WS #7927

The dominant theme in this window is the ongoing US-Iran peace deal narrative, with multiple sources (Al Jazeera, Bloomberg, Reuters) reporting signs of progress. A new opinion poll shows 60% of Americans oppose the war, and Brent crude futures climbed over $2 to $104.90/bbl amid uncertainty over the deal's prospects. This is corroborated by Polymarket trades on 'US x Iran permanent peace deal by May 22, 2026?' and 'Iran agrees to surrender enriched uranium stockpile by May 31, 2026?'. Separately, Japan's Nikkei share average rose 1.2-1.54% following the weaker-than-expected April CPI data (core CPI +1.4% vs 1.7% consensus), which weakens the case for a BOJ rate hike and supports risk appetite. The SpaceX Starship V3 launch was scrubbed due to a hydraulic pin issue, with a retry planned for Friday. North Carolina sued VinFast over a delayed and downsized factory plan. Rocket Lab was awarded a $90M contract by the US Space Force for GEO satellites. The narrative arc for US-Iran is ESCALATING (oil price reaction), while Japan CPI is STABLE (data already released).