Silver Stuck at $82 on Boost from Ongoing Middle East Tensions with Iran

Posted on March 6, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

Silver (XAG/USD) continues to rise in the early Asian session on Friday, hovering around $82.

White metal is boosted by the ongoing US-Israeli campaign against Iran, which offers safe-haven support. In search of new motivation, traders await the release of the important US employment report for February.

Iran launched a new round of missile and drone attacks throughout the Gulf on Thursday, with attacks reported in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. US President Donald

Trump claimed that Iranian officials had contacted him in an effort to come to an end to the conflict, but he maintained that it was too late and that the US was working to destroy Iran.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, meanwhile, declared that his nation had not asked for a ceasefire and had no plans to engage in negotiations. In the short term, a safe-haven asset like silver may benefit from growing tensions between the US and Iran as well as worries about a protracted conflict in the Middle East.

Silver is still in a long-term bullish trend after surpassing its 1980 peak of $50.36 per ounce in 2025.

Industrial and speculative demand for silver has skyrocketed. According to the Silver Institute, demand will exceed supply in 2025, resulting in a deficit of 117.70 million ounces. When the price of silver reached a new record high in 2025, it attracted significant buying interest because it is a highly speculative metal.

Silver Institute projected silver demand to stay “largely unchanged in 2026, as healthy gains in retail investment are likely to offset most of the losses across other key demand segments, notably in jewelry, silverware, and industrial demand.”

A weak US dollar and the likelihood of declining U.S. interest rates have been positive for silver prices.

China Greenlights Pfizer’s Obesity Injection as Generic Rivals Approach

Posted on March 6, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

Pfizer’s new obesity treatment has been approved in China, increasing competition in a market that is about to get even more crowded because of mpending arrival of generics.

Pfizer announced via WeChat on Friday that the medication, ecnoglutide, is approved for long-term weight control in adults who are overweight or obese. The local startup Hangzhou Sciwind Bioscience Co. gave the company the rights to the treatment in China. in a late February deal worth $495 million.

Pfizer now joins a market dominated by multinational competitors Eli Lilly and Co. and Novo Nordisk A/S. along with Innovent Biologics, a Chinese pharmaceutical company

The approval coincides with Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy patent expiring later this month, which could lead to less expensive medications. Novo and Lilly have already drastically reduced the cost of their medications due to the possibility of a price war from generics.

Pfizer, a relative latecomer to the obesity race, is working to increase its market share, including by acquiring Metsera for $10 billion.

Chief Executive Officer Albert Bourla stated that the company wants to participate in the “booming” obesity drug market in China and that purchasing Sciwind’s medication will provide commercial insights that will allow it to compete “in a very aggressive way.”

Similar to Wegovy, Sciwind’s medication imitates the natural hormone GLP-1, which controls hunger and blood sugar.

However, the company thinks that because of its slightly different structure, the medication is safer and more effective than other GLP-1 receptor agonists.

It was previously authorized for the treatment of diabetes. Ecnoglutide produced weight loss comparable to Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro, which targets one more hormone besides GLP-1, in a late-stage study. Patients on ecnoglutide experienced an average weight loss of 15.4 percent after 48 weeks.

Teck Hikes Silver, Germanium Fees in Korea Zinc Deal for 2026

Posted on March 6, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

Korea Zinc Co. and Canadian miner Teck Resources reached an agreement to charge more for silver and germanium in 2026 due to a spike in both metals’ prices, and to sell its zinc concentrates at a marginally higher processing fee.

Korea Zinc’s treatment charge for smelting concentrates, or semi-processed ores, increased to $85 per ton this year. This year’s $80-per-ton fee, which was the lowest benchmark level for the zinc industry in over 50 years, represents a slight improvement.

Low processing fees typically hurt them since treatment fees have historically made up around one-third of zinc smelters’ earnings,

Nevertheless, due to a remarkable increase in the price of silver, germanium, and other metals—which are also present in the concentrates it purchases from Teck and other miners—Korea Zinc recorded record profits in 2025.

Revenues from those byproducts in 2025 exceeded its zinc revenues due to a 150 percent increase in silver prices and a 75 percent increase in germanium prices.

Germanium is essential to defense systems and other cutting-edge technologies, and since China began imposing export restrictions on it and other vital minerals in 2023, prices have skyrocketed. Five percent of the world’s silver comes from Korea Zinc, which is also one of the largest producers of germanium and other essential minerals outside of China.

The largest zinc-lead mine, Teck’s Red Dog mine in Alaska, is a large provider of that metal.

Its output cannot currently be sold in China on competitive terms due to tariffs on incoming US goods.

