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Results for " The Middle East " 249 found 🔀 AI-powered Shuffle

S&P 500, Nasdaq futures climb as chip stocks stabilize

S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures climbed on Monday, as chip stocks steadied after ‌plunging to over two-week lows, though renewed strikes in the Middle East kept investors largely at bay.

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Jun 8 • 6:21 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Global airlines slash 2026 profit forecast on fuel shock from Iran war

The global airline industry nearly halved its ​2026 profit forecast on Sunday, citing conflict in the Middle East that has driven up fuel costs, disrupted key air ‌corridors and exposed the fragility of a sector operating on thin margins.

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Jun 7 • 9:02 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
High fuel costs to trigger airline failures and consolidation, industry chief says

Soaring jet fuel prices driven by conflict in the Middle East are likely to ​push more airlines into bankruptcy and spur more sector consolidation this year and next, the head of the global airline body said ‌on Saturday.

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Jun 6 • 3:45 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
US economic activity and inflation both up in recent weeks, Fed survey shows

U.S. economic activity increased a bit in recent weeks, employment was little changed, and the fallout from higher energy prices due to the war in the Middle East was pervasive, ​the Federal Reserve said on Wednesday, two weeks before Kevin Warsh convenes his first ‌policy meeting as head of the U.S. central bank.

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Jun 3 • 2:13 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Italy services costs at 3-year high as business contracts, PMI shows

Cost pressures in Italy's service sector hit a 40-month high in May as the impact of the conflict ​in the Middle East became more acute, a survey showed ‌on Wednesday.

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Jun 3 • 3:48 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Oil prices rise as new Middle East hostilities flare and talks stall

Oil prices climbed more than 1% in early trade on Wednesday as hostilities in the Middle East erupted anew with ​Iran firing missiles at Kuwait and Bahrain, while diplomatic talks ‌between Iran and the United States showed little progress.

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Jun 2 • 8:36 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Why Lebanon’s unhealed wounds pose a mortal threat to Trump’s Iran dealmaking

It was a day that showed why the Middle East’s generational hatreds are so often treacherous for American presidents.

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Jun 2 • 12:01 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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Japan's Q1 capex stalls as Iran war concerns weigh on business confidence

Japanese companies' annual spending on plant and equipment remained almost flat in the first quarter, ​data showed on Monday, pausing after a year of strong growth as ‌concerns mount over the impact of the Middle East conflict.

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May 31 • 8:37 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Trump: the boy who cried ‘peace’ in the Middle East

This week, as the US-Iran deal remains in a precarious state, Jonathan Freedland speaks to Ali Vaez of the International Crisis Group about why Trump keeps changing his mind on what to do to end the war

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May 29 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • theguardian.com
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Trump tells PBS News that Iran would not get sanctions relief in exchange for giving up highly enriched uranium

His comments come as the United States and Iran try to strike a deal to end the conflict that has engulfed the Middle East for the last three months.

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May 27 • 11:40 AM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
Trump Remakes GOP—Again—as Ken Paxton Wins Texas Runoff | WSJ Politics Newsletter for May 27

Plus, the Middle East cease-fire holds despite skirmishes, and the U.S. races to open an Ebola quarantine center in Kenya

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May 27 • 6:57 AM EDT • Politics • wsj.com
A ruse, a brave gamble or a fantasy? Why Trump’s most puzzling Iran move yet is unlikely to work

If Donald Trump’s search for a way out of the Iran war was not difficult enough, he’s added a new goal that threatens to vastly complicate the Middle East’s already splintered politics.

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May 26 • 12:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
Miraval Austin: Bottom Line Review

Miraval is Hyatt’s “wellness” brand, with three locations in the US and one in the Middle East. Each property has an extensive array of classes, ranging from pilates to yoga, axe-throwing to tarot card reading. Most of them are included in the room rate, whether booking with cash or points, as is all food and […]

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May 25 • 9:45 PM EDT • Technology • frequentmiler.com
Trump Urges More Countries to Normalize Relations With Israel as Part of Iran Deal

President Trump called for countries in the Middle East to join the Abraham Accords as part of a peace deal with Iran. Analysts say it is unlikely.

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May 25 • 1:57 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
The UAE’s economy and image as Mideast haven are tested by war

The United Arab Emirates for decades advertised itself as a haven for business in the Middle East.

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May 19 • 2:07 AM EDT • Business • seattletimes.com
Political violence and civil unrest trends 2026

War has overtaken civil unrest as the political violence exposure companies fear most, as conflicts in Europe and the Middle East disrupt global trade flows, strain political alliances and heighten risks to business assets.

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May 18 • 6:00 PM EDT • Politics • commercial.allianz.com
The Middle East Oil Crisis Has Already Cost Global Businesses $25 Billion

Global companies are raising prices, cutting production and preserving cash as the Iran war drives oil and gas costs sharply higher.

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May 18 • 1:50 AM EDT • Business • oilprice.com
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Now What? With Carbon Pricing Eroded and Pipeline Politics Advancing, Here Are the Pathways for Climate Success

