Good morning. The world braces for Iran’s response after the US strikes. Satellite images question Donald Trump’s claim that nuclear sites were destroyed. And Apple executives consider acquiring AI startup Perplexity. Listen to the day’s top stories.
The US airstrikes on Iran have set traders and governments on edge, as the Islamic Republic warns of retaliation and Israel shows no sign of letting up. Oil climbed and US futures fell as trading got underway. The US issued a “Worldwide Caution” alert for American citizens, flagging the potential of travel disruptions and demonstrations following the strikes.
Here’s how the 37-hour Operation Midnight Hammer mission unfolded, from using decoy B-2 bombers to deploying Tomahawk missiles. Read how independent analysis has yet to verify Trump’s claim that heavily fortified sites were “totally obliterated.”
The prospect of Iran disrupting the Strait of Hormuz has oil traders preparing for a price surge. Two empty supertankers U-turned in the strait, sailing south and away from the mouth of the Persian Gulf in the first signs of rerouting. The WTI crude benchmark would exceed $100 if the strait is blocked, Bloomberg Intelligence said.
Sellers are slashing prices, deals are taking longer—if they happen at all—and some luxury complexes are partly empty.
Just this month, Sotheby’s dropped the price of a Mayfair penthouse to £68 million from £85 million. It had originally been put on the market for about £100 million.
The damage was set in motion by a slew of tax hikes targeting both luxury real estate and the city’s wealthy elite, and has been compounded by blows from Brexit and sanctions on Russian money.
As a mission, Operation Midnight Hammer counts as a stunning triumph, writes Andreas Kluth. But it’s what follows—and not just in the subsequent weeks, but over the years—that poses the problems.
Excel turns 40 this September. The Microsoft spreadsheet software still has a hold on finance departments worldwide, but more tools are coming that automate tasks and require less manual data entry. Will AI kill Excel?
