Associated Press by someone involved with the U.S. mission who wasn’t authorized to share details. Sent before 10:30 a.m., it urged staff considering departure to do so quickly, advising them to to focus initially on getting any flight out of Israel and to then make their way to Washington.
“Those wishing to take AD should do so TODAY,” Huckabee wrote, using an acronym for “authorized departure.”
“While there may be outbound flights over the coming days, there may not be,” he added.
Huckabee said that there was no need for panic, but for those desiring to leave, it was important to make plans soon.
The email came a day after Iran and the United States walked away from nuclear negotiations without a deal. Airlines such as Netherlands-based KLM have already announced plans to suspend flights out of Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport, and other embassies have also made plans for authorized departures from Israel and neighboring countries.
Australia on Wednesday “directed the departure of all dependents of Australian officials posted to Israel in response to the deteriorating security situation in the Middle East.” India and several European countries with missions in Iran advised citizens to avoid travel to the country as well.
On a town hall meeting Friday after the email was sent, Huckabee told staff that he was encouraging airlines to keep flying.
The departure authorizations signal a new level of contingency planning as a massive fleet of U.S. aircraft and warships mass in the Middle East.
Badr al-Busaidi, Oman’s foreign minister who is mediating in the negotiations, said that there had been significant progress made on Thursday, though officials from Iran and the United States haven’t announced steps forward.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Thursday offered no specifics, but said “what needs to happen has been clearly spelled out from our side.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/27/us-advises-embassy-staff-israel/
Pakistan is in ‘open war’ with Afghanistan after latest strikes, defense minister says
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan and Afghanistan traded attacks in a dramatic escalation of tensions between the countries that Pakistan’s defense minister said Friday means they are now in “open war.”
Tensions have been high between the neighbors for months, with border clashes in October killing dozens of soldiers, civilians and suspected militants. Pakistan accuses Afghanistan’s Taliban government of harboring militant groups that then stage attacks across the border and also of allying with its archrival India.
A Qatari-mediated ceasefire ended the fighting, although the two sides still occasionally trade fire. Several rounds of peace talks in Istanbul in November failed to produce a formal agreement.
Late Thursday, Afghanistan launched a cross-border attack on Pakistan, saying it was in retaliation for deadly Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan border areas Sunday.
Pakistan then carried out airstrikes in Kabul and two other Afghan provinces early Friday.
After the strikes Friday, Defense Minister Khawaja Mohammad Asif said in an X post that Pakistan had hoped for peace in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of NATO forces in 2021 and expected the Taliban, which seized power in the country, to focus on the welfare of the Afghan people and regional stability.
Instead, he said that the Taliban had turned Afghanistan “into a colony of India,” with which Pakistan has periodically engaged in wars, clashes and skirmishes since gaining independence from British colonial rule in 1947. India has had improved ties with Afghanistan recently, offering to enhance bilateral trade, to the annoyance of Islamabad.
“Our patience has now run out. Now it is open war between us,” he said. There was no immediate reaction from Afghan officials.
Afghan authorities in the eastern Nangarhar province said that fighting was ongoing in the Torkham border area Friday morning. The province’s information directorate said that Pakistani mortar fire hit civilian areas in Torkham, including a refugee camp, which had been evacuated overnight. In response, Afghanistan was targeting Pakistani army posts across the border, it said.
‘Exporting terrorism’
Asif, the Pakistani defense minister, accused Afghanistan of “exporting terrorism.” Islamabad frequently levies the allegation at its western neighbor as militant violence has surged in Pakistan, accusing Afghanistan of supporting the Pakistani Taliban, or TTP, and outlawed Baloch separatist groups.
Pakistan accuses the TTP — which is separate from but closely allied with Afghanistan’s Taliban — of operating from inside Afghanistan. Both the group and Kabul deny that charge.
Pakistan has also frequently accused neighboring India of backing the outlawed Baloch Liberation Army and the Pakistani Taliban, allegations New Delhi denies.
Asif’s comments came hours after Pakistan carried out airstrikes in Afghanistan’s capital, Kabul, as well as in Kandahar in the south and Paktia province in the southeast, according to Pakistani officials and Afghanistan government spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid. Pakistan said the strikes were in retaliation for the Afghan cross-border attacks.
Retaliatory strikes
Afghanistan, meanwhile, said that it launched its attack late Thursday also in retaliation — for deadly Pakistani airstrikes on Afghan border areas Sunday.
The governments have issued sharply differing casualty claims. Each said that it inflicted heavy losses of dozens of soldiers on the other, while putting its own casualty figures in the single digits. The claims couldn’t be independently verified.
Afghanistan also claimed it had captured an undisclosed number of Pakistani soldiers. Mosharraf Ali Zaidi, a spokesperson for Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, denied any soldiers had been captured.
Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said Pakistan’s anti-drone systems shot down several small drones over the northwestern cities of Abbottabad, Swabi, and Nowshera on Friday. He said the drones appeared to be part of a failed attack by the Pakistani Taliban, and that there were no casualties. Tarar claimed the drone attacks “once again exposed direct linkages between the Afghan Taliban regime and terrorism in Pakistan.”
International calls for restraint
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan held separate phone calls with his Pakistani, Afghan, Qatari and Saudi counterparts on Friday to discuss the conflict, a Turkish official said, without providing details on the talks. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with government policy.
In October, Turkey, Qatar and Saudi Arabia had facilitated talks between the sides.
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres urged both sides to protect civilians as required under international law and “to continue to seek to resolve any differences through diplomacy,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said in a statement.
