11:11 | Twin quakes hit Venezuela; Anthropic accuses Alibaba of AI theft, and more

Good morning,

A powerful double earthquake has left Venezuela reeling after twin tremors measuring 7.2 and 7.5 struck off the country's coast, with buildings collapsing in Caracas and shaking felt across parts of northern South America.

Meanwhile, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said tariff rates could return to their previous levels if ongoing Section 301 reviews conclude successfully, offering fresh clues on the Trump administration's trade strategy.

This edition of 11:11 also tracks a sharp slide

in gold and silver prices, Alibaba's latest AI controversy, and key corporate and market-moving stories to start the day.

Venezuela earthquake: Buildings collapse as 7.2 magnitude strike hits Caracas; 'high casualties' likely

Venezuela's capital, Caracas, was hit by a powerful earthquake with a magnitude of 7.2 on Wednesday. The earthquake, which hit about 160 km west of Caracas, within less than a minute, was followed by a magnitude 7.5 strike, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS).

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Gold slips below $4,000 an ounce, silver tumbles nearly 2%: Factors at play

Gold and silver prices extended losses on Thursday (June 25) as a firm US dollar and rising expectations of further Federal Reserve interest rate hikes continued to weigh on investor sentiment across precious metals markets.

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Alibaba shares stumble to 16-month low after Anthropic’s AI theft accusations

Anthropic accused Alibaba of carrying out an extensive campaign to access Claude, its flagship artificial intelligence model, by deploying thousands of proxy accounts, calling it the biggest attempt by a Chinese company to stride on US AI technology.

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US to reverse tariffs to 'exactly where they were' after Section 301 reviews: Bessent to CNBC

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said tariff rates could return to their previous levels if ongoing Section 301 investigations conclude successfully, signaling the Trump administration intends to preserve much of its tariff framework even after shifting away from emergency powers.

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Here's why Goldman Sachs expects shares of this defence company to fall further

Shares of Bharat Dynamics Ltd. are expected to be in focus on Thursday, June 25, after the defence PSU secured fresh orders worth ₹1,350 crore from Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) for Helina launchers and Counter Measure Dispensing System (CMDS) Line Replaceable Units (LRUs).

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Explained - Why Hindalco, NALCO, Vedanta Aluminium shares could fall up to 40% as per InCred

Shares of Vedanta Aluminium Ltd., National Aluminium Company Ltd., and Hindalco Industries Ltd., could fall between 30% to 40% from current levels, according to the latest note released by InCred equities on Thursday, June 25.

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Rupee climbs 37 paise despite strong dollar pressure

The Indian rupee opened stronger at 94.30 against the US dollar on Thursday (June 25), gaining 37 paise from Wednesday’s (June 26's) close of 94.67/$, supported by a sharp fall in global crude oil prices and likely intervention by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

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PwC sees India’s asset wealth market doubling to $1.7 trillion by 2030

India’s asset and wealth management (AWM) industry is on track to nearly double its assets under management (AuM) to $1.7 trillion by 2030, up from $0.9 trillion in 2024, according to a new PwC report released on Wednesday (June 24).

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El Niño concerns for Hero MotoCorp are overstated, says CLSA. Here's why

Shares of Hero MotoCorp Ltd. opened with gains of around 3% on Thursday, June 25, after brokerage firm CLSA reiterated its 'Outperform' rating on the stock and assigned a price target of ₹5,728. The target implies an upside potential of nearly 17% from Hero MotoCorp's closing price of ₹4,894 on Wednesday.

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India, US poised for deeper collaboration in tech and trade as talks progress: Greer

As India and the US move closer to finalising an interim trade agreement, US Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer has said the two countries are looking beyond traditional trade and towards deeper cooperation in emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence.

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5 dead, 20 rescued in Kolkata warehouse collapse, CM halts TMC-era projects in city till July 31

Five workers perished, and around 20 others were rescued and hospitalised after a three-storey under-construction warehouse collapsed in Kolkata’s Taratala area on Wednesday, June 24, prompting Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari to order a halt to all construction projects approved till July 31.

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