At the end of a whirlwind week of news on carbon pricing and electricity strategy, capping a madcap year of pretty much non-stop, dramatic change, the word across much of Canada’s climate and energy transition community is that climate policy in this country has been shredded. Eviscerated. Hit with a sledgehammer by policy rollbacks that have pushed the country’s 2050 net zero target “well out of reach”. That means it’s never been more important to look for the rays of hope and glimmers of possibility. To glimpse the seeds of the next set of strategies to get Canada’s climate pollution under control and the country into the accelerating global dash away from fossil fuels. And then, once we’ve spotted those possibilities, get on with the hard, day-to-day slog of trying to make them a reality. Nothing takes away from the frustration and the deep disappointment so many climate and energy hawks are expressing, the sense of betrayal by the author of Value(s) and the former UN special envoy for climate action and finance. But we knew two things as the week drew to a close. We’re looking at the world as it most definitely is. And we don’t get to give up finding the pathways to confront climate change and deliver faster, deeper carbon cuts that leave no one else behind. So really, the first question we all have to ask ourselves is: What’s next? Subscribe All the Oxygen in the Room The outpouring of anger and grief over the carbon pricing deal between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has been absolutely understandable. So much of the climate community poured years, more than a decade, into dragging the current federal pricing regime across the finish line, then defending it from a deluge of three-syllable rhymes after the Trudeau government proved utterly incapable of delivering its own message. The policy foisted on us by neo-classical economists took up all the oxygen in the room, burned through years of climate response time that we won’t get back, while cornering climate hawks into the position that the best response to the crisis of our lifetimes is a new tax…in an era of historic anti-tax sentiment. I mean, really—what could possibly have gone wrong? Against that history, let’s appreciate columnist Max Fawcett’s point that even a modest carbon pricing agreement with a government as off-the-wall libertarian/conspiracist as Danielle Smith’s—those adjectives are mine, not Max’s—is a win worth savouring (as long as Smith keeps her promises for a change). But part of living in the world as it is (no, I’m not letting that go) is to be clear-headed about what we can and can’t control. And one thing we get to decide, after seeing this week’s carbon price festivities take up all the oxygen yet again, is whether we want to keep letting that happen. Particularly when success down that road depends on a factor that no one with a climate agenda can control or influence—a provincial carbon pricing mechanism that has been manipulated and eroded beyond its lowest possible denominator. Thankfully, that’s not the way it has to go. Not when we have so many other powerful, practical tools at our disposal, including the ones still available to us through this abominable Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Canada and Alberta. Tools In Our Toolbox When I started roughing out this list, I didn’t expect it to grow to nearly a dozen bullet points. It’s probably still incomplete. Some of the greatest hits in today’s climate solutions toolbox include: • No Carbon Capture, No Pipeline: On Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney explicitly stated that there’s been no change to the MOU provision that there will be no West Coast pipeline without an industry commitment to build its massive, $16.5-billion carbon capture and storage (CCUS) hub in Northern Alberta, and vice versa. The two megaprojects were joined at the hip when the MOU was signed Nov. 27, and the implementation agreement this week affirmed that they still are. A parade of independent analysts have spent years pointing to the economic and technical flaws in CCUS, while the industry kept postponing its investment decision until it could arm-twist the government for more “clarity” (by which it meant even more lavish taxpayer subsidies) on the project. Now the industry itself is running away from the CCUS hub and insisting the pipeline should proceed without it, but Carney doesn’t seem to be budging from a central tenet of the MOU to which Smith has signed on. • No Subsidies, No Investors: Climate analysts and advocates have quite rightly been hammering away at Carney and his team, insisting that any new capacity the industry wants to build must proceed without new subsidies. The government has responded with a growing collection of funding and financing mechanisms for the very wide menu of industrial development and nation-building projects they say they want to take on, and that menu always includes fossil fuel infrastructure. But it’s hard to see how even the combined fiscal clout of the federal and supportive provincial governments will deliver the financial backing private investors would need when the business case for new fossil fuel development is evaporating before their eyes. Particularly when… • No Market, No Demand, No Investors: As our friend Markham Hislop at Energi Media (our apparently sleepless friend, given the massive volume of great material he’s been churning out) points out this morning, the biggest vulnerability in any pipeline deal is the assumption that Asian buyers will want the oil or liquefied natural ga that our fossil industry is so keen to send them. Hislop writes in part: Ottawa and Alberta are effectively betting that countries like China and India will continue increasing oil imports for decades as their economies grow and energy consumption rises. That assumption underpins the entire economic rationale for expanding oil sands production and building billions of dollars in new export infrastructure. But Asian energy systems are changing rapidly… China, India, South Korea, and other major hydrocarbon importers are now investing hundreds of billions of dollars into electricity systems built around wind, solar, batteries, nuclear, hydro, and expanded transmission infrastructure. Domestic “energy sovereignty” is increasingly replacing the old energy-security model based on stable oil and gas imports. Those investments are expected to sharply slow oil demand growth and eventually reverse it, even as overall energy consumption continues rising. There are also refining constraints. Many Asian refineries and petrochemical complexes are already optimized to process discounted heavy crude from the Middle East and Latin America. That raises serious questions about how much additional Canadian bitumen Asian markets can absorb at profitable prices. Small wonder that there’s still no private sector investor for the project, despite Smith’s government desperately beating the bushes to put together a deal. For now, Alberta is acting as proponent and covering early start-up costs for a pitch to the federal Major Projects Office, which could actually turn into the next tough hurdle for Smith and her pipeline to jump. • Canada Day Looms: How ironic that Canada’s birthday this year could become a major chokepoint for the provincial premier who’s been working so diligently to tear the country apart! The July 1 target date for Alberta’s pipeline proposal is baked into the MOU, was reaffirmed by the implementation plan, but it hadn’t dawned on me that it cuts both ways. As one very smart colleague wrote in an email yesterday, “they’ve thrown the ball into Alberta’s court to get the project proposal on the table really quickly and to have to do a whole pile of work to put together a massive, complicated project that would typically take years to assemble, and they’ve given them weeks to do it.” That makes July 1 a looming deadline that Smith won’t be able to run away from politically, especially with the separatists in her party and her caucus breathing down her neck. (See previous ref to off-the-wall.) But if Alberta comes in with a sloppy, incomplete submission, even after Carney bent over backwards to simplify the application process and the rules that govern it, it may be harder for the province or the industry to blame Ottawa and insist on the faster process they claim their investors are demanding. (Oh, wait—which investors would those be??) • We’ll See You In Court (Then We’ll See You Again): If Carney did cave, that would be just one more reason for Indigenous and other affected communities to take the government and the process to court—Just as Alberta First Nations did, successfully, in response to Smith’s half-baked separation referendum. Veterans of the Harper era have been warning that a shoddy process around fossil fuel infrastructure or other major projects will be a recipe for the very delays that process seeks to avoid. And now more than ever, with renewable energy and energy storage eating fossil fuels’ lunch in import markets around the world, a delayed pipeline or LNG terminal may be as good as a cancelled one. • Charged Up, Ready to Go: With its goal of doubling Canada’s electricity supply to meet a doubling of demand by 2050, the national electricity strategy that Carney unveiled Thursday has a lot to like. With its explicit language about speeding the shift from fuels to more efficient and affordable electricity, global investment and deployment patterns that already favour that shift, an emerging bidirectional power grid, the role of front-line options like rooftop solar and heat pumps, the emergence of electric vehicles as behind-the-meter energy storage, and the domestic jobs and manufacturing to make it all happen, the document doubles down on the essential cornerstone of a faster shift off fossil fuels. The strategy envisions a more prominent role for gas and nuclear power. But some of those provisions were already in the Clean Electricity Regulations that climate hawks are now fighting so hard to defend, inserted as a compromise in a futile attempt to mollify the industry and its political representatives in Alberta and Saskatchewan. But once again, gas will be a tougher sell when it’s more expensive and now so much more unpredictable than the clean alternatives. The new nuclear technologies are still speculative and deeply vulnerable to cost overruns. Increasingly, utilities, developers, and investors know it. Carney declared Thursday that “it doesn’t do us good to be sitting in court all the time with provinces. It doesn’t do us good to be talking past each other. What does do us good is to come together with specific projects.” There are no guarantees, but so much of the language and narrative-building in the electricity strategy suggests the lion’s share of those projects will be renewable. • The Party Has Already Started: The electricity strategy only rarely digs down to specific projects, but provinces representing three-quarters of Canada’s population are already embracing a faster transition. Hydro-Québec is working on a 10-year, $185-billion renewable energy and grid buildout by 2035. Ontario recently brought 10 provinces and territories together in a National Energy Corridor Agreement to boost interprovincial and -territorial transmission infrastructure. And the MOU implementation agreement commits Alberta to facilitate investment in renewable energy projects, a big step back from its continuing, punitive restrictions on renewables development. The electricity strategy envisions much of the financing and infrastructure that will be needed to pull those advances together into an integrated whole. • Delivering on Affordability: The MOU implementation plan has little or nothing to say about affordability (are you surprised?), but the electricity strategy does, with a top-line pledge to reduce home energy costs for seven out of 10 Canadian households by 2050, a total saving of $15 billion across the board. It’s just a start, but it puts affordability on the government’s narrative map. If they’re serious and deliberate about patching together a least-cost energy strategy, it’ll have little if any room for oil, gas, or nuclear—not with powerful evidence, for example, that electricity prices are higher when those prices are set by gas. • Smith Proves that Canada Works: By signing a deal that makes it harder to claim the federal government is blocking a new pipeline, Smith has helped prove Carney’s constant anti-separatist refrain that “Canada works”—incurring the rage, no doubt, of her own political base. Canada also needs to work for anyone who depends on a clean environment, healthy and thriving ecosystems, and safe, stable climate. But with Smith and her separatist constituents setting up as a fifth column for annexation by Donald Trump’s United States, let’s set aside any notion that 51st state status for Canada is a recipe for anything other than climate disaster (and so much else). Resisting and withstanding Trump (just 170 more sleeps until mid-term elections, which is a damn sight better than the 730 we started with) doesn’t mean a free pass for a pipeline, but we can still appreciate it that keeping Canada whole and sovereign is still Carney’s Job One. • The Words Not Spoken: Apart from a commitment to export a million barrels of “low-emission” Alberta bitumen per day (memo to Smith and Carney: You realize that that’s less than the industry is already exporting??), the MOU implementation plan says nothing about the international trade and economic sovereignty deals that Carney has been travelling the world to negotiate. It didn’t have to. Carney doesn’t need permission from Danielle Smith, her American enablers, or her separatist allies to continue building the alliances that will ratchet down our economic dependency on our unstable, unreliable neighbour to the south. But every connection he builds with countries outside North America helps align our economy and our future with a faster shift off fossil fuels. Little if any of this was on our bingo cards a year or two ago. But it’s the pathway that has opened up to us. And if it gives Canada any climate or energy gains at all in an era still dominated by Trump and his increasingly ridiculous tariffs, his loutish trade negotiations and his continuing annexation threats, we have to take the wins. Not least because they’ll be the point of departure for what we can achieve in 2027, 2029, and beyond, as Trump’s grip and this era begin to loosen and then fade. What is Carney Doing? If this line of thought is right—and it’s a possibility, not a prediction—it means that Carney’s actions and decisions are largely about buying time. Time for Trump’s power to wane. Time for Alberta’s separatist/conspiracist virus to spread, mutate, die out, or at least die back, with help from a vaccine of federal steadiness and calm (appropriate enough, for a movement populated largely by vaccine deniers) that no conspiracy theory can dismiss. And time for the government’s trade and investment agenda to deliver results—even knowing that some of those results will bring impacts that front-line communities will not and should not accept. In the immediate moment, none of this changes the way the wider climate community has to respond, from campaigners to investors to front-line practitioners. All of our voices are still essential. But those voices will be stronger and more confident if we have a clearer sense of the brutal game we’ve been pulled into, and a plausible path (or two it three) for playing it to the win we need. This conversation also underscores our biggest task for the remaining years of what was supposed to be the “decisive” decade for climate response: if we can shift the energy narrative in Canada, make it a mainstream view that the country’s preoccupation with oil and gas has us falling farther behind a changing world, we’ll see far better results in the 2030s and beyond. For many veteran climate advocates, taking on that part of the fight will begin with recognizing that most of our friends and family, neighbours and colleagues already understand that climate change is real and right in front of us: they’re looking away and staying silent because they don’t have what climate communicator Katharine Hayhoe calls “efficacy”. As Hayhoe recently pointed out in a feature interview with The Energy Mix, it amounts to science denial to keep hammering away at the dire news about global warming without also helping audiences understand what they can do about it, with multiple studies telling us why that won’t work. Far better to open those conversations with the dominant crises like energy security, food security, emergency preparedness and business continuity, affordability, and financial security that have knocked climate change far lower on the list of public priorities, and will likely keep it there. We Knew This Would Happen Climate hawks have always known this day would come. For decades, we warned that everyone had to pay attention to climate change right now, because it would be much tougher to respond once the crisis itself started affecting our daily lives. We were right, and here we are. But now, thanks to decades of hard work, communities and countries have an alternative to doubling down on fossil fuels. “In 10 years everyone will have ‘always known’ that solar and batteries were going to win,” Morgan Solar Executive Chair Mike Andrade writes on LinkedIn. With the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz roiling energy priorities around the world, Canada and the United States are among the shrinking number of countries that are still very keen on fossil fuel development. Understanding that gap is a first, essential step in spotting the opportunities ahead, and averting the deep economic as well as environmental and social risk we face if we don’t seize them. Thanks for reading The Energy Mix Weekender! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. Subscribe Mitchell Beer traces his background in renewable energy and energy efficiency back to 1977, in climate change to 1997. Now he and the rest of the Energy Mix team scan 1,200 news headlines a week to pull together The Energy Mix and The Energy Mix Weekender. Chart of the Week BYD Eyes 20 Dealership Locations After Canada Greenlights Chinese EV Imports ‘Sledgehammer’ Carbon Price Deal Boosts Emissions by 230Mt, Aims for Fall 2027 Pipeline Approval ‘Worse Than Harper’: Regulatory Rollback Would Stop Canada from Assessing Project Impacts, Critics Warn Electricity Strategy Aims for Doubling by 2050, Allows ‘Flexibility’ for Gas Power Plants Opposition Mounts as O’Leary’s Data Centre Approved in Drought-Stricken Utah Diluted Carbon Price Misses ‘Reality of the World We’re In’, Could Impede Diversified Trade: Climate Institute $200B in Clean Energy Investment Will Need On-Time Delivery, Reliable Policies, Trade Association Says ‘Sovereign Pipeline’: CEO Pitches to Keep Trans Mountain in Government Hands What a Supercharged El Niño Could Mean for Canada Canada’s future is electric, and here’s how a power grid superhighway would get us there (Toronto Star) The Perilous Waters of Hecate Strait (Globe and Mail) Saudi Aramco profits jump despite conflict in Middle East (The Guardian) Farmers confront rising cost of fertilizer and fuel as spring seeding under way (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) Clarkson forecasts 24% decline in offshore oil, gas capital expenditures (Oil & Gas Journal) Pipe Dreams: How Oil and Gas Fail to Deliver Economic Development in Africa (Oil Change International) Developing countries must hold the pen to script the fossil fuel transition (Climate Home News) Iran war threatens the dream of a post-oil economy in the Gulf (Washington Post) U.S. Oil, Gas Work Force Hits Lowest Level Since 2022 (Rigzone) Why Polestar Is Doubling Down on Net Zero as Rivals Pull Back on EVs (Bloomberg) Why this Michigan utility plans to sell its hydro dams for $13 (E&E News/Politico) Levees can no longer save New Orleans (Vox)