Russia called for an immediate halt to the fighting and for a diplomatic resolution to the conflict, Russian diplomat Zamir Kabulov told news agency Ria Novosti. Kabulov, who is President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy for Afghanistan, said that Moscow would consider mediating between the two countries if asked, according to Ria Novosti.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi urged Pakistan and Afghanistan to resolve their differences through dialogue during the holy month of Ramadan. He also said that Tehran was ready to assist in facilitating dialogue.
Refugees at the border
Pakistani authorities said that dozens of Afghan refugees in the Torkham border area had been relocated to safer places.
Pakistan launched a sweeping crackdown in October 2023 to expel migrants without documents, urging those in the country to leave of their own accord to avoid arrest and forcibly expelling others. Iran also began a crackdown on migrants at around the same time.
Since then, millions have crossed the border into Afghanistan, including people who were born in Pakistan decades ago and had built lives and created businesses there.
Last year alone, 2.9 million people returned to Afghanistan, the U.N. refugee agency has said, with nearly 80,000 having returned so far this year.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/27/pakistan-afghanistan/
Bill Clinton faces grilling from lawmakers over his connections to Jeffrey Epstein
WASHINGTON — Former President Bill Clinton is testifying Friday before members of Congress investigating convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, answering for his connections to the disgraced financier from more than two decades ago.
The closed-door deposition in Chappaqua, New York, will mark the first time a former president has been compelled to testify to Congress. It comes a day after Clinton’s wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, sat with lawmakers for her own deposition.
Bill Clinton has also not been accused of any wrongdoing. Yet lawmakers are grappling with what accountability in the United States looks like at a time when men around the world have been toppled from their high-powered posts for maintaining their connections with Epstein after he pleaded guilty in 2008 to state charges in Florida for soliciting prostitution from an underage girl.
Hillary Clinton told lawmakers that she had no knowledge of how Epstein had sexually abused underage girls and had no recollection of even meeting him. But Bill Clinton will have to answer questions on a well-documented relationship with Epstein and his former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell, even if it was from the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Hillary Clinton said Thursday that she expected her husband to testify that he had no knowledge of Epstein’s sexual abuse at the time they knew each other.
Republicans were relishing the opportunity to scrutinize the former Democratic president under oath.
“The Clintons haven’t answered very many, if any, questions about their knowledge or involvement with Epstein and Maxwell,” Rep. James Comer, the Republican chair of the House Oversight Committee, said Thursday.
“No one’s accusing, at this moment, the Clintons of any wrongdoing,” he added.
Republicans finally get a chance to question Bill Clinton
Republicans have wanted to question Bill Clinton about Epstein for years, especially as conspiracy theories arose following Epstein’s 2019 suicide in a New York jail cell while he faced sex trafficking charges.
Those calls reached a fever pitch late last year when several photos of the former president surfaced in the Department of Justice’s first release of case files on Epstein and Maxwell, a British socialite who was convicted of sex trafficking in December 2021 but maintains she’s innocent. Bill Clinton was photographed on a plane seated alongside a woman, whose face is redacted, with his arm around her. Another photo showed Clinton and Maxwell in a pool with another person whose face was redacted.
Epstein also visited the White House several times during Clinton’s presidency, and the pair later made several international trips together for their humanitarian work.
In the lead-up to the deposition, Bill Clinton has insisted he had limited knowledge about Epstein and was unaware of any sexual abuse he committed.
“I think the chronology of the connection that he had with Epstein ended several years before anything about Epstein’s criminal activities came to light,” Hillary Clinton said at the conclusion of her deposition Thursday.
Comer has pledged extensive questioning of the former president. He claimed that Hillary Clinton had repeatedly deferred questions about Epstein to her husband.
Has a precedent been set?
Democrats, who have supported the push to get answers from Bill Clinton, are arguing that it sets a precedent that should also apply to President Donald Trump, a Republican who had his own relationship with Epstein.
“We’re demanding immediately that we ask President Trump to testify in front of our committee and be deposed in front of Oversight Republicans and Democrats,” Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the committee, said Thursday.
Comer has pushed back on that idea, saying that Trump has answered questions on Epstein from the press.
Democrats are also calling for the resignation of Trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. Lutnick was a longtime neighbor of Epstein in New York City but said on a podcast that he severed ties with Epstein following a 2005 tour of Epstein’s home that disturbed Lutnick and his wife.
The public release of case files showed that Lutnick actually had two engagements with Epstein years later. He attended a 2011 event at Epstein’s home, and in 2012 his family had lunch with Epstein on his private island.
“He should be removed from office and at a minimum should come before the committee,” Garcia said of Lutnick.
Comer on Thursday said that it was “very possible” that Lutnick would be called to testify.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/27/bill-clinton-jeffrey-epstein/
AP reporter speaks to Iranian doctors who say agents intimidated them and obstructed medical care
BEIRUT — As wounded anti-government protesters poured into an Iranian hospital during last month’s crackdown, a young doctor hurried to the emergency room to help treat a man in his 40s who had been shot in the head at close range.
When the doctor and others tried to resuscitate the man, a group of armed, plainclothes security agents blocked their way, pushing some back with their rifles, the doctor told The Associated Press.
“They surrounded him and didn’t allow us to move further,” the doctor in the northern city of Rasht said.
Minutes later, the man was dead. The agents put his body in a black body bag. Later, they piled it and other bodies into the back of a van and drove away.
This wasn’t an isolated incident.
Over the course of a few days in early January, plainclothes agents swarmed hospitals in multiple cities treating the thousands wounded by Iranian security forces who fired on crowds to quash massive protests against the 47-year-old Islamic Republic. These agents monitored and sometimes obstructed care to protesters, intimidated staff, seized protesters and took away the dead in body bags. Dozens of doctors were arrested.
