Morning Briefing — August 25, 2026

World News

US launches 'Operation Economic Outcast' to sever Iran's economic lifelines — US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent unveiled a sweeping economic pressure campaign against Iran, pledging to target every source of Tehran's revenue including oil and to sanction third countries and companies doing business with Iran. Israeli PM Netanyahu praised the move, while Iranian officials vowed to respond and threatened again to disrupt oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz. Al Jazeera

US threatens sanctions on any country refusing to cut economic ties with Tehran — The Trump administration warned it would penalize nations that fail to sever economic ties with Iran, while stopping short of imposing new major sanctions on Monday. Iran granted permission for Iraqi oil tankers to transit the Strait of Hormuz after appeals from Baghdad, even as Tehran's security chief vowed to 'neutralize the economic war.' CNN

US strike on eastern Pacific vessel kills two suspected drug traffickers — The Pentagon said US forces struck another vessel in the eastern Pacific, killing two people it said were trafficking drugs. The strike is the latest in an escalating US military campaign against alleged narco-trafficking vessels. Associated Press / US News

Zelensky vows Ukrainian Flamingo missiles will become common over Russia — On Ukraine's Independence Day, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine's new domestically produced Flamingo cruise missiles would become a routine sight over Russian territory. Overnight Ukrainian drone attacks struck two major Ozon warehouses in Russia, including a logistics hub in Dagestan reportedly tied to supplies for Iran. RBC-Ukraine

Russian strike damages US-owned Mondelez plant in Sumy Oblast — Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said a Russian strike on August 23 hit a factory belonging to US food multinational Mondelez International in Ukraine's Sumy Oblast. Russian attacks over the previous day killed eight people and injured 43 as Ukrainians marked Independence Day. Kyiv Independent

Israel says historic Altalena ship located off coast as Gaza strikes continue — PM Netanyahu appeared on the Israeli coast to announce the wreck of the 1948 Irgun-era ship Altalena had been located 500 metres underwater. Meanwhile the IDF said it struck two Hamas weapons storage sites inside Gaza mosques, with Palestinian reports adding that a desalination plant was also hit. Haaretz

UK PM Andy Burnham arrives in Kyiv by train in show of solidarity — Britain's new prime minister Andy Burnham travelled by rail into Kyiv on August 24, coinciding with Ukraine's Independence Day. The visit came alongside reports that the UK has shared Storm Shadow missile blueprints with Ukraine, drawing a sharp reaction from Moscow. Times of Israel

Business

Canadian businesses brace for lost deals as 50% US tariffs take effect — Canadian industry leaders are preparing for the fallout of fresh 50% US tariffs covering roughly $28 billion, or about 5%, of Canadian exports, after trade talks between Ottawa and Washington collapsed. Small exporters report a 'freeze reaction' among American customers and are urgently seeking domestic support. CBC News

Canada to unveil retaliatory tariffs against the United States — The Canadian federal government is set to reveal details of its retaliatory tariff package against the US on Tuesday, multiple sources told CTV News. The move follows Trump's threat to hike tariffs on Canadian cars, trucks, auto parts and steel to 50%. BNN Bloomberg

Stock futures rise as chip selloff eases ahead of Nvidia earnings — US stock-index futures gained early Tuesday as pressure on technology shares eased, signalling tentative optimism ahead of key earnings that will test the AI trade. Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.4% after the underlying gauge fell nearly 1% on Monday due to a chip selloff, while bitcoin advanced and Asia Pacific shares recovered from earlier losses. Bloomberg

JPMorgan and Santander lead financing of up to $15bn for Argentina LNG project — JPMorgan and Santander are anchoring a financing package of up to $15 billion for a major Argentine LNG project, according to Bloomberg. The deal signals renewed appetite among global banks for large-scale hydrocarbon export infrastructure in Latin America. Bloomberg

Nvidia extends losing streak to seven days as investors brace for earnings — Nvidia continued its downward slide on Monday, marking a seventh consecutive session of losses as investors grew cautious over weekend reports that some customers face a 15% price hike. Oil prices dipped as traders digested US Iran-sanction plans, while safe-haven assets like gold and defensive stocks rose. The Motley Fool

US expands sanctions on Iranian oil mogul's network — The US Treasury broadened sanctions against a network tied to a prominent Iranian oil businessman as part of the Bessent-led 'maximum economic pressure' campaign. Gold Fields also announced a higher payout on stronger sales as it awaits a key Ghana regulatory decision. Bloomberg

Automakers forced to fix millions of vehicles over glitchy rearview cameras — Bloomberg's Auto Monitor reports that carmakers are being compelled to repair rearview camera systems in millions of vehicles due to persistent software glitches. The recalls add fresh cost pressure on an industry already contending with tariffs and slowing EV demand. Bloomberg

Technology

Nvidia's Q2 earnings loom as chip stocks wobble on AI-return jitters — Nvidia is set to report second-quarter earnings after the bell on August 26, a moment closely watched by markets after July's steep declines on fears about AI investment returns. Microsoft, Amazon and Google's cloud results eased some concerns, but heavy capex by Google and Meta continues to unsettle investors. Yahoo Finance

Nvidia's trillion-dollar chip empire faces closing-in rivals — A Bloomberg analysis details how hyperscalers and rivals are encroaching on Nvidia's dominance in AI silicon. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy claims Amazon's own chip business would generate more than $25 billion in annual revenue as a standalone company, with sales growing at triple-digit rates. Bloomberg

Anthropic revenue surges 14-fold year-on-year to over $11.5bn in Q2 — Anthropic's preliminary Q2 revenue exceeded $11.5 billion, up from $787 million a year earlier and $4.73 billion in Q1 2026, per documents cited by Bloomberg. The company also reported positive adjusted operating income, buoying chip stocks like Micron and Broadcom in premarket trade. CNBC

OpenAI launches teen-tailored ChatGPT with age prediction and safety guardrails — OpenAI rolled out a version of ChatGPT for users aged 13-17 that blocks self-harm, suicide and romantic/sexual conversations, and uses age-prediction to auto-route minors into the mode. Parents can set quiet hours and receive high-risk safety notifications, while a study mode nudges students toward learning-oriented use. AI Weekly / BNN Bloomberg

Unitree Robotics surges 629% in Shanghai IPO debut — Chinese humanoid-robot maker Unitree Robotics saw shares soar as much as 629% in their Shanghai trading debut, raising about 6.1 billion yuan ($905 million). The IPO drew backing from AI firm DeepSeek and existing investor Tencent, underscoring intense enthusiasm for China's robotics sector. CNBC

Humanoid robots take centre stage at World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing — The inaugural World Humanoid Robot Games are underway in Beijing, held in a stadium repurposed from the 2022 Winter Olympics. Many of the competing machines can now outrun and out-jump elite human athletes, showcasing how quickly bipedal robotics has advanced. CBS News

OpenAI formalizes zero-data-retention policy for API users — OpenAI is codifying its commitment to data privacy for API customers, emphasizing zero data retention and new safety-processing methods. A separate startup argues the biggest obstacle to AI in cancer treatment is not model capability but the quality of medical data available. Buttondown / Signal Digest

Renewable Energy

China releases first dedicated five-year climate plan for 2026-2030 — China's Ministry of Ecology and Environment, together with 18 other departments, published a five-year plan focused explicitly on climate change covering 2026-2030. The document spans CO2 emissions, non-CO2 greenhouse gases, carbon markets, carbon footprints, adaptation and international cooperation. Carbon Brief

China's new coal five-year plan pledges to peak use but sets no year — Beijing's newly released five-year plan for coal promises to peak consumption sometime during 2026-2030 without committing to a specific year, and does not set a fresh coal production target. Analyst Kevin Tu told Carbon Brief it is 'clearly neither a coal phase-out nor phase-down plan,' preserving flexibility over the pace of transition. Carbon Brief

US bans imports of foreign-made power inverters used in clean energy systems — Washington has banned imports of new foreign-made power inverters used in clean-energy power systems, the majority of which are made in China, according to reporting by Yicai cited by Carbon Brief. The move adds a new front to the widening US-China clean-tech trade dispute. Carbon Brief

30 GW of new coal capacity came online in China in first half of 2026 — A new report from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and Global Energy Monitor found that 30 gigawatts of new Chinese coal-fired capacity came online in the first half of 2026. The finding comes as China simultaneously accelerates approvals for new nuclear reactors. Carbon Brief / CREA / GEM

Maryland doubles state government renewable power purchases in 20-year deal — Governor Wes Moore announced Maryland will double the amount of renewable electricity purchased by the state government under a new 20-year agreement. Beginning in 2028, REV Renewables will provide roughly 250,000 megawatt-hours annually to the state. EIN Presswire / Renewable Energy Newswire

