Last updated: September 12, 2026, 2:13 PM ET
Energy & Commodities
Saudi Arabia shut its East-West pipeline after a drone attack launched from inside Iraq, closing a critical workaround to Iran's Persian Gulf blockade and putting further momentum behind fast-rising oil prices. The news briefly pushed oil to $110 a barrel as traders priced in heightened fears of widening clashes across the Middle East. The kingdom confirmed the closure of the critical conduit, a key lifeline that had allowed crude to bypass the Strait of Hormuz entirely. Iraq responded swiftly, with Baghdad firing its Maysan commander on Saturday after the attacks were traced to launches from within Iraqi territory.
The Houthis seized a key Red Sea island in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a choke point for global trade, in a lightning offensive that cements the Yemeni rebels' control over a vital shipping artery. The militia's advance against Saudi-backed forces has roiled energy markets and raised fresh questions about the security of crude flows through the region. Iran and its allies now hold sway over two key oil routes, setting the stage for a diplomatic win that could enhance Tehran's stature. Ship operators already faced severe risks navigating the region, and the danger is now higher as Houthi militias assert control in the Red Sea.
US forces have redirected 100 commercial vessels over the past 60 days since the blockade against Iran resumed, Central Command said in an update on X. The US has limited air defence time slots for tankers sailing through Hormuz, shifting to two specified times daily following an increase in Iranian attacks. Oil prices slipped back Friday after a string of gains but ended the week sharply higher as traders assessed growing risks to Middle East crude exports, with oil posting a big weekly gain amid supply risks.
The surge in oil, gas and diesel prices is forcing central banks and governments to reassess the impact of the wars in Iran and Ukraine, with oil and gas markets signaling a winter crisis and rising interest rates. As diesel crosses $6, so does the risk that soaring energy costs will start hurting far beyond gas pumps, according to an analysis of how energy drives inflation. Russia is turning to its Far East as one of the alternative ways to export its grain, as Ukrainian strikes disrupt flows from its key Black Sea ports, Agriculture Minister Oksana Lut said, with Moscow turning to the Far East to export grain amid Black Sea strikes.
Fixed Income & Rates
Elevated inflation is keeping pressure on the Federal Reserve, with the odds of a quarter-point rate increase at next week's meeting surging to 90 percent after August's Consumer Price Index report, according to a Fed rate hike watch. The Fed is poised to raise interest rates for the first time in years, a move that comes alongside a vital oil pipeline shutdown and strong words from Sen. Susan Collins directed at Trump. Wall Street cheered the clarity on the Fed outlook even if it means higher rates, with stocks rising and bonds steadying after Friday's warm CPI report took "a lot of the guesswork" out of next week's decision, as Wall Street cheered the clarity.
Government bond yields finished near multiyear highs amid rate-rise bets, with long-run Treasury yields cooling slightly but still hovering near their multiyear highs as investors raised their bets the Fed will hike next week. Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund could sell as much as $62 billion of US Treasuries without a formal revamp of its asset-allocation policy, according to analysts at Banco Santander SA, a move that would sell $62 billion of Treasuries. The WSJ Dollar Index declined 0.13% this week to 95.12, down six of the past eight trading days, as Asian currencies consolidated and dollar demand may weigh on the index.
Bond traders are making an unusual judgment about risk in French financial markets: they believe collateralized bank bonds are safer than government debt, a "crazy" French inversion that shows credit is a haven. The long shadow of quantitative easing continues to loom over markets, with central bank balance sheets set to stay large for the foreseeable future. High oil prices could force the ECB to raise rates further, warned Austrian central bank governor Martin Kocher, who said the risk of elevated inflation is higher than it was a few months ago and that the ECB may raise rates further if oil stays near $100.
Equities & Public Markets
US stocks rose as oil retreated, snapping a four-session losing streak as an interruption to the torrid run in oil prices offset a reading of higher consumer inflation, with US stocks rising on the day. Stocks also climbed as the inflation figure boosted odds of a rate hike, a signal that investors like the idea of a Federal Reserve rate hike tamping down inflation, with stocks gaining on the data. Inflation came in hot, with the report also noting that Iran-backed Houthis took control of an oil chokepoint and consumer sentiment fell, as inflation came in hot. The list of challenges confronting Wall Street piled up this week: oil firmly above $100, inflation refusing to disappear, and a defiant bond market that all but dared Scott Bessent to bring more policy firepower, with AI-obsessed Wall Street pouring billions into inflation-era bets.
