Your morning briefing, the business news you need in just 15 minutes.

On today's podcast:

(1) US President Joe Biden faces intensifying pressure to confront Iran directly after the country's proxies killed three American soldiers in a drone strike in Jordan over the weekend, risking precisely the wider regional conflict that he's trying to avoid.

(2) China's Evergrande Group has received a liquidation order from a Hong Kong court, setting off what's likely to be a daunting process to carve up one of the biggest victims of a years-long and nationwide property debt crisis.

(3) The UK government has asked City of London firms to submit proposals to work on a potential retail offering of NatWest shares, in what would be the country's most high-profile privatization this year.

(4) London homes are now the most affordable they've been since 2014, though they're still by far the most expensive relative to earnings in Britain despite their underperformance.

(5) EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is expected to seek a second term ahead of elections in June; but the achievements of her first term haven't come without controversy.