US Bombs Somalia for 70th Time This Year

Both Iranian & Israeli Officials Call Out 'Paper Tiger' Saudi Arabia Regional rivals and enemies are calling out Saudi Arabia as a "paper tiger" which must rely on others for protection and defense needs. Criticisms of Riyadh are being issued on the same day the kingdom signed a major security pact with the other major Muslim-dominant nations of Pakistan and Turkey. Formally called the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement, it is essentially a NATO-style agreement for the 'Muslim world' - given that it stipulates and formalizes that an armed attack on any of the countries will...

Turkish State Takes Near-Total Control Of US-Sanctioned Bank Over IRGC Ties On September 4, the US Treasury unveiled sanctions against a Turkey-based bank and two of its subsidiaries, accusing them of moving tens of millions of dollars on behalf of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Quds Force and facilitating Tehran's movement of funds across the international banking system.  It did not take long for the Turkish government to sweep in and act to contain the damage and what some interpret as a national reputational hit, which was one of the opening...

US Manufacturing Survey Strongest Since May 2022 On AI Spend, Prices Paid Spike Following the explosive growth signaled by S&P Global's PMI data last week, this week we get a final look for September's Manufacturing surveys and fresh data from ISM. S&P Global's final September read for US Manufacturing dipped from the preliminary level but remains at its strongest since May 2022. ISM's September survey of US Manufacturers also dipped at the headline level (54.5 vs 55.0 exp), but remains near multi-year highs. “September has seen the pace of US manufacturing growth pick...