Ceasefire
Tuesday, June 24th, 2025
World Events — Tentative Ceasefire
Bloomberg
President Donald Trump announced a “complete and total” ceasefire between Israel and Iran, aiming for a lasting end to hostilities that began with Israeli attacks on Iran’s nuclear sites on June 13, although Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi denied a formal agreement and stated Iran would only cease responding to Israeli attacks if aggression stopped by 4:00 a.m. Tehran time. The tentative truce, brokered through direct talks involving Trump, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and US officials, led to a drop in oil prices and a rise in global equities as markets reacted to reduced tensions. Despite the ceasefire, questions remain about Iran’s uranium stockpile and the durability of the peace, with both sides signaling intent to halt further attacks but leaving open the possibility of renewed conflict if Iran attempts to rebuild its nuclear facilities.
Tech - Meta Poaching From AI Startup Runway
Bloomberg
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently held discussions with AI video startup Runway AI Inc. about a potential acquisition as part of his aggressive push to recruit top artificial intelligence talent and expand Meta’s capabilities, but the talks never advanced to a formal offer and are no longer active, according to sources familiar with the negotiations. Runway, valued at over $3 billion, is recognized for its advanced AI video generation technology, which has been widely adopted in the entertainment industry and enables users to create realistic videos with consistent characters and objects. Zuckerberg’s broader strategy has included multibillion-dollar investments in AI companies such as Scale AI—where Meta now holds a 49% stake and has brought on founder Alexandr Wang—as well as deal talks with Perplexity AI and Safe Superintelligence, reflecting his determination to position Meta at the forefront of the AI revolution.
Business — Vanguard Cuts Management Fees to Compete in Europe
FT
Vanguard, the world’s second-largest asset manager, is cutting fees on nearly half of its bond exchange traded funds in Europe—reducing ongoing charges on seven out of 15 fixed income ETFs by two basis points—as it seeks to expand its presence in the region’s increasingly competitive bond market and attract more investors to its offerings. The move, effective from July 1, 2025, will lower Vanguard’s average asset-weighted expense ratio for its European fixed income index and actively managed fund range to 0.11%, and is projected to save investors about $3.5 million annually. This latest round of fee cuts follows a broader trend among major ETF providers like BlackRock and State Street to compete on price, with Vanguard also recently announcing its largest-ever fee reduction in the US, saving investors over $350 million in 2025 across 168 share classes of 87 funds. The firm’s executives emphasize that lower costs make fixed income investing more accessible and transparent, and they plan to continue expanding their fixed income product lineup in Europe throughout the year.
Climate — Why the World Cannot Quit Coal
FT
Nearly a decade after the Paris climate agreement, which aimed to limit global warming to 1.5°C and phase out coal, global coal consumption remains stubbornly high and continues to grow, defying early predictions of a structural decline. Despite record growth in wind and solar energy, coal remains attractive—especially in developing economies like China and India—due to its abundance, low cost, and ability to provide reliable, around-the-clock power, which renewables cannot yet match at scale. Economic shocks such as the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have further entrenched coal’s role by prioritizing energy security and making coal relatively cheaper than alternatives like natural gas. While some wealthy countries have quit coal, surging demand in Asia more than offsets these reductions, with China and India expanding coal production to meet booming electricity needs and support economic growth. Efforts to transition away from coal are complicated by the risk of mass job losses in coal-dependent regions and the sheer scale of existing coal infrastructure, leading experts to predict a plateau rather than a peak in global coal use, even as coal continues to account for a significant share of global carbon emissions and climate concerns mount.
The Daily Spark
The Census conducts a biweekly survey of 1.2 million firms, and one question is whether a business has used AI tools such as machine learning, natural language processing, virtual agents, or voice recognition to help produce goods or services in the past two weeks, see chart below. Nine percent of firms reported using AI, and the rising trend in AI adoption increases the likelihood of a rise in productivity over the coming quarters.
Song Recommendation — Ocean Eyes
Quote of the Day
"The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well." — Ralph Waldo Emerson.