Ceasefire Between Israel and Hamas Comes Into Force
The official ceasefire between Israel and Hamas became possible on October 10, 2025, after months of warfare and unsuccessful talks. The truce is grounded in a 20-point peace plan proclaimed by the U.S. President Donald Trump, which involves the delivery of hostages back, gradual withdrawals on the Israeli side, etc.
In the first step of the deal, all the living hostages will be exchanged for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners (250 of them serving life sentences) in 72 hours. The Israeli troops will also withdraw to the agreed lines in the Gaza Strip.
Although the cessation of fighting has been welcomed, according to several analysts, the underlying causes have led to the fight remaining unresolved and will challenge the validity of the truce: territorial demilitarisation and governance in Gaza.
Markets React: Global Stocks Slump on U.S.–China Tariff Threat
The tensions in the financial markets reached a peak when President Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Chinese goods by a massive percentage as retaliation for the new export controls on critical minerals imposed by Beijing. The S&P 500 declined by up to 1.6% and then recovered slightly, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq fell by 1.8%.
In their turn, investors turned to gold and U.S. Treasury bonds. The 10-year treasury yield went down to 4.06, and the gold prices went high above 4,000 per ounce. Besides, oil prices remained on a negative path, being caught between the ceasefire and anticipated low demand.
OPEC+ Votes for Modest Production Increase Amid Supply Risks
In a subtle gesture, the OPEC+ coalition voted to increase oil output by an additional 137,000 barrels per day in November 2025 – a replica of its October increment. The ruling highlights the increasing worries on the potential oversupply particularly with the U.S. production increasing and the international demand apparently slowing down.
The internal processes resulting in such agreement were complicated. The Russian market was limited by the international sanctions, and Russia wanted to have a smaller increase, but Saudi Arabia demanded a more aggressive way to regain market share. In the future, OPEC+ will make progressive voluntary reductions back (which now stand at 5.85 million barrels per day) and will meet again on November 2 to review the policy.
India Hosts Fintech Bonanza: GFF 2025 Highlights AI-Powered Finance
At home soil, India rocked as the Global Fintech Fest 2025 (GFF 2025) deposited on Mumbai between October 7-9. Arranging the event in collaboration with the Payments Council of India, NPCI, and the Fintech Convergence Council, the event brought together over 100,000 representatives of 100 plus countries.
The theme of the fest, which was Empowering Finance to a Better World Powered by AI, emphasized the drive towards using artificial intelligence in the financial system. Among the highlights:
AI-based UPI Help: This is a new assistant that assists users with payments, mandates, and dispute resolution.
ChatGPT-powered Payments: A pilot that lets people make e-commerce payments through conversational AI interfaces.
Finternet Platform: Proposed Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) will use tokenization to simplify payments.
Unified Market Interface: This is a system that is set to be revealed by the RBI Governor and is meant to streamline trading in different financial markets.
The fest represented the intention of India to be on the forefront of financial innovation around the world with special focus on human insight, together with computerized systems to promote accessibility and transparency.
Looking Ahead: Key Developments to Watch
The durability of ceasefire and peace talks: Can the existing truce be sustained and will the stakeholders be able to pass on to a sustainable political settlement?
Risk of tariff upsurge and trade war: There are more threats, or retaliation, which would shake the world markets.
OPEC+ policy changes: the further output policy can be determined by demand and political changes.
AI regulation and fintech adoption: With the shift to a more technologically oriented finance, the issue of policy-making and the system of security will become central.
