WS #13208

The dominant theme remains the escalating US-Iran conflict, now with new corroborating details: a WSJ report (via Seeking Alpha) confirms Trump ordered a new offensive against Iran as soon as this weekend, and a US official reports increased Iranian aggression. The situation is further inflamed by Iran's drone barrage on Kuwait (WSJ), which expands the conflict's geographic scope and raises the risk of broader regional disruption. Oil prices remain elevated above $90/barrel, with the LNG tanker Gaslog Shanghai attack in the Strait of Hormuz confirmed by multiple sources (iefimerida, Bloomberg via GDELT). Counter-signals persist: Iraq and Turkey's 1-year oil pipeline deal (AP) and Houthi assurances on Red Sea transits partially offset supply fears, but the overall arc is ESCALATING. Separately, a Moscow restaurant explosion (Balzi Rossi) with multiple casualties is reported by several OSINT and news sources, adding to geopolitical risk but with limited direct US market impact. In tech, Apple's post-earnings slump (worst since 2013) is countered by HSBC upgrading Apple to 'buy' with a $366 target (GDELT), a MAG7 carve-out signal that could support AAPL. Also notable: a Reuters photo allegedly shows Treasury Secretary Bessent's note to buy $5-10 billion JPY, suggesting potential FX intervention, which could impact USD/JPY and US Treasuries.