Deadly Houthi Strike Raises War Risks; Judge Halts Trump TV Ads

SPEAKER_1 (0:02)

Bloomberg Audio Studios, Podcasts, Radio, News.

Nathan Hager (0:09)

Good morning, I'm Nathan Hager.

Karen Moskow (0:11)

And I'm Karen Moskow. Here are the stories we're following today.

Nathan Hager (0:15)

Karen, we begin with the latest in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. President Trump says both sides have agreed to an energy ceasefire. He didn't give details, but he warned both Russia and Ukraine not to break the deal in a Truth Social post. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is signaling he's willing to hold up his end.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy (0:32)

We are ready for energy ceasefire, not to attack energy both sides. And if the Russians want us not to attack their diesel, their refineries and etc., we are asking President Trump to give them signal, not to attack energy infrastructure of Ukraine. It's a fair deal.

Nathan Hager (0:53)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared on ABCs this week, heard Sundays on Bloomberg Radio. But this morning, Zelenskyy says Russia continues to hit his country's energy infrastructure and Ukraine will continue to respond with long-range strikes. All this comes as President Trump says he's working with Russian President Volodymyr Putin to bring more Russian diesel fuel to the global market.

Karen Moskow (1:14)

Well, Nathan, European officials are cautioning President Trump's deal to increase Russia's diesel sales will boost Moscow's war effort in Ukraine. If we go to Brussels and get the latest with Bloomberg Radio and TV host, Stephen Carroll. Stephen, good morning.

Stephen Carroll (1:28)

Good morning, Karen and Nathan. European foreign ministers aren't happy with Donald Trump's latest deals with Russia. The EU's foreign affairs chief, Kaya Kalas, is calling on the US to put sanctions in place to finish the war. That she says will help ease the effects of the attacks on refineries that have driven up global diesel prices. Kalas wants the Trump administration to align with Europe in applying more penalties on some 1,600 people and companies accused of helping Russia's war with Ukraine. Pressuring Moscow has become more urgent for Europe. As officials warn, Russia has opened a new phase of hybrid war on the continent. In Brussels, Stephen Carroll, Bloomberg Radio.

Nathan Hager (2:04)

Stephen, thank you. The fighting in the Middle East continues to ramp up. The Saudi-led coalition that's fighting the Houthis says it's intercepted more missiles and drones overnight. That's after attacks on Saudi airports over the weekend left at least 14 people dead and hundreds more wounded. Bloomberg's Zabir Abou Omar reports all this comes as Saudi Arabia is hosting the World Petroleum Congress in Riyadh this week.

Zabir Abou Omar (2:26)

Up until this morning, Saudi Arabia said that missiles were intercepted not just over Riyadh, but over the eastern province in Daman, where energy facilities for Saudi Aramco exist. But again, bringing back the comments by the energy minister who also said that Saudi Arabia remains committed to energy security and that there is no way that somebody will break our back. He also mentioned that Saudi Arabia is like a phoenix.

Nathan Hager (2:52)

Still, Bloomberg's Zabir Abou Omar reports several oil executives have pulled out of this week's event in light of the violence, including the CEOs of BP and Shell.

Karen Moskow (3:01)

Nathan, a judge has ordered the Trump administration to temporarily stop running taxpayer-funded television ads, promoting the president. The two-week block also prevents further public payments for the ads while the court considers a longer ban. The White House says they are public service announcements, but challengers argue they unlawfully use taxpayer money for political purposes.

Nathan Hager (3:22)

And Karen, Catholics around the world are sending well wishes to Pope Leo XIV onward. He's having surgery this week to remove a nodule from his lung. The American-born pontiff made the announcement during his Sunday blessing at St. Peter's Square. He says doctors found the lump in a very initial phase, and the operation is already scheduled. Leo is 71 years old. The surgery will take place weeks before he's scheduled to travel to South America next month.

Karen Moskow (3:45)

Let's turn to the markets now, Nathan, where S&P futures are higher as we begin a new trading week, and traders are gearing up for the unofficial start of earning season with Wall Street's biggest banks reporting. And we get a preview with Bloomberg's Charlie Pillott.

Charlie Pillott (3:58)

It begins Tuesday when we hear from JP Morgan Chase, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs. Bloomberg Intelligence says bank earnings growth is slowing amid choppier markets. Christina Hooper is Chief Market Strategist at Mang Group. She says she'll be monitoring bank earnings calls closely for hints about the broader economy.

Christina Hooper (4:17)

Quite often what we can hear on these earnings calls from the big banks is an assessment of the health of their consumers. And so I think that's important as we go forward because consumers are such a critical part of the US economy.