Oil prices settled at their highest in over a week on Friday after US President Donald Trump ratcheted up pressure against Iran through more sanctions on vessels that transport its oil, and announced an armada was heading towards the Middle Eastern nation.

US business activity was steady in January as an improvement in new orders was offset by a lackluster labor market and ​lingering concerns among firms over higher costs because of import tariffs, a survey showed on Friday.

Growing confidence in China's tech sector is encouraging investors to ​invest more there

NASDAQ, another New York-based trading exchange, could follow suit as early as this year

China is seen "controlling the dynamic through stillness", a senior global business leader told Reuters

S&P Global said the composite PMI was consistent with a moderation in economic growth at the turn of the year

The dollar retreated, falling to a four-month low against the euro.

The price of gold dropped by Tk 3,000 in the domestic market, just a day after hitting a historic high of Tk 2.52 lakh, following a decline in international gold prices.

Japan’s exports to the United States dropped 11.1 percent in December and slipped more than four percent last year, official figures showed Thursday, as tariffs bite.

Gold and other precious metals fell on Thursday as geopolitical tensions and safe-haven demand eased after US President Donald Trump backed down from new tariff threats and proposals to annex Greenland by force, while a firmer dollar also pressured prices.

Indian refiners are redrawing crude import strategies to shift away from top supplier Russia and boost imports from the Middle East, a move that could help New Delhi clinch a trade deal with the United States to lower tariffs.

The government has expanded its open market sale (OMS) programme to include 419 more upazilas, extending subsidised rice sales to 434 out of 495 upazilas nationwide.

The Bangladesh Investment Development Authority (Bida) has launched its outward remittance repatriation approval service on the Bida One Stop Service (OSS) online portal, enabling fully digital processing for approvals related to royalty, technical know-how, technical assistance, and franchise fees.

Global demand for smartphones, personal computers and gaming consoles is expected to shrink this year as companies from Britain’s Raspberry Pi to HP Inc raise sticker prices to offset surging memory chip costs.

The price of mild steel (MS) rod has inched up in recent months, supported by seasonal construction demand and a rebound in international scrap steel prices since December.

Amid widespread anger, the Bangladesh Bank (BB) has backtracked on its earlier decision to bar five merging Islamic banks from providing any profit to depositors for 2024 and 2025.

In July, Tokyo and Washington announced a trade deal lowering tariffs to 15 percent

Spot gold climbed to a peak of $4,887.82 per ounce on Wednesday

Global liquefied natural gas (LNG) output is set to jump this year, easing constraints seen since the 2022 Ukraine war and dampening prices, which could spur demand including from top importers China and India, analysts say.

Oil prices fell on Wednesday as an expected build-up of US crude inventories outweighed a temporary halt in output at two large fields in Kazakhstan and geopolitical pressure from US threats of tariffs over its bid to gain control of Greenland.