This story is based on AP interviews with three doctors in Iran and six Iranian medical professionals living abroad who are in contact with colleagues on the ground; reports from human rights groups; and AP’s verification of more than a dozen videos posted on social media. All of the doctors inside Iran spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
The AP worked with Mnemonic, a Berlin-based organization, to identify online videos, posts and other material relating to violence in hospitals.
The doctors in Iran and abroad said the level of brutality and militarization of health facilities was unprecedented in a country that for decades has experienced crackdowns on dissent and surveillance of public institutions.
The Iran Human Rights Center, based in Oslo, has documented multiple accounts from inside hospitals of security agents preventing medical care, removing patients from ventilators, harassing doctors and detaining protesters.
The government has blamed the protests and ensuing violence on armed foreign-backed “terrorists.”
Health Ministry spokesman Hossein Kermanpour denied reports of treatment being prevented or protesters being taken from hospitals, calling them “untrue, but also fundamentally impossible.” He was quoted in state media as saying all injured were treated “without any discrimination or interference over political opinions.” The Iranian mission at the United Nations did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the doctors’ accounts.
Doctors tried to protect the wounded
The crackdown, which reached its height on Jan. 8 and 9, was the deadliest since the Islamic Republic took power in 1979. Details have been slow to emerge because of internet restrictions imposed by authorities.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency says it confirmed more than 7,000 deaths and that it is investigating thousands more. The government has acknowledged more than 3,000 killed, though it has undercounted or not reported fatalities from past unrest.
Once the crackdown began, the doctor in Rasht said he worked through 66 hours of hell, moving each day to a different facility to help with the wounded — first a trauma center, then a hospital and finally a private clinic.
Armed agents brought in wounded protesters and stood watch over them as staff worked, the doctor said. When it came time to discharge a patient, he said, “they would take anyone who was confirmed to be a protester.”
The doctor said he and other staff tried to hide wounded protesters by recording false diagnoses in hospital records.
“We knew that no matter what we did for the patients, they wouldn’t be safe once they stepped out of the hospital,” he said.
The AP could not independently confirm the doctor’s account of events at the hospital in Rasht. But it conformed with AP’s other reporting.
AP’s reporting focused on what happened at four hospitals, a snapshot of the Iranian security forces’ activity. Mnemonic gathered dozens of videos, posts and other accounts it says showed forces were present in and around nine hospitals, in some cases firing guns and tear gas. Mnemonic has been preserving digital evidence of human rights violations in Iran since 2022, creating with partners an archive of more than 2 million documents.
One video verified by AP shows security agents breaking through glass entrance doors into Imam Khomeini Hospital in the western city of Ilam. They then barged through the halls with their guns, yelling at people.
The Health Ministry told state media it was investigating the incident, saying it was committed to protecting medical centers, staff and patients.
Treating the wounded in hiding
On the night of Jan. 8, a 37-year-old general surgeon was out for dinner in Tehran when he received a call from a professional friend, an ophthalmologist. The fear in her voice made clear she needed his help urgently. She gave him an address.
Just before midnight, he drove to the address, a clinic for cosmetic procedures. Inside, he found the lobby transformed into a trauma ward, with more than 30 wounded men, women, children and elderly on the couches and blood-covered floor, shouting and crying,
The surgeon spent nearly four days there, treating more than 90 people, he estimates. At first, it was just him, the ophthalmologist, a dentist and two nurses. Eventually, the surgeon summoned three other doctors to help.
He used cardboard boxes and pieces of soft metal as splints for broken bones. With no anesthesia or strong painkillers, he used weaker suppository analgesics. The clinic had no blood supplies or transfusion capabilities.
They couldn’t send patients to hospitals for fear they’d be arrested.
A young man in his 20s had been shot with live ammunition in his elbow, shattering it. The surgeon sutured the wounds but knew the arm would have to be amputated.
A family of four — a mother, father and their 8- and 10-year-old children — were all riddled with pellets, the surgeon said.
On the morning of Jan. 9, the surgeon reached out to doctors he trusted to refer patients to them. First he had to make sure to remove all bullets and pellets from their bodies so they wouldn’t be detained at the hospital. He wrote referral letters saying the patients had been in car accidents.
None of the wounded died at the clinic, he said. The AP could not independently confirm the surgeon’s account of events at the clinic.
Doctors targeted for arrest
Since Jan. 9, at least 79 health care professionals have been detained, including a dozen medical students, according to Homa Fathi, an Iranian dentist pursuing a Ph.D. in Canada and member of IIPHA who has been monitoring Iranian government action against health professionals since 2022.
Around 30 have been released, most on bail, but many of them still face charges, including one accused of “waging war against God,” a charge that carries a death penalty, Fathi said.
The surgeon who treated protesters at the secret clinic said he was surprised security forces never stormed that location to make arrests.
But arrests have come since. Two health care workers who volunteered at the clinic were seized from their homes, the surgeon said.
“I am waiting, too.”
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/27/iran-doctor-obstructed-care/
Naperville Police Arrests for Feb. 22-24
The following items were taken from Naperville police reports and news releases. An arrest does not constitute a finding of guilt:
A 27-year-old man from Naperville was arrested on charges of speeding 35 mph or more over the posted limit, driving under the influence of alcohol and driving without insurance at 2 a.m. Feb. 22 in the 700 block of Royal St. George Drive.
A 38-year-old man from Chicago was arrested on charges of improper stop or turn signal, driving under the influence of alcohol, transporting or possession of open alcohol by a driver and unlawful possession of cannabis by a driver at 7:22 a.m. Feb. 22 at North Aurora Road and North Route 59.
A 52-year-old woman from Chicago was arrested on two warrants and on a charge of possession of a controlled substance at 8:45 a.m. Feb. 22 in the 1100 block of Iroquois Avenue.
A 26-year-old man from Chicago was arrested on a charge of invalid credit or debit card use/$300 or less at 4:11 p.m. Feb. 22 in the 3200 block of South Route 59.
