WS #12356

The US-Iran conflict is escalating sharply with new casualties and a major policy shift. Two US service members were killed in Jordan by Iranian missile and drone attacks, with one missing, confirmed by CENTCOM and multiple sources (Axios, CBS, Reuters). Iran's Supreme Leader Khamenei accused Trump of violating the deal and vowed a forceful response. In a significant de-escalatory move, Trump announced he is replacing the planned 20% transit fee on Strait of Hormuz shipping with trade and investment agreements with Gulf states, causing oil prices to pull back from session highs (Brent +2% to $84.97, WTI +1.89% to $79.62). However, the US has reimposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports, and Iran has declared the Strait closed to all but Iranian traffic. The situation remains highly volatile with both military and economic dimensions in play. Separately, Ukraine drone strikes hit a Wildberries warehouse and oil depot near Moscow, killing at least eight, adding to geopolitical risk. In tech, Salesforce's Agentforce is reportedly not winning over clients per KeyBanc, a negative signal for CRM. The chip index has fallen into bear market territory, while Apple sits near all-time highs, a notable divergence. Amazon's AI capacity crunch is pushing startups to smaller clouds like Nebius (NBIS), a positive for that ticker. Hungary's president resigned after a constitutional amendment. The dominant narrative is the US-Iran conflict, which is ESCALATING with new casualties and a policy pivot on Hormuz tolls.