Happy Wednesday, and welcome to your morning wrap of key political and business headlines from around the world.
Once again, the situation between Israel and Iran continues to dominate global news coverage. According to the Associated Press, a fragile ceasefire between the two nations appears to be holding after initially faltering.
This comes as US President Donald Trump expressed frustration with both sides, as the truce he helped broker seemed on the verge of collapse. He reserved his harshest criticism for Israel, saying they “unloaded” on Iran “as soon as we made the deal”, CNN reported.
“We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f*** they’re doing,” Trump said.
Earlier, Israel accused Iran of launching missiles into its airspace after the ceasefire was meant to take effect. Iran denied the claim, but Israel responded by striking a radar site north of Tehran.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country refrained from further attacks after he spoke with Trump.
Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, signs that the ceasefire is holding have caused financial markets to surge.
CNBC reported that Wall Street’s main indices were all up by more than 1% in late trading.
Conversely, oil prices fell sharply for a second straight day, with Brent Crude, the international benchmark, dropping nearly 6% to US$67.25 per barrel.
Airline stocks such as United Airlines, Frontier, and Delta were among the biggest gainers, each rising more than 2%. Chip makers Broadcom and Nvidia also saw gains of 3% and 2%, respectively.
“The market response to the escalation and subsequent ceasefire hopes aligns with our view that geopolitical shocks tend to have only a temporary impact on global financial markets, and that investors are likely to refocus on fundamentals,” UBS Global Wealth Management chief investment officer America Solita Marcelli said.
“We continue to believe solid fundamentals will help lift equities over the next 12 months.”
Europe’s benchmark index also rose 1.2% overnight, while gold fell 2% as investor appetite for risk increased.
In other news, more than 80 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces overnight, including 51 near aid distribution centres, Al Jazeera reported, citing medical sources in local hospitals.
The Israeli military said it is reviewing reports of casualties resulting from its troops’ fire after a group of people reportedly approached soldiers near the militarised Netzarim Corridor.
Israel has stated that previous shootings near aid sites were provoked by “suspects” approaching soldiers.
According to The Guardian, the total number of people killed in the last two weeks near or at aid centres has now risen to more than 500.
In business news, Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell told members of Congress that higher tariffs could begin to fuel inflation this summer, Reuters reported.
His comments came after Republican members of the House Financial Services Committee pressed him on why the Fed hadn’t cut interest rates, as Trump has demanded.
Powell said he and many at the Fed expect inflation to begin rising soon, but emphasised that the central bank is in no rush to lower borrowing costs.
He added that while the effects of higher trade tariffs are expected to reach consumers in the coming months, “we are perfectly open to the idea that the pass-through will be less than we think”.
Jerome Powell.
And finally, on a lighter note, two bears that sparked the evacuation of a UK wildlife park escaped from their enclosure and headed straight for the honey store, BBC reported.
Exeter conservation charity Wildwood Devon said the European brown bears, Mish and Lucy, broke free and made their way to the food store, where they proceeded to consume “a week’s worth of honey”.
The park was evacuated on Monday following the escape, and 16 people were locked inside a play barn for their safety. Mish eventually returned to the enclosure on her own, while Lucy was lured back with a bell and her favourite foods.
An investigation into how they broke free is underway.
