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Dow surges above 50,000 for first time as US stocks regain mojo

The Dow surged above 50,000 points for the first time Friday, shrugging off worries connected to artificial intelligence companies while traders focused on the prospects for US growth and Federal Reserve interest rate cuts.The index, the oldest of the three major US equity indices, powered to the landmark level shortly before 1930 GMT, retreated a bit below 50,000 points and then pushed even higher to close the day near session highs.It ended at 50,115.67, up more than 1,200 points, or 2.5 percent.The 50,000 mark constitutes “a nice big number,” said Briefing.com analyst Patrick O’Hare. “What it really reflects is a market that’s broadening out and buying into the growth story.” The landmark in New York came on a mixed day for global stocks, while bitcoin and precious metals both won significant gains, extending a period of volatility across markets.US stocks had been under pressure this week, with the Nasdaq falling the last three sessions following big drops in software equities and some tech giants related to the AI push. On Friday, Amazon was the biggest loser on the Dow, falling 5.6 percent after announcing it planned $200 billion in capital spending in 2026 to build up AI capacities.While investors continue to worry Amazon and other AI “hyperscalers” may not see a sufficient return on massive investments, their plans will bolster infrastructure, banking and other sectors.Caterpillar, 3M, JPMorgan Chase, Goldman Sachs, Amgen and Nvidia all rose at least four percent Friday.The AI plans mean “massive amounts of money are going to be deployed and that filters out to other companies,” said O’Hare. Gina Bolvin, of Bolvin Wealth Management, said Friday’s gains showed “confidence is real” in terms of the outlook for earnings growth.”Equity investors are likely to be rewarded — but the path won’t be smooth,” Bovin said in a note. “Volatility should be expected. For investors, this is a reminder to stay intentional: lean into quality businesses with strong earnings power and be prepared for more rotation, not straight-line gains.”Earlier milestones for the Dow include when it hit 40,000 points in May 2024 and 30,000 points in November 2020.The index has risen fairly steadily for most of the last two and a half years with the exception of the period around Donald Trump’s April 2025 “Liberation Day” tariff proposals, which the president later walked back.”CONGRATULATIONS AMERICA,” Trump said in a social media post celebrating Friday’s benchmark. Elsewhere, both gold and silver rebounded after bruising drops on Thursday, joining bitcoin, which climbed back above $70,000 after dropping to around $60,000 the prior day.After steep losses Thursday, European markets all pushed higher, while Asian bourses were mixed.In company news, shares in Jeep maker Stellantis plunged over 24 percent in Paris after it warned of a 22-billion-euro ($26-billion) write-down due to misjudging the shift in demand to electric vehicles.Stellantis shares are now down around 80 percent over the past two years.Meanwhile, shares in British-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto finished flat in Sydney after it dropped merger talks with Swiss resources firm Glencore. The deal would have created the world’s biggest mining firm, worth about $260 billion.Rio Tinto’s London-listed stock edged 0.3 percent higher on Friday, while Glencore climbed 1.5 percent, clawing back some of the previous day’s losses.Toyota jumped two percent in Tokyo after hiking profit and sales forecasts for the current fiscal year despite the impact of US tariffs.- Key figures at around 2115 GMT -New York – Dow: UP 2.5 percent at 50,115.67 (close)New York – S&P 500: UP 2.0 percent at 6,932.30 (close)New York – Nasdaq Composite: UP 2.2 percent at 23,031.21 (close)London – FTSE 100: UP 0.6 percent at 10,369.75 (close) Paris – CAC 40: UP 0.4 percent at 8,273.84 (close)Frankfurt – DAX: UP 0.9 percent at 24,721.46 (close)Tokyo – Nikkei 225: UP 0.8 percent at 54,253.68 (close)Hong Kong – Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.2 percent at 26,559.95 (close)Shanghai – Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 4,065.58 (close)Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1825 from $1.1777 on ThursdayPound/dollar: UP at $1.3615 from $1.3531Dollar/yen: UP at 157.09 yen from 157.04 yenEuro/pound: DOWN at 86.82 pence from 87.04 penceWest Texas Intermediate: UP 0.4 percent at $63.55 per barrelBrent North Sea Crude: UP 0.7 percent at $68.05 per barrelburs-jmb/nro

