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A calendar spread pairs a long position in one futures month against a short in another - and it's one of the most capital-efficient trades in commodities. A short walkthrough of how spreads profit from curve convergence, the different approaches for contango and backwardation markets, why professional traders use butterfly and condor spreads to isolate specific curve segments, and the key risks that can unwind even a well-constructed spread.

Zenzap (Israeli-founded) emerged from stealth with $44M total funding, including a $33M Series A co-led by Bessemer and Lightspeed, for AI agents inside team chats.

The EU's trade gap with China hit €360B in 2025; leaders also face high energy bills and budget fights.

The Pentagon has drawn up options to use the 21,600-pound MOAB on Iranian nuclear and energy sites, lifting escalation risk and oil prices in the six-month war.

Modal Labs (US) raised $750M led by Accel at a $15.75B valuation for AI cloud infrastructure.

Chromium is why stainless steel doesn't rust - and it accounts for roughly 75% of all chromium consumption. A short walkthrough of how chromium flows through markets as ferrochromium rather than a direct futures contract, why South Africa's 40% share of global reserves creates a structural supply risk, what drives the price cycle, and why there's no pure-play chromium investment.

US producer prices rose 1.3% in September and 6.3% from a year earlier, the biggest annual gain since 2022, pushing interest rates back to center stage.

Arena.ai (US) raised a $200M Series B at a $3.1B valuation for its evaluation platform for frontier AI models and agents.

Coal is the dirtiest fossil fuel on Earth - and the world still burns 8 billion tonnes of it every year. A short walkthrough of the two completely separate coal markets (thermal for electricity, coking for steel), why China accounts for half of global output and 55% of demand, how Australia became Asia's premium supplier, and what the long road to a 15–25% electricity share by 2050 actually looks like for investors.

Singularity (US) emerged from stealth with an $80M Series A at a $400M valuation for interceptor defense technology.

The Democratic Republic of Congo produces roughly 70% of the world's cobalt - and no other critical commodity is so dependent on a single nation. A short walkthrough of why cobalt became essential to EV battery cathodes, how the market swung from $8 to $25 per pound and back to $6 in just two years, why LFP batteries are threatening to bypass it entirely, and what a 5% recycling rate means for long-term supply security.

Côte d'Ivoire and Ghana grow over 60% of the world's cocoa - and a single disease outbreak can wipe out 20–30% of a harvest. A short walkthrough of why cocoa demand is almost entirely tied to chocolate, how slow-maturing cacao trees make supply painfully inelastic, why farmers receive only 10–20% of the final chocolate price, and what climate change and farmer abandonment mean for long-term supply.

Salesforce agreed to acquire Loops, an AI analytics startup, to upgrade Tableau.

Chicago Fed's Goolsbee called September's 3.7% inflation 'discouraging' as diesel lifts costs nationwide