WS #9274

The Israel-Iran conflict continues to escalate with fresh Israeli airstrikes on a petrochemical plant in Mahshahr, Iran, and Iranian missile strikes on Israeli air bases. Trump's call for restraint has been overruled by Netanyahu, who launched strikes despite US pressure. Iran, Iraq, and Syria have shut their airspace. The conflict is clearly ESCALATING, with no de-escalation signals. This is driving risk-off sentiment: Asian markets plunged (KOSPI triggered a halt), oil prices are elevated, and safe havens are in demand. Meanwhile, a separate development: Ukrainian drones struck a major oil terminal in Novorossiysk, adding to energy supply concerns. On the positive side, South Korea's Naver rallied on an Nvidia AI partnership, and Italy's Meloni extended fuel tax cuts to blunt the impact of higher oil prices. The Intesa-Monte Paschi merger offer ($35.3B) is a significant European banking consolidation signal.