US and Israeli militaries have drawn up specific plans for renewed strikes on Iran after next month's midterm elections, with exercises already stepped up. Likely targets include Iran's energy infrastructure, nuclear facilities, and missile and drone arsenals, and some officials believe another major round of attacks could push Iran's economy to the brink and force diplomatic concessions. Skeptics note that the earlier campaign from February to April drove up global energy prices and inflation, strained the Pentagon's missile interceptor supplies, and did not bring Tehran back to the table, while Trump has repeatedly vetoed renewed combat. Iran has vowed to widen retaliation to data centres and underwater internet cables, and full U.S. military assets will not be in place until early November. Israel's election on Tuesday next could also shape the timing, and on Wednesday the State Department ordered nonemergency staff to leave Saudi Arabia.
Summary written by Upside AI from the original article. Read the source for full details.
Read the original on irishtimes.com ↗
Keywords
Irangeopoliticsoil pricesIsrael
Open a keyword to see other news on the same topic.
Related tickers and likely impact
XAU/USD
▲ Likely positiveRelevance: medium
| Market | Gold |
|---|---|
| Close on 10/21/2026 | 4,141.17 |
| Change that session | +0.39% |
SPY
▼ Likely negativeSPDR S&P 500 ETF
Relevance: medium
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | ETF |
| Close on 10/21/2026 | 773.13 |
| Change that session | +0.53% |
VNINDEX
▼ Likely negativeRelevance: medium
| Market | Vietnam stocks |
|---|---|
| Close on 10/22/2026 | 1,760.63 |
| Change that session | +1.26% |
BTC/USDT
▼ Likely negativeBitcoin
Relevance: low
| Market | Crypto |
|---|---|
| Exchange | Binance |
| Sector | Layer 1 |
| Market cap | $1.6T |
| Close on 10/21/2026 | 84,093.42 |
| Change that session | +1.28% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
Related news
- US and Israel plan specific renewed Iran strikes after US midterms , New York Times reports
- US , Israel plan renewed Iran strikes after midterms , sources say
US and Israeli militaries have developed specific plans for renewed strikes on Iran after the US midterm elections, with exercises stepped up, including flights over Iraq to practise strike manoeuvres, according to US officials and others briefed. US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this week; likely targets include Iran's energy infrastructure, nuclear facilities, and missile and drone arsenal. Some officials believe one more big round could push Iran's economy over the brink and force diplomatic concessions, but sceptics note the first phase of strikes between February and April drove up global energy prices and inflation and strained US missile interceptor stocks. It is far from certain Trump will approve, as he has repeatedly vetoed plans for major combat in 2026, and Israel's election on Tuesday could complicate the plans.
- Iran warns US and Israel
Iran's Armed Forces Chief of Staff, Major General Ali Abdollahi, warned on October 18 that the US and Israel would face a far harsher response if they continue actions Tehran considers provocative. He said Tehran is awaiting their next moves and that Iran's armed forces remain ready for any scenario. Tehran accuses Washington and Tel Aviv of trying to weaken its government, and tensions have risen since earlier conflicts, including a 12-day war. Iran says it will not back down under external pressure.
- Oil prices jump on Middle East worries as U . S ., Israel reportedly weigh fresh Iran strikes
Oil rose after The New York Times reported that U.S. and Israeli militaries have drawn up plans to resume strikes on Iran after next month's midterm elections, with a 'short but intensive' operation in preparation. Brent crude futures climbed 2.45% to $111.49 a barrel, and West Texas Intermediate gained 2.39% to $99.47. The U.S. also ordered non-emergency government employees and their families to leave Saudi Arabia, citing increasing attacks by Iran-aligned Houthis on civilian targets. Aptus Capital Advisors' David Wagner argued the economic impact may be milder than in past decades, as gasoline took about 5% of average disposable income a decade ago versus about half that today. He noted crude remains well below its inflation-adjusted historical highs.
- World shares retreat as report of damage to oil tankers pushes oil prices higher
World shares and U.S. futures fell Thursday as oil rose more than 2% after Iran's state TV reported that seven oil tankers caught fire and were damaged in the Strait of Hormuz. If confirmed, it would be the most vessels damaged in the waterway in a single day since the Iran war began on Feb. 28. Brent crude gained 3.2% to $112.27 a barrel and U.S. crude rose 2.8% to $99.80. In Asia, Japan's Nikkei 225 lost 2.7%, South Korea's Kospi dropped 3.5% and Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 3%, as heavy selling hit big tech and chipmakers amid worries that rising borrowing costs could slow data center construction. The previous day, the S&P 500 rose 0.6% after strong profit reports from SpaceX, while Netflix fell 5.3% despite beating profit expectations.
- World shares retreat as report of damage to oil takers pushes oil prices higher
World shares and U.S. futures fell on Thursday as oil prices rose more than 2% after Iran's state television reported that seven oil tankers caught fire and were damaged in the Strait of Hormuz. If verified, it would be the largest number of vessels damaged in the waterway in a single day since the Iran war began on Feb. 28. Brent crude rose 3.2% to $112.27 a barrel, having traded between $97 and $112 recently amid uncertainty about when the global energy industry will return to normal. Asian markets slid, with Japan's Nikkei 225 down 2.7% and South Korea's Kospi down 3.5%, hit by selling in big tech and memory chip makers, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng lost 3%. Germany's DAX and France's CAC 40 also fell in early European trading.