Miners give smelters price breaks to cover the cost of recovering zinc, silver, and other metals. However, Teck and Korea Zinc agreed to lower the content threshold at which silver will become payable in this year’s agreement.

China Halts Diesel, Gasoline Exports as Middle East Conflict Tightens Crude Supply

Posted on March 6, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

China’s government ordered the country’s top oil refiners to cease exporting gasoline and diesel as the escalating conflict in the Persian Gulf interferes with the arrival of crude from one of the world’s largest producing regions.

China’s restrictions just six days into a conflict demonstrate how Asia is rushing to prioritize domestic needs as the Middle East crisis worsens, even though the country is only the third-largest supplier of oil products to the region—its vast refining industry primarily meets domestic demand.

Representatives of the National Development and Reform Commission, the country’s top economic planner, reportedly called for an immediate temporary stop to shipments of refined goods. They asked to stay anonymous because the conversations are private.

The people claim that during a meeting earlier this week, refiners were told to stop signing new contracts and negotiate the cancellation of shipments that had already been agreed upon.

PetroChina Co., Sinopec, CNOOC Ltd., Zhejiang Petrochemical Co., a private refiner, and Sinochem Group. obtain the government’s fuel export quotas.

China prohibits the unrestricted export of jet fuel, gasoline, and diesel. The Ministry of Commerce chooses a small number of major refiners and traders using a quota system. Polyethylene, paraxylene, and other chemical feedstocks are examples of petrochemicals that are typically not subject to the same standing quota cap.

The quota system accomplishes several objectives. It allows the government to react quickly to market conditions and provides Beijing with a way to balance domestic supply and demand. China’s authorities have regularly reduced or postponed export quotas since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, which also disrupted the world’s energy trade.

SoftBank Seeks Record $40 Billion Loan to Fund OpenAI Stake

Posted on March 6, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

SoftBank wants a loan of up to $40 billion, its largest-ever loan denominated entirely in dollars, primarily to help finance its investment in US tech giant OpenAI. JPMorgan Chase and Co. is one of four lenders. will be funding the facility, the individuals stated.

The potential loan amount highlights SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son’s aggressive attempt to establish his business as a key player in the global AI boom.

In addition to the more than $30 billion the company has already invested in the startup, which is now the focal point of Son’s goals, the $30 billion wager on OpenAI is a risk reminiscent of his initial investments in ByteDance Ltd. or Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., but at a much greater cost.

Assets, including its ownership of Nvidia Corp., have been sold by the Japanese company, which at the end of December held roughly 11% of OpenAI. to finance its increasing investment in OpenAI. Even as investments elsewhere slow, the US company now constitutes one of SoftBank’s largest holdings, along with a roughly 90% stake in chip designer Arm Holdings Plc. The Japanese company’s stock is linked to how well ChatGPT performs in comparison to Google’s Gemini and Anthropic PBC’s Claude.

US Government Eyes Sweeping Permits for Nvidia, AMD AI Chip Exports Worldwide

Posted on March 6, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

NVIDIA dominates the AI industry, but the Trump administration wants to assume a formal position in the sector with comparable broad authority.

Draft regulations drafted by US Commerce Department officials would limit shipments of AI chips to any location in the world without US approval, giving Washington extensive control over whether and under what circumstances other nations can construct facilities for training and operating AI models.

Almost all exports of AI accelerators from companies like Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. would need US approval under the proposed rule, which could be significantly altered or abandoned completely.

A worldwide extension of restrictions that presently spans about 40 nations, according to people with knowledge of the situation. In the tech industry, these chips are the most sought-after parts—businesses like Alphabet Inc. and OpenAI.

The Commerce Department’s draft rule isn’t intended to be a ban on Nvidia exports, and President Donald Trump’s team has stated time and again that they want the world to use American AI. Instead, the rules would establish the US government as a gatekeeper for the AI sector, requiring businesses and, in certain situations, their governments to obtain Washington’s approval before purchasing the valuable accelerators.

The ability of nations to construct vital digital infrastructure—a technology that many world leaders view as essential to economic growth, corporate competitiveness, and military sovereignty—would then depend on how Trump’s team decides to distribute those licenses. With a few exceptions, shipments of up to 1,000 of Nvidia’s most recent GB300 graphics processing units, or GPUs, would go through a fairly straightforward review process.

Anthropic’s AI Safety Standoff with U.S Government Takes Surprising Turn

Posted on March 5, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

Dario Amodei, the head of Anthropic PBC, has resumed talks with the Pentagon regarding the US military’s use of its AI models, potentially resolving a conflict that has captured Silicon Valley’s attention.