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Trump’s China policy is nearly the exact opposite of what everyone expected

As Trump heads to China, attention and resources are being shifted from Asia to yet another war in the Middle East.

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May 13 • 6:45 AM EDT • Politics • vox.com
Here’s How Washington Could Suspend the Federal Gasoline Tax | WSJ Politics Newsletter for May 12

Plus, Justice Department targets media organizations over leaks, and stalemate emerges in the Middle East as the cease-fire enters its second month

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May 12 • 7:11 AM EDT • Politics • wsj.com
Australia business confidence shaken as costs climb, survey shows

SYDNEY, May 12 (Reuters) - Australian business confidence remained mired in gloom in April, a survey showed on Tuesday, as spiking energy costs from the Middle East war squeezed profit margins and

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May 11 • 9:42 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
Australia business confidence shaken as costs climb, survey shows

Australian business confidence remained mired in gloom in April, a survey showed on Tuesday, as spiking energy ​costs from the Middle East war squeezed profit margins and ‌pressured investment plans.

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May 11 • 9:33 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Trump Reversed Hormuz Plan After Saudis Denied Airspace Access

Saudi Arabia’s refusal of support suggests that President Trump’s unpredictable approach to Iran has strained ties with one of his closest allies in the Middle East.

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May 7 • 8:04 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Is the FDA Really Suppressing Science? Plus. . .