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US says ‘key participant’ in 2012 attack on Benghazi mission arrested

One of the “key participants” behind the 2012 attack on the US mission in Benghazi that left the ambassador and three other Americans dead has been arrested, officials said Friday.Attorney General Pam Bondi said the suspect, Zubayr al-Bakoush, has been brought to the United States and will face murder and other charges.”The FBI has arrested one of the key participants behind the Benghazi attack,” Bondi said at a press conference. “Bakoush will now face American justice on American soil.”The Justice Department said Bakoush has been charged with terrorism-related offenses, murder and arson in an eight-count indictment.FBI Director Kash Patel declined to say where Bakoush was arrested, saying only that it was “overseas.”US ambassador Chris Stevens and three American staff were killed in the September 11, 2012 attack on the US consulate in Libya’s second-largest city — an assault blamed on an Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist group.Islamist militants armed with automatic weapons and grenades stormed the US compound at a time when the oil-rich North African country was torn by civil war.They set the building ablaze, killing Stevens and IT specialist Sean Smith through smoke inhalation, and then also attacked a CIA annex where two contractors died, both former Navy SEALs.According to the indictment, Bakoush was a member of Ansar al-Sharia and was among a group of more than 20 heavily armed men who launched the initial attack on the US mission in Benghazi. The assault, the first to claim the life of an American ambassador since 1979, deeply shocked the United States and caused a political storm for then-president Barack Obama’s administration.The State Department, then headed by Hillary Clinton, was accused by its political foes of deadly mistakes and negligence over the bloodshed, which came 11 years to the day after al-Qaeda’s 9/11 attacks.Fox News broadcast what it said was exclusive footage of Bakoush’s arrival at a military base in Virginia outside Washington.In the footage, an elderly grey-haired man struggles to descend a flight of stairs from a plane and is then placed on a stretcher, where he lies shivering.The United States has previously convicted two Libyans for involvement in the Benghazi attack.Ahmed Abu Khatallah was sentenced to 22 years in prison in 2018 and Mustafa al-Imam was sentenced to nearly 20 years in 2020.

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EU tells TikTok to change ‘addictive’ design

The EU said Friday that TikTok needs to change its “addictive design” or risk heavy fines under the bloc’s digital content rules, drawing a sharp pushback from the Chinese-owned platform.In preliminary conclusions of a probe opened two years ago, the European Commission said it found TikTok was not taking effective steps to address the app’s negative impacts, especially on minors and vulnerable adults.”TikTok’s addictive design is in breach of the Digital Services Act,” said commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier, citing concerns with features such as infinite scroll, autoplay, push notifications, and a highly personalised recommender system.”These features lead to the compulsive use of the app, especially for our kids, and this poses major risks to their mental health and wellbeing,” Regnier said, adding: “The measures that TikTok has in place are simply not enough.”TikTok rejected the commission’s findings, with a spokesperson saying it presented “a categorically false and entirely meritless depiction of our platform”.”We will take whatever steps are necessary to challenge these findings through every means available to us,” they added in a statement.Allies of US President Donald Trump in the US Congress said the European Commission’s “punitive actions” were a pretext for curbing political speech and pressuring companies.The DSA is part of a bolstered legal armoury adopted by the EU in recent years to curb Big Tech’s excesses, and officials had until now said TikTok was cooperating with the bloc’s digital regulators.TikTok will now have access to the EU’s findings in order to defend itself against the claims.EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen told reporters that “TikTok has to take actions, they have to change the design of their service in Europe to protect our minors and their wellbeing”.The commission gave examples of what the platform could alter, such as: — the platform’s “infinite scroll” offering users an uninterrupted feed– implementing effective “screen time breaks”, including during the night– adapting its recommender system, the algorithms used by platforms to feed users more personalised content.- ‘Compulsive use’ of TikTok -The February 2024 investigation was the first opened into TikTok under the DSA, the bloc’s powerful content moderation law that has faced the wrath of the US administration under President Donald Trump.In presenting the probe findings, Regnier cited what he called “extremely alarming” statistics on the app’s use in the EU.TikTok was “by far” the most-used platform after midnight by children between 13 and 18, he said, with seven percent of children aged 12 to 15 spending four to five hours daily on it. Brussels accused TikTok of disregarding “important indicators of compulsive use of the app” such as the time minors spent on the platform at night.It also said TikTok had not implemented effective measures to mitigate risks, taking particular aim at screen time management and parental control tools.Its time management tools were “easy to dismiss” including for young users, the commission found, while parental controls required “additional time and skills from parents to introduce” them.- ‘Safe by design’ -The findings come as several European countries move to curb access to social media for younger teenagers, with officials weighing whether it is time to follow suit at EU level.Briefing reporters Friday, Virkkunen said her priority was to make platforms safe for all users, children included.”Social media should be so safe by design that we shouldn’t have that kind of very high age restriction,” she said.If the regulator’s views on TikTok are confirmed, the commission can impose a fine of up to six percent of the company’s total worldwide annual turnover.The EU began a separate probe into TikTok in December 2024 on alleged foreign interference during the Romanian presidential elections.EU spokesman Regnier said earlier this week that TikTok was “extremely cooperative” during that investigation and was taking measures to address the commission’s concerns.He added that while the probe remained open, regulators could monitor how TikTok behaves during other elections.

