Saudi Arabia’s US$8 Billion Lifeline to Pakistan Reshapes South Asia as Riyadh Moves to Prevent Economic Collapse
“…The package was formally endorsed under directives from King Salman bin Abdulaziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, underscoring that the decision carried strategic significance beyond routine financial assistance.
Pakistan’s leadership secured the agreement during the World Bank and IMF Spring Meetings in Washington, where international lenders continued scrutinising Islamabad’s capacity to sustain fiscal reforms.
The support package was not structured as a direct cash grant or infrastructure investment, because Riyadh instead prioritised central bank deposits capable of stabilising Pakistan’s external account rapidly.
Saudi Arabia therefore signalled that preserving Pakistan’s macroeconomic stability has become an important regional security objective rather than merely a bilateral economic concern.
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That rapid transfer demonstrated unusual urgency, suggesting both governments viewed Pakistan’s reserve position as sufficiently vulnerable to require immediate reinforcement before market confidence weakened further.
The unusually large size and accelerated implementation of the package also suggested Riyadh wanted to prevent Pakistan from entering another cycle of emergency borrowing that could have weakened Islamabad’s strategic autonomy…”
The Economic Fallout of Absurdity Politics – Geopolitical Economy Hour with Michael Hudson
“…The mounting absurdity of Trump’s War on Iran has entered a new, more rarefied phase with the announcement of the Blockade on the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman by the Trump administration. As with all of Trump’s actions, particularly in recent weeks, the rationale is hard to discern. It is supposed to be a counter what it sees as Iran’s blockade, or rather control, over the Strait of Hormuz. It is an open question whether the US has the means to impose it and exactly how that is going to ease the supply of oil is anyone’s guess.
No wonder the goalposts keep shifting. Initially announced as a blockade on all traffic, it was then restricted to Iranian ports, all to be enforced by US military assets a thousand miles away. No wonder there are reports emerging of ships, including those linked to Iran, transiting through the strait, making the blockade laughing stock of the world. No wonder oil prices are not exactly leaping up. And no wonder that there are new reports emerging of another set of talks between the US and Iran taking place this weekend. Trump’s search for an off ramp continues.
While few other things are clear, one thing is: Trump has lost control over the war, over his MAGA base and, most meaningfully, over the prospects of his party in the mid term elections due in November. Israel is getting more and more unruly. Iran won’t budge. US allies are refusing his demands and requests. In his desperation, Trump has now been reduced to having rows with, of all people, the Pope. This makes one recall Stalin’s pertinent question: How many divisions does the Pope have?
With me to make what we can at this present stage of Trump and Netanyahu’s war on Iran is a regular and a favourite on Geopolitical Economy Hour, Michel Hudson…”
China Shock 2.0 jolts global economy as Trump does Xi’s work
“…On top of the tariffs, wars and inflation upending the global economy, US chieftains are grappling with a new question: which tech companies might get “BYD-ed” next? The reference here is to the Chinese electric-vehicle juggernaut that’s zoomed past Elon Musk’s Tesla and its peers to become No. 1 globally.
The idea that the Shenzhen EV company was an aberration has since been dispelled by the “DeepSeek shock,” which disrupted the artificial intelligence realm, and by a number of other startup successes, from Horizon Robotics to autonomous vehicle shop Qcraft.
But as 2026 unfolds, and US President Donald Trump prioritizes trade wars over investing in raising America’s tech game, China is not so quietly grabbing market share around the globe despite Trump’s tariffs and trade curbs.
And thanks to the “Made in China 2025” program Xi Jinping launched in 2015, this isn’t spin but economic reality. And this latest “China shock”, increasingly known as “China shock 2.0”, is becoming the talk of corporate boardrooms everywhere.
The reason: 11 years on, the fruits of Xi’s effort to expand China’s footprint in EVs, AI, batteries, biotechnology, renewable energy, robotics, semiconductors and other future technologies are making more and more headlines in the Western media…”
Robot Dogs Patrolling Precious Crops as Food Crisis Deepens
“…According to industry publication the Fence Post, Bayer is supplementing human security patrols around its 8,000 acre Hawaiian corn farm with robotic security dogs, supplied by the tech firm Asylon.
The Asylon dogs are meant to guard the company’s precious maize from vandals, wildfires, wild fauna, and other hazards around the clock. They do so with a payload of thermal cameras and electro-optical sensors, the kind used in unmanned military drones. Each robodog connects both to Bayer’s Hawaii Security Operations Centre and Alyson’s Robotic Security Operations Centre, meaning anyone trying to pull off a daring corn heist is going to have a hard time.
While that may seem like overkill, FenPo reports Bayer’s Hawaiian corn holdings represent 90 percent of the company’s international feed corn exports. At an average cost of $113.50 per acre, that represents over $900,000 worth of corn investment alone, and likely millions on the international market (to say nothing of the industrial corn system, a major economic powerhouse in the US which generated $123 billion in revenue in 2024 alone).
While references to the Netflix sci-fi anthology “Black Mirror” are old hat at this point, we couldn’t help but notice the new crop guardians are emerging at a time when a global food crisis looms over the world…”
Trump says he had ‘no idea’ Anthropic’s Amodei met with White House about Mythos
“…The White House said its meeting with Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei was “productive and constructive” on Friday, the latest sign of a potential thaw in the standoff between the government and the leading artificial intelligence company.
But when President Donald Trump was asked about Amodei’s visit on a runway in Phoenix, Ariz., he responded, “Who?” and then said he had “no idea.”
Amodei met with Susie Wiles, the White House chief of staff, and other senior administration officials to talk about the company’s powerful new Mythos model, which was announced earlier this month. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent was one of the officials in attendance, according to a source familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the meeting was private…”
The new oil route through Turkey may bypass the Strait of Hormuz
“…The head of the International Energy Agency, Fatih Birol, points out that instability in the Strait of Hormuz is forcing the search for alternative oil supply routes.
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According to him, the project of transporting oil from Iraq through Turkey is able to simultaneously solve several tasks: to ensure stable exports for Baghdad, strengthen Ankara’s role as an energy hub and increase Europe’s energy security.
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The expert emphasizes that the implementation of the project will require political coordination between Turkey and Iraq, as well as attracting international financing, including from European countries interested in diversifying supplies…”
Democrats Warned Not to Upset Multi-Million Dollar AI Lobbyists, Even Though It’d Be a Slam Dunk With Voters
“…According to the Financial Times, Democrats running in the 2026 midterm elections have been advised by party strategists not to antagonize pro-AI interests, even as polls show AI regulation is incredibly popular with voters.
Specifically, the Democratic establishment is telling politicians to play nice with any “pro-AI group” with over $300 million to toss around, evidently in an effort to court that money for the political machine. So far, only a small handful of progressive Democrats have made AI regulation a key part of their platform, as the majority of party functionaries bite their tongues.
“You are definitely seeing a chilling effect [on campaigns],” Alex Jacquez, former White House advisor and head of policy at Groundwork Collaborative told the FT. “There’s just not a lot of upside in the potential of getting $20mn [spent by pro-AI campaign groups] in your race… in a lot of cases it is going to be easier to say nothing.”…”
New Jersey governor hits out at Fifa over reported $100 World Cup train tickets: ‘They should pay’
“…New Jersey’s governor, Mikie Sherrill, has hit out at Fifa after reports her state’s transport system will charge $100 for a return ticket to World Cup matches this summer.
New Jersey Transit lists the price for a round-trip ticket from New York’s Penn Station to MetLife Stadium, which will host eight World Cup matches this summer, including the final, as $12.90. The new pricing, reported by The Athletic earlier this week, puts the return ticket at more than $100 with no reductions for children, seniors or people with disabilities.
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Transit costs at this year’s World Cup have been widely discussed, alongside the sky-high prices of match tickets. The Massachusetts transit authority has raised its prices for travel from Boston to Foxborough’s Gillette Stadium from $20 to $80…”
Binance and Bitget to probe RAVE’s 4,500% token surge as claims of insider-orchestrated rally grow
“…ZachXBT has also personally offered a $10,000 bounty to whistleblowers who come forward privately to share evidence about the parties involved.
The little-known project rallied earlier in the week, leading to over $44 million in RAVE positions, most of which were bearish, getting liquidated in a single day. Those liquidations followed a 4,500% rally over the course of a week.
Still, the short squeeze highlighted the concentration of RAVE tokens within a small set of wallets. In fact, nearly 90% of its supply was in just three Gnosis Safe wallets at the time…”