{"id":65431,"date":"2026-07-26T15:38:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-26T19:38:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-react-to-middle-east-conflict-and-uk-tax-overhaul\/65431\/"},"modified":"2026-07-26T15:38:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-26T19:38:17","slug":"global-markets-react-to-middle-east-conflict-and-uk-tax-overhaul","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-react-to-middle-east-conflict-and-uk-tax-overhaul\/65431\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Markets React to Middle East Conflict and UK Tax Overhaul"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>US-Iran military operations are reportedly &quot;on hold&quot;<\/strong> after Vice President <strong>JD Vance<\/strong> and Joint Chiefs Chairman <strong>Gen. Dan Caine<\/strong> warned President Trump about <strong>depleted munitions stockpiles<\/strong> and the risks of further escalation.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Saudi Arabia faces a dual maritime blockade<\/strong> as Houthi forces target the <strong>Bab el-Mandeb<\/strong> strait, threatening the kingdom&#39;s primary bypass for the already restricted <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>New UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham<\/strong> is considering a radical tax reform to replace <strong>Council Tax and Stamp Duty<\/strong> with a flat <strong>0.48% annual property value tax<\/strong>, a move that could reshape the British housing market.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Russian guided aerial bombs struck Zaporizhzhia<\/strong>, hitting a gas station and warehouses, resulting in <strong>one fatality and six injuries<\/strong> as Ukrainian authorities launch a war crimes probe.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Global <a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/energy\/crude-oil\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"12\" title=\"Crude oil\">oil prices<\/a> remain volatile<\/strong> as Saudi Arabia explores &quot;bypasses for its bypasses,&quot; including north-bound routes via the <strong>Suez Canal<\/strong>, to maintain crude exports under fire.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>US-Iran Conflict: Munitions Shortages Force Tactical Pause<\/h2>\n<p>The United States has reportedly paused its two-week-long bombing campaign against <strong>Iran<\/strong> following a high-level White House meeting on Friday. Vice President <strong>JD Vance<\/strong> and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff <strong>Gen. Dan Caine<\/strong> raised significant concerns regarding the sustainability of the conflict. <em>Military analysts suggest that the depletion of critical munitions, including Patriot and Tomahawk missiles, has become a primary operational constraint for the Trump administration.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Gen. Dan Caine<\/strong> specifically warned that while current military options could be executed successfully in the short term, the long-term implications of a depleted stockpile could leave the U.S. vulnerable in other theaters, such as the <strong>Pacific<\/strong>. Despite the current &quot;hold&quot; on operations, White House officials maintain that <strong>President Trump<\/strong> retains all options should Iran continue its activities in the <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>.<\/p>\n<h2>Saudi Energy Exports Under Siege at Bab el-Mandeb<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Saudi Arabia<\/strong>&#39;s energy infrastructure is under unprecedented pressure as the <strong>Houthi<\/strong> maritime blockade of the <strong>Bab el-Mandeb<\/strong> strait takes effect. The kingdom had been rerouting approximately <strong>75% of its exports<\/strong> through the <strong>East-West Pipeline<\/strong> to the Red Sea port of <strong>Yanbu<\/strong> to bypass the Iranian-controlled <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>. However, this bypass now sits within the Houthi strike zone, effectively trapping Saudi crude between two contested corridors.<\/p>\n<p>To counter the threat, <strong>Saudi Aramco<\/strong> is reportedly evaluating &quot;bypass for the bypass&quot; strategies, which include pushing oil volumes north through the <strong>Suez Canal<\/strong> to reach Mediterranean markets. <em>This shift is expected to significantly increase shipping costs and insurance premiums, contributing to Brent Crude&#39;s recent surge above $110 per barrel.<\/em> Engineering a permanent land-based detour would require a multi-year infrastructure project that is currently being &quot;improvised under fire.&quot;<\/p>\n<h2>UK Fiscal Policy: Burnham Targets Property Wealth<\/h2>\n<p>In his first week as Prime Minister, <strong>Andy Burnham<\/strong> has signaled a major shift in UK fiscal policy by targeting property wealth. The administration is &quot;strongly considering&quot; the abolition of <strong>Council Tax<\/strong> and <strong>Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT)<\/strong> in favor of a <strong>Proportional Property Tax<\/strong>. The proposed rate of <strong>0.48%<\/strong> on a home&#39;s current market value aims to replace what Burnham describes as a &quot;highly regressive&quot; system based on 1991 valuations.<\/p>\n<p>The proposal, championed by the <strong>Fairer Share<\/strong> campaign, would mean a property valued at <strong>\u00a3300,000<\/strong> would face an annual tax of <strong>\u00a31,440<\/strong>. <em>While the move is intended to benefit approximately 18 million households, it has sparked concerns among high-value property owners and the &quot;mansion tax&quot; bracket, where the threshold may be lowered from \u00a32 million to \u00a31.5 million.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Ukraine: Zaporizhzhia Targeted by Guided Aerial Bombs<\/h2>\n<p>The humanitarian crisis in <strong>Ukraine<\/strong> intensified today as Russian forces launched guided aerial bombs (KABs) at the city of <strong>Zaporizhzhia<\/strong>. The strikes hit a gas station and several warehouse facilities, killing one driver and wounding six others. The blast wave also caused extensive damage to a nearby residential building and an educational institution.<\/p>\n<p>Ukrainian authorities have officially opened a <strong>war-crimes investigation<\/strong> into the incident, which President <strong>Volodymyr Zelenskyy<\/strong> described as &quot;deliberate terror with no military justification.&quot; The attack comes amidst a broader escalation in the region, with local officials reporting over <strong>1,000 strikes<\/strong> across the <strong>Zaporizhzhia Oblast<\/strong> in the last 24 hours alone.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways US-Iran military operations are reportedly &quot;on hold&quot; after Vice President JD Vance and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"rank_math_schema_Article":[],"rank_math_focus_keyword":[],"rank_math_description":[],"financial_data_references":[],"stock_symbols_mentioned":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[5012],"tags":[1947,3806,5132,5230,5248,6176,17735,18576,20853],"class_list":["post-65431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-breaking-news","tag-oil","tag-spy","tag-gbp","tag-defense","tag-uk-politics","tag-saudi-arabia","tag-us-iran-conflict","tag-global-energy","tag-sdlt"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=65431"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/65431\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/50383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=65431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=65431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=65431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}