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Affaire Epstein: Macron ciblé par une opération de désinformation liée à la Russie

Une opération de désinformation en ligne visant à faire croire à une implication d’Emmanuel Macron dans l’affaire Epstein a été détectée par la France, qui l’attribue à un réseau russe déjà responsable de plusieurs dizaines d’attaques informationnelles.L’opération a été détectée par les autorités mercredi sur la plateforme X. Une vidéo y a été postée, prétendant que “des journalistes auraient découvert un échange compromettant” mettant en cause le président Macron parmi les documents rendus publics dans le cadre de l’affaire Epstein, a détaillé Viginum dans une note diffusée vendredi soir.Le 30 janvier la justice américaine a publié des millions de documents du dossier Epstein, financier et criminel sexuel américain dont les liens avec de nombreuses personnalités dans le monde les éclaboussent aujourd’hui.Une recherche effectuée sur la base de données “Epstein Library”, consultable sur le site du ministère américain de la Justice, montre que les documents cités n’y figurent pas.Vu le “type de contenu” et la “chaîne de diffusion employée” Viginum a indiqué imputer “avec une confiance très élevée” cette opération au “mode opératoire informationnel russe Storm-1516”, avec le “soutien technique de CopyCop”.Storm-1516, accusés d’être derrière de nombreuses opérations de désinformation visant la France et des pays occidentaux, est lié à “l’unité 29155 du service de renseignement militaire russe (GRU), avec l’appui du think tank moscovite Centre d’expertise géopolitique”, rappelle la note. CopyCop, réseau de sites internet factices, lié à un ancien policier américain, John Mark Dougan, exilé en Russie depuis 2016, relaie notamment des faux contenus fabriqués par Storm-1516.Outre la fausse vidéo postée sur X, l’opération a aussi consisté à poster un faux article diffusé sur un faux site internet “usurpant l’identité de France Soir”, avait indiqué plus tôt vendredi à l’AFP une source gouvernementale, confirmant une information de BFMTV.L’identité d’un journaliste du Parisien, présenté comme l’auteur de l’article, a elle aussi été usurpée.Le média France Soir avait publié dès mercredi soir un démenti sur les réseaux sociaux. Le journaliste du Parisien a lui indiqué avoir déposé plainte.- Audience limitée – Le premier compte ayant diffusé la fausse information est un “relais historique et fréquent” des opérations informationnelles de Storm-1516 en France, selon Viginum. Le contenu a ensuite été relayé par un “groupe de comptes connus de Viginum et très probablement rémunérés” par les personnes derrière Storm-1516, précise le service. Néanmoins, ces publications ont “cumulé environ 1,1 million de vues sur X” pour l’heure. Une “audience en-deçà des précédentes opérations” de Storm-1516, ajoute Viginum.Comme lors de chaque opération Storm-1516, le faux site web a rapidement été désactivé et n’était plus consultable deux jours après sa mise en ligne. Après la publication des Epstein files, le président ukrainien Volodymyr Zelensky, dont le pays est selon les experts et autorités la cible centrale des campagnes Storm-1516, a aussi fait l’objet de fausses publications.Selon les derniers chiffres communiqués par Viginum en mai 2025, Storm-1516 serait à l’origine d’au moins 77 opérations informationnelles visant des pays occidentaux, dont la France, entre son émergence fin 2023 et mars 2025.L’objectif de Storm-1516 “semble être avant tout de décrédibiliser le gouvernement ukrainien, probablement dans l’espoir d’entraîner la suspension de l’aide occidentale à l’Ukraine” détaillait alors Viginum dans son rapport.Pour l’organisme, ce réseau représente une “menace importante pour le débat public numérique français et européen”.Storm-1516 est notamment mis en cause pour son action dans le cadre de l’élection présidentielle américaine de 2024, des élections fédérales allemandes et des législatives moldaves de 2025.En France, où se tiendront mi-mars les élections municipales, avant la présidentielle en 2027, des dizaines de faux sites d’informations locaux apparus en ligne fin 2025 et publiant contenus anxiogènes et clivants, mêlant vrai et faux, lui ont été attribués. 

