Coming Up This Week

• The U.S. Democratic National Convention starts today and ends Thursday in Chicago.
• Today is the 105th anniversary of Afghanistan's independence from Britain. The Taliban government celebrated it by scorning "the enemy" (the West) for its "intellectual and cultural invasion" (calling for better rights for women and minorities) - while simultaneously pleading for international recognition.

• Aluminum: $2,366/ton
• Antimony (ingot min. 99.65% fob China): $23,700/ton
• Cobalt: $24,900/ton (an eight-year low due to oversupply and declining demand)
• Copper: $9,116/ton
• Gold: $2,501/toz (up 4.7% in the last 30 days to an all-time high because of concerns about Iran-Israel escalation and optimism for a likely U.S. interest rate cut)
• Lead: $2,037/ton
• Natural Gas (Nymex): $2.12/MMbtu
• WTI Crude Oil (Nymex): $75.95/barrel
• Zinc: $2,763/ton

• Ukraine has destroyed two key bridges in the Kursk region of Russia in the past few days, leaving just one bridge to supply the area (according to Russian media).
• The bridge strikes suggest Ukraine's invading troops intend to hold onto ground they've captured - or at least make Russia think that's their intention. It will be much harder for Russia to reinforce its units in Kursk without these two bridges.
• Separately, Pres. Putin's closest ally, Pres. Lukashenko of Belarus, called on Russia and Ukraine to enter peace talks: "Let's sit down at the negotiating table and end this scuffle." ["Scuffle" seems an odd choice of word to describe a two-and-a-half-year war that has killed or injured nearly 580,000 Russian troops (per Ukraine), 190,000 Ukrainian troops (per U.S. officials), and at least 35,000 Ukrainian civilians (per the UN).]
• Lukashenko's comment may have been intended as a precursor to an announcement that Ukraine and Russia were entering peace talks: according to the Washington Post, the two sides were indeed about to enter indirect peace talks to discuss a partial ceasefire halting attacks on critical infrastructure via Qatari mediators...until Ukraine's incursions into Russia gave Russia cold feet.
• A diplomat involved in the talks said Russia "didn’t call off the talks, they said give us time." However, neither Russia nor Ukraine formally confirmed they were about to enter negotiations, and some officials denied it.

• U.S. SecState Blinken is in Israel to present a "bridging proposal" to bring Israel and Hamas back to the negotiating table.
• Leaked reports suggest the "bridging proposal" omits at least two of PM Netanyahu's key demands, including his insistence that Israel maintain a presence in post-war Gaza to ensure Hamas won't regain power.
• If Blinken can get Netanyahu to agree to the proposed terms, they'll be presented to Hamas next.

• Supporters of Venezuela's opposition held demonstrations in Venezuela and around the world to protest Pres. Maduro's theft of the July 28 election.
• Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado urged Venezuelan voters to print out vote tally sheets from their local polling station and bring them to the demonstrations to augment the opposition's evidence that its candidate, former diplomat Edmundo Gonzalez, beat Maduro by the same 2-to-1 margin exit polls recorded.
• Local reports suggest Maduro's security forces have arrested over 2,000 Venezuelans for protesting against Maduro or questioning his election claims.

• Thailand's legislature elected Paetongtarn Shinawatra - a daughter of ex-PM Thaksin Shinawatra and niece of ex-PM Yingluck Shinawatra - to be its new (and youngest ever) PM after PM Thavisin was forced to resign over an ethics issue.
• Paetongtarn's father Thaksin leads the ruling party, but he's still on trial for violating Thailand's draconian lèse-majesté law.