A 28-year-old woman from Calumet City was arrested on a warrant at 8:33 p.m. Feb. 22 at La Salle Avenue and North Route 59.
A 41-year-old man from Chicago was arrested on a warrant at 7:14 Feb. 23 at 248th Avenue and Juneberry Road.
A 32-year-old man from Hanover Park was arrested on a charge of endangering the health or life of a child at 10:43 a.m. Feb. 24 in the 300 block of South Route 59.
A 28-year-old woman from Hanover Park was arrested on a charge of endangering the health or life of a child at 11:50 a.m. Feb. 24 in the 300 block of South Route 59.
A 46-year-old man from Palatine was arrested on four warrants at 2:59 p.m. Feb. 24 in the 1100 block of East Ogden Avenue.
A 21-year-old man from Bolingbrook was arrested on a charge of criminal damage to property/less than $500 at 3:52 p.m. Feb. 24 at the police station, 1350 Aurora Ave.
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/27/naperville-police-arrests-blotter-february-8/
Surging Services Costs Spark Unexpected Surge In US Producer Prices In January
Surging Services Costs Spark Unexpected Surge In US Producer Prices In January
US Producer Prices came in hotter than expected in January, with the headline PPI rising 0.5% MoM (vs +0.3% exp), higher than the revised +0.4% MoM in December. This left Producer Prices up 2.9% YoY (hotter than expected but below December’s +3.0%)…
Source: Bloomberg
Under the hood, we see a surge in Services costs (not tariff related) dominated the rise in PPI (while Energy saw deflation)
Final demand services: The index for final demand services advanced 0.8% in January, the largest increase since moving up 0.9% in July 2025. Most of the January rise in prices for final demand services can be traced to margins for final demand trade services, which jumped 2.5 percent. (Trade indexes measure changes in margins received by wholesalers and retailers.) Prices for final demand transportation and warehousing services advanced 1.0 percent, while the index for final demand services less trade, transportation, and warehousing was unchanged.
Product detail: Over 20% of the January increase in prices for final demand services is attributable to a 14.4% jump in margins for professional and commercial equipment wholesaling. The indexes for apparel, footwear, and accessories retailing; chemicals and allied products wholesaling; bundled wired telecommunications access services; health, beauty, and optical goods retailing; and food and alcohol retailing also moved higher. Conversely, prices for system software publishing fell 12.2 percent. The indexes for guestroom rental and for apparel wholesaling also decreased.
Final demand goods: Prices for final demand goods moved down 0.3% in January, the largest decrease since falling 0.7% in March 2025. Leading the January decline, the index for final demand energy dropped 2.7 percent. Prices for final demand foods decreased 1.5 percent. In contrast, the index for final demand goods less foods and energy advanced 0.7 percent.
Product detail: Nearly 80 percent of the January decline in prices for final demand goods can be traced to the index for gasoline, which fell 5.5 percent. Prices for chicken eggs, electric power, gas fuels, fresh fruits and melons, and ethanol also moved lower. Conversely, the index for search, detection, navigation, and guidance systems jumped 15.5 percent. Prices for nonferrous metals and for pork also rose.
The Energy component of PPI could be about to re-accelerate…
Core PPI (ex food and energy) surged 0.8% MoM and is up 3.6% YoY (both hotter than expected) – the fast pace of price increase since March 2025…
Source: Bloomberg
Margin pressures remain as input prices rise faster than output prices…
The bottom line is that this will likely lead to a hotter than expected Core PCE print – something The Fed watches closely.
Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/27/2026 – 08:42
Cuba says 8 World Baseball Classic delegation members were denied US visas
Eight members of Cuba’s delegation were denied visas to the United States for the World Baseball Classic, the Cuban Baseball and Softball Federation (FCBS) said Thursday.
Cuba is set to play against Puerto Rico, Colombia, Panama and Canada in San Juan, Puerto Rico, during pool play of the WBC, which is scheduled from March 5-17.
Among the Cubans that were denied visas are FCBS president Juan Reinaldo Pérez Pardo and general secretary Carlos del Pino Muñoz. Pitching coach Pedro Luis Lazo was also denied.
A person with direct knowledge said all Cuban players and coaches except for Lazo received visas. The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because no announcements have been made regarding player visas. The State Department declined to comment on the Cuban complaint citing visa privacy laws, but a U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the confidential matter, also said none of those denied visas are actual athletes but rather executives and officials.
“The United States’ response, after more than a month since these requests were submitted, ignores the reasons on which they are based, the most basic principles of sport, and the commitments assumed by the host countries of such events” the Federation said in a statement.
The Cubans finished third at the previous WBC in 2023. The team has exhibition games scheduled next week against the Kansas City Royals and the Cincinnati Reds in Arizona.
Cuba is among a list of seven countries with travel restrictions to the United States alongside Burundi, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
Last year, the Cacique Mara team, from Maracaibo, Venezuela, was denied visas into the United States and missed the Senior Baseball World Series.
The Cuban Federation said that it “will analyze how to proceed, and will inform in due course.”