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France detects Russia-linked Epstein smear attempt against Macron

France has detected a Russia-linked disinformation effort alleging President Emmanuel Macron’s involvement with convicted US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, a government authority said Friday.Politicians, celebrities and royals have been caught up in the turmoil after the US Justice Department last week published a new cache of nearly three million documents related to the investigation of Epstein, who died in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.France’s Viginum agency, which tracks foreign disinformation campaigns, said it had on Wednesday detected a social media operation involving a fabricated video report alleging that “journalists had uncovered a compromising exchange implicating Emmanuel Macron”.The posts cite an alleged email exchange between Epstein and late French modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel, who was found dead in his cell in a Paris prison in 2022 after being charged with raping minors.According to the posts, Brunel allegedly told Epstein in May 2017 that he would take “a few boys” to a party that Macron was organising, allegations Viginum described as false.The Department of Justice’s files about Epstein do not contain the alleged email.The story, allegedly by Le Parisien journalist Victor Cousin, was first posted on a website fraudulently using the identity of a French media organisation, France-Soir, Viginum said.Writing for Le Parisien, Cousin, 26, said he had gone to a police station to file a complaint.”I had to explain how pro-Russian individuals had stolen my identity to attack the French president,” he wrote.”The police officer in front of me stared at me with wide eyes, unable to comprehend what I was saying.”- ‘Brand theft’ -On Wednesday, France-Soir also sought to distance itself from the fabricated report.”Warning: brand and content theft,” it said. “The website http://france-soir.net has no connection with France-Soir.”According to the government agency, the disinformation effort was likely conducted by an information operation called Storm-1516 that is linked to Russian military intelligence.The fake France-Soir website was linked “with a high degree of confidence to the CopyCop information operation”, it said.CopyCop is in turn linked to John Mark Dougan, an American fugitive living in Russia. The latter “maintains part of the digital infrastructure of the Storm-1516 information operation”, Viginum said.On X, the first account to share the fake video report was “@LoetitiaH, a frequent relay for Storm-1516 information operations”, the agency added.The video content was then “picked up and amplified by numerous other accounts monitored by Viginum”, it said.The posts targeting Macron began appearing online on Wednesday, shared simultaneously by several social media accounts identified as regular sources of pro-Russian disinformation. The accounts have a following of several thousand internet users.Like previous disinformation operations on social media, they rely on a video with audio dubbed by artificial intelligence, screenshots of altered documents, and links to a website impersonating another media outlet to lend credibility to their narrative.The posts share a link to the clone of the France-Soir media site, launched on Sunday, whose domain name is registered as .net, instead of the .fr of the authentic site.The French government has repeatedly warned the public over Russian disinformation campaigns in Europe, which have grown in intensity since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.- Missing link -According to Antibot4Navalny, a collective that monitors pro-Kremlin bot networks, Storm-1516 and a disinformation campaign known as Matryoshka launched simultaneous operations targeting Macron in early February.However, the group said there was no proven “direct link beyond the timing and topics” between the two operations.”No strong connections between sites or distribution accounts can give us grounds to make that claim,” Antibot4Navalny told AFP.According to Viginum, Storm-1516 was behind at least 77 disinformation operations targeting Western countries between late 2023 and March 2025.After the publication of the Epstein files, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was also targeted by false posts.Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said this week the Epstein files demonstrate “how the Western elite treats children” and that such officials “stand behind the Kyiv regime”.tll-nl-am-pim-as/ah/jhb

