A U.S. federal judge in Northern California has paused Paramount-Skydance’s acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, citing concerns it could violate antitrust law and lift film-distribution market concentration to 27%. The lawsuit is led by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and joined by attorneys general from 11 other states. The deal has been pushed back to June next year from an original target of late September, and Paramount’s stock fell 3% on the day.

Federal Reserve officials including Kevin Warsh, Austan Goolsbee and Beth Hammack said in public remarks tied to an ECB forum and interviews that inflation remains too high, pointing to higher oil prices from the recent Iran conflict as a key driver and suggesting rates could rise further. Fresh inflation data showed transportation and energy costs continuing to weigh on prices, while services inflation has improved slightly but remains well above the Fed’s 2% goal. The comments reinforced expectations that the Fed will keep rates high and could tighten again. That outlook has provided direct support for commodities, especially crude oil.

A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said U.S. workers’ share of national income fell to a record low of 54.1% in early 2026. Inflation also picked up again to its highest level in more than three years, with gasoline prices rising notably. The combination has left about two-thirds of American households facing financial strain, and the article identifies higher gasoline prices as a direct contributor to the pressure.

Federal Reserve officials Austan Goolsbee and John Williams said inflation remains well above the central bank’s 2% target, even as some services-price measures have shown modest improvement. Data showed core PCE inflation rose 3.4% year over year in May, its highest reading since October 2023, while headline PCE reached 4.1%, with higher energy prices during the recent Middle East conflict contributing to the increase, according to Reuters. They said the current policy stance remains appropriate and did not signal an imminent rate cut. Markets have priced in about a 30% chance of a rate increase at the Fed’s July 28-29 meeting.

The Trump administration plans to press Congress to permanently authorize year-round sales of E15 gasoline, a 15% ethanol blend, removing current summer restrictions. The move is intended to help lower fuel costs amid recent pressure on gasoline prices. While easing tensions with Iran has pushed oil prices down, making the change permanent would reduce support for the summer gasoline premium and give refiners more blending flexibility, adding downside pressure to spot gasoline and near-dated futures prices.

Donald Trump has privately expressed intense anxiety that Israel could draw the United States into a wider war with Iran, even as he publicly promotes a fragile understanding with Tehran. The concerns follow a 14-point memorandum of understanding between Washington and Iran that included a call for Israel to halt military operations in Lebanon. Israeli officials have publicly rejected that provision, raising worries in Washington that the arrangement could unravel and regional tensions could escalate, according to Zeteo. The report is based on unnamed advisers and officials and has not been independently confirmed.

U.S. stocks declined after Federal Reserve officials signaled they still expect one interest-rate hike this year, even as the FOMC kept the policy rate unchanged at 3.5%-3.75%. The median “dot plot” projection now points to a 3.8% year-end rate, up 0.4 percentage points from March, according to CNBC. The 2-year Treasury yield jumped 15 basis points to 4.205% as the S&P 500 fell 1.21%, the Nasdaq dropped 1.34%, and the Dow slid 0.97%. May inflation data showed CPI rose 4.2% year over year and core CPI increased 2.9%, both in line with expectations.

Donald Trump said at the G7 summit in France that, without a deal with Iran, global oil reserves would have been depleted within four weeks. The IEA also sharply lowered its 2026 demand outlook, now projecting a year-on-year decline of about 420,000 bpd—around 1.3 million bpd below its pre-conflict estimates. While demand looks weaker, the agency said supply growth remains relatively resilient even as geopolitical tensions continue to threaten key shipping routes such as the Strait of Hormuz.

The Federal Reserve kept the federal funds rate unchanged at 3.5%-3.75% at the first FOMC meeting chaired by Kevin Warsh, with a unanimous vote. The statement said the economy is expanding at a solid pace and job gains have kept up with the workforce, while inflation accelerated in May to 4.2%, a three-year high, with core CPI at 2.9% year over year. The dot plot indicated policymakers see one rate hike in 2025 and one rate cut in 2027.