Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition

Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) The US-Israeli war on Iran entered a sixth day with no sign of easing, as the Islamic Republic said its retaliation against American strikes would escalate. Arab states across the Persian Gulf reported interceptions of Iranian missiles and drones overnight and into Thursday. Israel is carrying out waves of airstrikes on Tehran, hitting military and intelligence assets, following attacks on Hezbollah militia in Lebanon. President Trump said on Wednesday that the US was “doing very well on the war front.” The White House said American forces had struck more than 2,000 targets and were moving toward “complete and total control of Iranian airspace,” while the Islamic Republic’s regime had been “absolutely crushed.” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps said retaliatory attacks will intensify in coming days, according to the Nour news agency. Tehran will target Israel’s Dimona nuclear facility if the US seeks regime change, Iran’s semi-official ISNA said.
2) The Senate voted 53 to 47 against a measure that would have required congressional approval for President Trump’s military operations against Iran, and similar war powers resolutions are expected to fail in the House. Most Republicans have backed Trump’s decision to bypass Congress, arguing he is constitutionally authorized, though several have warned that support is not unlimited -- particularly if the conflict becomes prolonged or involves ground troops. Some GOP lawmakers expressed concern privately about oversight and the lack of hearings, while Democrats have pledged to repeatedly force war powers votes despite slim chances of passage.
3) Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran said he thinks it’s still appropriate to continue cutting interest rates given that it’s too early to take a stance on the impact of war in the Middle East on the US economy. Oil prices surged after the US and Israel launched attacks across Iran over the weekend, and investors marked down the odds of Fed rate cuts in 2026. Some Fed officials speaking this week have suggested it raises uncertainty over the outlook — a development Fed watchers have interpreted as possibly keeping the central bank on hold for longer.
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Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) President Trump said the US will ensure safe passage of oil from the Middle East to head off a potential energy crisis caused by the war with Iran, which continues to reverberate across the region and roil markets. The fighting has showed no signs of abating five days after it erupted, with Israel and Iran continuing to exchange airstrikes and missile fire. Hundreds of people have died in Iran and dozens elsewhere in the region, while the US says six of its servicemen have been killed. In all, about a dozen nations have become embroiled in the conflict, with Tehran striking at US bases and embassies across the Middle East, and Israel launching an air and ground offensive against Hezbollah in Lebanon after it came under attack from the Iran-aligned group.
2) Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said his support for US military action in Iran came “with regret” because the current conflict is another example of the failure of the international order. Israel and the US acted without engaging the United Nations or allies including Canada, he noted. At the same time, Carney said he agrees with the objective of stopping Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons or further threatening international peace and security through its support of terrorism. Meanwhile, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves said the UK shouldn’t sacrifice its principles for more favorable trading terms with the US, as she stood by the government’s decision to withhold British backup for the American-Israeli assault on Iran.
3) US Senator John Cornyn and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton are heading for a runoff in the Republican primary for the US Senate in Texas, while state Representative James Talarico defeated Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett in a Democratic race that was marred by legal challenges. In the GOP primary, Cornyn was leading with a little more than 42% support, less than two points over Paxton as of early Wednesday. A third candidate, US Representative Wesley Hunt, won enough votes to deny either a majority, sending Cornyn and Paxton to a two-person race to be decided in May. The runoff sets up more than two months of additional campaigning that will further drain the candidates’ coffers as Republican seek to defend their majority in the Senate in November.
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Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) The US-Israeli war on Iran reverberated across the Middle East and global markets on Tuesday, as oil and gas prices surged and Tehran vowed to close the Strait of Hormuz, a vital shipping lane. Both the US and Israeli militaries continued to bombard Iran’s capital. The US embassy in Riyadh was attacked by two drones, causing limited damage, and Israel sent soldiers into southern Lebanon, where the Iran-aligned Hezbollah militia is based. The escalation came as the US sent conflicting messages about how long the war might last, and an adviser to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander told state TV that forces “will set fire to any ship attempting to pass through” the Strait of Hormuz. China, which buys most of Iran’s oil, urged “all sides” to ensure the safe passage of ships through the waterway, where traffic has effectively halted.
2) President Trump escalated his criticism of Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in a fresh indication of how strained the two allies’ relationship has become over the US president’s efforts to enlist the UK’s help in its strikes against Iran. Starmer — who declined a US request to use British bases for offensive operations against the Islamic republic — has “not been helpful,” Trump said in an interview with The Sun tabloid. “It’s very sad to see that the relationship is obviously not what it was.” It’s the latest in a series of jibes Trump has made toward the Labour Party leader since he pushed back against Trump’s designs on Greenland earlier in the year. The US president has repeatedly criticized Starmer’s deal ceding sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius — something he did again in his Sun interview — and has also dismissed Britain’s role alongside American troops in the Afghanistan war.
3) US and Chinese trade negotiators are slated to meet in mid-March, according to people familiar with the matter, signaling a planned summit between Donald Trump and Xi Jinping is pushing ahead despite American strikes against Iran. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and China’s Vice Premier He Lifeng are expected to convene in Paris at the end of next week to discuss business deals that could stem from the leaders’ meeting, said the people who requested anonymity to discuss plans that aren’t yet public. Both the timing and location of the meeting could still shift, the people added. Among the issues that could be addressed are a possible Chinese purchase of Boeing Co. planes, commitments to buy US soybeans and Taiwan, the self-ruled island China views as its own, some of the people said. The future of US fentanyl tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court could also be on the agenda, they added.
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Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) President Trump said the bombing campaign against Iran will continue until its objectives are achieved, calling on the nation’s leaders to capitulate as a report indicated at least one top official in Tehran sought to resume nuclear talks with the US. Trump on Sunday re-confirmed the death of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and said the US and Israel had struck hundreds of targets in Iran including Revolutionary Guard facilities and air defenses. The US military’s Central Command announced Sunday that three US service members were killed and five “seriously wounded” during operations against the Islamic Republic, but gave no further details. Trump, who campaigned for the presidency on a pledge not to endanger American troops in the Middle East, called their deaths part of “the righteous mission” in a video posted on social media. “There will likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is.”
2) Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are stepping up criticism of Iran’s regional attacks, while Gulf states consider coordinating efforts to halt what they’ve called “treacherous” and “heinous” actions by Tehran. Ministers from Gulf Cooperation Council nations held an extraodinary meeting on Sunday to review damages from Iran’s strikes on countries spanning from the UAE to Bahrain, Qatar and Oman, and consider necessary steps to restore stability and peace to the Middle East, according to a statement from state-run Saudi Press Agency. The states affirmed their right to respond to respond to Iran in “self-defense, either individually or collectively” and said GCC members “will take all necessary measures to defend their security and stability and to protect their territories, citizens, and residents, including the option to respond to the aggression.”
3) Oil surged the most in four years as traders gauged the impact of the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz triggered by US and Israeli strikes against Iran, with hostilities escalating across the region. Global benchmark Brent was more than 9% higher near $80 a barrel, after earlier rallying by as much as 13% to the highest since January 2025. Tanker traffic through the strait — the chokepoint off Iran’s coast that handles a fifth of the world’s oil and large volumes of gas — has largely halted, with a self-imposed pause in place by shipowners and traders as the conflict spreads.
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