India's central bank has told Tata Sons to take the conglomerate public, rejecting the group's appeal against forced listing and setting the stage for what could become India's biggest IPO, with the RBI forcing Tata Sons to go public. The RBI rejected an application from Tata Sons Pvt. to surrender its status as a shadow lender, according to people familiar with the matter, implying it expects the company to adhere to listing requirements, as the RBI rejected Tata Sons bid to avoid a public listing. India's markets regulator proposed sweeping changes to the closing auction system, including a possible return to the previous method for settling derivatives on expiry days, after sharp price swings, with SEBI seeking changes to the unpopular auction system.
Larry Ellison will sell up to $7.5 billion worth of Oracle stock, offloading as many as 50 million shares as the company posts higher revenue from data centres but faces investor fears it is overcommitted to AI, with Ellison to sell up to $7.5bn in Oracle shares. A unit of China's online retailer JD.com Inc. agreed to pay $500,000 to settle US Securities and Exchange Commission claims it made a series of "sham transactions" to meet revenue targets, with the JD.com unit paying the SEC $500,000. KKR & Co. Inc. finalized a $2.1 billion loan to help fund its pending acquisition of medical-device maker Integer Holdings Corp. after securing more-favorable terms, seizing on investor demand for leveraged loans, as KKR wrapped up the $2.1 billion leveraged loan.
A former trader at IFS Securities Inc. was ordered to serve more than 16 years in prison for unauthorized bond trades in 2019 that led to $30 million in losses and bankrupted the Chicago broker-dealer, with the bond trader getting 16 years for fraud. The CFTC plans to automatically award successful whistleblowers 30% of any enforcement penalties collected if a tipster is due to receive $5 million or less, as the agency clears faster payouts for tipster awards under $5 million. Royal Bank of Canada hired Bank of America's Dan Mills as a managing director and head of rates sales in Canada, with RBC hiring Dan Mills to head Canada rates sales. HSBC Holdings Plc is set to start its search for a new chief financial officer, parsing through a pool of internal and external candidates willing and qualified to take on one of the biggest jobs in global finance, as HSBC may tap a new CFO.
Deals, IPOs & Corporate Finance
The RBI's rejection of Tata Sons' application to surrender its shadow-lender status sets up what could become India's largest-ever IPO, a landmark moment for the country's capital markets. Belron is the sort of business that might help investors warm up to more deals, with the windshield megadeal potentially able to fix Europe's IPO window after a prolonged drought in listings. After the IPO, start-ups face a billion-dollar bill for employee paydays, as a compensation strategy keeps expenses low until they go public — at which point companies may face billions of dollars in catch-up expenses, with IPO accounting rules creating a double-trigger RSU expense.
LIV Golf's bleak future shifts to the courtroom, with the league filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and seeking a $300 million LIV 20 revival, as LIV Golf files for Chapter. Thames Water faces a £2 billion bill for finance costs and advisers' fees, with the embattled UK utility facing mounting costs as the government debates moving ahead with temporary nationalisation, as Thames Water faces the £2bn bill. Nimish Patel of Coots & Boots was discharged as joint administrator of an entity in the collapsed property lender's empire, with the MFS administrator stepping down amid creditor pressure. St James's Place will scrutinise growth plans and aim to boost adviser morale following departures, as the wealth manager looks to reassure advisers after the exits.
JPMorgan cut off Situational Awareness lending after AI losses, with Leopold Aschenbrenner's hedge fund previously shedding billions of dollars during a sell-off, as the fund rebuilds with new brokers after a record loss. Nick Train's Lindsell Train Investment Trust offered a tender offer for 20% of shares in a bid to address its persistently wide discount, with the trust offering a buyback to boost its weak share price. Early SpaceX investor Atreides hired Lone Pine co-CIO Kelly Granat to join the tech-focused investment firm set up by former Fidelity Investments star stock picker Gavin Baker, with Atreides hiring the Lone Pine co-CIO. Vin Fast Auto Ltd. chairman Pham Nhat Quan Anh will take over as global chief executive officer of the Vietnamese electric-vehicle maker, replacing his father and billionaire founder Pham Nhat Vuong, as the VinFast founder hands the CEO role to his son.
