President Donald Trump said the US heavily bombed military targets on Iran’s Kharg Island, which handles almost all of the country’s crude exports, and threatened to hit the island’s oil infrastructure.

“I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider,” Trump posted.

Iran’s military threatened to reduce US-linked oil facilities in the region “to a pile of ashes” if its energy infrastructure was hit.

Iranian news agency Fars reported that no oil infrastructure on Kharg had been damaged in the bombing.

US allows Venezuela fertilizer imports

Washington on Friday authorized imports of fertilizer from Venezuela, whose leader it deposed in January, as the US-Israel war against Iran drives up prices of the key agricultural commodity.

Washington has issued new licenses as part of the ongoing easing of its sanctions on Venezuela’s energy sector.

In addition to oil and gas, the licenses now include trade in fertilizers, including urea and phosphates.

Brent surges 11% over week

The price of a barrel of Brent crude, the international benchmark for oil, soared by 11 percent over the week to $103.14 at Friday’s close, while stocks slipped.

Brent prices have rocketed more than 42 percent since US-Israeli strikes on Iran plunged the oil-rich Middle East into war.

Pushback on easing Russia sanctions

The US Treasury Department said it would temporarily allow the sale of Russian oil that is at sea as energy prices soared, triggering pushback.

The leaders of France, Germany and EU chief Antonio Costa all spoke out against the idea.

Russia’s economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev said the global energy market “cannot remain stable” without his country’s oil.

Only 77 ships have traversed Hormuz: Lloyd’s

Only 77 ships have so far crossed the Strait of Hormuz in March as the war disrupts one of the world’s most vital shipping routes, a maritime data firm reported Friday.

Lloyd’s List Intelligence said most of the vessels belonged to the so-called shadow fleet of ships being used to skirt Western sanctions and regulations, typically linked to Russia and Iran.

It added during the period of March 1 through 11 last year, around 1,229 vessels made the passage through the waterway.

20 ships attacked trying to transit Hormuz

Twenty oil tankers and cargo ships have been attacked since the war began, according to AFP monitoring with British maritime security group UKTMO and other sources.

But a Turkish-owned ship was able to cross the Strait of Hormuz with Iran’s permission, Turkey’s transport minister said.

Serbia, Portugal cut fuel tax

Serbia’s government temporarily cut fuel taxes by 20 percent, with its energy ministry saying the excise duties on petrol and diesel would be reduced from Friday until April 15.

Portugal also said it was renewing a temporary cut to fuel taxes, with officials adding that the cut would apply to petrol and diesel.

African nations have limited oil reserves

Fuel shortages caused by the war could knock up to three percentage points off African economic growth if they persist, a top regional energy regulator told AFP.

Most African countries have fuel reserves for just 15 to 25 days, compared to the International Energy Agency standard of 90 days, said Geoffrey Aori, CEO of the Regional Association of Energy Regulators for Eastern and Southern Africa.

He called on African governments to introduce fuel rationing and subsidies to cushion the blow of inflation and weakening currencies in the short term.

6 million air passengers affected

More than six million air passengers travelling to or from the Middle East have had their flights cancelled since the start of the war, according to the aviation data specialist Cirium.

It said more than 52,000 out of 98,000 scheduled flights have been called off.

Nepal restricts cooking gas

Nepal has started selling half-filled cooking gas cylinders to curb hoarding and panic buying, officials said, following import disruptions due to the war.

The landlocked Himalayan nation of 30 million relies almost entirely on India for the transportation of its fossil fuel needs, and around 90 percent of India’s liquefied petroleum gas passes through the Strait of Hormuz.

Last Updated:March 14, 2026, 12:22 IST

‘Because the US now controls Venezuela essentially, and which means the US has unfettered 100% access to the biggest oil reserves in the world,’ chairman of Signum Global Advisors.

Easing geopolitical tensions later this year could unlock additional oil supply from multiple regions, says Charles Myers, Chairman of Signum Global Advisors.

Global oil prices could decline significantly later this year as additional supply enters the market from countries such as Venezuela, Iran and Russia, according to Charles Myers, Chairman of Signum Global Advisors.

Speaking at the second edition of Moneycontrol’s Global Wealth Summit 2026, Myers said geopolitical developments could eventually lead to a surge in global oil supply.

“I say that because the United States now controls Venezuela essentially, and which means the United States has unfettered 100% access to the biggest oil reserves in the world. The oil output from Venezuela will increase much faster than most assessments,” he said.