It’s Thursday, May 7. This is The Front Page, your daily window into the world of The Free Press—and our take on the world at large. Today: Aaron MacLean says Trump is poised to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in the Iran war. Joe Klein on the life of CNN founder Ted Turner. Jillian Lederman on why cruise ships are here to stay. And much more. But first: Is the FDA suppressing science? On Tuesday, The New York Times published a story with an alarming takeaway. “FDA Blocked Publication of Research Finding Covid and Shingles Vaccines Were Safe,” read the headline. It is the latest in a string of stories that all have the same message: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and other agencies, are engaged in a cover-up—and silencing scientists trying to get the word out about the Covid vaccine. What all these stories suggest—some more subtly than others—is that the outsiders now running the public health establishment, officials such as Marty Makary at the FDA and Jay Bhattacharya at the National Institutes of Health, are on a revenge tour. That they are doing harm to the country to get back at the scientists and bureaucrats who ostracized them for deviating from the public-health consensus during the pandemic. It’s a seductive narrative. But is it true? That’s the question we address in our latest editorial. —The Editors Read [ Marty Makary's FDA Has All the Right Enemies ](https://www.thefp.com/p/marty-makary-vaccine-study-fda) [ Trump Blinks First ](https://www.thefp.com/p/iran-peace-deal-pakistan-trump-strait-of-hormuz) Aaron MacLean In return for no detectable concessions, President Trump this week gave up on forcing open the Strait of Hormuz. Now, the Trump administration looks desperate for a deal to end the war with Iran. It’s easy to understand the desire to end the war, but are they blowing the chance at victory? Aaron MacLean makes sense of the administration’s latest moves—and Iran’s response—in his column today. Read full story Aaron MacLean and Niall Ferguson: Live in New York City Join Aaron MacLean and Niall Ferguson on May 19 for a live recording of School of War at the iconic New York Historical. In a conversation as timely as it is wide-ranging, Aaron and Niall will explore the strategic stakes of the moment, including the Middle East, China, and the future of American leadership on the global stage. Get Tickets Now [ Ted Turner, the Optimist Who Built CNN ](https://www.thefp.com/p/ted-turner-cnn-tribute) Joe Klein The man who gave us CNN and the 24-hour news cycle, Ted Turner, died Wednesday at the age of 87. Today, political writer Joe Klein—who almost ghostwrote Turner’s autobiography—remembers his friend, the American media mogul who stood out for his idealism and lack of a filter—something that got Turner in trouble more than once. “His was not a traditional intelligence, but one of horizon: Ted saw things before other people did,” Joe writes. Read full story [ Nothing Can Sink the Cruise Ship ](https://www.thefp.com/p/cruise-ship-hantavirus) Jillian Lederman A viral outbreak on a cruise ship that left three passengers dead has left some people wondering: Are cruise ships on the way out? Not so fast, says Jillian Lederman, who has been on many a cruise herself. Read her piece on why 38 million people a year take a cruise—and aren’t about to stop. Read full story [ The Great Writers Who Were Terrible People ](https://www.thefp.com/p/the-great-writers-who-were-terrible) Shilo Brooks Throughout history, some of the greatest literary geniuses have also been immoral bigots. In the latest episode of Old School, Shilo Brooks is joined by Eli Lake for a conversation about those geniuses, from Voltaire to Norman Mailer and Roald Dahl—and why we should read their work despite their odious prejudices. Listen on MORE FROM THE FREE PRESS [ Inside the Digital Intifada ](https://www.thefp.com/p/digital-intifada-social-media-hamas-terror) Warren Kinsella Read full story [ This Week in American History: Trump’s Over-Arching Problem ](https://www.thefp.com/p/this-week-in-american-history-trumps-over-arching-problem) Jonathan Horn Read full story [ Humanity Is Still Evolving—and Fast ](https://www.thefp.com/p/humanity-is-still-evolvingand-fast) Razib Khan Read full story THE NEWS Thirteen D.C. Metropolitan Police officers have been placed on administrative leave and could face termination after an internal investigation found evidence that crime statistics were manipulated to make the city look safer. The Republican-led House Oversight Committee previously alleged that former D.C. police chief Pamela Smith pressured officers to skew data. Tennessee Republicans unveiled a redrawn U.S. House map yesterday that would split up Memphis’s black-majority Democratic district, the latest move in a nationwide push to redraw congressional boundaries ahead of the midterms. The effort follows a Supreme Court ruling last week on Louisiana’s districts, which Tennessee House Speaker Cameron Sexton said gave states the green light to redraw maps along partisan lines. Israel struck Beirut for the first time since a ceasefire with Hezbollah took effect last month, saying it targeted a commander of the militant group’s elite Radwan force in the city’s southern suburbs. The strikes risk destabilizing that truce at a delicate moment, as Iran and the U.S. report progress toward a deal to resolve their own standoff. The U.S. Air Force is aiming for a Fourth of July delivery of a Boeing 747 gifted by Qatar, hoping to add it to the Air Force One fleet in time for the U.S.’s 250th anniversary, Reuters reported. (For more on the controversy surrounding the aircraft, read Jed Rubenfeld’s piece “It’s a Terrible Idea, but Trump Probably Can Accept a Free Jet from Qatar.”) Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick testified privately before Congress that he has no memory of why he and his family dined on Jeffrey Epstein’s private island in 2012, according to Reuters. The admission contradicts Lutnick’s earlier claim that he had cut ties with the convicted sex offender well before that visit. Weeks before a former JPMorgan investment banker filed a lawsuit packed with explosive allegations, the bank reportedly offered him $1 million to settle his sexual assault and harassment claims, according to The Wall Street Journal. The suit, filed by Chirayu Rana, alleges he was sexually assaulted by a female colleague, subjected to racial discrimination, and forced into a degrading dynamic at work. JPMorgan says the claims lack merit, and the female colleague’s lawyers call the accusations fabricated. A new report from the Hartford Institute for Religion Research shows that, for the first time in roughly 20 years, church attendance is trending upward, with more people volunteering and clergy expressing renewed optimism. The study’s authors described the findings, based on a survey of more than 7,400 congregations, as showing signs of widespread recovery from low attendance numbers.

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May 7 • 6:20 AM EDT • Science • thefp.com
The Unintended Consequence the War in the Middle East Could Have on Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company's Business

Luckily, it shouldn't slow down the chipmaker's momentum.

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May 6 • 2:48 PM EDT • Business • fool.com
Vance Campaigns in Iowa as G.O.P. Fears Rise Ahead of Midterms

The vice president acknowledged economic headwinds, including rising energy and fertilizer costs. “We got a little — a little blip in the Middle East,” he said, referring to the war in Iran.

