Agricultural prices are climbing as Middle East tensions and reduced tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz push up energy, fertilizer and freight costs. Wheat is nearing a two-year high, while soybeans and corn diverge on demand, according to Anadolu Ajansı, WSJ and Agrolatam.
The White House is considering a temporary waiver of the Jones Act as domestic fuel prices climb, according to law firm Husch Blackwell. The measure would let foreign-flagged tankers move fuel between US ports, easing bottlenecks tied to Middle East supply disruptions. Any waiver would be temporary and targeted rather than a change to US shipping law.
Iron ore futures climbed back above CNY 740 per ton after reports that workers at BHP's Port Hedland terminal in Western Australia plan an eight-hour strike on July 16. The walkout at the world's largest iron ore export hub, plus fresh Chinese restrictions on Fortescue, has revived supply-disruption concerns.
Ukrainian drones struck a dozen 'shadow fleet' tankers over two days as they delivered fuel to Crimea, Kyiv's military said. Eight sanctioned vessels of about 7,000 deadweight tons each were hit in the Sea of Azov, with more strikes on logistics and energy infrastructure amid a fuel emergency on the peninsula.
Asia-U.S. East Coast container rates rose 8% to $7,998 per FEU and West Coast rates 8% to $6,175, driven by early peak-season demand rather than Strait of Hormuz oil risk, FreightWaves reported. Trans-Pacific rates are up 120% to the West Coast since mid-May.
China has removed restrictions on refined fuel exports, allowing state-owned refiners and one private refiner majority owned by Rongsheng Petrochemical to resume overseas shipments. Refiners plan to export about 3 million metric tons of gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel this month, in line with year-earlier volumes.
Oil prices have returned to pre-war levels after the US and Iran agreed to talks on reopening the Strait of Hormuz. But analysts at Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and Energy Aspects warn that record-low inventories leave the market exposed to another price spike through the second half of the year.
The USMCA is entering a review cycle in which yearly talks replace the long-term assurance exporters once relied on, according to world-grain.com. Agriculture across the United States, Canada and Mexico now faces shorter planning horizons and a trade framework that must be revisited each year.
The USDA has confirmed the smallest US wheat crop on record, with the 2026 crop showing the lowest planted area since records began in 1919, according to world-grain.com. Freeze and drought damage in Kansas and Colorado have deepened the shortfall, raising questions over US export supply and global wheat prices.
India's gold imports fell nearly 70% to 25-30 tonnes a month after the government more than doubled the customs duty to 15%, according to a Finance Ministry official cited by The Tribune. Reuters reports the higher levy has revived gold smuggling and is squeezing banks and refiners, even as import value keeps rising on higher prices.
India has lifted the import duty on gold and silver to 15%, reversing 2024 cuts, to curb its trade deficit and support the rupee. Government sources say bullion imports have already begun to fall, though the World Gold Council warns official volumes are historically resilient and smuggling tends to rise.
A Public Citizen report says US LNG exports rose 22% this year, helping push natural gas costs $12 billion higher between January and September 2025. Electricity bills are up 13% nationwide, turning the export boom into a political fight over energy affordability.
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