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Iran missile attack on Qatar causes ‘extensive damage’ to facility housing huge gas plant
Qatar said Wednesday that Iranian missiles caused “extensive damage” at Ras Laffan Industrial City, home to the largest liquefied natural gas, or LNG, export facility in the world. Qatar’s Foreign Ministry denounced the attack as a “dangerous escalation, flagrant violation of state sovereignty, and a direct threat to its national security and regional stability.” Qatar […]
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Here are the five key takeaways from this week’s Fed meeting
Key Points Federal Reserve policymakers kept their key interest rate at a range of 3.5% to 3.75% at the conclusion of their March meeting. At his press conference, Fed Chair Jerome Powell faced questions about the oil price shock since the Iran war. The Fed’s dot plot suggests a rate cut could be in the […]
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Dow tumbles 600 points to session low as inflation fears hurt stocks: Live updates
A television station broadcasts the Federal Reserve’s decision to hold rates after a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, US, on Wednesday, March 18, 2026. Michael Nagle | Bloomberg | Getty Images Stocks sold off on Wednesday after new U.S. economic data […]
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European stocks move lower as attention turns to the Fed
A television station broadcasts the Federal Reserve’s decision to hold rates after a Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York, US, on Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images LONDON — European stocks edged lower on Wednesday as the market […]
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Israel says it has killed Iran’s intelligence minister in third assassination in two days
Iran’s Minister of Intelligence Esmail Khatib (C) sits with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian (C-R) before a speech to members of parliament in the capital Tehran, on August 17, 2024, as he defends his cabinet selection. Atta Kenare | Afp | Getty Images Israel’s Defense Forces said Wednesday that Iran’s Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib had been […]
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Traffic is trickling through Strait of Hormuz: Who’s moving through and who’s still stranded or diverting
Commercial vessels are pictured offshore in Dubai on March 11, 2026. – | Afp | Getty Images Iran’s de facto blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has stoked fears of the gravest disruption to global oil supply in history, as the Middle East conflict stretches into its third week. The blockade has squeezed shipping traffic […]
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Iran conflict looms large over Takaichi’s upcoming summit with Trump, experts say
U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi (R) hold up signed documents for a critical minerals/rare earth deal with Japan during a meeting at Akasaka Palace on October 28, 2025 in Tokyo, Japan. Trump is on a visit to Asia that takes in the ASEAN summit in Malaysia, followed by a […]
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France ready to help U.S. secure Strait of Hormuz — but not while ships are under attack
Tankers sail in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. Stringer | Reuters French Finance Minister Roland Lescure told CNBC that France is willing to support the U.S. in […]
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Oil slips as rising U.S. crude inventories offset attacks on UAE energy infrastructure
A pump jack is seen on March 17, 2026 in Stanton, Texas. Brandon Bell | Getty Images Oil prices slipped on Wednesday despite escalating attacks on the United Arab Emirates’ energy infrastructure, as rising U.S. crude inventories helped offset rising geopolitical risk premiums. Prices of Brent, the international benchmark, declined 1.17% to $102.19 per barrel. […]
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Iran launches retaliatory strikes on Israel and U.S. assets after security chief Larijani is killed
A smoke plume rise from an ongoing fire near Dubai International Airport in Dubai on March 16, 2026. – | Afp | Getty Images Iran intensified attacks against U.S. assets in the Middle East and Israel on Wednesday in apparent retaliation against the killing of the country’s security chief Ali Larijani overnight, as the weeks-long […]
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