Page 6 - Latest Updates on West Asia Conflict

Hormuz is reopening, but global shipping won't be normal for months

While oil markets have reacted positively to the Strait of Hormuz reopening, supply chain disruptions and a massive shipping backlog mean global energy markets may take months to fully recover

Khamenei says he backed US-Iran MoU after receiving key assurances

Khamenei added that future ‌face-to-face negotiations with the United States ‌would not mean accepting "the enemy's position"

India needs to diversify crude import routes more: S&P Global Energy

The West Asia crisis has exposed India's import-linked energy security risks, making diversified crude routes and deeper storage buffers more urgent, S&P said

Oil prices fall 2% to lowest since start of Iran war on US-Iran peace deal

Brent crude futures were down $1.64, or 2.06 per cent, at $77.91 a barrel ‌as of 0427 GMT, and US West Texas Intermediate fell $1.80, or 2.34 per cent, to $74.99 a barrel

Oil and gas ships resume Strait of Hormuz transit after US-Iran peace deal

Traffic through the Strait was light, with smaller cargo vessels passing through, hours after Trump said he had signed the deal with Iran that involved a rapid reopening of the critical waterway

Trump blows through long-held red lines on Iran to secure peace deal

Trump's support for deal has drawn attention as it appears to permit uranium enrichment, ballistic missiles and access to frozen funds-issues he had criticised as major flaws in past Iran agreements

Trump's Iran deal falls short of his demand for 'unconditional surrender'

While the Iranians suffered substantial losses in the war, they emerged from a confrontation with the world's most powerful military, having proved they can use economic chaos as a weapon

Trump on Iran truce: 'If I don't like it, we'll go back to shooting'

G7 leaders welcome interim accord, call for Lebanon ceasefire and back efforts to reduce reliance on Strait of Hormuz

Iran fires drones at commercial ships in Hormuz after peace deal: Report

The firing took place after the signing of the US-Iran memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Sunday, and the drones were intercepted by the US military

Oil dips as investors weigh Iran war deal, Hormuz reopening uncertainty

Brent crude futures dipped 16 cents, ​or 0.2 per cent, to $78.80 a barrel by 0340 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate fell 25 cents, or 0.3 per cent, ‌to $75.80 a barrel

US set to offer broad financial incentives to Iran in peace agreement

The two sides agreed to the deal on Sunday and plan to formally sign it on June 19 in Switzerland, clearing the way for 60 days of talks intended to end the war for good

What is inside the 14-point draft memorandum between the US and Iran

Draft US-Iran pact proposes sanctions relief, nuclear curbs and $300 bn aid

Trump's push for Iran deal puts friendship with Netanyahu to test

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told President Donald Trump last year that he was the "greatest friend Israel ever had in the White House". Now, as Trump tries to finalise a deal to end the war with Iran, he's unloading on Netanyahu with rhetoric that no other American leader has dared to use publicly. He claimed credit for Israel's existence - "without me, there would be no Israel" - and cursed his judgment in interviews. He even described him as "crazy". Netanyahu's tenure as prime minister spans four US presidents, and he's frustrated all of them at one point or another. But none has voiced that as openly as Trump, who started the conflict in tandem with Netanyahu. The tension comes as Trump criticises recent Israeli attacks in Lebanon, which threatened to jeopardise negotiations between Washington and Tehran. Trump has been pushing for a deal as he faces political blowback at home, where the war is unpopular and has driven up gasoline prices. "If Netanyahu gets in ..

Best of BS Opinion: Why India must confront deeper economic risks

Today's opinions explore India's external vulnerabilities, the concentration of global capital in US technology, energy reforms, disclosure norms, and a nuanced portrait of Kashmir through the Chenab

US-Iran deal promises end to war but how it will work still unclear

US President Donald Trump said on Monday a preliminary agreement to end the conflict had been signed by the US and Iran, although details have yet to be made public

End of war includes end of Israel's occupation of Lebanon: Iran foreign min

Iran's top diplomat said Tuesday that the deal ending the war with the United States would also require Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, raising questions about the still-unpublished agreement and whether disagreement over its terms could prolong conflict. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told diplomats from other countries that Israel's continued occupation of southern Lebanon would violate the memorandum of understanding reached between the United States and Iran, in comments aired on Iranian state television. "The end of the war in Lebanon is an inseparable part of the complete end of the war," Araghchi said. "Without the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the territories they occupied during this war, the war has not fully come to an end." Araghchi said further Israeli attacks on Lebanon "will be considered by us a violation of the Memorandum of Understanding." The United States has not said whether Lebanon was part of the final agreement. But Araghchi's description clashes with

Higher prices for gas, groceries and flights to outlast Iran war: Experts

A tentative deal to end the Iran war makes it reasonable to ask how soon prices will drop for gasoline, groceries, airline tickets and other items that got more expensive during the conflict. Not so fast, experts say. Even after oil starts flowing again from the Middle East, it could take a while for consumers to see a difference at local fuel pumps, supermarkets and other places they shop, according to economists and industry analysts. Fighting over the Strait of Hormuz disrupted not only supplies of crude and refined fuel but also the supply chains for fertiliser, food and even footwear. Businesses expect higher costs to linger, which means their customers might need to prepare for that too. "It is not clear, despite three months of war, that anything has been achieved that makes the American consumer better off," Brett House, an economist who teaches at Columbia Business School, said. "In fact, by almost any measure, not just the American consumer, but the world, is worse off as

Iran war is 'wake-up call' for Southeast Asia's energy sector, says report

The war in Iran has exposed major risks for Southeast Asia that could cost the region many billions of dollars if it does not diversify sources of energy more quickly, according to an International Energy Agency report released Tuesday. An overreliance on oil and gas transported through the Strait of Hormuz left the region particularly vulnerable to shocks from the Iran war, a "stark wake-up call" for its energy security, the report says. It notes that rising sales of electric vehicles, a renewed interest in nuclear power and a boom in rooftop solar and other renewable energy installations show the war is spurring change. But more sweeping reforms are needed. Otherwise, Southeast Asia's energy import bill could rise to $245 billion by 2035, tripling from $80 billion in 2024, the report warns. "Diversification of energy sources and supply routes is now a central priority," said Fatih Birol, the IEA executive director. Iran war exposes Southeast Asia's energy ...

Trump's Iran deal faces scepticism, scrutiny as US lawmakers seek answers

Republicans on Capitol Hill said Monday they need more information about the agreement between the United States and Iran announced by President Donald Trump, and some are expressing scepticism as they ask the White House for details. The agreement announced Sunday to end the war in Iran, set for a ceremonial signing Friday in Geneva, is centered around reopening the Strait of Hormuz and lifting the United States' naval blockade in the region, along with financial incentives for Iran if it meets certain benchmarks. But Senate Republicans and Democrats who returned to Washington on Monday said there were still many unanswered questions about the deal and they need thorough briefings before it is finalised. "I just don't know enough about it," Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters in the Capitol. "Even the people who follow this stuff closely up here don't know that much about it." Congressional leaders and intelligence committees generally receive higher-level intelligenc

Israel will keep forces in Lebanon, despite US-Iran deal: Netanyahu

'The struggle has not ended,' a defiant Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Israelis