Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) The US and Iran have intensified tit-for-tat military strikes, with Iran hitting merchant vessels and the US striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps sites. Iran said the US killed 18 people with its attacks, and vowed to punish Washington for a strike on a wedding ceremony that killed at least four people and injured 67. The conflict has led to a rise in energy prices, with Brent crude oil climbing more than 6% this week to $95 a barrel, and US pump prices for diesel at a four-year high.
2) US retail diesel prices have hit the highest since mid-2022, topping a peak seen during the early stages of the Iran war. The national average pump price climbed to $5.783 a gallon on Wednesday, surpassing the wartime peak set in April, and is approaching the all-time high of $5.816 in June 2022. The surge in prices presents a political headache for President Donald Trump, as he contends with mounting cost-of-living concerns before November’s midterm elections.
3) A disagreement between Chinese and US officials at a Group of 20 finance chiefs meeting revolved around a dispute over the phrase “non-market” in a sentence addressing trade imbalances. The US side attributed the impasse to disagreements on language spanning issues from critical minerals to debt restructuring, while Chinese officials saw the term as a veiled attack on state-owned companies. The final chair statement from the US included a line saying countries should agree to “eliminate non-market policies and practices that exacerbate imbalances,” which was opposed by China.