More supply from Venezuela, Iran and Russia

Myers said easing geopolitical tensions later this year could unlock additional oil supply from multiple regions.

He noted that Venezuela, which holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, could play a key role in boosting global supply if production ramps up quickly.

According to him, improved relations with Iran and the possibility of a renewed nuclear deal could allow Tehran to export more oil legally. A potential ceasefire in the Ukraine war could also bring more Russian oil back to global markets.

He added that strong investor interest in Venezuela’s energy sector has prompted a visit to Caracas with 55 clients in the coming days.

Myers argued that global oil supplies are already ample and that resolving geopolitical conflicts would help ensure a more stable and secure flow of energy worldwide.

Israel-Iran war

Commenting on the ongoing Middle East conflict, Myers said he believes the outcome of the war involving the United States, Israel and Iran is inevitable.

“The US today is at war, it is a very big deal. There is only one outcome of this war that Iran will lose. I say that factually, at the end of the day, Iran is up against the two most powerful, battle tested, sophisticated militaries in the world,” he said.

He added that the United States military would eventually control the Strait of Hormuz, ensuring the continued flow of oil through the critical global shipping route.

The United States military will occupy the Strait of Hormuz and the oil will flow again. “Though the war might not end,” he said.

The remarks come as tensions in the Middle East continue to escalate. Iran recently warned it could reduce US-linked oil facilities to “a pile of ashes” after US President Donald Trump said Washington could “wipe out” Iran’s largest oil export terminal on Kharg Island. Since the United States and Israel launched hostilities on February 28, waves of missile, drone and air strikes have reportedly displaced millions and killed more than 1,200 people in Iran.

Read More

Last Updated:March 14, 2026, 08:21 IST

Meta Layoffs 2026: Over the past year, Mark Zuckerberg has been pushing the company to compete aggressively in the generative AI race.

Mark Zuckerberg announced a major restructuring during the “year of efficiency” in 2022 and early 2023.

Meta Layoffs 2026: US-based tech giant Meta is planning extensive layoffs that could affect 20% or more of its workforce, which is nearly 16,000 employees, as the company looks to offset the rising cost of artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure and improve efficiency through AI-assisted operations, according to a Reuters report.

However, the report said that no timeline has been finalised for the potential job cuts and the scale of layoffs is still under discussion.

According to the report citing people familiar with the matter, senior executives have recently signalled the plans to other leaders and asked them to begin preparing for workforce reductions.

Responding to queries, Meta spokesperson Andy Stone said: “This is speculative reporting about theoretical approaches.”

Layoffs could affect nearly 16,000 employees

Meta had nearly 79,000 employees as of December 31, according to the company’s latest regulatory filing.

If the company proceeds with a 20% reduction, the layoffs could impact around 16,000 workers. That would make it the largest workforce reduction at the company since Mark Zuckerberg announced a major restructuring during the “year of efficiency” in 2022 and early 2023.

Meta had laid off about 11,000 employees in November 2022, roughly 13% of its workforce at the time. Around four months later, the company announced another round of job cuts affecting nearly 10,000 employees.

Massive push into generative AI

Over the past year, Zuckerberg has been pushing the company to compete aggressively in the generative AI race.

Meta has been offering lucrative compensation packages — some reportedly worth hundreds of millions of dollars over four years — to attract top AI researchers to its newly created superintelligence team.

The company has also said it plans to invest as much as $600 billion to build data centre infrastructure by 2028 to support its AI ambitions.

Earlier this week, Meta acquired Moltbook, a social networking platform designed for AI agents. The company is also reportedly spending at least $2 billion to acquire a Chinese artificial intelligence startup called Manus.

Zuckerberg has also hinted that AI could significantly improve productivity. In January, he said he was already seeing “projects that used to require big teams now be accomplished by a single very talented person.”

AI setbacks and new model plans

Meta’s aggressive AI push follows setbacks with its Llama 4 models last year. The company faced criticism for providing misleading benchmark results for early versions of the model.

It also shelved the release of the largest version of the model, called Behemoth, which had been expected to launch in the summer.

Meta’s superintelligence team is now working on a new model called Avocado to improve its AI capabilities, although the performance of the system has reportedly fallen short of expectations so far, delaying its release.

In January, Amazon confirmed it would cut about 16,000 jobs, representing nearly 10% of its workforce.

Last month, fintech company Block also slashed nearly half of its staff, with CEO Jack Dorsey explicitly pointing to advances in AI tools that allow companies to operate with smaller teams.

Read More