AP Baseball Writer Ronald Blum and Matthew Lee contributed to this report
https://www.chicagotribune.com/2026/02/27/cuba-world-baseball-classic-visas/
Futures Slide As Renewed AI Disruption And Private Credit Fears Spark Selling
Futures Slide As Renewed AI Disruption And Private Credit Fears Spark Selling
The rollercoaster continues: US equity futures are in the red again, trading near session lows, and set to extend Thursday’s losses with as stocks underperform after yesterday’s spectacular plunge in the momentum trade as NVDA’s post record-breaking earnings/guidance plunge spooked markets that nothing is resolved about where AI goes next. As of 8:00am ET, S&P futures were down 0.6%, and set for a monthly loss after a whirlwind February marked by twin fears of a bubble in the AI trade and of the technology’s disruptive power. Nasdaq futures dropped 0.7%. In the latest AI contradiction, CoreWeave plunged 12% after data center operator reported a bigger-than-expected loss and higher capex fueling concern about overspending on infrastructure. But in a mirror image, Dell is 12% higher after its outlook for sales of AI servers exceeded estimates, a sign of robust demand for machines helping fuel the AI data center build-out. 10-year Treasury yields slid below 4%, while the USD is flat. Commodities are mixed, with Energy higher and Metals mixed (Silver outperforming vs Gold flat). Today’s macro data focus is on PPI and Construction Spending.
In premarket trading Mag 7 stocks are mixed: Nvidia is up 0.4% after sliding Thursday, other names are mostly lower (Alphabet little changed, Tesla -0.2%, Amazon -0.5%, Apple -0.5%, Meta Platforms -0.5%, Microsoft -0.8%).
Block (XYZ) rallies 18% after the financial technology company said it was reducing its workforce by nearly half in a bet on AI. Jack Dorsey’s firm also raised its full-year outlook for gross profit, which was already above the average analyst estimate.
CoreWeave (CRWV) slides 12% after the AI infrastructure software company reported a bigger-than-expected loss and boosted capital expenditures, spurring concerns about the company overspending on infrastructure.
Flutter (FLUT) is down 15% after the gambling company reported fourth-quarter results that fell short of Wall Street estimates. Guidance for 2026 was worse than expected, according to analysts, who pointed to increasing competitive pressures in the US sports-betting market as a key concern.
NCR Atleos (NATL) jumps 16% as The Brink’s Company said it will acquire the company in a cash and stock deal valued at about $6.6 billion.
Netflix (NFLX) is up 8% after the streaming giant dropped out of the fight to buy Warner Bros. Discovery, effectively ending the bidding war for the Hollywood studio.
Zscaler (ZS) is down 9% after the security software company’s second-quarter results weren’t seen as strong enough to reverse recent negative sentiment toward software companies.
In other corporate news, Netflix rose more than 7% after dropping out of the bidding for Warner Bros. Dell Technologies surged 11% following a strong sales forecast for its AI servers.
Nvidia suffered its worst day since April on Thursday, with the price action suggesting the world’s most valuable company is no longer being rewarded for spectacular results and remarkable guidance.
NVDA’s plunge happens as the disruptive potential of AI has rattled US equities for weeks in what traders have dubbed the “AI scare trade.” The technology’s bellwethers have also lost momentum after powering S&P 500 gains for years, prompting investors to rotate into markets abroad and companies tied to broader economic growth.
“The outperformance highlights the possibility of a lingering overvaluation in some asset classes in the US, as well as doubts about the independence of the Federal Reserve’s future monetary policy,” said Guillermo Hernandez Sampere, head of trading at asset manager MPPM. “Barring an economic downturn in Europe, the outperformance should continue.”
“The outperformance highlights the possibility of a lingering overvaluation in some asset classes in the US, as well as doubts about the independence of the Federal Reserve’s future monetary policy,” said Guillermo Hernandez Sampere, head of trading at asset manager MPPM. “Barring an economic downturn in Europe, the outperformance should continue.”
As Wall Street tries to assess likely job losses at the hands of AI, Jack Dorsey’s financial technology firm Block is cutting 4,000 employees, nearly half its workforce, in a bet on AI changing the future of labor productivity. Then again, considering that Elon Musk fired 80% of Dorsey’s last company before ChatGPT was even out – and it thrived – or that Block spent $68 million on a party a few months before the mass layoffs, suggests that the culprit here is bloat and terrible management, and not AI.
Block:
1. spend $68 million on a party
2. 200 days later fire 40% of workers
3. blame AI pic.twitter.com/TdgXnIVGNM
— zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 27, 2026
The market’s unease about private credit persists. In an rerun of the collapse of First Brands, a spectacular new private credit blowup in London has Wall Street chasing billions. And a private credit fund overseen by Apollo Global Management cut its dividend and marked down the value of its assets amid signs of strain in parts of its loan book.
Elsewhere, Anthropic, the AI start-up that has wiped billions off the market value of US stocks, remains in focus. US lawmakers, flummoxed by the Pentagon’s negotiating tactics, are warning that carrying out those threats would have significant consequences for the military ecosystem. Meanwhile, investment-grade bond markets, which had emerged as a safe haven during recent AI-driven swings in equities, are starting to show signs of strain.
US stocks saw inflows of $2.2 billion in the week ended Feb. 25, according to BofA citing EPFR Global data. Strategists led by Michael Hartnett see international stocks outperforming US for the rest of this decade.
“I don’t see any major correction coming, but any hint of a recession linked to AI in the US would certainly trigger some unpleasant trading,” said Andrea Tueni, head of sales trading at Saxo Banque France. “Europe is currently better positioned than the US and outperforming as its tech sector is much smaller and there is much less uncertainty on monetary policy.”
Earnings season wraps up next week, and has so far been somewhat disappointing, with the fewest S&P 500 companies beating estimates since 2022. Of the 481 to have reported so far, 73.4% have beaten forecasts, while nearly 22% have missed. No major US companies are expected to report on Friday, but Berkshire Hathaway’s annual report is due on Saturday, including Greg Abel’s first annual letter to shareholders on performance since taking over as CEO from Warren Buffett.
