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Axios

Axios

Newspaper | United States | Centre
www.axios.com/

Smart brevity news covering politics, business, technology, and more. Get essential news efficiently.

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Discussions from Axios

Geopolitics

What are the different opinions on the US sending more troops and ships to the Middle East?

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is sending an amphibious assault ship, the USS Tripoli, and its Marine expeditionary unit to the Middle East, a senior U.S. official confirmed to Axios on Friday. Why it matters: The deployment will add thousands of Marines, several warships, and F-35 fighter jets to support those already in the region, the U.S. official said. The U.S. official said U.S. Central Command asked for the new force in order to have more options for military operations against Iran. The Marine expeditionary unit will be able to conduct ground operations if ordered. The U.S. official declined to comment on that possibility. Driving the news: The Marine expeditionary force is moving into the region as Iran continues to target traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, driving up global oil, shipping and insurance prices. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Thursday that U.S. Navy escorts for commercial ships in the Strait could begin "soon." Bessent said the disruptions have already cost the U.S. $11 billion.Sources with knowledge said that before such escorts would begin, the U.S. military is planning potential operations for taking out land-based anti-ship missiles that the Iranians have deployed in the Strait area. 13 U.S. military members have died in the conflict as of Friday, following the crash of a refueling tanker aircraft in Iraq. What they're saying: "We're on plan to defeat, destroy, disable all of their meaningful military capabilities at a pace the world has never seen before," Hegseth insisted in a news conference Friday. "But it's not just that Iran doesn't have a functioning Air Force, or that their entire Navy is at the bottom of the Persian Gulf, or their missile force is shrinking daily.""They also don't have the ability to build more. That's the most important component I'd like to emphasize today," he said.Joint Chiefs of Staff Chair Gen. Dan Caine said that U.S. Central Command will continue to "destroy the Iranian Navy to ensure freedom of navi

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Economy

How should our government respond to rising gas prices due to the conflict in Iran?

Data: Financial Modeling Prep; Chart: Axios Visuals In the first week of the American and Israeli attack on Iran, the economic ripples were looking pretty minimal. But as Week 2 begins, the risks to the global economy are growing much more serious. The big picture: You can't decapitate the leadership of a country of 90 million people, with expansive military and intelligence capabilities, in the heart of some of the world's most economically important supply chains, without a huge cost. The hours and days and weeks ahead are all about quantifying that cost. Zoom in: Oil skyrocketed 25% overnight, to just under $120 a barrel, fueling worries that higher energy costs will stoke inflation and curb spending by U.S. consumers. Tokyo's Nikkei 225 index plunged more than 5%. That's the highest oil price since about four years ago, when energy prices surged due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.Patrick De Haan — a widely cited gas price expert and an analyst for GasBuddy — estimates there's an 80% chance the national average gas price will hit $4 per gallon in the next month. The latest: As of 5am ET, a barrel of the global crude oil benchmark was going for about $107 on futures markets, up 15% from Friday and 47% from 10 days ago, before the Iran attack. Brent crude prices approached $120 overnight before receding on reports of coordinated global action to release oil reserves. The oil price rise is poised to translate into a rapid increase in the cost of retail gasoline, which was already up about 51 cents per gallon before the weekend run-up in oil prices. The risk of a broader economic slump is rising with the disruption to oil supplies. S&P 500 futures are down 1.3% overnight, setting Wall Street up for its third consecutive day of losses. Japan's Nikkei index was down 5.2% and South Korea's KOSPI down 6%, reflecting those economies' more direct dependence on Middle Eastern oil now at risk of a protracted blockade. Of note: The odds of a U.S. recession this year spiked t

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Geopolitics

How might the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz affect trade and economies around the world?

