** An explosion at a U.S. Steel plant south of Pittsburgh killed two people and injured more than 10 others. The CEO has vowed to find out what caused Monday’s blast while the workers’ union says it will make sure there’s a thorough investigation.
** Five countries account for more than two-thirds of the world’s total nuclear electricity generation capacity. The United States has the most capacity, followed by France, China, Russia, and South Korea, based on International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) data as of June 2025. Globally, 416 nuclear power reactors are operating in 31 countries, with a total installed net generating capacity of 376 gigawatts (GW).
** U.S. customs officials are ramping up enforcement of a trade law meant to block products made with Chinese forced labor, which has translated into increased detentions of electronics like solar cells and modules.
** Federal Energy Regulatory Commission Chair Mark Christie steps down from his post just six months after President Trump appointed him, leaving the commission with a 2-1 Democratic majority as Trump’s new appointees await Senate approval.
** NRG Energy Inc. secures a $216 million loan to fund a 456 MW gas-fired power plant near Houston from the taxpayer-funded Texas Energy Fund, marking the largest such loan approved since state lawmakers created the fund two years ago.
** The U.S. EPA dissolves its collective bargaining agreement with the federal employees union that represents its workers.
** UPS continues to lay off workers as it moves forward with a strategy of consolidating parcel distribution facilities to reduce excess capacity. The latest job cuts are in Dallas, Texas, and Wilmington, North Carolina.
World
** China on Tuesday announced preliminary anti-dumping duties on Canadian canola imports, a fresh escalation in the year-long trade dispute that began with Ottawa’s imposition of tariffs on Chinese electric vehicle imports last August.
** Finnish authorities said Monday they have charged the captain and two senior officers of a Russia-linked vessel that damaged undersea cables last year between Finland and Estonia.
** China has merged two of its giant state-owned shipbuilding firms to create an RMB 700 billion ($97.4b) company. China State Shipbuilding Corporation (CSSC) and China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC) had previously been one state-owned enterprise (SOE), but were split in 1999.
** Shares of Albemarle (ALB) and other lithium producers took off on reports big Chinese battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., or CATL, said it was suspending production at one of the largest mines in the world.
** Toyota Motor Corporation announced that it plans to build a new vehicle manufacturing plant in Japan, despite the recent import tariff hikes in the US. Japan’s largest automaker said that it aims to maintain its vehicle production capacity in the country at around 3 million units per year.
** Stellantis hopes to counteract some of the expected 1.5 billion-euro ($1.7 billion) cost of tariffs this year by boosting North American profitability with new model launches like the discontinued Jeep Cherokee, the carmaker’s new CEO said on Tuesday.