Market sources say the US is seeking additional opportunities to secure access to Venezuelan mineral resources.

Zimbabwe has immediately banned exports of antimony and tungsten and suspended shipments of related ores and concentrates, the mines ministry confirmed, citing a July 21 letter from Mines Minister Thomas Ush to the state-owned Zimbabwe Mineral Marketing Corporation, which handles sales of all minerals except gold and silver. The measure is intended to push miners toward more local processing of raw materials. Separately, Zimbabwe suspended lithium concentrate exports in February to promote domestic value-added processing and curb illegal flows; that restriction was eased in April and a lithium export ban is currently scheduled to take effect in early 2027.

Hong Kong-listed oil and gas stocks rose after volatile trade; Sinopec (00386.HK) climbed more than 3.6%, while PetroChina (00857.HK), CNOOC (00883.HK), China Oilfield Services (02883.HK) and Shanghai Petrochemical (00338.HK) each gained over 1%.