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Bitcoin Under $70,000 for First Time Since Trump's Election

FILE PHOTO: Representation of Bitcoin cryptocurrency in this illustration taken September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Representation of Bitcoin cryptocurrency in this illustration taken September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Bitcoin Under $70,000 for First Time Since Trump's Election

FILE PHOTO: Representation of Bitcoin cryptocurrency in this illustration taken September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Representation of Bitcoin cryptocurrency in this illustration taken September 10, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Bitcoin, the world's biggest cryptocurrency, extended its price slump Thursday to trade under $70,000 for the first time since Donald Trump's presidential election victory in November 2024.

The digital currency dropped as low as $69,821.18 before climbing back above $70,000.

Bitcoin has fallen sharply in recent weeks as investors pull back from risky assets. It had reached a record high above $126,000 in October.

"Bitcoin continues to suffer... caught up in the broader risk-off mood and geopolitical turmoil that has pushed investors away from riskier assets towards safe havens," noted Victoria Scholar, head of investment at Interactive Investor.

The volatile cryptocurrency soared after Trump was elected as he was widely viewed as a strong supporter of the sector.

He publicly celebrated bitcoin crossing $100,000 for the first time in December 2024, AFP reported.

However it suffered a sharp setback in April last year, falling below $75,000 after the president's announcement of sweeping US tariffs rattled global markets.

It went on to reach a record-high of $126,251.31 six months later.

The latest downturn is driven largely by regulatory uncertainty.

While the US Congress passed a law in July to regulate stablecoins -- a form of cryptocurrency backed by traditional assets -- a broader crypto bill, the Clarity Act, has stalled in the Senate.

Bitcoin's has been hit also by Trump recently nominating former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh to head of the US central bank.

Warsh, seen by observers as a defender of the Fed's independence, reassured traditional markets, prompting investors to sell safe-haven assets such as gold and silver, whose prices plunged.

Many investors rushed also to sell cryptocurrencies and other risky assets to help raise cash.

Trump's close ties to the crypto sector have sparked accusations of conflicts of interest, as he has promoted his own cryptocurrency-related ventures since returning to office.

According to recent Bloomberg estimates, his family's fortune grew by $1.4 billion last year from digital assets alone.

Just hours before his inauguration in January 2025, the 79-year-old billionaire launched his own cryptocurrency, $TRUMP, which slumped after a blockbuster debut.

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Business

Al-Moammar Receives First Work Order Under HUMAIN Agreement, Worth More Than 148% of 2025 Revenue

A sign identifying Al-Moammar Information Systems Company in Riyadh (company website).
A sign identifying Al-Moammar Information Systems Company in Riyadh (company website).
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Al-Moammar Receives First Work Order Under HUMAIN Agreement, Worth More Than 148% of 2025 Revenue

A sign identifying Al-Moammar Information Systems Company in Riyadh (company website).
A sign identifying Al-Moammar Information Systems Company in Riyadh (company website).

Al-Moammar Information Systems Company (MIS) has received its first work order under its agreement with HUMAIN, with a total value exceeding 148 percent of the company's total revenue for 2025, including value-added tax.

In a statement on Saudi Exchange on Sunday, the company said Work Order No. 1, received on October 1, covers the scope of work related to a capacity of 50 megawatts. This was the scope previously announced as part of a project to design and build data centers dedicated to artificial intelligence technologies.

The company said the financial impact of the work order began in the second quarter of fiscal year 2026.

The work order was received under an agreement signed by Al-Moammar Information Systems with HUMAIN last September, with a value exceeding 689 percent of the company's total revenue for 2025, including value-added tax. The agreement includes an expansion of the project's scope from 50 megawatts to 250 megawatts.

When the agreement was announced, the company said the engineering, procurement, and construction works would be carried out through work orders issued by HUMAIN in accordance with the terms of the agreement. The company would announce each work order upon receipt, including its value, implementation period, and financial impact.

Al-Moammar Information Systems expects to receive additional work orders related to the further expansion of the project in the coming period and will announce any material developments in this regard when they occur.

Business

OPEC+ Agrees to Keep November Oil Output Targets Steady

FILE PHOTO: A view shows the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, May 28 , 2024. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view shows the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, May 28 , 2024. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
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OPEC+ Agrees to Keep November Oil Output Targets Steady

FILE PHOTO: A view shows the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, May 28 , 2024. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A view shows the logo of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) outside its headquarters in Vienna, Austria, May 28 , 2024. REUTERS/Leonhard Foeger/File Photo

OPEC+ agreed to keep oil production targets steady for November at a meeting on Sunday, the producer group said, in line with expectations that further output policy adjustments are unlikely until next year.

Seven core members of the group comprising the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies including Russia made the decision for November in a brief online meeting on Sunday. The core members are Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Kazakhstan and Oman.

Oil prices had dropped on Friday after European leaders agreed to US President Donald Trump's request to release diesel reserves. Even so, Brent crude remains above $100 a barrel, up from about $73 before the Iran war started in late February.

The Iran war has also delayed the group's output capacity review — crucial to determine members’ 2027 output quotas — because it has thrown estimates of future production potential into uncertainty, industry sources told Reuters last week.

OPEC+ has been raising output targets for much of 2026 after years of production cuts, but most of the increases stayed on paper because of the Middle East conflict.

The seven core OPEC+ members pumped 25 million barrels per day in August, up 630,000 bpd from July, yet still roughly 5 million bpd below prewar levels in February, OPEC data shows.

The seven hold their next meeting on November 1.

OPEC+ still has about 2 million bpd of output cuts in place covering most members. It needs the result of the capacity review to decide how to distribute increases and any changes to output are unlikely before 2027, sources have said.

A separate OPEC+ ministerial group called the Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC), which does not decide policy, also met on Sunday to review the market.

Business

Saudi Arabia Announces Results of Natural Gas Distribution Licensing Competition in Al-Kharj

A worker at one of Saudi Aramco's gas facilities.
A worker at one of Saudi Aramco's gas facilities.
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Saudi Arabia Announces Results of Natural Gas Distribution Licensing Competition in Al-Kharj

A worker at one of Saudi Aramco's gas facilities.
A worker at one of Saudi Aramco's gas facilities.

The Ministry of Energy today announced the results of a competition for a license to establish, own, and operate a natural gas distribution network in the industrial city of Al-Kharj in central Saudi Arabia.

The ministry had previously invited interested investors to participate in the competition to obtain the license and completed the procedures for qualifying bidders, launching the competition, and evaluating the bids.

As part of the competition, Natural Gas Distribution Company was awarded a license to establish, own, and operate the distribution network in the industrial city of Al-Kharj.

The competition will contribute to the objectives of the Liquid Fuel Displacement Program and the replacement of liquid fuels with natural gas, with the aim of maximizing the economic, environmental, and social benefits that the Kingdom derives from its petroleum resources as part of Vision 2030.

The launch of the competition is part of the ministry's efforts to strengthen the natural gas sector's infrastructure and stimulate investment in the sector by creating an attractive competitive environment that enables beneficiaries to access natural gas and improves the quality of services provided.