Solar growth to slow in 2026 as China policy shifts to competitive bidding — S&P Global Energy projects the first annual slowdown in global renewables additions in 2026, driven by China's shift from guaranteed pricing to competitive bidding. Chinese solar additions are expected to drop from roughly 300 GW in 2025 to about 200 GW in 2026, a major shift given China accounts for half of global additions over the past decade. S&P Global

Data-center power demand set to test grid limits and net-zero pledges — Global data-center power demand is expected to rise 17% in 2026 and 14% per year through 2030, potentially reaching more than 2,200 TWh — equivalent to India's current total electricity use — according to S&P Global's Horizons team. Aggregate US data-center capital spending is approaching $500 billion in 2026, even as 38% of assessed operators lack net-zero commitments. S&P Global

Noon Energy and Sabanci Renewables ink 1 GW long-duration storage JV for AI data centres — Noon Energy and Sabanci Renewables announced a joint venture to deploy 1 GW of long-duration energy storage aimed at powering AI data centres. The deal is part of a wave of storage announcements as US battery capacity has grown roughly 70% annually over the past three years. UtilitiesR3 / Energy News

Soil Science

Degraded soils can regain lost heat protection with better farming methods — Research led by Amin Sharififar at the University of Sydney finds that soils degraded by intensive agriculture have lost some of their natural insulating properties, worsening heat impacts on crops. The good news is that practical farming methods can help 're-insulate' the ground and restore thermal buffering. The Conversation

Amílcar Cabral's agricultural writings reframe Africa's soil crisis — A new collection of writings by liberation leader and agronomist Amílcar Cabral, discussed by Anselmo Matusse of the University of Cape Town, argues that Africa's soil crisis is as much about history, politics and people as about farming practice. The book positions soil governance within a broader colonial and post-colonial critique. The Conversation

MDPI 'Exploring the Field' spotlights soil science as a sustainability keystone — A new open-science feature notes that 95% of global food production relies on soil, which also hosts more than half the world's species and stores more carbon than all vegetation on Earth combined. The piece surveys interdisciplinary advances reshaping how soil health, microbiomes and plant relationships are understood. MDPI Blog

Long-term fall cover cropping doesn't shift microbial carbon cycling under corn — A new Canadian Journal of Soil Science communication from Mitchell, Helgason, Van Eerd and colleagues finds that long-term fall cover cropping with a mixed radish and rye did not alter microbial soil carbon cycling dynamics under corn. The result adds nuance to expectations that cover crops always reshape soil microbial function. Canadian Journal of Soil Science

Meta-analysis backs papermill biosolids as effective nitrogen source for temperate soils — Bernard Gagnon and Noura Ziadi published a meta-analysis in the Canadian Journal of Soil Science quantifying the nitrogen value of papermill biosolids used as fertilizer on temperate agricultural soils. The work supports circular-bioeconomy approaches to nutrient management in cropping systems. Canadian Journal of Soil Science

FAO warns fertilizer scarcity will tighten food supplies into 2027 — The FAO has warned that fertilizer scarcity from ongoing supply disruptions will reduce yields and tighten food supplies in the second half of 2026 and into 2027, saying the window for preventative action is closing quickly. In 2025, over 147 million people across 19 countries and territories faced acute conflict-induced food insecurity, with two famines confirmed in Sudan and Gaza. Security Council Report / FAO

SOFI 2026: hunger affected 7.8% of world population as diet costs rise — The 2026 edition of The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World, jointly produced by FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, shows global food security improved only modestly in 2025 and remains off-track for 2030 targets. Hunger affected 7.8% of the world's population while 2.1 billion people struggled to afford a healthy diet, prompting a policy focus on food-price inflation. WHO / FAO SOFI

Microsoft commits to buy 2.85 million soil-carbon credits from Indigo over 12 years — Microsoft made Q1 2026's largest demand-side commitment in regenerative agriculture, agreeing to buy 2.85 million soil-carbon credits from Indigo over 12 years. Indigo also surpassed 2 million tonnes of verified soil-carbon impact with its fifth issuance, while Grassroots Carbon delivered 1.9 million tonnes of removals via regenerative ranching across 2 million acres in 22 states. New Market Pitch

EU carbon-removal framework becomes concrete for soil-based agriculture in 2026 — The EU's Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Regulation (CRCF) — the bloc's first government-backed standard for certifying soil carbon removals and reductions — is becoming operational for agriculture in 2026. Soil Capital reports it will surpass £17.6 million in payments to farmers in France, Belgium, the UK and Ireland delivering measurable regenerative outcomes. Soil Capital

Cover photo by Çağlar Oskay on Unsplash.