Kia ora and welcome to your Monday morning wrap of international business and political news.
First up, Iran has sent its response to the United States’ peace proposal to end the war, while Qatar warned Iran that using the Strait of Hormuz as a “pressure card” would only lead to a deepening crisis, Al Jazeera reported.
After two days of relative calm, hostile drones were detected over several Gulf countries, underlining the threat facing the region despite a ceasefire, Reuters and CNBC said.
On Sunday local time, the United Arab Emirates intercepted two drones coming from Iran, while Qatar condemned a drone attack that hit a cargo ship coming from Abu Dhabi.
Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al‑Thani said freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz should not be compromised. Iranian officials said they were drafting a bill to formalise Iran’s management of the waterway.
US President Donald Trump accused Iran of “playing games” in his first public comment since Iran responded to the US ceasefire proposal. “[Iran] has been playing games with the United States, and the rest of the World, for 47 years”, he wrote on Truth Social.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps warned any attack on its oil tankers and commercial ships would be met with assaults on US bases and “enemy ships” in the region, Al Jazeera said.
Meanwhile. the US planned to impose sanctions on companies and individuals across the Middle East and China for allegedly helping Iran in its war efforts. The move targeted 11 entities and three individuals based in Iran, China, Belarus, and the United Arab Emirates, CNBC reported.
“Included in [the] actions are several China-based entities providing satellite imagery to enable Iran’s military strikes against US forces in the Middle East,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said.
“Additionally, we are designating entities and individuals enabling efforts by Iran’s military to secure weapons, as well as raw materials with applications in Iran’s ballistic missile and unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) programmes,” Rubio said.
US President Donald Trump.
The Trump administration was also open to suspending the federal gas tax to lower prices at the pump.
“All measures that can be taken to lower the price at the pump and lower the prices for Americans, this administration is in support of,” US Energy Secretary Chris Wright told NBC.
The average fuel price in the US was about US$4.52 per gallon, with a federal tax of about 18 cents per gallon.
UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is talking tough after English council results showed widespread Labour losses and gains by Nigel Farage's Reform party, the BBC said.
“I think the right thing to do is to rebuild and show the path forward,” Starmer said.
Growth and living standards had stagnated in recent years, and Labour faced growing public anger at the slow pace of economic reforms. Some Labour members called for Starmer to step down, CNBC noted.
“I know I speak for more Labour people than just myself in wanting him to step aside as our Leader,” former minister Catherine West said.
Nigel Farage.
In the US, closely watched non-farm payroll data was stronger than expected, suggesting the labour market remained resilient. Capital.com senior market analyst Daniela Hathorn said the data meant the Federal Reserve could be patient on the sidelines.
“In the context of elevated oil prices and geopolitical risk, this is a relatively ‘goldilocks’ outcome. However, it also reinforces the idea that markets are pricing a best-case balance of resilient growth, contained inflation, and manageable geopolitical fallout.”
BP plans to sell stakes in two carbon capture and storage projects in north-east England, with hopes to cut its share in the Net Zero Teesside project and the Northern Endurance Partnership project, the Guardian reported.
The flagship carbon capture projects were backed by former CEO Bernard Looney, but since his departure almost three years ago, BP had actioned a leadership overhaul and scaled back on Looney’s green initiatives, which had failed to win over shareholders.
Elsewhere, dozens of passengers had now disembarked a cruise ship at the centre of the hantavirus outbreak, with all expected to depart by early this week, CNN reported.
Passengers were screened on Sunday after the ship docked in the Canary Islands, and all were asymptomatic, according to health authorities. The vessel departed Argentina last month and three deaths were linked to the virus.