Amodei had been negotiating a contract governing the Pentagon’s access to Anthropic’s technology with Emil Michael, the undersecretary of defense for research and engineering. However, negotiations broke down last week after the startup demanded guarantees that its AI would not be used for autonomous weapon deployment or widespread surveillance of Americans.

Anthropic was then designated as a supply-chain risk by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a label usually applied to US adversaries.

The military could use Anthropic’s AI again if both parties reach a new agreement, which would also reduce the possibility that the Pentagon would formally blacklist the company. Additionally, it might make rival ef more difficult.

Anthropic, which is currently valued at $380 billion, is expected to generate nearly $20 billion in revenue annually, more than doubling its run rate from late last year. However, the company’s prospects have been clouded by the Pentagon dispute. It is unclear how the Pentagon’s announcement will affect Anthropic’s long-standing primary business of selling to corporate clients in the long run. Meanwhile, it’s becoming more popular among regular users.

Recently, Anthropic’s primary app surpassed Apple download charts, indicating a spike in the company’s popularity. Amodei also garnered support from a large portion of Silicon Valley. Tech organizations that represent big businesses like Google and Apple are pleading with President Donald Trump to reevaluate the designation of Anthropic as a national security threat, claiming that doing so would have negative repercussions for the industry as a whole.

Bitcoin Surges Past $73K, Posts Monthly Peak as Rally Gains Steam

Posted on March 5, 2026March 5, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

Bitcoin’s price surged to a new monthly high of more than $73.5k, displaying a strong breakout. Given the intense geopolitical tension that erupted in the Middle East on Saturday—some analysts have even called it war—this is rather surprising.

ion against Iran, which promptly retaliated against multiple countries in the region. Iran has increased its strikes despite the death of its Supreme Leader during the attacks, and the US President suggested that the conflict might last up to four weeks.

Bitcoin had reversed course and shot up to $68,000 instead of charting new and excruciating losses. In the next few days, it was rejected and driven south to $66,000, but in the last twelve hours or so, it went all out. During this period, the cryptocurrency increased by over $5,000, reaching its highest point in a month.

Markets anticipate that Binance and OKX, two of the most popular local exchanges, are showing massive net buying of BTC, the first day following the Chinese holidays, which lasted for more than a week.

The current rally has been a “solid breakout so far, because of bitcoin’s rise to a month-high. Markets project the bulls shouldn’t let Bitcoin fall below $71,500 because that would be seen as a blatant sign of weakness.

XRP: Excess Leverage Exits Spark Sustainable Rally

Posted on March 5, 2026March 5, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

XRP is currently trading between $1.45 and $1.46, up about7 percent over the past day.

The altcoin is recovering strongly from a recent decline (around $1.35), firmly in the top 5 cryptocurrencies with robust volume in the billions and a market capitalization of over $89 billion.

This increase coincides with a general sense of market recovery, retail frenzy buying, and ongoing successes for the Ripple ecosystem (such as partnerships/tokenization pushes and massive processed volume on XRPL hitting new highs). With talk of possible breakouts toward higher levels during the ongoing consolidation phase, some analysts are looking for further upside if it holds important supports.

The total open interest (OI) for XRP futures across major cryptocurrency exchanges settled at $203 million, a 70% decrease from its peak five months ago.

There are concerns that the market is eliminating excess leverage because the steep decline in unsettled contracts is comparable to levels observed in April 2025, which coincided with a notable price increase for the digital asset. The total open interest in XRP has plummeted from $660 million in October 2025 to just $203 million as of right now, according to data gathered by market analyst Amr Taha.

The OI of Binance, the leading marketplace for XRP derivatives, has fallen below $270 million, which was last seen on April 8, 2025. Smaller platforms have also seen a significant decline in activity; Bitfinex and BitMEX currently only have $4.3 million and $3 million in open interest in XRP, respectively. ”

In the past, as excessive leverage is flushed out and market conditions reset, these phases have coincided with local bottoms.”

Ripple: XRP on Champagne Rally as Excess Leverage Exit

Posted on March 4, 2026March 4, 2026 by Olumide Adesina

XRP is currently trading between $1.45 and $1.46, up about7 percent over the past day.

The altcoin is recovering strongly from a recent decline (around $1.35), firmly in the top 5 cryptocurrencies with robust volume in the billions and a market capitalization of over $89 billion.

The total open interest (OI) for XRP futures across major cryptocurrency exchanges settled at $203 million, a 70% decrease from its peak five months ago.

In the past, as excessive leverage is flushed out and market conditions reset, these phases have coincided with local bottoms.”