World markets
Bitcoin could fall another 30% as the four-year cycle intensifies, an investment firm says.
The global gold market in early March 2026 demonstrates sharp volatility: after growth, quotes have moved to decline. The main factors were the strengthening of the US dollar and geopolitical tensions.
German media holding Axel Springer has agreed to buy British newspaper The Daily Telegraph for 575 million pounds (about $766 million), according to Logos Press.
US President Donald Trump has refused to comment on media reports that Iran is receiving intelligence from Russia for strikes on US troop positions.
At this year’s Munich Security Conference, transatlanticism was finally buried, but it remains unclear whether Europeans realized this.
The international consortium “Hickory Global Partners” has published ratings of the 10 most expensive and 10 most popular cities for business travel. London (UK) tops both rankings, according to Logos Press.
EU countries are finalizing the implementation of a minimum corporate tax rate of 15% for the largest multinational companies (global minimum tax (Pillar Two) and are beginning to consider a flat tax “on wealth”.
Countries in the Gulf region will lose between $34 billion and $56 billion in tourism revenue in 2026, with the number of international arrivals to the region dropping to 11-27% year-on-year, according to Logos Press.
Oil quotations continue to grow amid the conflict in the Middle East. Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad Sherida al-Qaabi warned that the price of oil could rise to $150 per barrel.
Due to rising energy prices, the European currency is already suffering. The euro has fallen 2% against the dollar. The fall could be more significant if the war in Iran lasts longer than the “four weeks” that Trump spoke of.
Booking.com, one of the largest online accommodation booking services, has announced the winners of its 14th annual Traveller Review Awards. The awards are based on 370 million traveler reviews and reflect the level of service and hospitality of partners around the world, according to Logos Press.
US-based beauty corporation Estée Lauder Companies has announced plans to fully buy out Indian ayurvedic brand Forest Essentials by acquiring the remaining stakes in the company. The deal will be the next phase of a multi-year partnership and aims to expand the Indian brand’s global footprint. It is expected to be completed in the second half of 2026, once all necessary regulatory approvals have been received.
World investors began to reduce investments in equity funds – for the first time in the last eight weeks. The reason was growing geopolitical risks in the Middle East and fears of accelerating inflation, Reuters reports with reference to the data of analytical companies.
Wheat production in Kazakhstan in the 2025/26 marketing year will reach a record 18 million tons. This is only slightly below the previous season’s harvest, the second largest ever recorded.
For the first time since November 2025, Ukraine started supplying electricity abroad. Specifically, on March 5, a minimum export to Moldova was recorded. Before that, the last time electricity was exported was on November 11, 2025.
The Central Bank of Sweden has issued recommendations for citizens in case of war and other crises. In particular, it recommended keeping at home 1 thousand Swedish kronor (about $110) for each adult.
In international relations, clearly illegitimate government actions can sometimes be morally justified. Although there are few historical examples of legitimacy trumping legality, they do exist. Whether the joint U.S.-Israeli war against Iran is one such case requires more attention than it has received so far.
Moldova takes another step towards freedom of capital movement. The National Bank of Moldova (NBM) has drafted a law amending the Law on Foreign Exchange Regulation – the so-called draft law on partial liberalization. The draft is currently at the stage of public consultations and will soon be submitted by the Ministry of Finance to the government for consideration.
In an attempt to stop the fall of the Indian rupee amid rising oil prices and increasing geopolitical tensions, the Reserve Bank of India conducted a large-scale currency intervention. After the regulator’s intervention, the national currency strengthened, but analysts warn that the pressure on the market may persist.
According to the preliminary estimate of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry (MAIA), about 430-440 thousand hectares of winter crops have been sown for the harvest-2026 in Moldova, which is about 15-20% less than in the previous season. The situation with cereals is worse, in particular, sowing of winter wheat is unlikely to exceed 300 thousand ha (in 2024 – 351 thousand ha).
