Middle East | DD News

July 30, 2026 9:06 AM

Asian stocks choppy after rout, Fed leaves markets uncertain on rates

Asian stocks struggled for direction on Thursday, nursing steep losses for the week on mounting investor jitters around the AI trade, while a divided Federal Reserve kept interest rates steady, leaving bond markets questioning where rates are headed. Brent futures slipped below $90 per barrel, after jumping over 7% a day earlier as fighting in the Middle East escalated, although data showed tankers continued to make their way out of the region despite the continued missile and drone strikes. T...

June 24, 2026 3:35 PM

Rubio starts Middle East trip as allies seek answers on Iran

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio began a Middle East tour in earnest on Wednesday, seeking to reassure Gulf allies who view concessions in President Donald Trump’s Iran deal that include a proposed $300 billion fund as too generous to a regional foe. Arriving in the United Arab Emirates capital Abu Dhabi late on Tuesday for a three-day Gulf trip, Rubio is undertaking his first high-level diplomatic mission on the agreement reached last week to end the four-month-old U.S.-Israeli war with I...

June 15, 2026 2:42 AM

Trump administration says new Iran deal won’t repeat Obama-era mistakes

Senior Trump administration officials on Sunday mounted a vigorous defence of the emerging US-Iran agreement, saying it bears little resemblance to the nuclear accord negotiated under former President Barack Obama, even as Obama-era officials questioned whether the new arrangement would ultimately be much different. The debate unfolded across multiple television interviews on Sunday as the White House moved closer to a memorandum of understanding with Iran that President Donald Trump said cou...

May 19, 2026 9:22 AM

Trump says he paused attack on Iran, signals a nuclear deal may be possible

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he had paused a planned attack against Iran after Tehran sent a peace proposal to Washington, and that there was now a "very good chance" of reaching a deal limiting Iran's nuclear program. After Iran sent the U.S. a new peace proposal, Trump said he had instructed the U.S. military that "we will NOT be doing the scheduled attack of Iran tomorrow, but have further instructed them to be prepared to go forward with a full, large scale assault of Iran, on...

April 29, 2026 9:30 AM

King Charles promotes US-UK unity in speech to Congress amid Iran tensions

Britain's King Charles told the U.S. Congress on Tuesday that despite an age of uncertainty and conflict in Europe and the Middle East, the UK and the U.S. will always be staunch allies united in defending democracy, at a time of deep divisions between the two long-time allies over the war with Iran. "Whatever our differences, whatever disagreements we may have, we stand united in our commitment to uphold democracy, to protect all our people from harm, and to salute the courage of those who dai...

April 12, 2026 9:06 PM

Russia ready to supply gas to the EU if it has a surplus

Russia is ready to continue supplying gas to the European Union if there are volumes remaining after supplies to alternative markets, Russian state news agency TASS reported on Sunday. "There is plenty of it for now. But alternative markets are very voracious, there are a great many requests for supplies," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying. However, Europe will find a way to buy gas even if Russia does not supply it, Peskov said. "There are so many gas liquefaction plants, ...

April 1, 2026 2:15 PM

“Months ahead may not be easy,” says Australian PM Albanese as fuel supplies get disrupted amid West Asia crisis

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday in his address to the nation said that the months ahead might not be easy. Albanese said that on Monday, National Cabinet adopted the National Fuel Security Plan, which would help Australians in case supplies are seriously disrupted over the long term. "The months ahead may not be easy. I want to be upfront about that. No government can promise to eliminate the pressures that this war is causing. I can promise we will do everything we can...

March 31, 2026 2:44 PM

EU tells members to prepare for ‘prolonged disruption’ to energy markets from Iran war

European Union governments should prepare for a "prolonged disruption" to energy markets as a result of the Iran war, the bloc's energy chief has told countries' ministers ahead of an emergency meeting on Tuesday. In a letter to energy ministers, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen said governments were "encouraged to make timely preparations in anticipation of a potentially prolonged disruption". Europe's heavy reliance on imported fuel means the continent is very exposed to the Middle East ...

March 31, 2026 12:34 PM

Brent crude set for record monthly gain; shares tentative as Iran war rages

Oil prices were set for a record monthly rise on Tuesday while Asian shares were headed for their steepest fall in six years, capping a tumultuous month as the war in the Middle East stoked fears of higher inflation and slower growth. Bonds were headed for their largest decline in months, owing to the hawkish sea change in the global outlook for interest rates, while the dollar was on the cusp of its strongest gain in eight months. A month into the war, investors continue to be whipsawed by a ...

March 31, 2026 11:21 AM

Inflation to slower growth, West Asia shock to shape global economy in various ways: IMF

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has said the ongoing US-Israel and Iran war could shape the global economy in different ways — all roads leading to higher prices and slower growth. The IMF said the war in the Middle East is upending lives and livelihoods in the region and beyond. “It is also dimming the outlook for many economies that had only just shown signs of a sustained recovery from previous crises. The shock is global, yet asymmetric. Energy importers are more exposed than exp...