Bloomberg — 2026-04-07#

Lead Story#

Global markets whipsawed Tuesday as US President Donald Trump initially threatened the civilizational destruction of Iran and ordered strikes on Kharg Island before abruptly agreeing to a two-week ceasefire. The last-minute truce, requested by Pakistan, is strictly conditional on Tehran reopening the Strait of Hormuz, prompting crude oil and US equity futures to reverse course as markets priced in a momentary reprieve from the relentless, war-driven energy shock.

Markets & Economics#

• Private Credit Exodus Turns Moody’s Outlook to Negative: A swelling wave of redemptions and elevated leverage have driven Moody’s Ratings to revise its outlook for business development companies (BDCs) and private credit investment vehicles to negative.
• Oil Shock Sends Global Inflation Surging: The closure of the Strait of Hormuz is triggering rampant stagflation fears globally, driving Philippine inflation to a 20-month high, abruptly ending Thailand’s yearlong stretch of falling prices, and bringing UK private sector growth to a halt.
• Fed’s Williams Sees Monetary Policy ‘Exactly Where It Needs to Be’: New York Fed President John Williams stated the central bank is “really well positioned” to take a wait-and-see approach, noting that while the Iran war will keep headline inflation elevated, his outlook for underlying price pressures is largely unchanged.

Business & Industries#

• Ackman Proposes €56 Billion Universal Music Deal: Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square has proposed a combination with Universal Music Group that would move the listing into a US-based acquisition vehicle, valuing the label at nearly $65 billion.
• Novo Undercuts Lilly With High-Dose Wegovy at $399 a Month: Intensifying the anti-obesity drug price war, Novo Nordisk will price its new high-dose Wegovy shot aggressively for cash-pay patients, severely undercutting Eli Lilly’s Zepbound .
• Gilead to Buy Cancer Biotech Tubulis in $5 Billion Deal: Gilead Sciences is expanding its oncology portfolio by acquiring the private German biotech firm Tubulis in a transaction worth up to $5 billion .
• Pimco Weighs $14 Billion Debt Deal for Oracle Data Center: Pacific Investment Management Co. is in talks with Bank of America to provide roughly $14 billion in debt financing to construct a massive Oracle Corp. data center in Michigan.

Policy & World#

• NASA’s Artemis Astronauts Are Heading Back to Earth: NASA’s Artemis II crew swung behind the moon and is heading home, breaking space travel distance records and successfully completing the first-ever ship-to-ship call with the International Space Station.
• Vance Picks Fight With Europe Over Orban in Election Endorsement: US Vice President JD Vance endorsed Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban ahead of a critical election, simultaneously brokering a US oil deal and criticizing EU interference. The high-profile endorsement comes just as leaked call transcripts reveal Orban offered to assist Russian President Vladimir Putin in settling the war in Ukraine.
• China Issues New Supply Chain Rules Targeting Foreign Disruption: The State Council released a sweeping directive creating a mechanism to retaliate against foreign entities that impose curbs on Chinese trade, citing supply chain security and anti-espionage efforts.

Opinion & Analysis#

• Helen Thompson on Iran, the Oil Shock and Britain’s Energy Crisis: Cambridge University Professor Helen Thompson argues that the US-Israel conflict with Iran permanently upends global energy flows, marking the definitive end to any expectation of a return to “normal” in energy markets.
• High Gas Prices Will Haunt the GOP Even If the War Ends Soon: Opinion analysis notes that regardless of the last-minute ceasefire, lingering pain at the gas pump will serve as severe political fallout for Republicans trying to defend razor-thin congressional majorities in the upcoming midterms .