Nuclear fusion energy company Helion said on Thursday it raised $465 million in its latest funding round, led by Thrive Capital, valuing the Washington-based firm at $15.5 billion after the investment.The round nearly triples Helion’s valuation from its last Series F funding round in January 2025, when it raised $425 million at a valuation of $5.4 billion.The financing underscores surging demand for electricity to power massive data centers dedicated to artificial intelligence operations.

June 5 (Reuters) - Goldman Sachs said in a note on Friday that global oil demand has declined ​more than expected, posing two-sided risks to ‌its fourth-quarter 2026 Brent crude price forecast of $90 a barrel and WTI forecast of $83 per barrel.The bank ​estimated 4 million to 5 million barrels ​per day (mb/d) of global oil demand destruction ⁠in April, as the closure of the ​Strait of Hormuz to oil tankers appeared to ​have reduced global demand by 4% to 5%.

Perth Mint’s gold product sales hit a more than one-year low in May, while silver sales declined 27% month-on-month, the refiner said on Friday.Sales of gold coins and minted bars last month fell 58% from April to 19,430 ounces, and were down 31% on a year-on-year basis.Silver sales fell to 363,976 ounces last month from 496,212 ounces in April, and were down about 27% on a year-on-year basis.

Major miners and their lobbyists have asked Canberra for help in pushing back against China’s efforts to extract better terms for their iron ore, including raising the prospect of a single selling desk for Australia’s most valuable commodity export, senior government officials said on Friday.China’s state iron ore buyer, China Mineral Resources Group (CMRG), has been using increasingly hardball tactics against mining giants to win better deals for the country’s steel mills, to tighten its grip on the $132 billion seaborne market.

Indonesia’s nickel industry group FINI said production capacity utilization at rotary kiln electric furnace (RKEF) smelters in the country has dropped to 76% from 84% last year after nickel ore mining quotas were cut.Indonesia’s energy ministry cut the nickel ore production quota in 2026 to 260 million to 270 million metric tons, below the 320 million tons of nickel ore produced last year and FINI’s demand estimate for this year of 340 million to 350 million tons, due to previous years’ oversupply and depressed prices.

Gold demand was subdued in India as buyers stayed on the sidelines due to volatile overseas prices, while premiums in China eased slightly.Domestic gold prices were trading around 158,400 rupees per 10 grams on Friday.Dealers quoted discounts of up to $87 an ounce over official domestic prices this week, inclusive of 15% import and 3% sales levies, down from last week’s discounts of up to $106 an ounce.

TORONTO, June 5 (Reuters) - The Canadian dollar edged ​lower against its U.S. counterpart on Friday, but the decline was less than for ‌other Group of 10 currencies after data showed that the U.S. and Canadian economies added more jobs than expected last month.

June 5 (Reuters) - Gold fell more than 2% on Friday after a stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs report reinforced ‌expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates higher for longer amid inflation concerns fuelled by the war in the Middle East.Spot gold was down 2.4% at $4,365.93 per ounce at 10:15 a.m. EDT (1415 GMT), having ​fallen about 3.8% this week so far. Bullion fell to its lowest level since ​March 26 earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures for August delivery fell ⁠2.5% to $4,390.70.

NEW YORK/LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - The dollar was higher on Friday after the U.S. economy posted another month of strong ​employment gains in May.Nonfarm payrolls increased by 172,000 jobs last month, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said in ‌its closely watched employment report on Friday. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast payrolls increasing by 85,000 jobs after a previously reported 115,000 rise in April.

TORONTO, June 5 (Reuters) - Canadian economic activity expanded at a ​faster pace in May and ‌inflation pressures heated up, Ivey Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) data ​showed on Friday.The seasonally ​adjusted index rose to ⁠58.2 from 57.7 in ​April, marking the highest level ​since September.The Ivey PMI measures the month to month variation in ​economic activity as ​indicated by a panel of purchasing ‌managers ⁠from across Canada. A reading above 50 indicates an increase in activity.The gauge ​of ​employment dipped ⁠to an adjusted 54.3 from 54.7 ​in April.

