Intelligence officials in the US believe that a pro-Ukrainian group was responsible for sabotaging the Nord Stream gas pipeline, according to The New York Times. However, there is currently no evidence to suggest that the Ukrainian government was involved.
Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, revealed during Morgan Stanley’s investor conference on March 7th that he plans to add payment systems to Twitter. He believes that this will turn Twitter into the largest financial institution in the world by giving people convenient payment options.
Thousands of Georgians protested in Tbilisi on March 7th against a new law requiring media and NGOs with foreign ties to register as officials. Police responded with tear gas and high-pressure water cannons to disperse the protesters who were labelled as “foreign agents”.
Natsuo Yamaguchi, the leader of the Komeito Party, the ruling coalition of Japan, stated that Prime Minister Fumio Kishida plans to hold a summit with South Korean President, Mr. Yoon Seok Yeol, next week.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced that the US-led coalition forces have toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein nearly 20 years ago. However, Austin also noted that there is still more work to be done to ensure the stability and security of Iraq.
According to an official, there have been more deaths from floods in Malaysia, with the latest death toll standing at five. Over 42,000 people are homeless after heavy rains last week in the southern Malaysian state of Johor, which borders Singapore.
Several important economic data are set to be released today. Japan will release the current account balance for January, while Germany will release industrial production and retail sales for the same month. The US will release private payrolls for February from ADP, as well as data on imports, exports, and trade balance for January, job openings and turnover for January’s Labor (JOLTS), and weekly oil stocks from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).