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Grenoble: six blessés légers par un engin explosif, les agresseurs se sont filmés

Six personnes, dont un enfant de 5 ans, ont été légèrement blessées vendredi par un engin explosif lancé en plein jour dans un institut de beauté à Grenoble par des inconnus masqués, qui ont filmé et posté la scène sur les réseaux sociaux.Les faits se sont déroulés peu avant 15H00 dans le salon “BK Maison Beauté”, une petite boutique située près des grands boulevards qui traversent le centre-ville de Grenoble, au rez-de-chaussée d’un immeuble d’habitations de sept ou huit étages. Six personnes, dont un enfant de 5 ans, ont été légèrement blessés mais leur état n’a pas nécessité d’hospitalisation et les pompiers les ont soignées sur place, selon la préfecture.Une vidéo postée sur X montre un homme tout habillé en noir et masqué, dégoupillant un engin avant de le lancer à l’intérieur alors qu’une femme tente de refermer la porte en verre pour l’en empêcher. L’agresseur prend ensuite la fuite en courant.Le souffle a brisé la vitrine du commerce mais ne semble pas avoir fait de dégâts au-delà. La police, arrivée sur place, a bloqué la contre-allée avec des rubalises pour permettre aux enquêteurs scientifiques de faire des relevés, a constaté l’AFP. “Ce n’est pas un engin destiné à tuer compte tenu du fait qu’il n’y avait pas de charge explosive importante et pas d’éléments métalliques projetant”, a estimé le procureur de Grenoble Etienne Manteaux, qui s’est rendu sur les lieux. Il s’agit selon lui d’une “action d’intimidation” qui démontre “une escalade dans la désinhibition des délinquants”. La vidéo, semble-t-il filmée par un complice de l’auteur avant qu’ils ne prennent tous deux la fuite en courant, a été postée sur X.”C’étaient des personnes déterminées à agir quel que soit le nombre de personnes présentes”, a également commenté le procureur. “Ce n’est pas une grenade quadrillée militaire, c’est plutôt un engin explosif qui fait du souffle”, mais “parce que c’est fait en plein jour, que c’est filmé”, cela “démontre une désinhibition, une appropriation de l’espace public qui est particulièrement inquiétante”, a-t-il insisté.”Tout ça paraît vraiment invraisemblable donc soyez persuadés de la détermination des services d’enquête et de la justice pour élucider ces faits”, a-t-il ajouté.- Point de deal -L’institut de beauté se trouve à proximité du quartier Hoche, connu pour son important point de deal, et où des violences et des règlements de comptes se sont produits ces dernières années, à l’instar d’autres quartiers périphériques de Grenoble en proie au narcotrafic. Le salon de beauté visé n’était cependant pas connu pour poser des problèmes, a indiqué le procureur, ce qu’a confirmé un voisin se présentant sous le seul prénom de Alain. “Ce sont des filles très bien, ma fille va se faire coiffer chez eux puisque j’habite au 2e”, a-t-il témoigné, dénonçant toutefois un “climat d’insécurité” à Grenoble. Quant à l’explosion elle-même, “on a entendu un boum monstrueux et je suis descendu en vitesse. On a vu les gens crier, en sang et paniqués”, a-t-il indiqué.Il y a un an, le 12 février 2025, une attaque à la grenade avait fait quinze blessés, dont six graves, dans un bar associatif d’un quartier périphérique du sud de Grenoble en proie au trafic de stupéfiants. Bruno Retailleau, alors ministre de l’Intérieur, avait dénoncé “une opération criminelle inédite, puisqu’on a utilisé une technique de guerre (avec) une grenade très spécifique”. Un mineur de 17 ans, soupçonné de l’avoir lancée, avait été mis en examen une dizaine de jours plus tard.

