India and the European Union are entering a make-or-break phase in their long-running trade talks, with negotiators in New Delhi this week trying to close the gap on contentious issues before a self-imposed end-of-year deadline. Both sides face external pressure: India is scrambling to diversify trade partnerships after President Donald Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods last month, while the EU is racing to secure new alliances as it braces for continued U.S. protectionism.

The political backdrop is unusually sharp. Trump’s tariff escalation has already hit Indian exports of textiles, chemicals, and leather, sharpening New Delhi’s urgency to bind itself more tightly to other major markets. For Brussels, Trump’s tariffs on European metals and industrial goods have accelerated its broader shift toward hedging U.S. risk by finalizing pacts with Mexico, Mercosur, and now, potentially, India.

China’s slumping steel demand is sending shockwaves through the country’s broader ferrous materials market, triggering a sharp collapse in the prices of coking coal and coke — essential raw materials for steelmaking — to their lowest levels since 2016.

The downturn underscores the deepening structural malaise in China’s construction-led growth model, with the property sector’s prolonged stagnation continuing to weigh heavily on industrial demand. Despite Beijing’s policy tweaks and selective stimulus efforts, real estate remains locked in a multi-year contraction, dragging down demand for construction steel and its upstream components.

Uranium prices are experiencing a remarkable surge and are anticipated to continue their upward trajectory, potentially ending the year more than 50% higher than their current levels. This surge is propelled by mounting concerns about climate change and the world’s increasing shift towards cleaner energy sources, particularly nuclear power.