Tag - iran

 
 

IRAN

A ship is seen in the Persian Gulf off the coast of Sharjah, UAE, the day after the failure of U.S.-Iran peace talks on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 15, 2026
U.S. and Iran may resume talks this week despite port blockade
While the U.S. blockade drew angry rhetoric from Tehran, signs that diplomatic engagement might continue helped calm oil markets.
Bathtub makers are suffering material shortages as the Iran conflict stretches on.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 14, 2026
Japanese bathtub makers halt orders as material shortages bite
Major suppliers have stopped giving delivery dates for their own products.
U.S. President Donald Trump signs an order raising tariffs in the Oval Office in Washington in February 2025.
COMMENTARY / World / Geoeconomic Briefing
Apr 14, 2026
Trump, ‘The Art of the Deal’ and the ‘TACO’ myth
The question is not whether Trump “chickens out,” but whether the final outcome leaves him in a stronger position.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media outside the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Monday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 14, 2026
U.S. and Iran weigh further truce talks with Trump blockade underway
The two sides’ negotiating teams could return to Islamabad later this week for a second round of talks.
Visitors look at a display of semiconductor devices at the SuperSiC booth during SEMICON China, a trade fair for semiconductor technology, in Shanghai on March 25.
BUSINESS
Apr 14, 2026
China’s export engine stutters as Iran war chills global demand
The effects of the conflict in the Middle East have exposed the risks in Beijing’s strategy of leaning on manufacturing to sustain growth.
A vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Oman’s Musandam province, on Sunday. The fate of some 40 Japan-linked ships stranded in the Persian Gulf remains uncertain, with a blockade of the strait having been in place since Monday.
JAPAN
Apr 14, 2026
Fate of Japan-linked ships in Persian Gulf remains uncertain
“We don’t know again how the situation will develop,” a Japanese government official said regarding Japanese ships leaving the Persian Gulf.
Georges Elhedery, CEO of HSBC Holdings, during an interview in Hong Kong on Tuesday
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 14, 2026
HSBC CEO warns U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is damaging global confidence
The London-based lender is among the European banks most exposed to the Middle East, a region that accounts for roughly 4% of its pretax profit.
A vessel is seen at the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Oman’s Musandam province, on Sunday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 14, 2026
What does a U.S. naval blockade of Iran mean for oil flows?
Oil tankers were steering clear of the strait on Monday.
An oil tanker is docked unloading crude oil at the port in Qingdao, in China's eastern Shandong province, on April 7.
BUSINESS
Apr 14, 2026
Xi’s petroyuan dream gets new life from Trump’s war in Iran
The conflict is spurring a fresh wave of enthusiasm over prospects for China’s currency to more effectively rival the U.S. dollar.
Vietnam's Communist Party General Secretary To Lam takes his oath as Vietnam's President during the legislature's session at the National Assembly in Hanoi on April 7.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Apr 14, 2026
Xi to meet Vietnam leader as Hormuz blockade risks energy flows
The war in Iran has raised global supply risks and is pushing Hanoi to deepen cooperation with China, its largest trading partner.
Pope Leo XIV attends a meeting with the Algerian community at the Basilica of our lady of Africa in Algiers on Monday.
WORLD
Apr 14, 2026
Pope Leo vows to continue Iran war critiques after Trump attacks
The comments are likely to further escalate tensions between the president and the U.S.-born pope, who has been denouncing the war in Iran with increasing frequency.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in Kuala Lumpur on Oct. 6
JAPAN
Apr 13, 2026
Japan and Pakistan agree to cooperate on Middle East issues
Takaichi expressed appreciation and support for Sharif and other Pakistani officials’ efforts to mediate U.S.-Iranian talks.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda has spoken of the need for vigilance to the impact of escalating conflict in ​the Middle East.
BUSINESS
Apr 13, 2026
BOJ’s Ueda calls for vigilance against impact of Middle East war
The reference to Middle East uncertainty marks a shift from March’s guidance.
The petrodollar system underpinning U.S. financial dominance is breaking down as the Iran war disrupts both oil revenues and foreign demand for Treasurys, exposing limits to their safe-haven status.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 13, 2026
The Iran war just broke the petrodollar
The virtuous loop that has seen America underwrite stability in the Middle East in exchange for Gulf states recycling their dollar revenues into U.S. Treasurys has been broken.
A vessel sails in the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Oman’s Musandam province, on Sunday.
WORLD / FOCUS
Apr 13, 2026
Trump’s blockade of Iran ports risks dangerous escalation cycle
While the U.S. is capable of enforcing a blockade, it would entail substantial costs and risks.
U.S. threats toward Iran reflect a strategic mindset shaped by the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, where mass civilian destruction was normalized and later used to justify annihilation as a legitimate policy.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Apr 13, 2026
Trump’s apocalyptic promise: ‘A whole civilization will die tonight’
Truman described Hiroshima as “a military base,” a characterization historians have since established as inaccurate.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media after disembarking Air Force One as he arrives at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Apr 13, 2026
Trump attacks Pope Leo, calling him ‘terrible’ for foreign policy and ‘weak’ on crime
‌The U.S.-born pontiff has emerged as an outspoken critic of the U.S. president’s foreign and immigration policies.
The Toto Museum in Kitakyushu. Toto has suspended new orders for its prefabricated bathrooms due to a shortage of materials.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 13, 2026
Toto halts bathroom orders after Iran war upends supply chain
The firm joins a growing list of Japanese manufacturers who have cut production or hiked prices due to tightening supplies of naphtha.
A BYD Atto 2 EV in the showroom in the Mayfair district of London
BUSINESS / Tech
Apr 13, 2026
China’s clean tech firms signal windfall from Gulf energy shock
Rising oil and natural gas prices, plus a renewed emphasis on energy security, are boosting demand for batteries and electric vehicles.
A vessel at the Strait of Hormuz, off the coast of Oman’s Musandam province, on Sunday
JAPAN / Politics
Apr 13, 2026
Japan ‘closely monitoring’ U.S. plans to blockade Strait of Hormuz
U.S. President Donald Trump again assailed Tokyo and other U.S. allies for not helping secure the strait, saying that the lack of aid “amazes” him.

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