Trade, Geopolitics & Policy
Leaders of emerging powers including Russia and Iran projected a united front at a weekend summit in New Delhi, with a joint statement that targeted a US-launched war in the Middle East, as Trump's foes unite at Modi's New Delhi summit. Xi Jinping met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the Chinese president's first post-Covid visit to India, as the world's two most populous nations look to make further headway in stabilizing ties, with Xi sitting down with Modi on his first trip to India in seven years. Trade between India and China has nearly doubled in five years to $151 billion, leaving New Delhi with a widening deficit and a difficult choice over how to build its industrial future, as India-China trade doubles to $151B amid border tensions.
Canada is seeking $1 trillion from investors looking for a haven from Trump, with Prime Minister Mark Carney hosting a summit to put money behind his plan to decouple from an increasingly hostile US, as Canada targets $1tn in investment. European investment in Latin American stocks hit a 15-year peak, with investors seeking shelter from geopolitical turmoil putting the outflows of recent years into reverse, as European investment in Lat Am stocks hits a 15-year high. Booming Brics payments systems are seeking more cross-border links, with government-backed networks such as UPI and Pix exploring link-ups with central banks overseas, as Brics payments systems seek cross-border links.
South Korea is arming itself to protect chip secrets from foreign spies, broadening its espionage legislation for the first time in more than seven decades, as Seoul tightens spy laws to protect chip secrets. President Trump said Irish unification would be "fantastic," breaking with precedent on an issue that had been a source of decades of violence in Northern Ireland until a 1998 peace deal, as Trump backs Irish unification. Trump heads to Ireland for the Irish Open at his golf course after a two-day Republican rally in Dallas, with the Trump Irish Open visit drawing protest and praise in Doonbeg. A visa dispute is threatening US-Brazil cooperation on crime, with officials saying the Trump administration is blocking some of Brazil's efforts to expand cooperation on fighting transnational crime, as the visa dispute threatens cooperation.
AI, Technology & Regulation
Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for an AI slowdown in a 3,800-word essay, laying out the rapidly advancing capabilities of artificial intelligence and saying there needed to be greater safety controls across the industry, with Amodei calling for a global AI slowdown. Researchers at Anthropic, OpenAI, Meta and Google are increasingly trying to raise awareness about the risks of artificial intelligence, with AI researchers warning of superintelligence doomsday risks. Researchers say artificial intelligence is developing faster than the systems put in place to monitor and control it, explaining why tech firms struggle to control AI safety. The Millennium Prize breakthrough is proof of AI's accelerating and terrifying progress, with AI cracking a Millennium Prize math problem and raising existential risk. We can no longer pretend that AI is safe, according to researchers demanding a global pause, with the warning that this is really bad.
Joseph Stiglitz weighed in on how to build a better AI economy, arguing that a slow rollout will disappoint investors while a fast one risks undermining the industry's own foundations — but managed carefully, the technology could benefit us all, with Stiglitz building a better AI economy. Silicon Valley's strange new theology is on display as tech oligarchs show a willingness to risk apocalypse, with tech oligarchs embracing Promethean theology. Prediction markets are a bad idea, warned the founder of Dimensional Fund Advisors, who argued that not only are the odds stacked against those who place bets, but there are also insiders tilting the scales, as prediction markets carry perils. A Chinese crypto investor was the seller of a £190 million London mansion, with Leon Li's ownership of the Regent's Park home having remained obscured despite a UK push for transparency, as the crypto investor sold the £190mn mansion.
Consumer, Health & Industry
Heart disease remains humanity's top killer, yet for drugmakers and Wall Street it is becoming one of the hardest places to make money, with heart disease becoming a weakness for Big Pharma. Restaurant chains are trying to draw in both spendy and thrifty consumers by offering low-cost and more-premium options at the same time, adopting a barbell pricing strategy. Relocation incentives have a mixed record of helping cities and towns stand out as people return to rural America, with some towns offering cash to entice new residents. Cashmere brand Icicle wants more stores in Europe and the US after being backed by Gucci owner Kering, as the Icicle plans global expansion with Kering backing.
The CDC declared the cyclospora outbreak linked to iceberg lettuce as over, with the outbreak — linked to shredded iceberg lettuce from supplier Taylor Farms — resulting in a total of 12,883 reported cases of the gastrointestinal food-borne illness across the country, as the CDC ends the outbreak. Talks between Canada's auto workers and Stellantis hit an impasse over the future of an Ontario factory, with the union saying negotiations on a new labor deal have stalled over the company's plans for a factory that has been idle for two years, as Canada auto union talks stall. A court struck down a Trump administration order keeping a coal plant open, finding the Energy Department exceeded its authority and complicating the president's plan to revive the industry, as the court strikes down the Michigan coal plant order.
