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Daily Update — June 23, 2025

Climate Change Impacts on Ports; Managing AI Costs; and June Economic Outlook

Today is Monday, June 23, 2025, and here’s your curated selection of Essential Intelligence on global markets from S&P Global. Subscribe to be notified of each new Daily Update.

Energy Transition & Sustainability

Climate change jeopardizes key port infrastructure, energy flows

 

A report by JP Morgan highlights that climate change poses a significant threat to port infrastructure, with an estimated annual value-at-risk of $7.6 billion. Ports are increasingly vulnerable to natural hazards such as hurricanes, floods and earthquakes, which can jeopardize operational capabilities. With projections indicating a rise in sea levels of up to 40 cm between 2020 and 2050, major ports such as Houston, Antwerp and Shanghai face heightened risks.

 

The Port of Houston, a critical hub for energy trade, is particularly susceptible to severe weather events. Past incidents, such as Hurricane Ike in 2008, which resulted in $2.4 billion in damages, illustrate the potential for cascading effects on global trade and economic security.

Artificial Intelligence

Listen: FinOps – Managing Cloud and AI Costs

 

Managing IT costs has always been challenging, and the FinOps movement — which focuses on controlling cloud costs — is working to tackle this problem. Analysts Jean Atelsek and Melanie Posey return to the "Next in Tech" podcast to discuss their research and what they saw at the FinOps X conference with host Eric Hanselman.

 

The move to the cloud has exacerbated cost angst, with the shift from capital expense to operational expense proving complicated for many. The infrastructure spending growth being driven by AI initiatives has only just begun, but it is already concerning. As cloud costs have become material expenses, more focus has been put on managing them. There are a host of startups looking to provide tools, and cloud providers all have some form of cost-management tooling.

Economy

Global Economic Outlook: June 2025

 

The Israel-Iran conflict has elicited a muted response from commodity and financial markets, with Dated Brent crude priced at about $76 per barrel — an $8 increase from the average prior to initial missile strikes. While the impact on major equity indexes and safe-haven assets like gold and the Swiss franc has been limited, any escalation could significantly disrupt energy supply, particularly if the Strait of Hormuz were to close, leading to substantial output losses in the Middle East, Asia-Pacific and Europe.

 

Even without conflict escalation, the strength of first-quarter growth rates is expected to fade. Recent forecasts show raised real GDP growth projections for 2025–26 across many economies, reflecting improved financial conditions. However, growth rates for this year and the next are anticipated to remain below potential, falling short of pre-November 2024 election levels as the initial boost from higher tariffs begins to unwind.

 

Learn more with data from the Purchasing Managers’ Index.

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