IIR's October 27 Market Scorecard Brings You Breaking Geopolitical News

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Stay current with the latest geopolitical events, and more importantly, instantly connect to how these events may impact you and your business strategies.

Event	MarCon*	IIR Comment	Outlet	IIR News
Israel says it decides which foreign troops can enter Gaza; Hamas widens search for hostages		Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday Israel would determine which foreign forces it would allow as part of a planned international force in Gaza to help secure a fragile ceasefire under U.S. President Donald Trump's plan. While the Trump administration has ruled out sending U.S. soldiers into the Gaza Strip, it has been speaking to Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and Azerbaijan to contribute to the multinational force.	CBC	Kinder Morgan Heralds U.S. Gas, While Technip Keen on Oil
In Russia's 'blitz' of Ukraine, the question of appeasement is back		Summary: Russia's relentless bombardment sparks a "Blitz spirit" of Ukrainian resilience, yet this fortitude is overshadowed by the deeper existential fear of appeasement. This historical term has re-entered the global debate as President Trump pushes for a negotiated settlement along existing front lines, refusing long-range weapons. Ukrainian sentiment, however, remains clear: any concession to aggression will only embolden Putin's wider ambitions, demanding that the West provide the force necessary to stop the war rather than merely helping them endure it.	BBC	Dow Upbeat on Chemical Capacity Additions, Despite Slow Market
Oil steadies as US-China trade deal hopes counter demand concerns		Oil prices recovered from early losses on Monday as optimism over a trade deal framework between the U.S. and China countered concerns about weak demand for crude. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Sunday U.S. and Chinese officials had hashed out a "substantial framework" for a trade deal that could avoid 100% U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods and achieve a deferral of China's rare-earth export controls in trade discussions this week. This boosted global stocks on Monday, while safe-haven gold and bonds retreated, along with oil.	Reuters	Oil Sector Woes Continue, Spreading in North America
European markets edge higher with Fed meeting, Trump-Xi summit in focus Dow gains 200 points, hits record on potential China trade truce		European stocks were slightly higher as traders look ahead to the U.S. Federal Reserve's meeting, more earnings and signs of a rapprochement between Washington and Beijing. Regional markets had ended last week higher as investors reacted to the latest U.S. inflation print, the only federal data to be released during the ongoing government shutdown, and a flurry of corporate earnings reports. US Stocks jumped to new records on Monday after U.S. and China officials cooled tensions over the weekend, laying the groundwork for President Donald Trump and China President Xi Jinping to clinch a trade deal this week. Investors expect the Federal Reserve to slash rates on Wednesday, particularly after the Bureau of Labor Statistics released slightly cooler-than-expected inflation data last week. Big Tech companies' upcoming earnings reports are also on tap. Several "Magnificent Seven" stocks, including Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta Platforms and Microsoft, will release their third-quarter results this week.	CNBC	Procter & Gamble Stays Upbeat Amid Tariffs, Rising Prices Cleveland-Cliffs Turns to Rare Earths as Steel Demand Revives
Natural Gas News: Futures Rebound Above 50-Day Average with Weather Forecasts in Spotlight		U.S. natural gas futures opened the week with modest gains, extending Friday's bounce off a successful test of a short-term support zone. After briefly dropping to $3.200 late last week, futures reversed higher and are now testing key resistance levels, driven by a modest shift in near-term weather forecasts. However, strong bearish fundamentals--surging production and above-average storage--continue to cap upside potential. Unless colder trends solidify, sellers are expected to defend resistance aggressively, keeping natural gas futures under pressure heading into November.	FX Empire	Japan Gobbling Up U.S. Gas Assets
Latest US-China Trade Truce Leaves Fundamental Issues Unresolved		Chinese and US trade negotiators have lined up diplomatic wins for Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to unveil at a summit, including China resuming soy purchases and America walking back its latest tariff threat. Though, the deal ignores thorny issues, such as fundamental fights over national security and Trump's stated core mission of rebalancing trade, leaving those conflicts unresolved. Analysts say the deal leaves the hard, high-stakes conflicts for last, making it likely that a series of smaller, sectoral agreements will be achieved through sustained dialogue over the coming years.	Bloomberg	U.S. Battery Market Sees Strong Growth Despite Near-Term Hurdles
COP30 Climate Summit Could Set Global Sustainable Biofuels Target		Next month's global climate summit could debate and potentially adopt targets for sustainable biofuel production and use, Francesco La Camera, Director-General at the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), said on Monday. The participants in the summit would debate biofuels and potentially include a biofuels target in the final declaration, according to IRENA's chief. The goal could be boosting biofuels production four times by 2035 or setting a target for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) share in the global energy mix, La Camera said. Brazil last month launched the Belém Commitment for Sustainable Fuels--known as Belém 4x--an initiative aimed at building high-level political support for the global goal of quadrupling the production and use of sustainable fuels by 2035.	OilPrice	State Regulators Set Up Guardrails on Aggressive Data Center Construction Plans
Week 10/20/25 - 10/27/25		In the Far East, the U.S and China are prepared to hash out a "trade deal" later this week, which will have the commodity and economic markets breathing a huge sigh of relief. But will national security and a rebalancing of trade between these markets really be resolved? In truth, how much will have changed in the state of affairs between the two countries? Each side will claim "wins" as the world hopes--in vain--that economic uncertainties and volatilities will lessen. This is likely a calm before a much larger economic storm. The Fed is meeting this week with many expecting more rate cuts. Mr. Oil Market is rallying; however, in reality there is not enough demand. Global economics are not as rosy as pundits would have one believe in order to meet the glut of supply with inventories on land and sea filling up. But at least two out of the three major global concerns--the Middle East and Far East--could have resolutions, meaning the world's eyes will be turning to Eastern Europe and whether a ceasefire can be worked out there.
*MarCon (Market Condition 1-5, with 5 being the highest impact) indicates directional bias or price effect for the relevant commodity (Oil, Natural Gas, Chemicals, etc.) and is graded by our team of experts here at IIR.

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