Your morning briefing. All the news you need to start your day.

On today's podcast:

(1) US and Iranian negotiators are exploring a phased deal that would see Tehran reopen the Strait of Hormuz and Washington lift its blockade of Iranian ports, according to a person familiar with the discussions.

(2) NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said a shortage of oil refining capacity in Europe could leave the continent exposed in the event of a war.

(3) As yields on US Treasuries soar past one high after the next, a reality is sinking in deeper across Wall Street and Washington: More than merely a bond-market slump, this might just be a fundamental shift.

(4) France’s far-right leader Marine Le Pen indicated she may refrain from trying to topple the government over the 2027 budget to avoid a bond market crisis and to give her more leeway to make tax and spending changes if she’s elected president in May.

(5) Luminaries from Wall Street and Silicon Valley joined President Donald Trump for a state dinner honoring his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, in a demonstration of US technological and financial might.

(6) Some billionaires with UK tax obligations are pushing back against sweeping requests for information from local authorities seeking to map out their wealth and financial structures.

(7) From Italy to Japan to Brazil, officials are experimenting with novel ways to entice plumbers and mechanics and teachers to buy bonds. In Romania today, a retail investor program, which includes better bond yields for blood donors, provides close to a fifth of the government’s entire borrowing needs.

Podcast Conversation: Workplace War Over Iced Lattes Isn't About Coffee