Market Express

Spot gold was around US$4,331 an ounce on September 2, its lowest level in more than three weeks. I do not think the answer is yes. A gold correction — and a stronger dollar The immediate pressure is easy to understand. Gold does not generate interest income. When investors can obtain higher returns from US Treasury securities and other dollar assets, the opportunity cost of holding gold rises. The latest move has been intensified by an unusual geopolitical chain reaction.

India’s economy continues to present an encouraging picture. Growth is around 7 per cent, infrastructure investment remains strong, consumption is holding up, digital payments are booming and government revenues remain reasonably buoyant. The economy is expanding. But what does that expansion feel like at home? Yet there is another India that does not appear so clearly in the GDP numbers. It is the India of the household budget.

The German economy is showing tentative signs of recovery after a prolonged period of gloom. Europe’s largest economy is on track for its strongest GDP growth since 2022, while business sentiment is finally trending upwards again after a lengthy spell in the doldrums. The country’s official statistics office reported last week that the economy grew by 0.3% in the second quarter of 2026, beating estimates and building on robust figures for the previous two quarters.

Canada has been quietly praised for refusing to fold under pressure from US President Donald Trump in the long-running fight over trade tariffs. The latest talks between the North American neighbors collapsed on August 21. Until the 11th hour, both sides were talking as if a deal was within reach. The United States then put 50% tariffs on about $20 billion (€17.2 billion) worth of Canadian goods, while Ottawa pledged to match those duties on US imports.

Speaking on August 24, Bessent said the United States would target what he called five economic lifelines: digital assets, technology, gold, aviation and shipping. He also warned foreign entities that help the country illicitly move money around. “Any entity that facilitates money laundering for Iran will be removed from the US dollar-based financial system,” Bessent said.

Every Train Carries More Than Passengers As evening falls at Patna, Ranchi, Gorakhpur, Guwahati or Malda, hundreds of young Indians board trains for Bengaluru, Chennai, Pune, Surat, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. Some are engineers. Some hold ITI certificates. Some are college graduates. Many have completed only school. Almost all are travelling with the same hope—to find decent work and build a better future. Behind every railway ticket is a family. A father who borrowed money for his child’s education.

US President Donald Trump said Monday he would impose a 50% tariff on Canadian automobiles, car parts and steel from January 1, 2027. The announcement comes amid an escalating dispute between the two neighbors following the collapse of trade talks last week. “Build in the US ⁠and ​there are ​ZERO TARIFFS. ​Canada will be ‌treated like a ​[US] State ⁠no longer!” Trump wrote on social media, using his trademark all-caps style.

Yet they also expose an often-overlooked reality. Businesses are remarkably willing to innovate and invest under demanding regulations. What they struggle with is uncertainty—uncertainty about implementation timelines, evolving standards, and the long-term direction of policy. This is where India’s debate on economic reforms has gone astray.

Iran, January 2026: During some of the country’s largest protests in decades, the Iranian government shut down the internet.

A raid in Malaysia last week exposed how cryptocurrency mining is becoming entangled with electricity theft and organized crime across Southeast Asia. In Malaysia’s southern state of Johor, 71 cryptocurrency-mining machines had been running around the clock across four rented premises for about a month before police moved in. During the raids on July 22 and 23, officers arrested three suspects and seized computers, routers and vehicles alongside equipment used to illegally mine Bitcoin.