The U.S. and Israel's war with Iran is likely to impact people around the world as tensions escalate around the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway on Iran's southern coast, where traffic has ground to a halt. Why it matters: Trade disruptions along this key waterway on Iran's southern coast that handles 25% of the world's maritime oil trade and 20% of liquefied natural gas shipments will likely produce a domino effect across the global economy. About 33% of the world's fertilizers, including sulfur and ammonia, travel through the strait, according to the trade analysis firm Kpler. • It's a key route for alumimum and sugar as well.Blocked access to the strait will likely impact the price of some products, including clothing, cookware, medical equipment, and more. State of play: The strait is "closed" and any vessel attempting to pass through the waterway would be set "ablaze," an Iran Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) commander said Monday. Driving the news: President Trump said on Truth Social on Tuesday that the U.S. will "immediately" offer "political risk insurance and guarantees" for energy tankers and other ships in the Gulf region, and that the Navy would escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz if needed. The U.S. has been striking Iranian warships in order to reduce Iran's stronghold over the strait. What they're saying: "The scale of what is at stake cannot be overstated," Hakan Kaya, senior portfolio manager at investment management firm Neuberger Berman, said in a blog post this week. Oil companies can likely absorb a one- to two-week slowdown, he said."A full or near-full closure lasting a month or more would require demand destruction at levels that could push crude well into triple digits and European natural gas prices toward or above the crisis levels seen in 2022," Kaya added. Here's what to know: Gas prices Threat level: With access to oil restricted, oil prices and gasoline prices have spiked. Tom Kloza, an oil analyst working for Gulf Oil, told Axios

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Technology

What should we consider about using AI without human involvement in important decisions?

A new social media platform called Moltbook, designed for AI agents only, is raising concerns online, including from tech billionaire Elon Musk. Moltbook, a project from Peter Steinberger, allows for AI agents to interact with each other without any human prompting. The machines can create posts, comment, and interact with one another, while humans can only

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Environment

What are the potential effects of changing or keeping air pollution rules on our environment and health?

EPA's reversal of the formal 2009 scientific finding that greenhouse gases threaten humans looks slated to land this week, per the WSJ, other reports, and people tracking the move. Why it matters: Rescinding the "endangerment finding" is the Trump administration's most direct effort yet to rip out climate regulations root and branch — and make it harder for a successor to impose new ones. The big picture: EPA did not confirm the timing, but pointed to Administrator Lee Zeldin's comments in the WSJ piece. "This amounts to the largest act of deregulation in the history of the United States," Zeldin tells the paper. "The final rule will be published once it has completed interagency review and been signed by the Administrator," EPA told Axios on Tuesday. The rule is certain to draw litigation that will play out over years. State of play: The agency is planning to remove the finding with respect to motor vehicle emissions specifically. But that could bring challenges to regulation of emissions from power plants, oil and gas sites, and beyond. What we're watching: The White House Office of Management and Budget website still lists the rule as under review. Meetings with outside parties looking to influence the plan are scheduled through Thursday, but that's not proof of anything

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Economy

What do you think are the most important economic issues for America compared to the rest of the world?

Data: Gallup; Note: Margin of error ranges between +/- 2.4 and 4.7 percentage points; Chart: Axios Visuals Americans say the country's biggest problem right now is politics, per a new global Gallup survey out Wednesday. Why it matters: Only eight other countries — out of 107 — ranked politics first, a sign of heightened political polarization and overall dissatisfaction among Americans. The only country with a statistically significant higher share identifying politics at the top was Taiwan. It's under mounting political pressure from China, which doesn't consider it a country. How it works: Gallup polled a nationally representative sample of about 1,000 people age 15 and older in each of 107 countries from March - October 2025. It asked: "According to you, what is the most important problem your country is facing currently?" Respondents wrote in answers, and Gallup grouped them into buckets. By the numbers: The answer was nearly the same everywhere: The economy was identified by a median of 23% of adults across these countries — more than double the share naming work, politics or safety, the next most common subjects. Those under 35 were more likely to identify the economy as a top concern — a sign that younger generations even in high-income countries feel the economy is failing them. The big picture: Separate polling from Gallup finds that Americans have been more likely to name government as the country's top problem for the past decade. But it's not clear exactly what problem with politics or government all Americans are worried about.For Democrats, concerns are largely centered around President Trump. Republicans are more focused on distrust of Democrats, anger at corruption and anxiety about the country's place in the world. Yes, but: People in highly democratic countries are more comfortable criticizing their governments, says Benedict Vigers, senior global news writer at Gallup. Zoom out: While Gallup has been asking Americans some version of this question

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Politics

What are the important factors to consider when making decisions to avoid a government shutdown?

The White House and Senate Democrats have struck a deal on funding on the eve of a partial government shutdown. The deal includes separating funding for the Department of Homeland Security from five other appropriations bills, all previously approved by the House, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) office told CNN. The passage of the

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