WS #9536

The US-Iran conflict is ESCALATING sharply, with Iran claiming retaliatory strikes on US bases and Jordan intercepting 20 Iranian missiles. This counters the prior de-escalation narrative from Kuwaiti LPG flows. Oil supply disruption fears are reignited, though OPEC production has collapsed to generational lows (16.13 mb/d, lowest since 2000). The ECB is set to hike rates for the first time since 2023, adding macro headwinds. On the corporate front, Hugo Boss surged 7% on a $2B takeover offer from Frasers Group. Ford and Honda announced large US vehicle recalls (548k and 1.05M respectively). Anthropic partnered with India's TCS for enterprise AI, a positive for AI adoption. The SpaceX IPO narrative continues with oversubscription reports. The dominant theme is US-Iran conflict ESCALATING, with oil supply risks rising, while ECB rate hike adds bearish macro pressure.