Media, Politics & Society
McClatchy made deep job cuts to newspapers around the country, with the owner of The Miami Herald saying subscriber interest did not support its current level of investment and one employee calling the layoffs a "blood bath," as McClatchy cuts 90 journalists. President Trump has harnessed agencies across the government to curtail press freedoms, a sweeping campaign that free speech advocates say will have lasting effects, as Trump wields power to stifle speech. In a new book, Naomi Klein and Astra Taylor argue that a powerful coalition of "end times fascists" is just fine with the earth's demise, with Klein and Taylor warning of end-times fascism. Moldova is a fault line in a new geopolitical reality, caught between Russia and Europe, as Moldova is caught between the two powers.
Republicans facing midterm peril are trying to brand Democrats as communists, with the president's hyperbolic telling casting communism as a graver threat to the country than Pearl Harbor or 9/11 — though whether this midterm strategy works is an open question, as Republicans brand Democrats as communists. Inflation complicates Trump's midterms pitch to voters, with gas prices high, mortgage rates climbing and inflation remaining well above target, as inflation complicates the president's midterm appeal. Trump's $5,000 election promise shows how afraid he really is, as the Trump $5,000 promise reflects campaign anxiety. A dispatch from Dallas 2026 finds that Trump is not going anywhere, dominating the midterm convention.
Republican groups rushed to Ken Paxton's aid in Texas after staying on the sidelines, with an organization allied with Senate GOP leaders booking more than $51 million in ads and Paxton now holding a financial edge after months of being outspent by his Democratic rival, as Republicans boost Paxton with $51M in Texas ads. The legal wrangling over a congressional map redrawn by Republicans in Missouri has election officials, candidates and voters scrambling before November, as Missouri map chaos leaves voters confused. The president attacked three Democrats running for Senate this week with inaccurate claims to portray them as too extreme, as fact-checkers examined Trump's Senate attacks. A federal judge is poised to dismiss a lawsuit challenging Trump's library, saying in halting the pretrial fact-finding process that the president's claim of immunity could "dispose of the entire case" involving the library to be built in Miami, as the judge poised to dismiss the lawsuit.
Briefly Noted
New York marked the 25th anniversary of 9/11 at Ground Zero, with elected officials and loved ones of those killed in the 2001 terror attacks gathering in solemn remembrance in Lower Manhattan, as New York marks the anniversary. America gathered to remember 25 years after 9/11, with the day's other news including an Iranian-backed militia seizing a key Red Sea island, as America marks the occasion. Mayor Zohran Mamdani, facing Islamophobia, has kept his focus on 9/11 victims, visiting firehouses around New York City in an effort to direct the public's attention toward the victims and away from himself, as Mamdani focuses on the victims. The only fraternal organization for women special operations veterans held a gala to mark the wars that began 25 years ago, coming as the Pentagon questions women's roles in the military, with women special operations veterans remembering their battles.
Months after Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city would proceed with a redesign of 34th Street that had been halted by the Trump administration, the plan is no closer to completion, as the Manhattan bus lane plan stalls. The US Open has been quietly releasing tickets for its popular tournament, with hundreds appearing on Ticketmaster on Wednesday and the United States Tennis Association saying it periodically released tickets it held for a variety of reasons, as the US Open quietly releases face-value tickets. A tale of two US Opens compares the $20,000 luxury experience with a $100 budget day, noting that if money is no object the luxury options are plentiful but a budget day at the finals is possible by taking the subway and watching on a screen, as the US Open $20,000 vs. $100 comparison shows. In Doonbeg, Trump's Irish Open visit prompted protests and praise, with locals expressing both appreciation for the resort's economic benefits and opposition to his politics, as Doonbeg draws protest and praise.
Why Mokha, the historic port that shaped the coffee trade, is a prize in Yemen's war: a strategic location on the Red Sea afforded the city centuries of trading dominance — and makes it a coveted target in today's fighting in the Middle East, as Mokha's coffee port remains a prize. Yemenis are fleeing new fighting, with hunger and disease having tormented Yemen for years and now fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Iran-backed Houthis pushing it to the brink, as Yemenis flee the new fighting. In Texas, Trump's foes find common ground at Modi's New Delhi summit, while the president's critics at home find their own common ground — the president incubated the career of one of his greatest critics, as Trump miscalculated in Georgia. The rapper Lil Durk was found not guilty in a murder-for-hire case, having been accused of orchestrating a plot to kill a rival in an ambush that resulted in the death of another man, as Lil Durk acquitted.