Happy Thursday and welcome to your morning wrap of the key global political and business headlines from around the world.
Starting with the conflict in the Middle East, where the White House has rejected reports that the US has requested an extension to the ceasefire with Iran, which expires next week, the BBC reported.
A report in Bloomberg suggested that Washington, DC, and Tehran were weighing extending their ceasefire by two weeks. However, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the reports are “not true”.
"We remain very much engaged in these talks," she said, and conversations are "productive and ongoing".
Her comments come as a delegation from Pakistan, which has been acting as a mediator between the two countries, touched down in Tehran.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country was prepared for any scenario. Israel has been in direct talks with Lebanon for the first time since 1993 about a potential ceasefire.
Overnight, Iran said that if the US continued its blockade of the Strait of Hormuz and created insecurity for its commercial vessels, it would be a prelude to a violation of the ceasefire.
Ali Abdollahi, the commander of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, which coordinates the country’s armed forces, said that Iran would consequently not allow any exports or imports to continue in the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman and the Red Sea.
The threat came as Reuters reported that Iran could consider allowing ships to sail freely through the Oman side of the Strait of Hormuz as part of a proposal it has tabled during negotiations with the United States, if a deal was clinched to end the war, citing a source who had been briefed on the matter.
The source did not say whether Iran would also agree to clear mines it may have placed in the strait, or if all ships, even those linked to Israel, would be allowed to pass freely. But the source added that the proposal hinged on whether Washington was prepared to meet Tehran’s demands.
The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow channel through which about 20% of global oil flows.
UK Finance Minister Rachel Reeves has blasted the US administration’s handling of the conflict and called for an immediate de-escalation.
Speaking to CNBC at the Invest in America Forum in the United States, Reeves said that the aims of the war were not “clear”, as they had shifted from regime change to protecting partners in the region and stopping Tehran’s nuclear programme.
“I’m not convinced this conflict has made the world a safer place,” Reeves said. “It’s not been clear over the last six weeks what exactly the aim of this conflict is.”
She also warned of the mounting risks to global economic stability caused by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Reeves’ stern comments come a day after the International Monetary Fund said the UK, which is a net importer of gas, would see the biggest hit to growth out of the world’s developed nations.
Rachel Reeves.
To Türkiye, where at least nine people, including eight children, have been killed in a school shooting – the country’s second school attack in two days, ABC reported.
A 14-year-old boy carried out the shooting in south-eastern Türkiye overnight, killing his fellow students and a teacher. At least 13 students have been injured in the attack.
The governor of Kahramanmaraş, Mukerrem Unluer, said the boy arrived at school carrying five guns that were believed to have belonged to his father. "He entered two classrooms and opened fire randomly, causing injuries and deaths."
The governor said the boy then shot and killed himself. The attack comes a day after a former student opened fire at a school in the south-eastern province of Şanlıurfa, injuring at least 16 people before killing himself.
In the United States, Donald Trump has doubled down on his threat to fire Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and ruled out dropping a criminal investigation into him over the central bank’s renovations, the Financial Times reported.
Trump said overnight that if Powell did not leave when his term ended on May 15, he would sack him, and insisted the probe into him would continue despite pressure to abandon it. “I’ll have to fire him, OK? If he’s not leaving on time,” Trump said in an interview on Fox Business. “I’ve held back firing him. I’ve wanted to fire him but I hate to be controversial.”
Powell has said he will stay on if Trump’s nominee to replace him, Kevin Warsh, is not confirmed before his departure date, citing a long-standing precedent. At the same time, several Republican senators have suggested they won’t confirm Warsh until the Powell probe is resolved.
The US Department of Justice’s probe into Powell concerns the Fed’s multibillion-dollar renovation of its Washington, DC, headquarters.
To Australia, where a fire has broken out at one of the country’s two oil refineries, with emergency services responding to reports of “explosions and flames”, the ABC reported. Fire Rescue Victoria was called to the Viva Energy Refinery in Geelong in the early hours of this morning (New Zealand Time).
FRV assistant chief fire officer Michael McGuinness said the fire started in the 'mogas' section of the plant where motor gasoline is produced. "There's been some sort of leak; there's hydrocarbons, flammable liquids which very readily caught fire," he said. All staff have been accounted for, but the fire is not yet under control.
Viva Energy’s website said the Geelong refinery can process up to 120,000 barrels of oil a day, including petrol, diesel, LPG and jet fuel. It is one of two refineries in Australia, the other being in Brisbane. Both sites have been in the spotlight in recent weeks, due to the pressure that has been placed on oil shipments worldwide by the war in the Middle East.
Finally, this morning, the S&P 500 touched an all-time high overnight before walking back some of those gains, as investors remained hopeful for an end to the conflict in the Middle East. The broad market index was up 0.8% in late trading, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 0.1% and the tech-heavy Nasdaq was 1.4% higher.
Stocks have surged this week on the possibility of a peace deal, as well as strong bank earnings and trading updates from major firms.
Brent crude oil was unchanged at US$94.73 per barrel, while gold was down $26 to $4,823 per ounce.
