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The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended Wednesday at its lowest close of the year, dragged down by a new climb in oil prices that threatened to hold fuel costs at painful levels for many U.S. companies and consumers. 

Futures for Brent crude, the global benchmark, rose 4.8% to trade at around $92 a barrel, unbowed by an announcement from the International Energy Agency that its member countries will release a record 400 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves.

Copyright ©2026 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

Swedish athlete Mondo Duplantis continues to dominate the pole vault scene after setting a new world record of 6.31 metres at the Mondo Classic indoor meeting in Uppsala on Thursday.

The Olympic and world champion surpassed his previous mark by one centimeter. Duplantis opened the competition at 5.65m, smoothly progressed through 5.90m and 6.08m, and cleared the historic height with flawless execution.

Flawless Performance and Record-Breaking Consistency

Unlike most track and field disciplines, pole vault has a single world record for indoor and outdoor performances, amplifying the significance of Duplantis’ achievement.

Since setting his first world record in 2020, he has now broken the mark 15 times, according to Reuters. His consistency in breaking records was unbelievable since no athlete has ever done that before.

The 26-year-old is not only athletic, but his power, timing, and precision are a rare gem in the field. This makes him a once-in-a-generation athlete for the next-gen decade.

International Competitors Push the Field

Norway’s Sondre Guttormsen claimed second place by clearing 6.00m, marking his second successful six-metre vault this season. American vaulters Zachery Bradford and Sam Kendricks, along with Australia’s Kurtis Marschall, all cleared 5.90m, highlighting the growing competitiveness on the international stage.

Despite these strong performances, none could match the technical precision or dominance of Duplantis. According to some fans, it’s not a competition since no one was close to what Duplantis did during that day.

“I always wonder whether he’ll ever jump the highest he possibly can before it’s too late, or if he’ll continue to push it one increment at a time and end up on the back-end of his career before he ever hits his true max height,” one fan said on Reddit.

“Duplantis TLDR: He could’ve made the current WR a long time ago, but he gets a payout every time he breaks it, so he’s been breaking the record by 1cm multiple times a year for a long time,” another one joked.

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Duplantis’ Lasting Legacy in Track and Field

Mondo Duplantis continues to show us that the limits of pole vaulting are only in our heads. He is considered a superhuman by many fans due to his unmatched streak of record-breaking performances.

At each record that he broke, he pushed the boundaries of human performance to the extreme. Some fans believe that pole vaulting should be changed to Mondo vaulting. That’s how good he is when he’s in the zone. He’s unstoppable and is in a league of his own.

Originally published on sportsworldnews.com

Bitcoin rebounded toward the $72,000 mark after U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent sought to calm markets over the inflationary fallout of higher oil prices. The cryptocurrency was trading at $71,402 on Friday.

In the past 24 hours, Bitcoin and Ethereum were up 3.03% and 4.37%, respectively. Among major altcoins, BNB, XRP, Solana, Tron, Dogecoin, Cardano, and Hyperliquid gained over 5%.

Vikram Subburaj, CEO of Giottus, said U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s remarks pushed crude about $2 per barrel lower, while Bitcoin rallied to just under $72,000.Subburaj further said that U.S. spot Bitcoin ETFs recorded $115.2 million in net inflows on March 11 and $7.7 million on March 12. The next key macro triggers are the Federal Reserve’s March 17–18 meeting and the U.S. February PPI release on March 18, both of which could influence rate-cut expectations and, by extension, crypto risk appetite.Also Read | Large, mid and small cap mutual funds see rising inflows in February. Is the shift back to equities underway?

The global crypto market capitalisation rose 2.67% to $2.43 trillion, according to CoinMarketCap.
The overall market sentiment remains in the fear zone but has been improving in recent days. The latest rally added more than $50 billion in market value within hours, while the U.S. stock market wiped out nearly $1 trillion, said the CoinDCX Research Team.
In the past week, Bitcoin and Ethereum were up 1.49% and 2.10%, respectively. Among major altcoins, BNB, XRP, Solana, Tron, Dogecoin, Cardano, and Hyperliquid surged up to 23%.
Also Read | Gold and silver ETFs slip up to 3% as rising crude prices dampen rate cut hopes. Is it time to buy or wait?

Technically, Bitcoin is attempting to stabilise above the $70,000 level, which is emerging as a near-term support zone. Overall, the crypto market appears to be in a consolidation phase, where improving institutional participation is gradually counterbalancing macro headwinds such as rising yields, geopolitical tensions, and cautious global risk appetite, said Riya Sehgal, Research Analyst at Delta Exchange.

Market perspective

Akshat Siddhant, Lead Quant Analyst, Mudrex:

Bitcoin is testing resistance at $72,000 while maintaining bullish momentum. U.S. initial jobless claims came broadly in line with expectations, helping ease macro concerns and support risk assets.

CoinSwitch Markets Desk:

BTC moved close to $71K after U.S. inflation and jobless claims came in line with expectations, but the data offered little new momentum for markets. Traders remain cautious, with futures funding rates around –7%, showing that many participants are still betting on downside.