WS #12364

The US-Iran conflict continues to escalate sharply, with the US launching a seventh consecutive night of airstrikes and Iran retaliating with missile and drone attacks on US allies in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan. Two US troops were killed and one is missing after an Iranian attack on a base in Jordan, confirmed by CENTCOM and multiple sources. Iran struck Kuwait's Mina Al Ahmadi crude export hub, setting the North Pier ablaze, and attacked a desalination plant. The Strait of Hormuz remains largely blocked, with Brent crude above $88. The IEA chief warned that global energy security is at risk if the strait does not reopen in weeks. Iran has formally withdrawn from the Islamabad Memorandum with the US. Separately, Meta is in $10B compute talks with Anthropic, a positive signal for AI infrastructure. New Mexico blocked a pipeline feeding Oracle's Stargate site, negatively impacting Bloom Energy. The US Supreme Court ruled Trump's tariffs illegal, with $81B in refunds issued, a significant fiscal and political development. The US-Iran conflict is ESCALATING, with no de-escalation signals, driving bullish energy and bearish risk sentiment.