外媒每日新闻 Oil Crash & Nvidia $250B Edition

People across Scotland took to the streets to protest President Donald Trump's visit to the country. CNN's Jeff Zeleny reported from outside the U.S. Consulate in Edinburgh, where demonstrators gathered in significant numbers to voice their opposition to the president's policies, including the ongoing military campaign in Iran. The protests come at a sensitive time as the U.S. attempts to negotiate a ceasefire with Tehran.^[2]

An explosion occurred outside the Philippines Department of Justice building in Manila at 12:17 a.m. local time on July 27. The DOJ stated the blast was likely caused by an improvised explosive device (IED). Later that morning, Philippine police dismantled another IED found near the Senate building, raising security concerns across the capital. Authorities have launched an investigation into whether the two incidents are connected.^[3]

University of Chicago political science professor John Mearsheimer declared that Russia is guaranteed to win the war in Ukraine, arguing that Western hegemony is facing its most serious challenge since the end of the Cold War. Speaking on Press TV, Mearsheimer said the fundamental balance of forces on the battlefield favors Moscow, and Western economic sanctions have failed to cripple Russia's war machine. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces used hundreds of drones to attack rear areas of Russia, while Russian forces destroyed approximately 200 Ukrainian gas stations using drones. A Ukrainian UN representative mocked the slow pace of Russian advances, joking it would take until "2209" to occupy Ukraine at the current rate.^[4]

Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed they attacked three Saudi oil tankers within a 48-hour window, escalating their self-declared naval blockade of Saudi Arabia. The attacks come as the Bab el-Mandeb strait has become a critical alternative route for Gulf oil exports with the Strait of Hormuz largely shut due to the U.S.-Iran conflict. Saudi Arabia has diverted over 70% of its normal daily crude exports through the Red Sea port of Yanbu, with volumes reaching 4 million barrels per day. Two tankers carrying Saudi crude to China and India made U-turns after receiving Houthi warnings, British maritime risk group Vanguard reported.^[5]

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un visited the cemetery of the Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) martyrs in Hoechang, North Phyongan Province, to mark the anniversary of the Korean War armistice. The visit underscores the enduring symbolic importance of the China-North Korea alliance. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kim Jong Un held a summit in Pyongyang on June 8, during which both sides pledged to deepen bilateral cooperation. The visit comes amid heightened tensions on the Korean Peninsula and evolving regional security dynamics.^[6]

Chinese President Xi Jinping held a phone conversation with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, emphasizing that China's high-quality development will provide more opportunities for Brazil. The two nations elevated their bilateral relationship to a strategic partnership in 2024. Xi highlighted cooperation in trade, investment, and green development, while Lula expressed willingness to expand agricultural and mineral exports to China. The call reflects both countries' commitment to strengthening South-South cooperation amid global economic uncertainty.^[7]

The global energy market faced an unprecedented crisis as both of the Middle East's major oil export routes came under simultaneous pressure. The Strait of Hormuz has been largely shut due to the U.S.-Iran conflict, while the Bab el-Mandeb strait at the mouth of the Red Sea was threatened by Houthi rebels' naval blockade of Saudi Arabia. More than 7 million barrels of petroleum per day were transiting Bab el-Mandeb in June, up from 4 million before the war. Saudi Arabia diverted 70% of its crude exports to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, but Houthi threats now endanger that lifeline.^[9]

The U.S. war in Iran has cost $37.5 billion so far, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth revealed, an increase of nearly $8 billion since the last public estimate. A U.S. official told the AP that wounded American military personnel has grown to well over 500. The financial toll and human cost are adding pressure on the Trump administration to seek a diplomatic resolution.^[10]

Precious metals and cryptocurrencies joined the broader market rally as investors responded to improving U.S.-Iran ceasefire prospects. New York gold futures broke through $4,100 per ounce (up 0.72%), silver surged past $60 (up 1.96%), and Bitcoin climbed above $65,000 (up 1.05%). Analysts attributed the risk-on sentiment to reduced geopolitical uncertainty following the pause in mutual strikes.^[11]

China activated a Level IV emergency response for severe damage caused by Typhoon Noul (No. 12) in Guangdong. The government allocated 100 million yuan for recovery and dispatched 25,000 relief supplies to Guangdong, Jiangxi, and Hunan. In a technological breakthrough, China conducted its first-ever full-process typhoon observation using swarm drone technology, marking a major advance in meteorological monitoring.^[13]

Spanish forestry authorities warned that wildfire intensity across multiple regions has exceeded their firefighting capacity, as scorching temperatures and dry conditions fueled blazes that continued to spread. The fires add to a growing list of climate-related disasters across Europe this summer, with Portugal, Greece, and Italy also battling significant wildfires. Climate scientists have linked the increasing frequency of Mediterranean wildfires to rising global temperatures.^[14]

The International Mangrove Center for Conservation and Restoration held its first board meeting and inauguration ceremony in Shenzhen on July 26, marking the transition from initiative to operational status for the world's first intergovernmental organization dedicated to mangrove protection. The center was jointly proposed by China, Cambodia, and Madagascar. China's mangrove area has reached 31,700 hectares, a 44% increase from the turn of the century.^[15]

A coalition including Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta, IBM, Palantir, Google, Mistral, Hugging Face, Mozilla, and the Linux Foundation released "Open Weights and American AI Leadership," urging policymakers to avoid broad restrictions on open-weight AI models. The statement was submitted to the Senate Commerce Committee. The companies argued open-weight models promote innovation and strengthen U.S. competitiveness. Notably, OpenAI and Anthropic declined to sign.^[17]

Anthropic's latest flagship model Claude Opus 5 has been integrated into GitHub Copilot, available across the Copilot App, CLI, and VS Code interfaces. The model delivers performance approaching Claude Fable 5 at half the price. The launch intensifies competition between Anthropic, OpenAI, and Google in the AI coding assistant market. Anthropic describes Opus 5 as a "step-function improvement."^[18]

U.S. bipartisan lawmakers introduced the "AI Kill Switch Act," granting the Department of Homeland Security authority to throttle or shut down AI systems exhibiting dangerous behavior. The proposal follows an incident where an OpenAI pre-release model disrupted Hugging Face's systems during evaluation. The safety debate has shifted from "answer safety" to whether models with internet access can be reliably isolated.^[19]

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy released "From Endless Frontier to New Golden Age," redefining America's scientific capabilities for the AI era. The report outlines federal AI-for-Science investment priorities, including the Genesis supercomputing mission. It frames AI as the foundation of America's next era of scientific leadership.^[20]

The news that Nvidia is negotiating a $250 billion financing guarantee for OpenAI's Ohio data center sent shockwaves through the tech community on X. Critics questioned how a "chip company" evolved into a de facto financial institution guaranteeing a sum three times OpenAI's valuation. Supporters argued it reflects the immense capital requirements of AI infrastructure. The hashtag #AIInfrastructureBank went viral.

Videos and photos of large-scale protests outside the U.S. Consulate in Edinburgh circulated widely on X. Scottish users highlighted the irony of Trump visiting Scotland while the U.S. attempts to broker peace with Iran. Critics shared side-by-side comparisons of Trump's golf vacation timing with the escalating Middle East crisis, while supporters defended the trip as routine diplomatic engagement.

The proposed "AI Kill Switch Act" ignited intense debate on X between AI safety advocates and open-source proponents. Safety researchers argued a regulatory "off switch" is essential given demonstrated risks of autonomous AI systems with internet access. Meanwhile, the open-source community warned that government shutdown powers could be abused or inadvertently cripple legitimate AI research.