Daily flyovers
Latest news for 14 July 2026
Quick hits of consequential news from all corners of the world.
- 01
IRAN
Hormuz blockade back on.
Amid what the Emiratis are condemning as a “brazen” Iranian attack on two more tankers near Hormuz, President Trump has declared the US naval blockade on Iran’s ships (“and customers”) is now “back on”. His tweet suggests it’ll remain open for everyone else, subject to a new fee (20% of cargo value!) to reimburse US costs. (Guardian)
Comment: So… ship captains still get targeted by Iran, but now also pay the US a 20% fee (~$30M for a full supertanker)? Hard to see that working… Meanwhile, Iranians have leapt on Trump’s implicit acknowledgement that whoever runs the Strait should (per the regime’s new demand) get to charge a fee. But the most revealing news might be reports the Emiratis are now working to build another Hormuz bypass — at this rate, maybe it’ll be ready before a ceasefire actually holds? Brent is now back over $80 a barrel, but that still feels low for war in Hormuz — the market is still pricing in a messy if ultimately contained standoff.
- 02
YEMEN
Airport drama.
The Houthis have fired ballistic missiles and drones at Saudi Arabia, framed as retaliation for an earlier Saudi attack reportedly aimed at preventing a Houthi delegation from landing after Khamenei’s funeral in Iran. (AP)
Comment: The most serious escalation of Saudi-Houthi violence in years, the message is that the Houthis remain a reliable proxy for Iran, presenting another possible curve-ball for US efforts to wrap the above war.
- 03
CHINA
Another one bites the dust.
Xi Jinping has expelled former Xinjiang party chief and Politburo member Ma Xingrui from the ruling party on corruption charges. Ma is now the third member of China’s elite Politburo booted since 2025. (CNA)
Comment: The names and ranks change, but the message remains the same: nobody, no matter how senior, is safe from Xi’s purge if they fall out of favour or become too powerful.
- 04
HUNGARY
Presidential drama.
Péter Magyar has used his party’s new super-majority to oust Hungary’s ceremonial president, widely regarded as a loyalist to Hungary’s former strongman, Viktor Orbán. (Euractiv)
Comment: Magyar is wasting no time in de-Orbánising Hungary’s institutions while he can. But if he goes too hard too fast, he runs the risk of being painted an authoritarian like his predecessor (who’s now levelling that exact accusation).
- 05
SOUTH AFRICA
Diamond blues.
Diamond giant De Beers is shuttering South Africa’s largest diamond mine for two years to cut costs amid collapsing prices. (Bloomberg $)
Comment: Synthetic diamonds and weak luxury demand are achieving what sanctions and activists never quite managed to pull off.
- 06
INDONESIA
Anniversary silence.
14 nations (🇺🇸🇦🇺🇨🇦🇪🇪🇩🇪🇮🇹🇯🇵🇱🇻🇱🇹🇳🇿🇵🇭🇷🇴🇸🇮🇬🇧) have marked the 10th anniversary of a Hague tribunal’s landmark ruling against China’s vast ‘nine-dash line’ claiming the South China Sea, while Beijing has reiterated its rejection of that ruling as “illegal, null and void”. Most nations overlapping with China’s nine-dash line have issued their own anniversary statements, though Indonesia has stayed silent. (RFA)
Comment: Indonesia formally dunked (technical term) on China’s nine-dash line years ago, noting it “clearly lacks international legal basis”. So why suddenly so gun-shy? The current president (Prabowo) is a more transactional operator, and probably doesn’t want to rock the boat with his biggest customer.
- 07
TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Data centres on the beach.
In a reported first for the region, Port of Spain has signed major deals with US firms Hummingbird and EY LLP, paving the way for possible new 150MW and 300MW data centres. (Independent)
Comment: Trinidad and Tobago makes sense given its natural gas, political stability, and strategic location, but the announcement is already rattling locals grappling with chronic water shortages.