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May 5 • 8:23 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
U.S. Embassy Supports Tunisian Business Delegation at 2026 SelectUSA Investment Summit - U.S. Embassy in Tunisia

U.S. EMBASSY SUPPORTS TUNISIAN BUSINESS DELEGATION AT 2026 SELECTUSA INVESTMENT SUMMIT The SelectUSA Investment Summit is the premier U.S. investment event, connecting thousands of investors, companies, economic development organizations, and industry experts to make deals happen. Media Note TUNIS, May 5, 2026 – U.S. Embassy Tunis is pleased to support a delegation of 11 Tunisian companies traveling to the United States to participate in the 2026 SelectUSA Investment Summit at National Harbor, Maryland, May 3-6, 2026. The Summit is an opportunity for these dynamic entrepreneurs to establish new connections and explore business and investment opportunities in the United States. This year, three Tunisian women entrepreneurs and members of the delegation representing Spiraw and Sotetel were accepted into the Select Global Women in Tech year-long mentoring program which will kick off at the summit. Since 2022, more than 50 Tunisian entrepreneurs in fields ranging from e-gaming, robotics, software engineering, coding, online fashion, and green tech have participated in SelectUSA Investment Summits, where they have taken their businesses to the next level. Hosted by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the SelectUSA Investment Summit is a one-stop shop for companies considering expanding to the United States and provides economic development organizations (EDOs) with the opportunity to meet directly with international companies to facilitate investment deals. Since inception, the SelectUSA Investment Summit has attracted tens of thousands of companies and economic development representatives, generating over $250 billion in new investment projects that support more than 125,000 jobs across the United States and its territories. The previous SelectUSA Investment Summit saw record-breaking numbers with more than 5,500 participants, including EDOs from 54 U.S. states and territories and over 2,700 business investors from 100+ countries, including Tunisia. The following Tunisian businesses will take part in this year’s SelectUSA delegation: AquaDeep – Revolutionizes aquaculture with AI-powered monitoring solutions, including a real-time larva counting system and a SaaS platform for environmental monitoring. The company is expanding operations across Tunisia, Europe, Africa, and the United States. Bouraoui Group – Specializes in event venues, hospitality experiences, innovative real estate development, and technology driven customer solutions. The business develops experience- focused and tech enabled lifestyle destinations that combine entertainment, culture, retail, and smart services, and is seeking international partners to co-develop hospitality, PropTech, smart retail, and experiential digital projects. Digital Cook – Builds HR and recruitment software solutions, including HRMS, ATS, and custom tools that streamline hiring, employee management, and talent development. It provides custom software, system integration, and scalable HR platforms for SMEs, large enterprises, and recruitment agencies seeking efficient, user-friendly ways to manage their workforce and improve recruitment. El Kanaouet – Provides high-quality and low-cost hydraulic infrastructure for the supply and distribution of drinking water. The company manufactures prestressed concrete structures based on current technological developments in the field and trends in integrated and digitalized management. El Kanaouet aims to enter the U.S. market with its production of centrifugal prestressed concrete pipes and other technical products and services. Fluoink Nanotechnologies – A deep‑tech startup developing next‑generation antimicrobial additives for paints, coatings, and industrial materials, enabling everyday surfaces to act as long‑lasting barriers against harmful bacteria and pathogens without changing their appearance or performance. Mare Custos – A subsea robotics company specializing in ROV-based underwater inspection services for offshore energy, ports, and marine infrastructure, using high-precision imaging, PAUT, and NDT to inspect structures in challenging conditions. SmartMed SA – A fast-growing digital health company operating in Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco, offering an integrated ecosystem that helps patients book appointments (MedPro), enables clinics to digitize workflows and EMRs (MedLink), and supports targeted digital marketing for healthcare and pharma (MedAds). With millions of appointments and users, SmartMed has become a leading e-health platform in North Africa. Sototel – Builds telecommunications networks and services, including fixed, radio, and mobile networks. Sototel focuses on technological innovation and continuous improvement, providing high-value-added digital solutions. SOTUPRIN HGE – Specializes in manufacturing household electrical appliances under the brand HGE and OEM. Expanded from the local market to North Africa, Central Africa, the Middle East, and Europe. Spiraw by Food4Future – Designs and manufactures smart, AI-powered cultivation systems allowing individuals and businesses to grow fresh, highly nutritious food – starting with spirulina – directly at the point of consumption. Combining patented hardware, controlled-environment agriculture, and a connected app with an AI assistant, Spiraw aims to decentralize food production and create a new category at the intersection of agri-tech, consumer health, and smart home ecosystems. WaterSec (Istidama) – A climate-tech startup that uses IoT, AI, and smart sensors to help high consumption facilities (such as industries, hotels, and commercial buildings) monitor water use in real time, detect leaks, and optimize consumption. The company’s digital platform turns raw water data into alerts and actionable insights, making water management more transparent, proactive, and sustainable. Learn more about the SelectUSA Investment Summit at https://www.selectusasummit.us/. Follow live developments from the summit on X at https://x.com/SelectUSA.

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May 5 • 4:55 AM EDT • Business • tn.usembassy.gov
Business Lookahead: Eyeing oil, US jobs, and European earnings

STORY: From high oil prices and the conflict in the Middle East to U.S. jobs data and corporate earnings, here’s what you need to watch in business and finance in the week ahead.:: Crude and currencyOil prices briefly topped $120 a barrel this week to hit their highest level since 2022 as the war with Iran enters a third month.While the U.S. and Iran face pressure to end a conflict that has shut the Strait of Hormuz, the world watches anxiously as the biggest-ever disruption to energy supplies unfolds.For each week the Strait is closed, keeping oil elevated, the greater the economic risks via higher inflation or weak growth or, for some, both. Oil importer Japan just intervened to prop up a yen that has been weakened by the conflict.A new month is now underway and some traders will be mindful of that old adage, "Sell in May and go away.":: Jobs gyrationsAs the U.S. economy grapples with fallout from the Middle East war, Wall Street's radar turns to Friday's April monthly payrolls report.The U.S. economy likely created 73,000 new jobs, economists polled by Reuters forecast. In March, payrolls increased by 178,000, the most since December 2024, but that followed a sharp decline in February.The U.S. employment data comes amid signs of hawkishness at the Federal Reserve, as Donald Trump pick Kevin Warsh prepares to take over as chair with the U.S. president keen on rate cuts.:: Starmer’s statusThursday's local elections in Britain, usually a non-event for investors, could move markets in a big way, with opinion polls pointing to a heavy defeat for Prime Minister Keir Starmer's Labour Party.A heavy defeat could spark more widespread demands for his dismissal among his own lawmakers and stoke expectations of a successor more willing to run looser budgets. That would bring more bad news for British bonds.::European earningsIt's a big week for European earnings with Shell and Commerzbank among those reporting.On aggregate, profits are expected to grow 3.2% in Q1, according to LSEG I/B/E/S. Under the surface, it's a little bit more complicated. Growth is expected to be driven by just three sectors: financials, tech and energy. The latter is seen as the biggest beneficiary of the Iran war due to higher oil and gas prices.But if the war, and energy surge, persist, the overall outlook for Europe's earnings could turn.

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May 1 • 5:33 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
What Businesses Are Saying: The Impact of the Conflict Has Been Limited ... For Now

Businesses reported limited impact from the Middle East conflict in the lead up to the April FOMC meeting, with consumers continuing to spend and more cost pressure and supply chain disruption still to come.

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May 1 • 7:00 AM EDT • Business • richmondfed.org
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Regional businesses say Iran war, Trump tariffs are increasing prices, hurting the economy

The Middle East war and Trump's tariffs share some of the blame for a soft economic outlook, business leaders told the Cleveland Fed.

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Apr 29 • 4:00 AM EDT • Business • ohiocapitaljournal.com
Global consumer companies face pricing stress test from oil shock

The fragile demand recovery seen by consumer companies globally is at risk of ​getting stalled by chances of more prices hikes as a result of soaring energy and commodity costs due to the Middle East ‌conflict.

