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Oil prices fall on optimism over U.S.-Iran negotiations

Trading is mixed early Monday and oil prices edged lower on fresh optimism over progress in U.S.-Iran negotiations.

Futures for the S&P 500 inched back 0.1% before the opening bell, while futures for the Dow Jones Industrial Average were unchanged. Nasdaq futures ticked up 0.1%.

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Lebanon central bank condemns Israeli strike on branch in south

Lebanon's central bank on Saturday condemned a "direct and deliberate" Israeli attack on one of its branches in the southern city of Nabatieh, where Israel had intensified its strikes despite a ceasefire.

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Aoun says Israeli war disrupted reforms

President Joseph Aoun said Thursday that the latest war has disrupted the economic, financial, administrative, and judicial reforms in Lebanon.

"Lebanon does not need financial aid but investments," he said.

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World shares are mixed following signing of US-Iran deal

World shares were mixed on Thursday, with benchmarks in Japan and South Korea setting fresh records, after the U.S. and Iran signed their initial agreement ending the war.

The rally in Asia followed a retreat Wednesday on Wall Street driven by speculation the Federal Reserve may raise interest rates this year to curb inflation.

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Iran will reopen Strait of Hormuz and can sell oil freely under deal with US

Iran will immediately take steps to reopen the Strait of Hormuz once a tentative deal with the U.S. to end the war is signed and will be allowed to sell its oil without restrictions, according to leaked copies of an interim agreement that officials say broadly matches the document.

The accord, due to be formally signed in a ceremony in Switzerland on Friday, lays out that the U.S. would secure at least $300 billion to rebuild Iran after the war and work to end all American and United Nations sanctions imposed on Tehran if a final agreement addressing Iran's nuclear program is reached.

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Conflict leaves Lebanese beekeeper cut off from most of his hives

For nearly two years, beekeeper Salim Sharaf has been unable to reach about 150 of his 200 beehives near the southern Lebanese border village of Mari.

The hives remain in an area where Israeli troops are present, leaving Sharaf uncertain whether the colonies survived, were destroyed during the fighting or dispersed after being left unattended.

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Tentative deal on ending Iran war sends stocks soaring while oil prices fall

World share prices soared Monday after a tentative deal was announced on ending the Iran war and reopening the Strait of Hormuz, while oil prices fell more than $4 a barrel.

The future for the S&P 500 was up 1.2% and that for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 1%, auguring likely early gains for Wall Street.

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Europe's central bank raises rates to fight inflation from Iran war

The European Central Bank on Thursday became the first major central bank to raise interest rates in response to the Iran war as policymakers around the world including new U.S. Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh wrestle with how to confront the inflation fed by sharply higher oil prices.

The ECB's rate-setting council raised its benchmark rate to 2.25% from 2%, where it had been for a year. The move comes ahead of rate-setting meetings next week at the Fed, the Bank of Japan, and the Bank of England.

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Saudi Arabia lifts 5-year ban on Lebanese imports, marking thaw in Gulf-Lebanon ties

Saudi Arabia announced Wednesday the end of a ban it imposed on Lebanese imports five years ago, marking a major step in attempts to rebuild relations between Lebanon and Gulf countries.

The kingdom slapped a ban on Lebanese fruits and vegetables in 2021, saying they were being used to smuggle drugs. In one notable case, Saudi Arabia announced it had seized over 5 million pills of the amphetamine drug Captagon hidden in a shipment of pomegranates coming from Lebanon.

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Trump has a new, surprising take on higher cost of living: 'I love the inflation'

President Donald Trump on Wednesday showed how he had learned to stop worrying about inflation and simply, in his own words, "love" it.

Asked about the new report that the consumer price index in May had jumped 4.2% over the last year, the president took a surprisingly optimistic tack with the challenging news. Trump didn't dismiss the affordability issue as a "hoax" that was started by Democrats, as he has done previously. Nor did he claim that he was bringing down the cost of living.

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