Prices of international crude oil futures rose by over 3 percent on Sunday evening, as concerns about oil supply in the international market reemerged amid escalating tensions in the U.S.-Iran conflict.
As of 18:15 Eastern Time on Sunday, the West Texas Intermediate for August delivery rose 2.54 U.S. dollars, or 3.56 percent, to 73.95 dollars per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange; while Brent crude for July delivery rose 2.79 dollars, or 3.67 percent, to 78.80 dollars per barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange.
Following the memorandum of understanding reached between the United States and Iran in June, the prospect of reopening the Strait of Hormuz briefly pushed international crude oil futures prices down to their lowest level since early March. However, with the renewed conflict between the U.S. and Iran last week, oil prices rebounded significantly.
Crude oil prices surge on escalated US-Iran conflict
A record number of passenger trips were made across China in the first half of 2026, with more than 2.3 billion recorded, up 5 percent from the previous year, according to data released by the national railway operator Monday.
An average of 11,468 passenger trains were operated daily during the six-month period, representing a 5.8 percent year-on-year rise, figures from the China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. (China Railway) showed.
During this period, the national railway system efficiently managed peak travel surges during the Qingming Festival, May Day, and Duanwu Festival holidays, handling record-breaking passenger volumes on multiple occasions.
On May 1 alone, daily passenger volume reached 24.844 million trips nationwide, setting a new all-time high.
Cross-border rail travel has continued to grow in the first half of the year, with the China-Laos Railway carrying 188,000 trips, up 25.9 percent from a year earlier, while the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong high-speed railway handled 16.96 million cross-border trips, an increase of 13.8 percent year on year, China Railway said.
Adapting to the passenger flow growth brought by the country's transit visa-free policy, China's railway network has facilitated increased travel for foreign passengers, recording over 12.31 million foreign passenger trips in the first half, a surge of 33.6 percent year on year.
China's railway passenger trips top 2.3 bln in H1