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Apr 27 • 6:02 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Charting the Global Economy: Euro Area Business Activity Sags

Business activity in the euro area contracted for the first time since 2024 on a pronounced weakening in the services sector as war in the Middle East suppressed demand.

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Apr 25 • 5:00 AM EDT • Business • bloomberg.com
German Business Sentiment Sinks to Lowest Since 2020

Companies are counting the cost of soaring energy prices driven by war in the Middle East and are increasingly pessimistic about the months ahead.

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Apr 24 • 4:35 AM EDT • Business • wsj.com
Eurozone business activity falls on Mideast war

Business activity in the eurozone contracted for the first time in 16 months in April, as the war in the Middle East drove energy prices up and disrupted global supply

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Apr 23 • 5:05 AM EDT • Business • cbs19news.com
Petroleum infuses a multitude of everyday items the Iran war could make more expensive

The Iran war’s most tangible and immediate effect for many people outside the Middle East has been spiking gasoline prices.

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Apr 22 • 12:11 AM EDT • Business • seattletimes.com
Approval of Trump on economy falls in new AP-NORC poll, as Iran war drives up prices

The findings from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research show a president who is struggling with unfulfilled promises to tame inflation and testing Americans’ patience with a conflict in the Middle East that has dragged on longer than expected.

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Apr 21 • 5:48 PM EDT • Politics • pbs.org
Trump Is Creating a Whole New Class of War Profiteers

New evidence shows that there are certain pecuniary interests at play in our recent excursion into the Middle East.

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Apr 21 • 12:32 PM EDT • Politics • esquire.com
Gas prices won’t fall quickly. Here are ways to pay less at the pump right now

Although tensions are easing in the Middle East — at least for now — US gas prices will remain far above pre-war levels for weeks, if not months.

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Apr 19 • 8:00 AM EDT • Business • cnn.com
Luxury Brands Bet on the Middle East. War Has Damaged Their Plans.

High-end brands such as Louis Vuitton and Hermès are looking to other regions as sales in Persian Gulf nations plummet.

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Apr 19 • 5:03 AM EDT • Business • nytimes.com
JD Vance: the vice president of diminishing returns

Whether he’s bringing peace to the Middle East or arguing Just War theory with the Bishop of Rome, Vance seems to be everywhere these days

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Apr 17 • 3:46 PM EDT • Politics • theweek.com
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Cyprus: Global politics felt at Candidates chess tournaments

The FIDE Candidates tournaments are two of the most important events in the chess calendar. This year, they took place in Cyprus. But tension relating to Russia and the war in the Middle East was never too far away.

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Apr 17 • 8:43 AM EDT • Politics • dw.com
Insurance Coverage Considerations for Sports and Entertainment Events Amid Uncertain Middle East Volatility

Recent geopolitical developments, including escalating US military activity involving Iran, are disrupting the global sports and entertainment landscape. Event cancellations, postponements, and relocations across the Middle East underscore the operational and financial exposure faced by organizers, rights holders, and related stakeholders.

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Apr 17 • 12:00 AM EDT • Entertainment • morganlewis.com
King: Summer is too important for politics to steal

If you can get your mind off the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, if you can stop checking your 401(K), which seems to have taken off for the

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Apr 16 • 1:30 AM EDT • Politics • telegraphherald.com
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Atelerix Forms Strategic Partnership With JH Health Ltd to Expand Non-Cryogenic Cell Preservation Capabilities in the Middle East

NEWCASTLE, England, April 15, 2026--Atelerix, a biotech company revolutionising cell preservation and biological transport with its pioneering hydrogel encapsulation technology, today announced it has established a strategic partnership with JH Health Ltd, a Saudi Arabian company focused on medical and health-related technology. The partnership grants JH Health exclusive rights to use and distribute Atelerix’s hydrogel-based cell and tissue preservation solutions in the Middle East, significantl

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Apr 15 • 4:05 AM EDT • Health • finance.yahoo.com
JD Vance Heckled In Antiwar Protest at Turning Point USA Event

Vice President JD Vance appeared to express sympathy with critics of the war with Iran: “I recognize that young voters do not love the policy we have in the Middle East, OK. I understand.”

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Apr 14 • 9:21 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Iran war has some US water utilities facing a fluoride shortage

Some U.S. water utilities are reporting that the Middle East war is disrupting their ability to maintain recommended fluoride levels in the drinking water.

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Apr 13 • 11:36 AM EDT • Health • click2houston.com
OPEC lowers second-quarter global oil demand forecast on Iran war

OPEC on Monday ​lowered its ‌forecast for world oil demand ​in the ​second quarter, citing ⁠the impact ​of the ongoing ​war in the Middle East, a ​copy of ​its monthly oil report ‌seen ⁠by Reuters showed.

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Apr 13 • 8:01 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
European chemical firms, hit hard by Iran war, to report falling Q1 earnings

European chemical companies are expected to report weaker first-quarter results, shedding light on how deep the impact from the war in the Middle East has been on an industry largely seen ​as one of the most exposed to it.

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Apr 13 • 2:04 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
IMF director says shock from US-Iran War is 'baked' into the economy

War has ravaged the Middle East for 43 days, but the damage could take years to repair amid tension at the Strait of Hormuz and damaged oil hubs.

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Apr 12 • 9:00 PM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
Generations Of Damage: WHO Warns Of Middle East Health Collapse Amid Funding Shortfall

“The Middle East is among the most water-stressed regions globally. The Gulf hosts approximately 400 desalination plants producing 40% of the world's

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Apr 8 • 12:30 PM EDT • Health • healthpolicy-watch.news
‘No War on Iran’ protest in Seattle cut short by counterprotest

On a momentous day of tensions in the Middle East, an anti-war rally at Seattle City Hall grew heated Tuesday afternoon.

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Apr 7 • 10:44 PM EDT • Politics • seattletimes.com
Venture Global cashing in as gas markets tighten

Venture Global is poised to reap significant profits from the latest global energy shock, as disruptions in the Middle East tighten liquefied natural gas supplies, The Wall Street Journal writes. The exporter, which has several Louisiana-based projects, has built a lucrative strategy around selling a sizable portion of its cargo on the volatile spot market, […]

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Apr 7 • 3:20 PM EDT • Business • businessreport.com
Mass. business confidence slips back into pessimistic territory

Amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East, Massachusetts’ business confidence returned to pessimistic territory in March.

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Apr 6 • 1:34 PM EDT • Business • wbjournal.com
Commentary: Summer Is too important for politics to steal

If you can get your mind off the wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, if you can stop checking your 401(K), which seems to have taken off for the

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Apr 5 • 8:57 AM EDT • Politics • davisenterprise.com
BOJ to raise rates with eye on Iran war fallout, central bank official says

The Bank of Japan will continue to raise interest rates while keeping a close ​eye on how the Middle East conflict affects ‌the economy and underlying inflation, a senior central bank official said on Friday.

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Apr 3 • 12:00 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Exclusive: Oil giants show early interest in US Gulf deepwater field stake, sources say

European energy majors TotalEnergies and Shell are among companies eyeing a majority stake in one of the U.S. Gulf's most promising sites, three ​sources with knowledge of the process said, as interest in North American energy prospects ‌rises due to the Middle East conflict.

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Apr 2 • 5:55 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Why Trump’s Iran Address Failed to Soothe Markets

Oil surged and stocks sold off after the president delivered an unclear case for continuing the war in the Middle East.

