Making a killing
Iran, Israel, Palestine, Russia, Africa, the Indo-Pacific, and the US.
Hello,
Here are the five things you need to know today:
IRAN. Markets rally despite bombs and death threats.
ISRAEL. PALESTINE. Netanyahu contends with a third election.
RUSSIA. AFRICA. Moscow sells security to the UN’s biggest bloc.
INDO-PACIFIC. Mid-size powers seek to define the region’s future.
UNITED STATES. The race to the midterms takes an ominous turn.
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IRAN. Buy on the sound of cannons
Markets rally despite bombs and death threats.
Oil eased and stocks rose as the US and Iran said technical talks would continue and several tankers exited Hormuz. Ali Khamenei was buried in Mashhad. Israel warned Donald Trump of an assassination threat, the Wall Street Journal said.
INTELLIGENCE. Iran has made no secret of wishing Trump to join Khamenei in the afterlife. His sudden return to the old Air Force One this week suggests the Secret Service takes those wishes seriously. But none of this has perturbed the market, which is now fading the news. In the short term, that seems logical. But in the long term, the issue of a US oil inventory cliff remains unresolved as the on-off strikes, on-off talks and on-off closures to Hormuz continue.
FOR BUSINESS. At some point, whether via a pre-market TACO or diplomatic note from Doha or Islamabad, political talks will likely resume. It is in both sides’ interests to keep the Strait open at least a crack. Trump needs lower energy prices into the midterms. Iran needs to rebuild its foreign currency reserves, though without letting go of its chokehold over US oil reserves. And mediators Qatar and Pakistan are doubly motivated to respectively sell and purchase LNG.
ISRAEL. PALESTINE. Polls apart
Netanyahu contends with a third election.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said elections would be held in November for the first time since 2006, when Hamas won. Hamas earlier announced the resignation of its administration in Gaza; a move Israel dismissed.
INTELLIGENCE. Hamas said it would hand power to the National Committee for the