According to ILNA, a Pakistani source familiar with the process of diplomatic consultations to end the US-Iran war has announced the possibility of Washington moving towards a "phased" agreement with Tehran.

In an interview with Eram News, the source said that Donald Trump's recent statements about the possibility of an end to the war before or after the US midterm elections do not necessarily mean that a comprehensive agreement with Iran is imminent, but rather reflect Washington's political and military calculations.

He added that while maintaining military and economic pressure on Iran, the United States has kept the channels of communication open so that it can move towards phased understandings if it is difficult to reach a comprehensive agreement.

(Continue Reading - ILNA)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has poured cold water on his American counterpart Donald Trump's claim that Ukraine and Russia have agreed to halt strikes on each other's energy infrastructure.

Trump over the weekend blamed Kyiv’s strikes on Moscow’s refineries — not the U.S.-Israel war on Iran — for high diesel prices, then on Monday said Ukraine and Russia had agreed to halt attacks on energy targets.

Ukraine, though, is skeptical. Russia has been barraging Ukraine’s ports, energy grid, fuel stations, and logistics with dozens of jet-powered drones and missiles for several years. The attacks, as well as Ukrainian counterstrikes on Russian infrastructure, have escalated in recent weeks.

“Ukraine is not confident that Russia has any intention of adhering to any agreement," Zelenskyy said in a post on X, indicating that Ukraine won't stop its attacks other than on a reciprocal basis.

(Continue Reading - POLITICO)

The rise in bond yields hit a critical threshold on Monday, with the 10-year Treasury yield rising to 5%, a level briefly touched in 2023 and otherwise not seen since 2007. The move in the key benchmark could mean higher costs for Americans who want to buy a home, finance a car or take out other loans.

The 10-year yield extended a recent surge that has pushed up borrowing costs for consumers, businesses and the US government. Yields have climbed despite efforts by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to quell concerns in the bond market.

The global bond market, dominated by the almost $32 trillion US Treasury market, has sold off as investors grapple with a mosaic of concerns, from soaring energy prices and expectations for central banks to raise interest rates to uncertainty about the war with Iran and unchecked government spending amid mounting debt.

(Continue Reading - CNN)

Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, HSBC, and Deutsche Bank are now forecasting a Federal Reserve interest rate increase this week, a reversal driven by stronger-than-expected inflation readings and rising oil prices, according to Reuters.

The four institutions are aligned on a quarter-point increase at the Sept. 15-16 meeting, and several of them see rates staying higher for longer as the Fed pursues its 2% inflation target, according to Reuters. Market odds of a hike this week stood at roughly 88% to 89%, compared with 67% to 70% before last week's inflation data.

August inflation data came in hotter than anticipated, with a closely watched gauge of core prices notching its biggest monthly jump in four months. Separately, crude oil crossed $100 a barrel as hostilities in the Middle East intensified, stoking fears that inflationary pressures would prove difficult to shake.

(Continue Reading - Quartz)