Tag - iran

 
 

IRAN

The Solaris liquefied natural gas tanker sails near the Himeji LNG terminal in Himeji, Hyogo Prefecture, on April 22.
JAPAN
May 10, 2026
Japan diversifying shipping routes for Middle East oil
Japan is also trying to diversify oil procurement sources, looking at the United States and Russia, as the Middle East situation remains unstable.
A member of NOPO, Iran’s counter-terrorism special force, stands guard under a billboard of Iran’s late supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in Tehran, on April 23.
WORLD
May 10, 2026
Drone strikes ship near Qatar; South Korea reports attack on one of its vessels
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center had earlier said a bulk carrier reported being hit 23 nautical miles northeast of Doha by an “unknown projectile“.
U.S. President Donald Trump arrives to speak about the Iran war at the White House last month.
WORLD / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 9, 2026
Trump’s feuds and tensions with allies likely to outlast Iran war
Allies from Europe to the Middle East to the Indo-Pacific are once again fearful that the U.S. might be unreliable in a future crisis.
Oil storage tanks in China. Days after the Strait of Hormuz was closed, China banned oil-product exports, squeezing Asian countries that rely on its refineries for jet fuel, gasoline and diesel.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
May 9, 2026
War and energy shortages boost China’s influence in Asia
The Iran war has deepened China’s influence with its fuel-starved neighbors, allowing it to deal from a position of strength.
The USS Rafael Peralta guided-missile destroyer implements a maritime blockade against the Iran-flagged crude oil tanker vessel Stream while the latter was attempting to sail toward an Iranian port on April 26.
WORLD
May 9, 2026
U.S. attack on Iran tankers sparks reprisals as deal hangs in balance
Iranian officials accused the United States of violating the ceasefire with the tanker strikes and hampering diplomatic efforts to end the conflict.
Stocks traded in Tokyo hit a record high on Thursday and then held most of those gains on Friday.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 8, 2026
Japanese stocks steady near historic highs as tech and war weigh on sentiment
The Nikkei 225 stock average retreated from the record hit Thursday, clawing back some of the loss late in the day as companies started to release earnings reports.
Toyota, known for conservative forecasts, is bracing for prolonged pressure on the price and supply of key materials due to disruptions linked to the conflict in Iran.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 8, 2026
Toyota forecasts abrupt profit drop on Iran; shares fall
The stock reversed gains and fell as much as 2.2% after the company issued an outlook for ¥3 trillion in operating income for the fiscal year ending March 2027.
A billboard with a graphic design about the Strait of Hormuz on a building in Tehran on Wednesday
WORLD
May 8, 2026
U.S. and Iran trade fire, threatening fragile truce
Trump said the ceasefire was still in place, despite an Iranian attack on three American destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz that fanned fears.
With U.S. President Donald Trump desperately seeking a deal to end the Iran war before he lands in Beijing for his May 14 to 15 visit, China could seek to use his weakened position to extract concessions on key issues.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics / ANALYSIS
May 8, 2026
Trump heads for Xi summit overshadowed by Iran war
With U.S. President Donald Trump seeking a deal to end the Iran war before he lands in Beijing, China may seek to use his weakened position to extract concessions on key issues.
Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ryosei Akazawa (second from left) and State Minister for Foreign Affairs Iwao Horii (far left) attend a high-level economic dialogue with the European Union in Brussels on Thursday.
BUSINESS
May 8, 2026
Japan and Saudi Arabia to set up energy security task force
Discussions at the task force are slated to start early next week.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda (center) attends a monetary policy meeting with other high-ranking officials in Tokyo on April 28.
EDITORIALS
May 8, 2026
Japan pulls out the stops to halt the yen’s slide
While the yen’s dive has been abetted by speculators, the real causes of the currency’s weakness are structural.
An oil refinery in Germany on Thursday. Oil supplies are set to tighten further even if the U.S. and Iran reach a deal to end their war.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 8, 2026
Oil supply shock to worsen as inventories fall further even if conflict ends
The rapid depletion of commercial stockpiles and emergency reserves has come at a time when ‌stockpiles are typically ‌built in preparation for the Northern Hemisphere summer.
People share a parasol in Ginza district during high temperatures in Tokyo in 2025. El Nino is forecast to bring drier conditions and hotter weather later this year.
ENVIRONMENT
May 8, 2026
Asia heat waves spell double trouble for economies hit by oil shock
El Nino could bring higher temperatures and dry weather to countries from India to New Zealand, driving up food costs.
Sany electric heavy trucks at a depot in Tangshan, China, on April 1
BUSINESS / Markets
May 7, 2026
Iran war to accelerate China’s shift to electric trucks from diesel
Some energy consultancies ‌now expect the decline in diesel use in China to accelerate faster than previously forecast.
The Nikkei stock average rose 5.6% to close at a record high of 62,833.84 Thursday, ending above 62,000 for the first time.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 7, 2026
Japan’s Nikkei soars to a record on U.S.-Iran deal optimism
The tech-heavy Nikkei 225 Stock Average advanced 5.6% to close at a record high of 62,833.84, ending above 62,000 for the first time ever.
Shirts of the Iranian national soccer team are displayed in a shop in Tehran on April 23.
SOCCER
May 7, 2026
Iranian FA says it will meet FIFA over World Cup in coming days
Iran’s participation in the World Cup has been in question since the U.S. and Israel launched air strikes on the Islamic Republic in late February.
People chant during a rally in Tehran on May 6.
WORLD / Politics
May 7, 2026
U.S. and Iran inch towards short-term deal to end fighting
The emerging plan centers on a short-term memorandum rather than a comprehensive peace deal.
The Port of Fujairah has become one of the United Arab Emirates' economic lifelines since the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
BUSINESS
May 7, 2026
Gulf’s fragile trade lifeline hangs on two eastern UAE ports
They are now handling the bulk of the UAE’s seaborne trade in place of ​the major terminals on the western coast inside the Gulf.
The semiconductor industry and related electronics sector together account for around 17% of Taiwan’s economy.
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
May 7, 2026
Hormuz crisis shows gaps in Taiwan’s high-tech ‘silicon shield’
The factors that make Taiwan an economic powerhouse — its successful technology industry and artificial intelligence-driven chipmaking — are also the ones making it vulnerable.
In this courtroom sketch, Cole Tomas Allen, a suspect in the White House Correspondents' Association dinner shooting, sits in the courtroom during a hearing after being charged with attempting to assassinate U.S. President Donald Trump, in Washington on April 30.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
May 7, 2026
Iran war possible motive for Trump shooting suspect: U.S. intelligence report
The assessment sheds new light on the U.S. government’s search for a motive in the foiled attack on the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on April 25.

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival