Morning Briefing — June 24, 2026
Morning Briefing — June 24, 2026
World News
Senate rebukes Trump with first-ever war powers resolution over Iran conflict — The U.S. Senate approved a war powers resolution for the first time, signaling congressional pushback against the Trump administration's handling of the Iran war. The vote came as the administration continues to tout a recent deal with Tehran. AP via Britannica
Rubio lands in Abu Dhabi for Gulf allies meeting on Iran MOU — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in the United Arab Emirates to consult Gulf partners about the memorandum of understanding the U.S. signed with Iran. Rubio said he came primarily to hear the allies' economic and security concerns. CNN
Israeli gunfire kills two in south Lebanon, testing Iran-linked ceasefire — Israeli fire killed two people in southern Lebanon, straining the U.S.-brokered ceasefire framework tied to the broader Iran agreement. Hezbollah called the strike a blatant violation of the 14-point ceasefire plan. CBC
More than 11,000 stranded seafarers cleared to leave Persian Gulf after US-Iran deal — The International Maritime Organization said the easing of restrictions following the U.S.-Iran agreement is allowing the evacuation of over 11,000 seafarers stuck in the Gulf region. Strait of Hormuz transit traffic remained steady as negotiations continued. CNN
UN chief Guterres calls for a 'clean break' from fossil fuels at London Climate Action Week — Secretary-General António Guterres delivered a major address linking the climate crisis to fossil-fuel-driven energy insecurity exposed by the Iran war and Strait of Hormuz disruptions. He laid out a seven-step blueprint and called on AI firms to disclose data-center environmental impacts. UN News
Pentagon seeks $80 billion from Congress to cover costs of Iran war — The Department of Defense has told lawmakers it needs roughly $80 billion in additional funding, the bulk of it to cover ongoing costs of the war in Iran. The request comes amid Senate efforts to constrain the administration's war powers. ABC News
Deadly heatwave continues to grip Europe — A severe heatwave persisted across Europe on Tuesday, providing the backdrop for the UN Secretary-General's climate address in London. The extreme heat is intensifying calls for faster action on emissions and adaptation. UN News
Business
Asian stocks struggle to rebound after global tech-led selloff — A tentative recovery in Asian equities lost momentum as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. shares fell 3%, dragging the MSCI Asia Pacific Index lower. South Korea's chip-heavy Kospi pared an early advance after tumbling 10% the prior session. Bloomberg
AI frenzy faces reality check as Wall Street demands returns — A bruising selloff in major technology stocks fueled concerns that the AI-driven equity rally may be overblown. Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Microsoft all dropped sharply as investors shifted from rewarding AI spending to demanding evidence of payoff. Bloomberg
U.S. authorizes Iranian oil sales for 60 days under interim framework — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a temporary general license permitting the production, delivery and sale of Iranian oil through August after talks in Switzerland. The move is part of the interim framework following the U.S.-Iran ceasefire. CNBC
Canada's population drops in the first quarter of 2026 — Statistics Canada reported a quarterly decline in Canada's population, an unusual development that will weigh on labour markets and consumer demand. The data adds to concerns about an economy already in a technical recession. CBC
Rogers, Bell and Telus accused of charging fees that 'appear' to violate new rules — Canada's big three telecoms are under regulatory pressure for fees that consumer advocates and officials say appear to breach new federal rules. The dispute marks the latest skirmish in Ottawa's attempt to discipline the telecom sector. CBC
SpaceX shares fall sharply after blockbuster IPO debut — SpaceX stock is now trading near $165 a share after closing as high as $185, raising investor questions about the company's sustainable valuation following its June 12 market debut. The stock fell 16% in one session and has posted three consecutive daily declines. CNBC
Federal Reserve holds rates as Chair Warsh signals hawkish shift — The Fed left the funds rate at 3.50%–3.75% but its updated projections leaned hawkish, with nine of 18 officials now penciling in at least one rate hike in 2026. Markets sold off as Chair Kevin Warsh said forward guidance is no longer well-suited to the current environment. T. Rowe Price/Reuters
BC mayors call new $3.2B developer subsidy 'empty' as condo glut grows — A week after Ottawa and the BC government announced subsidies for housing developers, mayors are panning the plan as lacking detail. Unsold condo inventory in Metro Vancouver remains at record levels, according to CMHC data. CBC
Technology
Oracle slashes 21,000 jobs in a year as AI replaces roles — Oracle disclosed in its annual filing that it has reduced its workforce by about 13% over 12 months, explicitly citing the deployment of AI across operations. The company spent $1.84 billion on severance, nearly four times the prior year's restructuring bill. Bloomberg
Five Eyes warns AI cyber threats may overwhelm defenses within months — The Five Eyes intelligence alliance issued an unusually stark warning that advanced AI models capable of attacking governments and businesses could be only months away. Officials urged leaders to bolster cyber defenses for AI-accelerated threats now. Guardian via Tech Startups
SpaceX signs up to $6.3 billion compute deal with AI startup Reflection — SpaceX inked a major computing-power agreement with open-source AI startup Reflection worth as much as $6.3 billion. The deal underscores how cash-rich tech firms are locking down compute capacity for next-generation AI workloads. CNBC
Oracle reportedly signs large data centre deals with OpenAI and Meta — Reuters reported Oracle is inking significant data centre agreements linked to OpenAI and Meta as it pushes harder against AWS and Microsoft Azure. The wins come even as Oracle restructures aggressively and reallocates capital into AI infrastructure. Reuters via DQIndia
China takes global supercomputing lead with domestically built hardware — China is reported to have seized the top global supercomputing spot using domestically designed and built systems. The development underscores Beijing's progress in reducing dependence on U.S. chip technology. Tech Startups
Meta pauses internal AI employee-tracking program after data exposure — Meta halted an in-house program that tracked employees to train AI agents after a data exposure raised privacy concerns. The episode highlights the risks of using internal workforce data to build agentic AI systems. Tech Startups
Eli Lilly to launch 'App Store' for biotech scientists, powered by Nvidia Blackwell chips — Pharma giant Eli Lilly plans to draw on part of a $7.3 billion cash reserve to build an app marketplace for biotech researchers, following the launch of a data center powered by 1,016 Nvidia Blackwell chips. The move signals deepening AI integration in drug discovery. Tech Startups
GitLab cuts 14% of staff to fund AI infrastructure rebuild — GitLab laid off about 350 workers — roughly 14% of its workforce — to redirect capital into AI infrastructure and absorb surging traffic from agentic workloads. CEO Bill Staples described the move as a 'generational rebuild' for 100x growth. TechCrunch
Renewable Energy
Guterres lays out seven-step blueprint to phase out fossil fuels — At London Climate Action Week, the UN chief said the world has a clear way out of repeated energy crises through renewables, citing 90% solar cost declines since 2010 and falling wind and battery prices. He set out seven steps including a global call to cut methane. UN News
UN demands AI firms 'come clean' on data centre environmental impacts — Guterres called on every major AI company to measure and publicly disclose data centres' carbon, water and land footprints and commit to 100% renewable power by 2030. He warned that by 2030 AI data centres could use enough water to meet the basic needs of all 1.3 billion people in sub-Saharan Africa for a year. UN News
DeBriefed: Bonn talks end in 'gridlock' as energy enters 'new era' — Carbon Brief's weekly briefing notes the UN intersessional climate talks in Bonn closed in deadlock even as renewables continue to reshape global power markets. The dispatch also flags oceans gaining a bigger role in climate negotiations. Carbon Brief
Renewables overtook coal as world's biggest power source in 2025, Ember finds — Analysis from think tank Ember showed wind and solar met 99% of the growth in electricity demand last year, pushing fossil-fuel generation into reverse for the first time due to a structural shift. Solar generation alone grew a record 636 TWh year-on-year. Carbon Brief
Canada looks to build up to 10 new nuclear reactors and sell more Candu units abroad — Ottawa is exploring construction of up to 10 new domestic nuclear reactors and pushing to sell additional Candu reactor designs to foreign buyers. The move reflects mounting electricity demand and energy-security concerns tied to the Iran war. BIV
G20 must lead emissions cuts as they account for 80% of global CO2, says UN — Guterres said the G20 must spearhead immediate emissions reductions because the group is responsible for around 80% of global emissions. He called for an end to fossil-fuel subsidies and a tax on fossil-fuel profits to fund a just transition. UN News
BloombergNEF: clean energy to reshape global trade flows through 2050 — New BNEF projections show low-carbon investments reached a record $2.3 trillion last year and are set to grow rapidly as a share of cross-border trade. China is on track to account for at least a third of global clean-energy exports through 2050. BloombergNEF
Soil Science
FAO Food Outlook flags soil and fertilizer pressures heading into 2026/27 season — FAO's biannual Food Outlook says global cereal output will dip 2% from record levels in 2026 amid concerns about stalled fertilizer buying in Europe and North America, particularly for nitrogen and phosphate. Disruption through the Strait of Hormuz continues to elevate input costs that affect soil fertility. FAO via Agriland
FAO maps where El Niño-linked drought will hit crops and pasturelands hardest — A new FAO analysis warns that the Sahel, Southern Africa, South and Southeast Asia and Central America's Dry Corridor face more than a 50% chance of agricultural drought in coming months. The agency warns rainfall shortages will degrade pastureland and damage soil productivity. FAO
Liquid biochar mineral fertilizer more than doubles pasture yields in Australian trial — A field trial in New South Wales found a nitrogen-enriched liquid biochar mineral complex fertilizer (BMC4) lifted pasture yields to 42.2 t/ha, compared with 18.75 t/ha for conventional fertilizer. It was the only treatment to deliver positive nitrogen and phosphorus balances, suggesting reduced 'mining' of existing soil reserves. AGDAILY
Maryland opens 2026 Cover Crop Grant sign-ups to improve soil health — The Maryland Department of Agriculture opened enrollment for its 2026 Cover Crop Grant Program from June 22 through July 17 at local soil conservation districts. The program pays farmers to plant cover crops that reduce erosion, build soil health and protect Chesapeake Bay water quality. Agroforestry Partners
Nestlé partners with Wildfarmed to source regen-wheat for KitKat bars — Nestlé struck a deal with UK miller Wildfarmed to incorporate regeneratively farmed wheat into KitKat bars sourced from farms prioritizing soil health, biodiversity and reduced chemical inputs. The deal is one of the highest-profile examples of corporate uptake of soil-positive supply chains. Agroforestry Partners
COFCO signs MOU with Brazil's Patria Reforest Fund on sustainable supply chains — Commodity giant COFCO International agreed to explore sustainable agricultural supply chains and carbon-removal credits with the Patria Reforest Fund in Brazil. The partnership signals deeper integration between carbon markets and the soy and corn frontier. Agroforestry Partners
Kansas State research links higher farm profitability to stronger soil health scores — A new analysis by a Kansas State agricultural economist found that farm profitability tends to rise with soil-health scores. The findings reinforce the business case for cover cropping, reduced tillage and other regenerative practices. Agroforestry Partners
FAO expands push for bioinputs across Latin America and the Caribbean — FAO is scaling up programs across Latin America and the Caribbean to promote bioinputs — biological fertilizers and pest controls — as a way to improve soil resilience and reduce dependence on imported agrochemicals. The move is partly driven by Iran-conflict-era fertilizer price shocks. FAO via Agroforestry Partners