The dollar neared a 2025 low on Thursday, while stocks eased from record highs, as a cocktail of rising Middle East tensions and concern over the fragility of a trade truce between Washington and Beijing drew investors into safe-haven assets.

AMANEY A. JAMAL is Co-Founder and Co-Principal Investigator at Arab Barometer, Dean of the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs, and Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University.

U.S. embassies and military bases across the Middle East are on high alert, as fears grow about and Israeli strike on Iran.

Futures linked to Canada's main stock index fell on Thursday as optimism over tame U.S. inflation figures waned, while escalating tensions in the Middle East prompted investors to adopt a more cautious stance.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened Iran with bombing if it does not reach a new nuclear deal. The next round of talks is due this week, with Trump saying negotiations would be held on Thursday while Tehran says they will take place on Sunday in Oman.

During his visit to the Middle East in May, U.S. President Donald Trump did several things that few would have predicted months or even weeks earlier. One was his surprise meeting with Syria’s new leader,

India's benchmark indexes edged lower on Thursday, led by losses in IT stocks, as ambiguity over the U.S.-China trade deal and rising tensions in the Middle East dampened risk appetite.

The Ukrainian president says he was informed the U.S. would divert key defensive weapons from Ukraine to the Middle East.