“China has bought millions of barrels of Saudi crude offered via a rare tender and under long-term contracts, although overall purchases still remain well below pre-war levels. State-run refiners PetroChina Co. and Sinochem Group, along with Unipec — the trading arm of Sinopec Group — and private processor Rongsheng Petrochemical Co., bought a combined 10 million barrels of Arab Medium and Heavy grades in a tender, said traders familiar with the matter. The oil is for prompt loading. … Aramco offered spot supplies of sulfur-rich crude from locations outside of the Strait of Hormuz for loading as soon as this month. The grades are produced within the Persian Gulf, suggesting the kingdom may be finding ways to move more barrels through the waterway.” (08/20/26)
“Romania scrambled F-16 fighter jets to destroy a marine drone spotted a few hundred metres from the Black Sea gas project Neptun Deep, Defence Minister Radu Miruta said on Thursday. The incident underscores the growing threat to critical energy infrastructure in the Black Sea from drones and mines linked to Russia’s war in Ukraine, with Neptun Deep expected to make Romania the European Union’s largest gas producer when it comes onstream in 2027. NATO-member Romania shares a 614-km (382-mile) land border with Ukraine and has seen Russian drones breaching its airspace over the last four years and mines floating in the Black Sea across key trade and energy routes. Thursday’s incident follows similar action earlier this month when army divers destroyed two Gerbera-type drones drifting in the exclusive economic zone near the offshore Neptun Deep project.” (08/20/26)
“Federal agents seized electronic devices from former Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell at the San Francisco airport on Saturday and then raided his home in Washington, DC, the next day as part of an ongoing probe connected to sexual assault allegations, sources familiar with the investigation told CNN. Swalwell and his lawyer did not immediately respond to messages from CNN. Swalwell resigned from Congress in April after reporting from CNN and the San Francisco Chronicle detailed allegations of sexual misconduct. The Manhattan District Attorney’s Office and the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department opened criminal investigations into Swalwell in the wake of the reporting. The raids this weekend are part of a federal investigation connected to the claims of sexual assault, the sources told CNN.” (08/20/26)
“A court on the Indonesian resort island of Bali sentenced a Swiss tourist on Thursday to one year in prison for insulting a sacred Balinese Hindu observance. Luzian Andrin Zgraggen, 26, was found guilty of violating Indonesia’s new criminal code by posting social media messages about the Day of Silence, when people are required to stay home and are urged to remain silent and meditate. The Denpasar District Court determined that he posted the messages even after staff at the villa where he was staying informed him of the restrictions. ‘What the defendant did offended the Balinese people, hurt their faith and provoked public outrage,’ said presiding judge Tjokorda Putra Budi Pastima. ‘The defendant must be held accountable for his actions.'” (08/20/26)
“NASA and Katalyst Space have announced that the mission to boost the altitude of a Swift Observatory space telescope has failed. The announcement came down on Wednesday after an attempt to use the LINK spacecraft ran into altitude control issues, NASA and Katalyst Space said in a press release. The spacecraft was meant to raise NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory to a higher altitude. LINK is still set to attempt rendezvous and proximity operations with the Swift Observatory. … If the mission was successful, LINK would have allowed the Swift Observatory to extend its mission, the press release says. NASA expects Swift to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere this year.” (08/20/26)
“Global wheat importers are bracing for tighter supplies as attacks on Black Sea grain infrastructure disrupt shipments, heightening food security risks for top buyers such as Egypt and Indonesia, while driving up prices. Benchmark Chicago futures have climbed more than 17% since the start of July, fuelled largely by a shortfall in Black Sea supplies, with physical prices making strong gains in rival exporters Argentina, Australia and the United States. … For now, stronger harvests across parts of the Middle East and North Africa have cushioned the immediate impact, with the Egyptian government procuring record volumes of local wheat and better rains boosting crop prospects in Morocco and Tunisia.” (08/20/26)
“Southern California law enforcement officials stumbled upon an abandoned vehicle in the desert containing Lego sets worth nearly $30,000, the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department announced Wednesday. According to the Sheriff’s Department’s news release, on Monday around 11:30 p.m., Barstow officials discovered the Lego sets inside an unoccupied van at National Trails Highway and Pioneer Road in Newberry Springs. The van held 123 boxes of stolen McLaren F1 Lego sets, which are valued at about $230 per set. Police with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad confirmed that the sets were taken during a train robbery.” (08/20/26)
“Former French Prime Minister François Fillon has been suspended for 10 years from the Légion d’honneur, France’s highest order of merit, after being found guilty of providing his wife with a fake job in which she was paid a salary using taxpayer money. The decision to suspend Fillon was published Thursday morning in the French official gazette. It was approved by President Emmanuel Macron after being recommended by the body tasked with handling disciplinary measures for the Légion d’honneur. The fake jobs scandal emerged during the campaign for the 2017 presidential election and cost Fillon a shot at the presidency, as he was a front-runner in the contest before the allegations emerged.” (08/20/26)
“A Southern California lobbyist who interned in the Clinton administration with Monica Lewinsky has been making lofty claims to win taxpayer-funded contracts — but some of the cities and public agencies on his killer resumé say they couldn’t pick him out of a lineup. Jaime Rojas, president of Rojas Public Affairs, has been collecting thousands in taxpayer fees from a Southern California agency after he bragged about securing tens of millions in federal funds …. Rojas spoke before the Phelan Piñon Hills Community Services District board in January 2025, touting a record of securing more than $90 million in state and federal funding. The district subsequently awarded Rojas a contract paying $5,000 per month. But in documents submitted to that agency and others, Rojas’ firm has overstated or made up multimillion-dollar funding claims in writing while seeking taxpayer funds, including a three-year lobbying deal tied to Gypsum Canyon Memorial Park and a planned state veterans cemetery in Orange County.” (08/20/26)
“Bond yields edged higher on Thursday morning after pulling back sharply during the previous session following the Treasury Department’s move to dramatically ramp up government debt repurchases in a bid to shore up longer-dated debt. … The Treasury Department, led by Scott Bessent, said Wednesday it would double the size of its debt repurchases, mainly at the long-end of the yield curve. The move sent yields tumbling, with the 30-year yield plunging more than 10 basis points on the day and the 10-year note yield falling more than 6 basis points, reversing this week’s earlier advance. Treasury yields have been pushing steeply higher since June, touching levels not seen since before the 2008 Global Financial Crisis.” (08/20/26)
