US crude futures rose more than 1% on Wednesday as Trump ordered a “total and complete” block of all sanctioned oil tankers entering and leaving Venezuela.
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Here’s what you need to know today
Crude oil has crossed 80 dollars per barrel On Thursday, the Iran war entered its seventh day and continues to disrupt global energy supplies. Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Thursday that his country was “not asking for a ceasefire” from the US and Israel, but President Donald Trump said his administration would turn its attention to Cuba after US military operations in Iran end.
As oil supply worries take hold, The US gave India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, a 30-day waiver to resume buying Russian oil. It comes after Washington imposed 25% “penalty” tariffs on India for buying Russian crude, which were withdrawn only last month.
Along with energy disruption, turmoil in the Middle East Dubai’s status as a global wealth center has been shattered, with the wealthy scrambling to escape the largely tax-free haven. In the past week, missiles have hit tourist and civilian locations, including the UAE 5-star Fairmont The Palm Hotel and Dubai Airport.
In the US, the Anthropic-OpenAI rivalry continues. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman took swipes at rival Anthropic on Thursday, saying he thinks it’s “bad for society” if companies start abandoning their commitment to the democratic process because “some people don’t like the person or people currently in charge.” That comes after the Defense Department clashed with Anthropic in recent weeks over how the agency could use its AI models.
Adding another layer of uncertainty to markets, Trump’s tariffs are facing a new legal battle after New York’s Attorney General Letitia James and top prosecutors from 23 other states sued to once again block his global tariff regime.
And finally…
UAE mulls freezing Iranian assets as Middle East conflict escalates: WSJ
The United Arab Emirates is considering cutting off Iranian access to billions of dollars held in the Gulf state, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
The move could undermine Tehran’s access to foreign currency and global trade networks at a moment when its economy is deteriorating and the military conflict with the US and Israel has added further pressure.
Emirati officials have warned Iranian officials that such a move is under consideration, the newspaper said, citing people familiar with the discussions, although no decision has been reached on whether or when to act.
– Annick Bao
(tags to translate)World Markets
