Public Markets 3h Briefing
×Last updated: March 12, 2026, 4:30 PM ET
Energy & Commodities
Brent crude bloomberg.com surged above $100 a barrel for the first time since August 2022, settling at that level as millions of barrels remain trapped in the Persian Gulf in what analysts describe as the biggest oil market disruption in history. The supply crunch is forcing drillers in central California to resort to the costly alternative of trucking crude bloomberg.com 50 miles after a key pipeline idled, exacerbating logistical bottlenecks. With the Gulf disruption persisting, analysts now forecast wsj.com a longer-lasting period of upheaval and higher prices, while the White House is reportedly considering invoking the Jones Act bloomberg.com to dampen domestic prices by easing shipping restrictions, a move that could temporarily increase coastal supply flows.
Financial Regulation & Banking
Banking regulators are preparing to ease certain capital rules nytimes.com, with the Federal Reserve and other agencies set to release proposals loosening some planned requirements on the reserves banks must hold. This shift aims to mitigate constraints on bank lending capacity. Separately, the CFTC issued new guidance on prediction markets bloomberg.com, urging exchanges to consult regulators before launching markets vulnerable to manipulation, signaling heightened scrutiny of emerging speculative venues.
Geopolitical & Political Risk
The Middle East conflict is driving a flight to the U.S. dollar bloomberg.com, with institutional investors buying dollars at the strongest pace in nearly two years according to State Street, seeking safe-haven assets. The war's business impact is being assessed as damage reshapes corporate strategy ft.com, forcing companies to reconfigure supply chains and regional operations. In the Americas, Chile’s inauguration of a new right-wing president nytimes.com marks a further shift toward conservative, pro-Trump alignment in the region, while in Venezuela, President Trump is reportedly tempering an opposition figure’s ambitions nytimes.com as he deepens ties with her rivals.
Technology & Crypto
An AI platform truce ft.com has emerged between Anthropic and Microsoft through an alliance on agent technology, though competition over the sector’s future is expected to intensify. In the UK, Tesla received a licence to supply electricity ft.com, threatening further disruption to the retail energy sector after a decade of upheaval. Meanwhile, the UK government faces criticism over a bungled crypto ISA policy ft.com, which will restrict digital investments to niche accounts from next month.
Commodity Trade & Infrastructure
Brazil’s position as a top soybean exporter is at risk after some shipments failed inspections bloomberg.com, raising concerns about potential disruptions to China trade at a critical time. In infrastructure, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s new manipulation guidance bloomberg.com also targets prediction markets, while the CME Group warned that any U.S. government intervention in oil futures ft.com would be a "biblical disaster" that erodes market confidence.
Corporate & Political Finance
Bloomberg is preparing to back a protégé via Super PAC nytimes.com in a crowded New York House race, with the billionaire willing to spend up to $5 million to support Assemblyman Micah Lasher. In corporate moves, Tether’s chief investment officer is stepping down after a deals spree bloomberg.com that included investments in soccer clubs and humanoid robots, a change at the stablecoin giant’s investment arm. A federal judge dismissed most of a lawsuit nytimes.com over a Trump administration funding freeze for a tunnel project, ruling the case mostly moot after funds resumed.