Daily Digest — 25 Jun 2026

Iran’s warning over a new shipping route bypassing the Strait of Hormuz — calling it “unacceptable and dangerous” — has heightened Gulf tensions, while thousands gathered in Tehran for the first Ashura since the killing of supreme leader Ali Khamenei during the US-Iran war. The geopolitical unease pushed oil lower by 1.3% to $⁠69.46, though gold held flat near $⁠4,008 as safe-haven demand remained steady. Commodities were mixed, with copper rising 1.1% on chip sector optimism after Micron reported a stunning 84.9% gross margin, pushing its market value past Nvidia and Meta. South Korea’s SK Hynix surged 12% on plans for a $⁠29.4 billion Nasdaq listing, while Europe pushes back on Washington’s chip war, with ASML’s CEO warning that new restrictions on older-generation deep ultraviolet tools would harm the continent’s industry.

In crypto, Bitcoin briefly dipped below $⁠60,000 before recovering to $⁠61,233, still down 2.3% on the day as traders eye Thursday’s US core PCE data as a potential stress test for the new support level. XRP slid 2.8% as weak buying kept the $⁠1 support in focus. Meanwhile, Anthropic accused Alibaba of illicitly extracting capabilities from its Claude AI model, and OpenAI unveiled its first custom chip, built by Broadcom. In the UK, immigration and asylum bill changes by Lord Chancellor Shabana Mahmood face MPs next week, drawing concern from refugee charities, while senior No 10 aides lobby Andy Burnham to revive “war bonds” for defence spending.

Twin earthquakes devastated Venezuela with thousands feared dead, prompting a state of emergency and footage of frantic evacuations. Scotland’s World Cup hopes hang by a thread after a 3-0 loss to Brazil, while Mexico advanced after a 3-0 win. The three-minute video from Congress urging Trump to end the Iran war highlights ongoing political fallout, while migrants in Paris endure deadly heat with little shelter.