Top stories this morning: silver hits record high, xAI raises $20 billion, China to review Meta deal

Silver set a new record, gaining 15% since the beginning of 2026. Elon Musk's AI startup xAI raised $20 billion to expand its AI infrastructure and data centers. Meta faced scrutiny from China over its deal to buy startup Manus. Read about these and other topics in our review of key events as of the morning of January 7.

Silver prices closed above $80 per troy ounce for the first time on Tuesday, January 6, setting a new record high, according to The Wall Street Journal. Since the beginning of 2025, the metal has risen in price by 177%, including a 15% increase since the beginning of this year.

Although gold also hit a new high and closed at $4,482.20, the gold/silver ratio fell to around 55, a 13-year low, the newspaper notes. A high value for this ratio usually indicates a preference for gold as a safe-haven asset, while a lower value reflects stronger demand for silver, which is widely used in industries ranging from medicine and automotive to solar panels and is therefore more sensitive to economic cycles, the WSJ explains.

Elon Musk's AI startup xAI has announced the closing of a $20 billion funding round with participation from Nvidia, Qatar Investment Authority, Valor Equity Partners, and a number of other investors, Bloomberg reports. The company did not disclose the structure of the deal, but sources previously reported that approximately $7.5 billion was planned to be raised in the form of equity capital and up to $12.5 billion through a debt instrument secured by purchased Nvidia graphics processors. This scheme could become a model for tech companies seeking to reduce their debt burden, the agency notes.

The funds will be used to scale infrastructure, develop AI products, and conduct research. xAI is actively increasing its computing power, including expanding its data center in Memphis to nearly 2 gigawatts, while burning through about $1 billion per month, according to sources.

Chevron and investment fund Quantum Energy Partners may jointly acquire Lukoil's international assets, according to the Financial Times. The portfolio includes oil and gas production projects, refineries, and gas station chains outside Russia, which Lukoil values at approximately $22 billion.

It is assumed that the assets will be divided between the partners. Interest in the deal arose after the US imposed sanctions on major Russian oil companies, including Lukoil and Rosneft, in October. Chevron said it continues to evaluate potential deals, while Quantum declined to comment on the situation.

The Czech defense group Czechoslovak Group (CSG) is discussing a possible IPO with banks, placing around 15% of its shares, but no final decision has been made yet, the company's owner and chairman Michal Strnad told Reuters. According to him, public company status would give CSG the opportunity to finance future acquisitions with shares in a sector that has seen a wave of deals in recent years. The potential offering could take place in Amsterdam, with BNP Paribas, Jefferies, JPMorgan, and UniCredit acting as global coordinators for the deal.

CSG is the fastest-growing defense manufacturer in Europe in terms of revenue growth amid a sharp increase in NATO spending since the start of the conflict in Ukraine. Strnad declined to name a possible valuation for the company, but pointed to Rheinmetall as a benchmark. According to Reuters calculations, when compared to the German conglomerate, CSG could be worth €34-50 billion before the IPO discount, and closer to market multiples of around €22 billion.

Chinese authorities are investigating Meta's $2 billion purchase of startup Manus for possible violations of technology export control rules, the Financial Times reported. According to sources, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce is assessing whether an export license was required in connection with the transfer of Manus employees and technology to Singapore and the subsequent sale of the company to Meta. The review is preliminary in nature, but could theoretically give Beijing leverage over the deal.

Meta acquired Manus last month, valuing the Singapore-based startup at $2–3 billion. Manus attracted attention earlier this year after announcing the creation of the "first universal AI agent" capable of making decisions and performing tasks independently with minimal guidance, which generated widespread interest and attracted the attention of regulators.

Video streaming and chat service Discord has confidentially filed for an initial public offering, sources familiar with the situation told Bloomberg. The company is working on a possible IPO with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan. Discord has more than 200 million monthly active users, but discussions are ongoing and the company may decide not to go public, the agency notes.

Founded in 2015, Discord offers voice, video, and text communication, generating revenue through Nitro subscriptions. Initially, the service became very popular among gamers, but has since expanded beyond that, becoming a platform for a wide variety of communities, according to Bloomberg.

— Japan's broad Topix index fell 0.73%, while the Nikkei 225 fell 1.04% in trading on January 7.

— Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index fell 1.3%. Mainland China's CSI 300 Index fell 0.45%.

— In South Korea, the Kospi index fell by 0.15%, while the Kosdaq declined by 1.09%.

— Australia's S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.15%.

— S&P 500 futures were virtually unchanged, Nasdaq Composite futures fell 0.14%, and Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 0.13%.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor