The West has split – Stubb

Finland’s President Alexander Stubb has warned that relations between the US and Europe are fracturing under Donald Trump’s policies, urging allies to “salvage what you can” of the transatlantic alliance.

Appetite for Turkmen gas could rise in China, Turkey and Europe amid Hormuz crisis

Disruption to Middle East supplies may have concentrated minds. Is Central Asia gas a better bet?

Serbia to extend Russian gas deal through October

Serbia expects to extend its current natural gas supply arrangement with Russia by the end of March, securing deliveries until October under a short-term annex agreement.

Croatia unveils €450mn support package to curb energy costs

Package was announced amid heightened volatility in global energy markets, driven by disruptions linked to fighting in the Middle East and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran's Ghalibaf denies US talks, accuses Washington of market manipulation

Iran's parliament speaker Ghalibaf denied any US talks are under way, calling reports "fake news" aimed at manipulating oil markets, as Trump paused threatened strikes on Iranian power plants for five days.

Uber Eats to enter Israeli market

Uber Eats confirmed plans to enter the Israeli market via a message on its mobile app landing page, positioning itself to challenge Wolt's dominance in Israel's food delivery sector.

Russian security nepo babies infiltrate tech surveillance

Children of Russian high-profile security officials or so-called “siloviki” are securing key positions in domestic tech surveillance assets.

Potanin’s T-Technologies to acquire Auto.ru from Yandex for $0.4bn

T-Bank is primarily targeting the platform to support the expansion of its car loan business, which has been developing successfully despite stagnation in the automotive market.

Nebius raises $4bn in convertible bonds

Nebius plans to channel the funds raised for the construction of the data processing centres and general corporate purposes.

Iran blackout enters 20th day as 456-hour outage sets record, NetBlocks says

Iran’s nationwide internet shutdown has entered its 20th day, with public access to the global web cut for more than 456 hours.

Will GCC be drawn into war and unite against Iran?

Will GCC be drawn into war and unite against Iran? The foreign ministers of Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Pakistan met in Riyadh on March 18 to discuss a possible security pact and taking up arms against Iran.

Most Gulf and European ships likely blocked from Hormuz despite Iran's 'open to all' claim

A Russian energy analyst says Iran's "open to all" Hormuz policy would in practice block most Gulf and European shipping, as Tehran keeps the definition of "enemy" vessels deliberately vague.

Kazakhstan no longer paying even lip service to democracy, say analysts

Commentaries amount to scathing response to new constitution. Country’s leader Tokayev now has an “even smoother conveyor belt for presidential diktats”, says one.

ING: Energy markets brace for a prolonged supply disruption

There are few signs of de-escalation or a resumption in energy flows from the Persian Gulf. The market is having to reprice the duration of ongoing supply disruptions. We have updated our scenarios for oil and gas markets.

Quagmire in the Gulf: 13 points from when war games meets reality in US-Iran conflict

Three weeks into the war with Iran, the trajectory of the conflict is beginning to resemble some of the worst-case scenarios long modelled by policymakers and analysts, according to Ilan Goldenberg, a former US Department of Defence official.

Turkey’s diesel tax buffer evaporates amid booming oil prices and refinery margins

Annual rise in diesel price reaches 57% versus 37% on gasoline.

Which countries face the broadest international sanctions? Statista

As geopolitical tensions remain elevated and economic measures are becoming a key foreign policy tool, sanctions continue to shape global trade and diplomacy, Statista reports.

Democracy fading as autocractic rulers gain ground – Statista

Released on March 19, the latest Freedom in the World 2026 report finds that global freedom declined for the 20th consecutive year in 2025, with more countries experiencing deterioration in political rights and civil liberties than improvements

Polish industrial production rebounds in February

Poland’s industrial output expanded 1.5% y/y in constant prices in February, a changeover from a decline of 1.5% y/y the preceding month, unadjusted data from the statistics office GUS showed.

Luminor forecasts steady growth for Baltic economies in 2026

Lithuania is set to lead the Baltic growth this year with 3.6%, while Estonia is forecast to expand by 2% and Latvia by 2.5%.

Has Trump TACO'd on the Iran war?

Trump's five-day pause on Iran power plant strikes follows the classic TACO pattern of escalate-then-retreat, but analysts warn this war may be the one where the formula breaks down.

LONG READ: Coal is back.

Coal is back. Having become a fuel for most of the last two decades, countries are scrambling to secure supplies of coal in the face of “ The largest supply disruption in the history,” according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Refined oil products caught in Iran war energy shock maelstrom

The sharp rise in refined oil product prices is intensifying the economic fallout from the latest energy shock, compounding the effects of disrupted crude flows and tightening supply chains.

US spends more on Iran war in two weeks than four years on Ukraine war

The US has spent more on just two weeks of Operation Epic Fury than it has done in four years of supporting Ukraine in its war with Russia.

Georgians continue fight for democracy after almost 500 days of protest

After more than a year of continuous demonstrations, the ruling Georgian Dream has severely cracked down on the right to protest, freedom of speech and political pluralism.

TEHRAN BLOG: Iran's new year Nowruz is not the same this year

For more than 3,000 years, Nowruz has been Iran's national festival, but this year's war has darkened the mood.

ISTANBUL BLOG: Bedtime reading for Trump. Condemnation and denunciation from Arab and Islamic countries affirmed

US Commander-in-Chief, meanwhile, says he told Netanyahu “don’t do that”. But he did do that.

TEHRAN BLOG: Operation Epic FUBAR: Command of the Reload

America and Iran have two very strategies for fighting this war.The US is still using the old school approach of building extremely powerful and incredibly accurate flying bombs that will definitely destroy anything they hit and are hard to stop.

TEHRAN BLOG: Permits-for-passage system emerges as the US heads towards a strategic defeat in Iran

A “permits-for-passage" system emerges as the US heads towards a strategic defeat in Iran after the White House makes a string of strategic blunders.

LATAM BLOG: Iran war fuels Venezuela's oil comeback, but democracy lags behind

Caracas stands to gain from surging crude prices triggered by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, but Washington's control over its oil income means the bonanza may consolidate authoritarian rule rather than rebuild a broken state.

Cow dung to power Suzuki biogas push in India

The facility, located in Bhukhala in Gujarat in Northwest India processes cow dung to generate methane for use in compressed natural gas vehicles.

Gulf war drives up demand for Asian EV

War will deepen Iran’s water crisis

Iran already had a water problem before the US-Israel attack on February 28. Now it is going to get a lot worse.

Renewables supply nearly half of EU electricity in 2025

Almost half (47%) of the European Union’s electricity was generated from renewable sources in 2025, according to new data from Eurostat, which will provide a significant buffer at a time when the fossil fuel markets have been plunged into chaos.

Data on super-polluting plumes show Turkmenistan’s joining of Global Methane Pledge has achieved little

Still one of the worst for potent mega-leaks.