Related markets
Latest news
- Did Wall Street forget about Tesla's Cybercab?
Yahoo Finance's Brian Sozzi discusses Tesla (TSLA)'s Cybercab expansion and its relevance amid a possible merger with SpaceX (SPCX). Elon pointed to 2 million cumulative unsupervised robotaxi miles by quarter-end, Austin operating hours now run 6:00 a.m. to midnight, and more Cybercabs are expected in more cities in coming months. The Austin Cybercab fleet has grown by a factor of 10 since launch about a month ago. Tesla shares fell partly because the company cut capex by $5 billion, which Sozzi attributes to Optimus robot production bottlenecks rather than the Cybercab. He argues that with merger talks being explored, investors should start thinking of SpaceX and Tesla as one company.
- Crypto for Advisors: Stablecoins are ready for prime time
CoinDesk's Crypto for Advisors newsletter cites an EY-Parthenon 2026 Blockchain Payments Survey of 521 corporate and financial institution decision-makers. It found 18% of corporates have used stablecoins in production, double the 2025 share, while 15% report adopting tokenized deposits. Some 69% of financial institutions offer or plan to launch stablecoin services within two years, up from 30% in 2025. Cross-border business payments are the leading use case, and 45% of corporates and 53% of financial institutions favor using both stablecoins and tokenized deposits. Corporates strongly prefer blockchain payments integrated into existing banking interfaces (74%), and 63% would likely adopt them if offered by their current bank or payments provider.
- Is USA Rare Earth Stock a Once-in-a-Generation Reshoring Opportunity?
The article examines whether USA Rare Earth (USAR) can help the U.S. and its allies secure critical minerals, given China's dominance in rare-earth extraction and processing. China banned rare-earth exports in October 2025 in response to U.S. tariffs and chip restrictions; the ban was later temporarily lifted, though some Chinese companies have canceled U.S. exports, and China has also banned technology exports to USA Rare Earth and MP Materials. USAR shares are down roughly 15% in 2026 and about 74% from their lifetime high last October. Excluding the recently acquired Brazil-based Serra Verde, the company is essentially pre-revenue, though U.S. government supply agreements offer some pricing floor protection. With a market cap of roughly $4 billion and a target of about $1.8 billion in EBITDA for 2030, the author sees a worthwhile risk-reward profile for risk-tolerant investors, while stressing the stock is not low-risk.
- Nebius Declines 6% Despite Fresh Citi Financing; CoreWeave Drops 5%, Cloudflare Edges Higher
Nebius (NBIS) fell 6% to $162.03 despite a new senior secured credit facility from Citi, which matures in just under a year and is meant to fund data center development and GPU purchases while the company seeks longer-term asset-backed financing. CoreWeave (CRWV) dropped 5% to $58.86, while Cloudflare (NET) rose 2% to $313.35, with the article framing the selling as concentrated among neoclouds that rely on debt. A Barclays strategist noted that AI-spending credit stress has stayed largely confined to neocloud companies. Nebius has $37.5 billion in remaining performance obligations, $8.13 billion in capital spending, and three customers each accounting for a double-digit share of quarterly sales. The article says the Citi line adds to leverage concerns, making the timing and terms of the next financing a key test.
- How agentic AI shopping changes consumer staples: P&G CFO
P&G reported strong first-quarter earnings and reiterated its full-year revenue forecast. In an interview with Yahoo Finance, CFO Andre Schulten said that people using its products remains the core of the business, but the consumer's path to purchase is changing as AI agents buy on people's behalf, so P&G is proactively working out how agent-to-agent marketing works and how to distribute brand information. He said the company is also using decades of collected data and simpler algorithms to speed up molecule discovery, automate data extraction and analysis, and make forecasting more efficient. On marketing, he said algorithms weigh credibility, so P&G plans to publish and make accessible its scientific publications, independent studies and consumer reviews, an approach he believes gives big brands an advantage.
- SpaceX Just Became an AI Company. The Numbers Prove It.
SpaceX reported third-quarter revenue up 161% year over year to $14.6 billion and net income of $4.4 billion, making it profitable. Its AI segment, now called 'super intelligence (SI),' generated $7.6 billion in revenue, up 830% year over year and 195% sequentially, making it just over half of sales and the largest revenue source. Connectivity remains the most profitable segment with $2.4 billion in operating income, versus $431 million for SI, which lost $1.26 billion last quarter. SI accounted for $16.4 billion of the company's $19.6 billion in Q3 capital expenditures, but the results should ease concerns that it is a money pit, as cloud agreements with Alphabet and Anthropic and $608 million of Cursor revenue since its August acquisition show the investments are paying off. The author notes the stock remains richly valued.
Get the briefing on Telegram or Zalo
Join the Upside Telegram channel or Zalo group for the Vietnam stocks and gold briefing at 8:00 and 19:00 (Vietnam time) on trading days, plus a weekly wrap on Saturday morning.