Europe’s Stoxx 600 was on track for an eighth straight monthly advance, its longest such streak in more than a decade; telecommunications and mining stocks lead gains, while travel and consumer products shares edged lower. Here are the biggest movers Friday:
Deutsche Telekom shares rally while Vodafone dips following an El Español report that Telefonica is in talks over a potential acquisition of 1&1 in Germany
Prysmian shares reverse earlier losses to trade as much as 2.3% higher following 4Q results from the Italian cable make
Holcim gains as much as 1.5% after the French building materials firm reported fourth-quarter earnings that were slightly ahead of expectations and an outlook that is unlikely to trigger any major revisions to estimates, according to analysts
Clariane shares jump 17%, the most since June, as analysts highlight improving margins and cost-saving initiatives at the French nursing home operator
Saint-Gobain shares fall as much as 3.2%, the most since Jan. 13, after the French construction materials producer reported fourth-quarter results. Jefferies noted that like-for-like sales in the period trailed expectations
Melrose Industries plunges as much as 16%, the biggest drop in almost a year, after earnings guidance from the aerospace business fell short of expectations, overshadowing a profit and cashflow beat delivered in 2025
BASF shares fall as much as 5.4%, after the German chemicals company’s full-year results disappointed analysts, who expect consensus downgrades, even though a January pre-release had already revealed price and currency woes at the company
Grifols shares declined as much as 8.3%, the most since April, after the Spanish company’s adjusted Ebitda for the fourth quarter missed estimates and it issued guidance that analysts say fell short of expectations
Valeo falls as much as 4.9% following its results, despite guidance implying upgrades to consensus free cash expectations, after this metric also surprised to the upside in the second half of the year. Net income was, however, impacted by higher tax
Wizz Air shares slid as much as 10%, the most since July, after shareholder Indigo Partners offered 10 million shares priced at £12.50, a discount of 6.4% to Thursday’s closing price
Fugro shares fall as much as 12%, the most since September, after the Dutch geological data company saw its year-over-year adjusted Ebit plunge by 92% in what Jefferies says was a “challenging winter season”
Asian stocks traded mixed, with a key regional benchmark on track to close its best February on record as investors snapped up shares of the region’s AI infrastructure companies. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index gain as much as 0.6% Friday. South Korea’s Kospi fell 1%, as chipmakers Samsung and SK Hynix fell. Key gauges rose in Japan and Hong Kong, while Taiwan’s market was closed for a holiday. Asian stocks have been outperforming global peers, with the region’s hardware firms seen as beneficiaries of the AI buildout even as concerns grow over spending levels and business disruption. The MSCI regional gauge is up 6.7% this month, poised for the best February since it started trading in 1998. Chinese technology stocks in Hong Kong capped their worst month in two years, weighed by weak earnings and a lack of buying by mainland investors. Sentiment toward China’s Internet giants has cooled amid concerns over valuations and rising competition that’s eroding corporate bottom line. Meanwhile, global investors offloaded nearly $5 billion of South Korean equities on Friday, in a sign of profit taking after the equity benchmark rallied nearly 50% this year. The index rose past the 6,000 threshold this week, just a month after surpassing President Lee Jae Myung’s political goal of 5,000.
In FX, the dollar was set for a fourth straight monthly loss. The Norwegian Krone led G10 currencies with a +0.54% rise. The pound fell slightly against the dollar after a special election in the UK laid bare the unpopularity of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government.
In rates, treasuries extended gains, with the 10-year note on track for its best month in a year after yields have tumbled 26 basis points in February to 3.98%. Outperformance by front-end and belly steepened 2s10s spread by about 1bp, 5s30s by about 1.5bp. 10-year gilts and bunds are slightly cheaper vs US benchmark
In commodities, oil rose again, after sliding on Thursday. Gold traded flat, with prices headed for a seventh consecutive monthly advance.
The cross-asset moves reflect sustained demand for havens amid policy uncertainty from the Trump administration, tensions in the Middle East and questions about the strength of US economic growth. Swap traders added to bets on Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts, with a July move again almost fully priced after being briefly scaled back earlier this week.
US economic data slate includes January PPI (8:30am), February MNI Chicago PMI (9:45am, several minutes earlier for subscribers), December construction spending (10am) and February Kansas City Fed services activity (11am). No Fed speakers are scheduled. Bloomberg Economics expects producer price inflation, which shows price trends before they reach consumers and feeds into the Fed’s preferred gauge of inflation, the personal consumption expenditures index, to have slowed to 0.2% in January from 0.5%. Potentially, that could bolster the case for further rate cuts.
Market Snapshot
S&P 500 mini -0.3%
Nasdaq 100 mini -0.3%
Russell 2000 mini -0.8%
Stoxx Europe 600 +0.2%
DAX +0.2%
CAC 40 -0.1%
10-year Treasury yield -1 basis point at 3.99%
VIX +1.1 points at 19.74
Bloomberg Dollar Index little changed at 1188.36
euro little changed at $1.1801
WTI crude +1.8% at $66.38/barrel
Top Overnight News
The United States and Iran made progress in talks over Tehran’s nuclear program on Thursday, mediator Oman said, but hours of negotiation ended with no sign of a breakthrough that could avert potential U.S. strikes amid a massive military buildup. RTRS
Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that while military strikes against Iran remain under consideration by President Donald Trump, there is “no chance” that such strikes would result in the United States becoming involved in a years-long, drawn-out war. WSJ
Anthropic rejected the Pentagon proposal to settle a dispute over terms for military use of its AI software. BBG
A long-running conflict between Pakistan and Afghanistan’s Taliban regime has turned into what Pakistan declared Friday to be “open war,” with attacks reported in Kabul and along the neighbors’ shared border. WSJ
China announced it would remove a reserve requirement for forward contracts selling the yuan in a move aimed at cooling the currency’s advance. The yuan snapped its longest winning streak since 2010. Still, options traders are betting on a stronger yuan. FT, BBG
Inflation in Japan’s capital cooled below the central bank’s 2% target for the first time in over a year, but the slowdown is unlikely to derail further interest rate hikes. WSJ
Mizuho Financial Group Inc. is planning to replace about 5,000 administrative jobs in Japan with artificial intelligence over the next 10 years, as the country’s third-largest lender tries to boost productivity. BBG
The pound fell to its lowest level against the euro in more than two months as the Greens won a by-election in Manchester and Reform UK received the second-highest number of votes. The result underscored the threats facing PM Keir Starmer. BBG
Netflix shares jumped premarket (NFLX +740bps premkt) after it dropped its bid for Warner Bros., clearing the way for Paramount’s $111 billion deal. The decision allows the streamer to focus on buybacks and its “build vs. buy” strategy. BBG
IG bond markets are showing signs of stress, with spreads widening as investors grow wary of default risks in the software sector and pressure in private credit. Risk premiums, however, remain below long-term averages. BBG
Trade/Tariffs
China’s MOFCOM announces adjustments to anti-discrimination measures against Canada effective Mar 1st till Dec 31st 2026, will not impose relevant tariffs on some imports from China.
