Daily Digest — 22 Apr 2026

Markets rallied today as President Trump extended the ceasefire with Iran, citing a “seriously fractured” Iranian government and buying time for peace talks. Bitcoin surged over 3% to $78,138 while gold climbed 1.4% as investors weighed geopolitical risks against diplomatic progress. The extension came as

Singapore’s foreign minister delivered a stark warning that current tensions in the Strait of Hormuz are merely a “dry run” compared to potential conflict between China and the US in the Pacific, underscoring how Middle Eastern conflicts could pale beside broader great power competition. Oil prices fell 1.7% despite regional tensions, suggesting markets are pricing in diplomatic progress over military escalation.

The tech sector faced mixed signals as Meta announced it will record employee keystrokes to train AI models, raising privacy concerns, while Anthropic investigates claims that unauthorized groups accessed its cyber tool Mythos. Meanwhile, SpaceX revealed it has rights to acquire coding startup Cursor for $60 billion, signaling continued consolidation in AI tooling.

In the UK, Prime Minister Starmer’s dismissal of top Foreign Office civil servant Sir Olly Robbins has sent a “chill” through Whitehall, while officials warned the country could face “hacktivist attacks at scale” amid rising global tensions.