On March 8, 2026, a black smoke cloud engulfed a destroyed vehicle near an ongoing fire after an overnight airstrike on the Shahran refinery in northwestern Tehran.
– | AFP | Getty Images
Hello, my name is Leonie Kidd and I’m from London. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.
I’m a CNBC veteran, but today is my first Daily Open Newsletter. It’s no surprise that oil is on everyone’s mind in London newsrooms this morning. Especially when historic shock-and-awe moves by the world’s energy agencies have failed to change market trends.
You can subscribe to the EMEA edition of Daily Open here.
What you need to know today
It was an unprecedented move by the International Energy Agency and the U.S. government, but markets say it wasn’t enough. Oil prices are rising again, brent Oil prices topped $100 a barrel on Thursday, despite the IEA’s historic agreement to release a record 400 million barrels of oil. The United States also announced it would tap 172 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to reduce energy costs.
The energy situation is complicated by other developments. Iran continues to send large amounts of crude oil to China through the Strait of Hormuz, even though the war between the US, Israel and Iran has put widespread supplies through the vital waterway at risk.
Global stock markets remain sensitive to energy trends. Asia-Pacific markets fell on Thursday, with Japanese markets also falling. Nikkei Stock Average and of australia S&P/ASX 200 leading the decline. European stocks are expected to open lower, while U.S. futures are also hinting at a potential bear market.
Even the continuing escalation of war in Iran hasn’t distracted President Donald Trump from the trade war. The U.S. administration on Wednesday launched trade investigations into more than a dozen countries aimed at replacing reciprocal tariffs recently ruled illegal by the Supreme Court. The main targets are the EU, China, Mexico, and many other countries, including Switzerland, Norway, Japan, India, and South Korea.
In other words, energy markets are volatile, supply chains are tightening, and trade tensions are escalating (again). In global markets, it’s rare to juggle all three at the same time.
— Leonie Kidd
And finally…
How the Iran war could impact hyperscalers’ large-scale AI buildout in the Middle East
Tech companies have poured billions of dollars into AI infrastructure projects in the Middle East in recent years, relying on cheap and readily available energy and land and support from local governments.
But the Iran war has spilled over into neighboring countries in the Middle East, raising questions about the future of data centers and digital infrastructure in the region, especially if the conflict drags on, experts told CNBC.
Data centers have already been targeted, disrupting banking, payment services, corporate services, and consumer services.
— Kai Nicole Schwartz