Japan’s PM Takaichi said US needs to honour its commitments on tariffs.
A more detailed look at global markets courtesy of Newsquawk
APAC stocks were ultimately higher heading into month-end but with price action choppy following the weak handover from the US, where sentiment was clouded by tech weakness, while participants also digested the recent US-Iran talks in Geneva. ASX 200 mildly gained as strength in tech and telecoms atoned for the losses in financials and consumer stocks. Nikkei 225 traded indecisively amid a firmer currency and a slew of mixed data releases from Japan, in which Industrial Production disappointed, Retail Sales topped forecasts, and Tokyo CPI printed firmer-than-expected but slowed across the board with the Core reading falling beneath the central bank’s 2% price target for the first time since October 2024. Hang Seng and Shanghai Comp were varied with outperformance in Hong Kong as participants digested earnings releases from the likes of Baidu and Sun Hung Kai Properties, while the mainland initially lacked direction in the absence of fresh catalysts and ahead of next week’s annual “two sessions”, while Trump-Xi summit preparations were said to falter. However, late upside was seen after comments from China’s Politburo meeting in which it stated that China’s development process during the 14th Five-Year Plan is extraordinary and that it is necessary to continue to implement a more active fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary policy.Top Asian News
Top Asian News
China Politburo held a meeting on Friday and noted that China’s development process during the 14th Five-Year Plan is extremely unusual and extraordinary. Said that it is necessary to continue to implement a more active fiscal policy and a moderately loose monetary policy. Necessary to focus on building a strong domestic market and step up the cultivation and expansion of new growth momentum.
European bourses (STOXX 600 +0.3%) are broadly firmer, with the SMI (+0.7%) the clear outperformer after Swiss Re (+3.6%) posted a 47% Y/Y rise in 2025 net profit while announcing a USD 500mln share buyback. Lagging behind its peers is the CAC 40 (-0.1%), with very company-specific news to drive the index. European sectors are mixed. Telecommunications (+1.3%) outperform after Spain’s Cellnex (+0.6%) saw 2025 operating profit rise more than double annually and Telefonica (+3.7%) reportedly negotiating the purchase of 1&1 (+9.4%)in Germany in a EUR 5bln deal. On the flip side, Travel and Leisure (-1.8%) is underperforming despite positive IAG (-5.5%) earnings, in which the Co. beat FY profit expectations and announced a EUR 1.5bln share buyback.
Top European News
UK former Deputy PM Rayner noted the Gorton and Denton by-election results are a “wake up call” and Labour “has to be braver”; Sky News suggests these remarks will be taken as a direct aim at UK PM Starmer and his leadership.
EU Commission eyes a legal loophole to bypass Hungary’s veto of a EUR 90bln euro loan, according to FT.
UK Green Party wins parliamentary seat in Gorton and Denton, defeating UK PM Starmer’s Labour in the by-election.
FX
DXY is choppy but ultimately slightly softer following subdued APAC trade amid mixed sentiment, whilst the tone in Europe is tentative. Modest downticks in the index were seen as the EUR strengthened following the hotter-than-expected French CPI data (more below). Aside from that, newsflow in the European morning has been on the quieter side as USD traders gear up for US PPI data later in the session. DXY resides in a current 97.611-97.824 range at the time of writing, within Thursday’s 97.489-97.984 parameter.
EUR/USD eked mild gains after oscillating around the 1.1800 focal point overnight, with a more convincing move above the level seen after the hotter-than-expected French and Spanish Prelim CPI metrics. EUR/USD resides in a 1.1789-1.1822 range awaiting the German Prelim CPI later today. The single currency then slipped to the unchanged mark after German state CPI metrics, where the Y/Y metrics generally showed a bit more cooling than what is forecasted for the mainland.
GBP/USD languished near the 1.3500 level following the prior day’s underperformance owing to credit concerns, and with overnight price action contained after UK GfK consumer confidence fell to its lowest level that was last seen in November. Overnight, UK journalists focused on the Gorton and Denton by-elections in which the Green party won, with Reform second and Labour third. With Labour losing a seat they held for almost 100 years, UK PM Starmer’s leadership could be at risk. Nonetheless, GBP/USD saw little reaction to the results announcement, and currently resides in a 1.3461-1.3507 range, after finding support at its 200 DMA (1.3442) yesterday. Ahead, BoE’s Chief Economist Pill is due to give some remarks.
USD/JPY retreated amid the early subdued risk appetite and following a slew of data, including Tokyo CPI, which printed firmer-than-expected across the board, but slowed from the previous with Core inflation back beneath the BoJ’s price goal. The pair pared back some losses as the DXY recouped some overnight losses. USD/JPY trades in a 155.54-156.12 range vs yesterday’s 155.70-156.43 parameter.
