Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from Singapore, and it's day two of the CONVERGE LIVE event.
Today's headline act was former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who made his first comments on the conflict in the Middle East and the troubled path to peace.
The fragility of the extended ceasefire is also keeping markets on edge, with choppy trading in Asia feeding into the opening calls for Europe and the U.S.
My key takeaway from this trip? Uncertainty is uncertainty, and no matter where you are in the world, people have accepted this as the new reality.
What you need to know today
Canada's former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at CNBC's CONVERGE LIVE in Singapore Thursday that international financial institutions were "spectacularly ill-adjusted" to respond to modern-day issues.
"You can look to different places around the world to realize that those institutions, whether it was the WTO or the IMF or what have you, aren't necessarily fit for purpose in our decades now," Trudeau told CNBC's Mandy Drury.
His comments come against the backdrop of the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. "I think the parties involved all want to see a path through this. I don't think they're yet at the place where they can share a path through this. I think, unfortunately, this instability is going to last a while yet," Trudeau said.
Later today, CNBC's Steve Sedgwick will speak with IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol at CONVERGE LIVE. You can watch all the action from Singapore here.
Asian markets gave up early gains and swung to losses as investor confidence wavered on media reports that the U.S. has intercepted at least three Iranian oil tankers in Asian waters, heightening uncertainty that the Middle East conflict may drag on.
Earlier in Thursday's session, Japan and South Korea stocks hit record highs, trailing overnight gains on Wall Street after President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire with Iran, boosting investor sentiment alongside strong corporate earnings.
It's a negative picture for futures in Europe and the U.S., with major markets looking to give up gains when they open for trade Thursday.
— Leonie Kidd
English (US) · 