President Donald Trump speaks about the Trump Account, an investment savings account for children, in the Oval Office of the White House on October 7, 2026 in Washington.
Alex Wroblewski AFP | Getty Images
Hello, this is Leonie Kidd from London. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.
It’s a huge political gamble ahead of the midterm elections.
President Trump’s announcement of a diesel deal with Russia surprised the international community. And now questions are being raised about whether the Russian government will be able to supply the United States with enough diesel to make a deal a reality.
It’s a risk, but so far oil is falling and futures are rising.
Read more.
What you need to know today
Investors are trying to gauge oil prices after US President Donald Trump announced an “energy ceasefire” between Russia and Ukraine.
However, there is widespread confusion over the envisaged agreement. Ukraine reacted with surprise, saying it first heard about the move from President Trump’s Truth Social post. Second, Moscow attacked the power plant just hours after President Zelenskiy’s announcement.
“Where the supplies in the Trump deal will come from is a mystery, but unless they come from domestic supplies, it will cripple Russia’s economy,” Neil Atkinson, a former oil chief at the International Energy Agency, said in a memo to CNBC.
That’s creating uncertainty, but oil prices are lower in early trading. Brent crude remains above $103 per barrel, and US West Texas Intermediate futures are hovering around $90 per barrel.
Saudi Arabia strengthens its defense
President Trump has also focused on other conflicts.
He said he was considering joining Saudi Arabia’s retaliation against the Tehran-backed Houthis in Yemen following the deadly attack on Riyadh’s King Khalid Airport.
The attack caused major disruption to air travel and triggered a wave of cancellations of events to be held in the Saudi capital this week, with this week’s World Petroleum Conference most directly affected. The country will host the Future Investment Initiative from October 26-29.
Focus on profit
economics gets blamed
The annual meetings of the IMF and the World Bank are being held in Bangkok.
As geopolitical shocks, rising public debt, and the threat of AI to jobs cloud the global outlook, CNBC goes to the ground to speak with finance ministers, central bank governors, and business leaders.
There are two dates worth noting. Investors will be listening closely as the IMF is scheduled to release its World Economic Outlook and Global Financial Stability Report on Tuesday, and Fed Chairman Kevin Warsh will join the talks on Friday.
— Leonie Kidd. Anniek Bao contributed to this newsletter.
And finally…
TikTok CEO says we will see major scientific advances with AI within 3 years
TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew predicts that artificial intelligence will drive major scientific advances and transform a wide range of fields within the next three years.
“Within the next two to three years, we’re going to see real scientific advances in physics, biotechnology, chemistry and materials science, thanks to AI. It’s very, very, very possible,” Chew said at the DBS Asia Future Forward conference in Singapore on Monday.
Chu’s comments come as ByteDance, TikTok’s Chinese parent company, is expanding its artificial intelligence research beyond consumer applications. In April, the company’s seed research team announced Protenix-v2, an AI model focused on structural prediction and design of biomolecules, with potential applications in drug discovery.
— Li Yingshan