Antipodeans rebounded from the prior day’s trough and narrowly outperform in the European morning, but with further upside contained by the mixed risk appetite and amid a weaker CNH, which was pressured after the PBoC actions to slow currency appreciation, in which it cut the FX risk reserve ratio to 0% and set a weaker-than-expected CNY fix by maintaining it at the prior day’s level.
Fixed Income
USTs are firmer by a handful of ticks this morning, and trades within a 113-16 to 113-19 range. Really not much driving things for the US paper this morning, and remains towards the prior day’s peaks. The upside in USTs on Thursday was facilitated by subdued risk appetite and a decent 7yr auction. Focus remains on the geopolitical situation, following US-Iran talks. Meetings have concluded, and whilst there have reportedly been some positive developments, uncertainty remains. Reports suggest that US President Trump is expected to convene senior advisers on Friday for detailed discussions on Iran and to decide on a course of action toward Tehran. Internal deliberations are said to be focused not on whether a strike would occur but on its scope and potential targets. Next up, US PPI.
Bunds are incrementally firmer/flat, and currently reside within a 129.76 to 129.99 range. Initially held towards recent highs, but has since slipped towards the unchanged mark following the hotter-than-expected French/Spanish inflation metrics. Though the German State CPIs thereafter spurred some modest upticks in Bunds, given the Y/Y metrics generally showed a bit more cooling than what is forecasted for the mainland.
Gilts are firmer by around 10 ticks, to currently trade near the upper end of a 93.00-93.30 range. Overnight, UK journalists focused on the Gorton and Denton by-elections in which the Green party won, with Reform second and Labour third. With Labour losing a seat they held for almost 100 years, UK PM Starmer’s leadership could be at risk – which in theory would place pressure on UK-assets. This has not been reflected in price action this morning, though analysts at GS opined that the risk had already been priced in by markets.
Japan sold JPY 2.15tln in 2-year JGBs; b/c 3.32x (prev. 3.88x); average yield 1.244% (prev. 1.253%).
Australia sold AUD 800mln 2.75% November 2028 bonds, b/c 3.86, avg. yield 4.1849%.
Commodities
WTI Apr’26 and Brent May’26 futures are firmer within USD 64.85-65.90/bbl and USD 70.42-71.49/bbl intraday ranges thus far, respectively. Gains follow yesterday’s US-Iran negotiations, which ultimately failed to reach an accord, but the sides agreed to continue technical talks. Mediators reported “unprecedented openness to new and creative ideas”. Both sides reportedly moved closer on specific elements of an agreement related to nuclear limits and sanctions relief. That being said, major sticking points remain.
Spot gold trades within a narrow range after only modestly gaining on yesterday’s US-Iran saga, which ended in no deal, but talks are poised to continue next week. Traders will be focused on any potential US military action this weekend in a bid to pressure Iran. Spot gold resides tight USD 5,167-5,200.64/oz range at the time of writing. Spot silver is firmer by some 1.5% intraday but contained to within Wednesday’s ranges.
Base metals are firmer across the board despite the choppy risk tone in Asia, but prices are underpinned by the softer USD. Some desks attribute the rise to the stalled US-Iran talks and strengthening demand signals from China. The upside also comes ahead of next week’s China “Two Sessions”, where formal approval of the 15th Five-Year Plan and new stimulus measures for infrastructure and technology (AI, EVs, grid networks) are anticipated. 3M LME copper resides in a USD 13,243.73-13,508.13/t.
London Metal Exchange announces the consultation for introducing regulatory position limits, exemptions and position management controls.
Iron ore port stockpiles hit record levels in China as mines continue to add supply.
Abu Dhabi reportedly offers more oil to partners, heading into the OPEC+ meeting, Bloomberg sources say.
India is reportedly looking to cut coal imports for power plants at least 30% this year, sources say.
China SHFE warehouses weekly changes: Copper +43.7%, Aluminium +19.7%, Zinc +44.9%.
A local ceasefire has been established near the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, TASS reported. Further by RIA stating one power line is being repaired at the power plant.
Geopolitics: Middle East
US authorises the departure of some embassy personnel and families from Israel amid safety risks.
Iran urges US to abandon “excessive demands” to reach deal, Sky News Arabia reported citing AFP.
Iranian spokesperson said “In the event of any conflict, American soldiers and their equipment will be destroyed, and all US resources and interests in the region will be within the range of Iranian forces”, via Iran International.
Top Middle East commander briefed US President Trump on military options on Iran, according to ABC News.
US VP Vance said negotiations depend on what the Iranians do and there is no chance that any potential strikes on Iran will result in engaging in a war for years.
US President Trump is expected to convene senior advisers on Friday for detailed discussions on Iran and to decide on a course of action toward Tehran, according to Israel Hayom citing US officials. Internal deliberations are said to be focused not on whether a strike would occur but on its scope and potential targets, while options under discussion include nuclear facilities, missile sites, state institutions and infrastructure.
Iranian Foreign Minister said further progress has been made in our diplomatic engagement with the US, also said mission of the technical teams is as important as our mission.
Oman’s Foreign Minister is scheduled to meet with US VP Vance and other US officials in Washington on Friday.
Geopolitics: Others
China said it is not possible to join denuclearisation talks at this stage.
AFP reported of clashes near a major border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Afghan Ministry of Defence said their military operation resulted in casualties among Pakistani forces and came in defence of their territory and people, while it vowed to respond to future attacks.
Loud explosion heard in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul and Pakistani fighter jets are reportedly conducting a raid on Kabul.
US Event Calendar
DB’s Jim Reid concludes the overnight wrap
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Tyler Durden
Fri, 02/27/2026 – 08:30
