Premium: Russia recognizes independence of two breakaway regions in Ukraine

It appears that we can finally make sense of Russian president Vladimir Putin's seemingly irrational actions of the past few weeks. Last night Putin showed his hand by sending troops into the far eastern parts of Ukraine that, for three years already, have been controlled by Russian-aligned rebels. The territories will almost certainly now be absorbed back into Mother Russia. Perhaps that, rather than World War Three, was always Putin's intention. China's reaction certainly suggests it was in on the high stakes game.

Similarly far-reaching news is Elon Musk switching Tesla away from current battery technology to the old fashioned, much cheaper iron-based alternative. The massive demand for nickel-based lithium phosphate batteries sent prices of related minerals through the roof. Perhaps his mining-rich South African roots reminded Musk the cure for a commodity's high price is its high price (like $100 oil now drawing frackers back into previously abandoned areas – see below).

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