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Apr 2 • 7:45 AM EDT • Business • nytimes.com
Tracking the fate of the dollar a year on from 'Liberation Day'

A year on from U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping 'Liberation Day' tariffs, ​the dollar looks in much stronger shape with its safe-haven credentials reasserted in the ‌face of war in the Middle East.

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Apr 2 • 2:01 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Dubai-Based Storyfied Ventures Launches as ‘First’ Strategic Brand Entertainment Outfit in Middle East

A new Dubai-based company called Storyfied Ventures dedicated to strategic partnerships between brands and entertainment content in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is being launched by ...

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Apr 1 • 7:57 AM EDT • Entertainment • yahoo.com
Iran threatens US-owned companies, including Meta and JP Morgan

Iran's Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday threatened US-owned companies with a presence in the Middle East.

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Apr 1 • 3:42 AM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
Sentiment improves among Japan's big firms, but Iran war clouds outlook

Business ​sentiment among large Japanese manufacturers improved in the three months to ‌March, according to a closely watched survey released on Wednesday, a sign that increasing economic uncertainty from the Middle East conflict has yet to hit morale.

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Mar 31 • 8:18 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
New Zealand Business Sentiment Hits Lowest Since 2024 Recession

New Zealand business sentiment slumped in March to the lowest since mid-2024 when the economy was in recession as the Middle East conflict hits the outlook for earnings and investment.

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Mar 30 • 8:42 PM EDT • Business • bloomberg.com
Exclusive: Unilever imposes global hiring freeze, citing Middle East war effects, memo says

Dove soap maker Unilever has implemented a global ​hiring freeze "at all levels" that will last at least three months, citing the effects ‌of the widening conflict in the Middle East, according to a memo seen by Reuters.

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Mar 30 • 5:48 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Iranian attack on Saudi base injures US troops. More American forces arrive in the Middle East

w drone-surveillance-and-warfare iran-war war-and-unrest general-news military-and-defense washington-news world-news | WBEN

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Mar 28 • 4:13 PM EDT • Politics • audacy.com
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Iran’s efforts to mount attacks against US extend far beyond its military. Here’s what to know

As the US sends large numbers of troops to the Middle East, preparing for a possible ground incursion, Iran’s willingness to inspire lone-wolf attacks, lead cyber hacks, and conduct assassination operations abroad is likely to increase, terrorism experts and US law enforcement officials told CNN.

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Mar 28 • 5:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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Business Lookahead: Gauging the war's impact

STORY: From a worrying drop in stocks to a surge in energy prices from the war in the Middle East to key data on jobs and trade, these are the stories to watch in business and finance in the coming week. ::Look Ahead::War impactThe first quarter is ending with financial markets at the mercy of geopolitics.The Iran war has wiped roughly $7 trillion off global stocks since it erupted.With oil prices up nearly 70% year to date, suddenly interest rates are heading up, rather than down, and energy-hungry AI does not look like such a slam-dunk anymore.Meanwhile, gold has plunged 16% after being nearly unstoppable since the start of 2025.We’ll see whether markets roll on or rollover as the second quarter begins.::Job growth in focusThe U.S. jobs report for March comes out Friday.It will offer a crucial view into the economy's health as investors gauge fallout from the energy price surge.Monthly payrolls are seen rising by 48,000, according to a Reuters poll. February's surprisingly weak report caught Wall Street off guard, showing nonfarm payrolls fell by 92,000 while the unemployment rate increased to 4.4%.Uncertainty over the Iran war is also clouding the economic forecasts for the Federal Reserve, with Wall Street pulling back on expectations for U.S. interest rate cuts this year as the oil price surge fuels concerns about rising inflation.Other U.S. data in the coming week includes retail sales for February and reports on manufacturing and services activity.::Chip checkSouth Korea releases its trade data for March on Wednesday.It will provide an early indicator of how the global economy is holding up in the face of the war and the resulting shock to energy prices. Korea's export-heavy economy is a bellwether for global trade and one of the first to report data from the previous month.Its manufacturing fortunes are of even greater interest than usual, not just because of its dependence on Middle Eastern energy imports, but also because its world-leading DRAM chips are of critical importance to the AI sector and currently in short supply too. ::Inflation assessmentAnd flash euro zone inflation for March is due on Tuesday. After long hovering around the 2% mark, higher energy prices are now expected to push headline inflation up, as they did in 2022. The question is, how large and sustained any jump in inflation might be.Early data is not painting a pretty picture. Private sector growth in the euro zone slowed sharply in March, with input costs rising to their highest in more than three years and supply chains being significantly disrupted.Money markets are now heavily pricing in a rate hike which was almost unthinkable before the Iran war.

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Mar 27 • 3:28 PM EDT • Business • finance.yahoo.com
NTT Data CEO on managing business in the Middle East amid on-going conflict

Abhijit Dubey CEO of NTT Data says rising energy prices so far have had little impact on their data center businesses due to the long-term contracts and their ability to pass on costs to customers.

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Mar 27 • 9:39 AM EDT • Business • cnbc.com
US oil prices rise as investors assess Middle East de-escalation

U.S. oil prices rose in early trade on Thursday, recovering some of the ​previous day's losses as investors assessed prospects ‌for de-escalation in the Middle East and Iran reviewed a U.S. proposal to end the war, which has ​disrupted energy flows from the Gulf.

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Mar 25 • 6:42 PM EDT • Business • reuters.com
U.S. Circulates Iran Peace Plan While Sending Troops to the Middle East

The 2,000 paratroopers heading to the region may give President Trump more leverage in negotiations, but they also leave him with the option of doubling down on military force.

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Mar 25 • 4:02 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Approximately 1,000 US soldiers preparing to deploy to the Middle East to be available for Iran operations

Approximately 1,000 US soldiers with the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division are expecting to deploy in coming days to the Middle East, according to two sources familiar with the matter, adding to the growing military firepower in the region as the Trump administration says it is in talks with Iran to end the conflict

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Mar 24 • 5:14 PM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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Pound loses footing, business activity growth slows on Iran war hit

The British pound fell against the dollar on Tuesday, ​reversing some of its rise from the day before, as the Middle East war continues ‌to hold sway over markets and as signs emerged that the conflict was starting to affect Britain's economy.

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Mar 24 • 7:38 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Investors Question Whether Quick Peace in Iran Is Possible

Global markets are under pressure again amid doubts that the fighting in the Middle East can end anytime soon.

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Mar 24 • 7:35 AM EDT • Business • nytimes.com
The war on Iran is in its fourth week. Here’s what to know

Three full weeks of the war the US and Israel launched against Iran have shocked the world oil market, pierced a sense of safety in parts of the Middle East, and claimed the lives of US service members and civilians in multiple countries.

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Mar 22 • 4:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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The Antidote to Our Growing Crises Must Transcend Politics

Each day, the challenges in our nation pile up. In just recent weeks, there has been the ongoing war in Iran and the Middle East, and ongoing debates about the growing negative impact of the Internet, looming AI challenges, and the Epstein files. The anticipation of divisive, even ugly, midterm elec...

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Mar 22 • 1:40 AM EDT • Politics • thefulcrum.us
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Pentagon orders 2,500 troops, 3 warships from California to the Middle East

The Pentagon deployed three warships and roughly 2,500 Marines to the Middle East from the California-based USS Boxer amphibious ready group and the 11th Marine Expeditionary Unit.