BENGALURU, June 5 - The Bank of Canada will hold its key overnight rate at 2.25% on June 10 and for the rest of the year, according to ​a majority of economists polled by Reuters, despite rising inflation risks stemming from a conflict-driven ‌rise in energy prices.While a persistent energy shock due to the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran pushed inflation to 2.8% in April from March's 2.4%, it remained within the central bank's 1-3% target range and a decline in core ​inflation suggests demand remains weak.

LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - Hedge funds, particularly those trading stocks, beat global benchmarks in May as rising equities led by ​the U.S. tech sector buoyed the returns of traders.Stock-picking ‌hedge funds returned 5.35% in May compared to the MSCI total return index, which posted a 4.55% gain, said a note from Goldman Sachs (GS.N), ​seen by Reuters.The S&P 500 (.SPX), finished May with its ninth straight ​weekly gain, its longest winning streak since December 2023, fueled at ⁠the time by hopes of progress towards a peaceful resolution of ​the Iran war.

LONDON, June 5 (Reuters) - Bitcoin is heading for its worst performance for this point in the year in at least a decade, as booming AI stocks and a series of glittering upcoming new ​listings such as SpaceX lure away capital from the world's largest cryptocurrency.Its price has tumbled around 15% this week, the most since November 2022, when ‌trading platform FTX imploded. At around $63,000, bitcoin has lost a third in value so far in 2026, more at this point in the year than at any time since at least 2015, LSEG data shows.

NEW YORK, June 5 (Reuters) - U.S. interest rate ​futures on Friday increased the ‌chances that the Federal Reserves will raise interest rates by the ​December policy meeting after ​a blockbuster payrolls number for ⁠May, which sharply exceeded market expectations.The rate ​futures market has now priced ​in a 65% chance of Fed tightening in December, compared with just ​48% before the jobs report, ​according to LSEG estimates. For the June ‌meeting, ⁠the market still expects the Fed to hold interest rates steady at 3.5%-3.75%.

ATHENS, June 5 - Greece is preparing legislation to impose a 15% capital gains tax on cryptocurrencies, ​two government officials with knowledge of the ‌issue told Reuters on Friday.Greece doesn't have a comprehensive legal framework for taxing cryptocurrencies, and European Union countries ​don't have a unified taxation system for ​the sector.A senior government official told Reuters ⁠that the Finance Ministry is preparing a law ​that is expected to be submitted to the ​parliament in coming months.

June 5 (Reuters) - Futures tracking Canada's blue-chip stocks edged lower on Friday as uncertainty ​over peace efforts in the Middle East weighed, while ‌investors awaited a key payrolls report due later in the day.June futures on the S&P/TSX index were down 0.2% at 6:54 a.m. ​ET (1054 GMT).Iran-backed Hezbollah militia rejected a new Lebanon ceasefire ​on Thursday while Israel said it would not withdraw ⁠troops, undermining U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to halt ​fighting there and forge peace with Tehran.

NEW YORK/HOUSTON, June 5 (Reuters) - At the prairie town that calls itself the pipeline crossroads of the world, some 400 oil storage tanks sprawled across Cushing, ​Oklahoma, are nearly empty, drained by refiners worldwide to plug a massive shortfall in global supplies caused by war in the Middle East.Cushing is among the largest oil ‌storage hubs in the world. Oil levels in its tanks have fallen rapidly since the war began and Iran effectively closed tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz.

June 5 (Reuters) - The euro has struggled against the dollar this year and appears to be approaching a critical juncture on the charts that could decide whether it stabilizes or drops into a lower range.

NEW YORK, June 5 (Reuters) - The long-awaited, massive SpaceX initial public offering is expected next week, a major event for the U.S. stock market, with investors wary of possible overexuberance after a stunning ​rally.Investors will also assess fresh inflation data and earnings reports from key companies in the technology sector, which has driven the market's recent surge.The ‌benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX), was on pace for a slim weekly rise, building on nine straight weeks of gains.

June 5 (Reuters) - S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures fell on ​Friday, as chipmakers lost steam following a strong rally and investors stayed cautious ahead of the May employment report, which ‌could shape expectations for the Federal Reserve's policy path.Nvidia (NVDA.O), the largest company by market value, fell 1.2%, while Intel (INTC.O), Micron (MU.O), AMD (AMD.O), and Broadcom (AVGO.O), dropped between 1.2% and 2.5% in premarket trading.