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Thousands attend burial of slain son of Libya’s Gaddafi

Thousands turned out on Friday for the burial of the slain son of former Libyan ruler Muammar Gaddafi in a town that still holds allegiance to the late longtime leader.Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, once seen by some as Libya’s heir apparent, was shot dead in his home in the northwestern city of Zintan on Tuesday.His burial in the town of Bani Walid, some 175 kilometres (110 miles) south of Tripoli, brought together thousands of Gaddafi loyalists, nearly 15 years after the ruler was toppled and killed in a 2011 NATO-backed uprising.Some came from other parts of the country.”We are here to accompany our beloved one, the son of our leader in whom we placed our hope and our future,” said Waad Ibrahim, a 33-year-old woman from Sirte, nearly 300 kilometres (186 miles) away.The woman blamed the country’s eastern and western rival powers for Seif al-Islam’s killing.”They met in France to agree that the only obstacle standing in their way was Seif al-Islam,” she said referring to a recent US-brokered meeting in Paris between officials from both sides.Libya remains split between Prime Minister Abdelhamid Dbeibah’s UN-backed government based in Tripoli and an eastern administration backed by Khalifa Haftar.The North African has struggled to recover from chaos that erupted following the 2011 Arab Spring uprising.- Elections ‘without him’ -Each year, Bani Walid celebrates the anniversary of a 1969 coup that brought Gaddafi to power, with people parading through the streets with portraits of the ex-leader and Libya’s green flag from before the revolt.Ahead of the burial on Friday, locals also carried those portraits and flags while chanting pro-Gaddafi slogans and declaring that “the martyrs’ blood will not be shed in vain”.Sabri Gachout, a 66-year-old from Tripoli, said Seif al-Islam’s killing meant that “elections can now be organised without him in the electoral process”.In 2021, Seif al-Islam announced he would run for president, but the elections aiming to unify the country under a UN agreement were indefinitely postponed.Marcel Ceccaldi, a French lawyer who had been representing Seif al-Islam, told AFP he was killed by “four-man commando”.Authorities said they were probing his death as the assailants remained at large.Saadi Gaddafi, Seif al-Islam’s younger brother, said his dead sibling would be buried “next to his brother Khamis Gaddafi”, who was killed during the 2011 unrest.Under his father’s iron-fisted 40-year rule, Seif al-Islam was described as the de facto prime minister, cultivating an image of moderation and reform despite holding no official position.But that reputation soon collapsed when he promised “rivers of blood” in retaliation for the 2011 uprising.He was arrested that year on a warrant issued by the International Criminal Court for alleged crimes against humanity, and a Tripoli court sentenced him to death, although he was later granted amnesty.

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Why bitcoin is losing its luster after stratospheric rise

Bitcoin, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, sank this week, wiping out gains sparked by Donald Trump’s presidential election victory in November 2024. The digital currency slumped to $60,033.01 on Friday before trimming losses, and is down around half from its October peak above $120,000. AFP explains why prices have fallen.- End of Trump rally -Digital currencies soared after Trump’s election victory as he was widely viewed as a strong supporter of the technology.  He publicly celebrated bitcoin crossing $100,000 for the first time in December 2024.But the rally suffered a sharp setback in April after Trump announced sweeping US tariffs, rattling markets worldwide. Bitcoin later resumed its march higher along with stocks and other markets, and hit a record of $126,251.31 six months later.But enthusiasm has faded as investors grow impatient over regulatory uncertainty.While the US Congress passed a law in July to regulate stablecoins — a form of cryptocurrency backed by traditional assets — a broader crypto bill, the Clarity Act, has stalled in the Senate.”A key test for Bitcoin’s ability to sustainably recover will be the passage of the Clarity Act,” said Deutsche Bank analysts Marion Laboure and Camilla Siazon. – Domino effect -The recent slide in precious metals like gold and silver — as investors locked in profits after their meteoric rise — was one of the main triggers for bitcoin’s slump.That pullback sent many investors rushing to sell cryptocurrencies and other risky assets to help raise cash.”This break is not happening in a vacuum, but in a context of widespread mistrust,” said John Plassard, head of investment strategy at Cite Gestion Private Bank.”Volatility in technology and precious metals is fuelling a global movement to reduce risk.”The sell-off has been intensified by forced deleveraging, as investors who borrowed money to bet on bitcoin’s rise are forced to sell when losses mount, pushing prices lower.- Tech contagion -Cryptocurrency declines gathered pace this week as investors sold tech stocks on renewed concerns over an artificial intelligence bubble.Analysts noted that bitcoin and AI-related stocks often move in the same direction.  “In recent years, liquidity has flowed across digital assets and advanced tech stocks at the same time,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB.”This means that both asset classes share a tight financial link.”Michael Burry, the entrepreneur who gained fame for spotting the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis, fanned fears on Monday as he flagged a possible “death spiral” for bitcoin.- Crypto firms in focus -The downturn has raised questions about the viability of digital asset treasury firms, which stockpile cryptocurrencies in a bet that prices will keep rising. Many of these firms are “sitting on significant unrealised losses,” said Charlie Sherry, head of finance at BTC Markets.If these firms are forced to sell their bitcoin holdings to stay afloat, it could flood the market and amplify a downward spiral in prices.Shares in Strategy, which holds more than 713,000 bitcoins, plunged more than 17 percent on Friday after it reported a $12.4 billion net loss linked to crypto declines.And US cryptocurrency exchange Gemini announced Thursday that it would slash roughly a quarter of its workforce and withdraw from several international markets amid the downturn in digital assets.