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Mar 20 • 12:41 PM EDT • Politics • latimes.com
Lebanon: Israel must halt attacks on healthcare workers, medical facilities and first responders

Responding to the killings and injuries of dozens of healthcare workers and first responders in Lebanon since 2 March 2026, amid escalating attacks by the Israeli military and its allegations – without providing evidence – that ambulances and healthcare sites are being used for military activities and may be targeted, Kristine Beckerle, Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at Amnesty International, said: “Israel is deploying the same deadly playbook it used in 2024 in Lebanon to kill dozens […]

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Mar 19 • 7:09 AM EDT • Health • amnesty.org
Thai Leader Anutin Set to Extend Rule in Vote After Election Win

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is poised to win lawmaker approval for a new term less than six weeks after elections, potentially bringing stability to the country’s often volatile political landscape and allowing him to manage the fallout from the war in the Middle East.

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Mar 18 • 5:00 PM EDT • Politics • bloomberg.com
Oil prices jump as Iran warns Strait of Hormuz ‘cannot be the same’

Oil prices spiked Tuesday as Iran intensified its attacks on energy infrastructure across the Middle East and a senior regime figure suggested that the crucial Strait of Hormuz wouldn’t become safe for ships anytime soon.

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Mar 17 • 6:17 AM EDT • Business • cnn.com
US race to counter Iranian drones echoes response to roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan

Facing deadly Iranian drone attacks across the Middle East, the US military has been rushing defensive systems into the region while adjusting to a threat that has come to dominates modern battlefields and carries echoes of a weapon that haunted service members during the 20 years of the war on terror.

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Mar 17 • 6:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
The Persian Gulf, a booming business for the Trump family

The US president and his children maintain a thriving relationship with entities and authorities in the Middle East, where they have expanded their activities since the Republican’s return to the White House

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Mar 16 • 7:09 AM EDT • Business • english.elpais.com
If Trump has already won the Iran war, why does he need foreign ships to help him end it?

A week ago, President Donald Trump told Britain not to bother sending ships to the Middle East because he’d already won the Iran war.

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Mar 16 • 12:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
WHO releases US$2 million in emergency funds to support health response in Lebanon, Iraq and Syria

15 March 2026, Cairo, Egypt — As humanitarian health needs continue to rise across parts of the Middle East, WHO has released US$2 million from its Contingency Fund for Emergencies (CFE) to support the health response...

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Mar 15 • 10:44 AM EDT • Health • emro.who.int
Trump says Iran is ready to negotiate a ceasefire but he's not ready to make a deal

The president said the "terms aren't good enough yet" to make a deal with Iran amid a widening war in the Middle East.

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Mar 14 • 7:12 PM EDT • Politics • nbcnews.com
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Trump’s war alliance with Israel is reshaping the Middle East

President Trump is the first American leader to embrace fighting a full-fledged, joint war with Israel. Washington has tried to avoid that level of coordination in the past.

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Mar 13 • 9:22 PM EDT • Politics • seattletimes.com
Trump’s War Alliance With Israel Is Reshaping the Middle East. But It Carries Risks.

President Trump is the first American leader to embrace fighting a full-fledged, joint war with Israel. Washington has tried to avoid that level of coordination in the past.

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Mar 13 • 8:11 PM EDT • Politics • nytimes.com
Netanyahu sells regional change as hopes for Iran regime change fade

Israeli leaders are framing the bombing campaign as having transformed the Middle East in their favour as pressure to end the conflict builds.

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Mar 13 • 11:35 AM EDT • Politics • bbc.com
US troops used ATACMS missile to sink Iranian ships, submarine: Caine

US troops in the Middle East have used a ground-based ballistic missile system to sink multiple Iranian ships, Gen. Dan Caine said.

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Mar 13 • 10:46 AM EDT • Business • businessinsider.com
Pete Hegseth wanted an ‘American Crusade.’ Now he’s leading a war in the Middle East

In the war the US launched on the Islamic Republic, the US secretary of war, as he prefers to be called, likes to talk about how the Christian God is on his side.

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Mar 13 • 4:00 AM EDT • Politics • cnn.com
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Old Dominion ROTC instructor killed by convicted ISIS terrorist ID’d as chair of military science department who served in the Middle East
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Mar 12 • 8:29 PM EDT • Science • nypost.com
Conflict deepens health crisis across Middle East, WHO says

More than ten days into the latest escalation of conflict in the Middle East, health systems across the Region are coming under strain as injuries and displacement rise, attacks on health care continue, and public health risks increase.

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Mar 11 • 8:00 AM EDT • Health • who.int
Infantino insists Trump has assured him Iran are ‘welcome’ to play at 2026 World Cup

Donald Trump has said Iran are ‘welcome’ to play at the upcoming World Cup, despite the ongoing war in the Middle East, according to Fifa’s president

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Mar 11 • 4:30 AM EDT • Sports • theguardian.com
Mass. business confidence turns positive for the first time in a year

The index climbed into an optimistic range as AI and earnings gains took hold, but before uncertainty tied to the Middle East conflict began.

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Mar 10 • 11:24 AM EDT • Business • boston.com
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Why is Trump gamifying the war in Iran?

The White House is posting ‘video-game vibe’ content to promote US success in the Middle East conflict

theweek.com logo
Mar 10 • 11:01 AM EDT • Politics • theweek.com
How the Middle East war could spark a recession

Economists warn that the war has increased the risk of a recession. And the longer the crisis lasts, the greater the danger to an economy that already looked vulnerable before the chaos in the Middle East.

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Mar 10 • 7:00 AM EDT • Business • cnn.com
Deep dive
😐 Neutral (5%)
wow
68%
ahah
32%
Lego bets on Pokemon, interactive bricks as war threatens higher costs

Lego is bracing for higher energy and ​raw material costs as oil and gas prices rise amid conflict in the Middle East, its ‌chief executive said, as the Danish toymaker looks to spur growth with interactive "smart bricks" and Pokemon tie-ups.

reuters.com logo
Mar 10 • 4:06 AM EDT • Business • reuters.com
Germany's Iran Policy in the Dilemma of International Law and Israeli Interests

When it comes to the Middle East, Germany appears to be pursuing a policy that completely disregards the rules of international law.

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Mar 10 • 3:38 AM EDT • Politics • politicstoday.org
Former Obama adviser warns of uncertain path in Iran during annual Samuel C. Waters Lecture in Political Science at Presbyterian College

With tensions escalating in the Middle East following recent U.S. attacks on Iran, former White House deputy national security adviser Ben Rhodes told a Presbyterian College audience that the long-term […]

presby.edu logo
Mar 9 • 4:53 PM EDT • Politics • presby.edu
For China, Billions of Dollars Are at Risk From a Widening War

The country found a home in the Middle East for its investments and growing markets for steel, electric vehicles and solar panels. Those are now at stake.

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Mar 9 • 12:01 AM EDT • Business • nytimes.com
Texas Tech University System pausing all business travel to Middle East

Due to the current situation in the Middle East and the current security alerts issued by the U.S. Department of State, the Texas Tech University System is temporarily pausing all business travel to Bahrain, Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, effective immediately.

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Mar 8 • 2:19 PM EDT • Business • kcbd.com
😐 Neutral (5%)
love
50%
wow
50%
Jon Rahm claims LIV Golf title in Hong Kong

Jon Rahm produces a final round 64 to claim victory at the LIV Golf event in Hong Kong as he beats Thomas Detry - one of the players he helped leave the Middle East - to the title.

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Mar 8 • 6:22 AM EDT • Sports • bbc.com