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German exports to US plunge as tariffs exact heavy cost

German exports to the United States plunged in 2025 amid President Donald Trump’s tariff blitz, driving down the trade surplus of Europe’s top economy with the crucial US market to a four-year low, data showed Friday.Exports to China also fell, but total exports rebounded by around one percent following two years of contraction, as stronger trade with Europe offset falling shipments to the world’s two biggest economies, statistics agency Destatis said.The overall picture for Germany’s foreign trade remains bleak, experts warn, at a time the traditional export power is struggling after a long decline driven by a manufacturing slump, high energy costs and weak demand at home and abroad.German exports to the United States fell 9.3 percent last year compared to 2024, and totalled around 147 billion euros ($173 billion), while US imports to Germany rose slightly. The trade surplus with the United States was 52.2 billion euros, its lowest level since 2021, after a record surplus the previous year of nearly 70 billion euros. “Higher US tariffs are making German goods less competitive on the US market,” Commerzbank economist Ralph Solveen told AFP.As a result, China returned as Germany’s biggest trading partner last year, overtaking the US, according to the preliminary data.Europe was in Trump’s crosshairs when he launched his tariff onslaught as it runs a hefty trade surplus with the United States, much of it due to German exports. Under a deal struck in July, EU exports to the United States face a baseline levy of 15 percent — far higher than before Trump’s return to office.It was a heavy blow for Germany, whose firms, from well-known automakers and machinery giants to smaller, family-owned companies, have long relied on robust trade with the United States. According to data released previously by Destatis, exports of German cars and car parts to the United States dropped 17.5 percent between January and November from a year earlier. Exports of machinery were down nine percent and shipments of chemical products fell over 14 percent in the same period. – China challenge – German businesses have struggled in the Chinese market due to the emergence of homegrown rivals and weak consumer demand — German exports to China were down 9.3 percent last year.But Chinese exports to Germany jumped nine percent, as firms are increasingly redirecting goods to European markets due to Trump hiking tariffs on Chinese imports.German exports to other EU countries rose around four percent last year, driving the slight improvement in the overall figure.Germany’s trade surplus narrowed to 200.4 billion euros in 2025, a reduction of around 40 billion euros from a year earlier.In other news Friday, German factory output dropped 1.9 percent in December from the previous month, according to Destatis, sharper than forecasts and a disappointment after three months of gains.But ING economist Carsten Brzeski said the drop was “only a temporary halt and not a new downward trend”.”In fact, German industry is at the start of a clear cyclical upswing,” he said.The German government expects the economy will grow one percent this year after several bleak years, and other recent data — from industrial orders to quarterly growth — have painted a rosier picture.  Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is pushing a major fiscal stimulus and reform drive, struck an optimistic tone Friday.Recent signs of a turnaround “encourage and embolden me to continue on this path of reforms and of changing the conditions for investment and for jobs in Germany” Merz said during a visit to Abu Dhabi.”We are still far from where we want to be, but we are on the right path.”