U.S. Says It Has ‘Makings of a Deal’ With Iran

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Alex Ossola (0:18)

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says the US and Iran are close to a deal to end the war. Plus, why a tiny Baltic nation is training its citizens for a possible military crisis.

Robbie Grammer (0:29)

Estonian officials say is this is all in a way a deterrent, signaling to Russia constantly that you are ready for any sort of military incursion.

Alex Ossola (0:39)

And move over, Pied-a-Terre. The meta-Terre is all the rage in New York City real estate. It's Thursday, May 28th. I'm Alex Ossola for the Wall Street Journal. This is the PM Edition of What's News, the top headlines and business stories that move the world today.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters today that the US and Iran are within reach of an agreement to wind down the war.

Scott Bessent (1:09)

That we perhaps have the makings of a deal here.

Alex Ossola (1:14)

Bessent said the president has yet to sign off on it, however.

Scott Bessent (1:17)

Again, everything depends on what the president wants to do, and President Trump is not going to make a bad deal for the American people.

Alex Ossola (1:26)

Bessent said Iran must agree to dispose of its highly enriched uranium. He said the country must commit to never seek a nuclear weapon, and Iran needs to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Iran, meanwhile, has signaled that a final text of the agreement isn't ready. If it happens, the deal would be the first phase of a framework. The US and Iran would continue to negotiate for another two months or more.

In corporate news, a $72 billion railroad merger has hit a major snag. A federal regulator said today that it was pushing pause on its review of the deal between Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern. The regulator says it needs more information. That puts the timeline for the deal in danger. A Union Pacific spokeswoman said the company is still confident that the board will make a ruling in the middle of next year, the same timetable that the railroad had projected earlier.

In Spain, an update on the mango case. The billionaire founder of the fashion chain died in 2024 during a hiking trip with his son. Spanish authorities last week accused the son, Jonathan Andic, of being quote, criminally responsible for his father's death. Andic is pushing back against those allegations. In a court filing today, he says that his father's fatal fall was likely the result of a knee problem. The filing also said there were no disagreements between father and son for almost a year before the death.

And Albert Manifold, BP's chairman who was fired earlier this week, hit back at what he described as lies about his behavior. Manifold said today that he accepted the board's decision to remove him, but he does not accept, quote, that lies can be told about me. The journal has reported that BP received whistleblower reports that Manifold was bullying and verbally abusive towards staff. BP said today that it stands by its characterization of Manifold's behavior as unacceptable.

Staying with the energy industry, after the ouster of Nicolas Maduro in January, President Trump encouraged US oil majors to go into Venezuela. One of those companies was Exxon Mobil. At the time, its CEO Darren Woods was not very enthusiastic. Here's what he said at a meeting with President Trump and oil and gas executives almost a week after Maduro was captured by the US.

Darren Woods (3:38)

If we look at the legal and commercial constructs and frameworks in place today in Venezuela, today it's uninvestable.

Alex Ossola (3:45)

Now though, Exxon may be changing its tune. On Exxon's most recent earnings call on May 1st, Woods said there were wide-ranging efforts to make Venezuela into quote attractive investment opportunities.

Darren Woods (3:56)

Venezuela is a huge resource that's now opened up more freely to the world. There are continuing work going on with the industry, with the Trump administration, with the government of Venezuela.

Alex Ossola (4:10)

The journal has learned that Exxon is in talks with Venezuelan officials about returning to the oil-rich country. That would be its first time operating there in 19 years. But, many of the challenges that have long prevented American companies from investing in Venezuela are still there. Collin Eaton covers US oil companies for WSJ and joins us now from Houston.

Collin, where do these discussions stand between Exxon and the Venezuelan government?

Collin Eaton (4:33)

So they're in negotiations, but there are all of these outstanding issues that need to be ironed out. It's still not totally clear what the government take in some of these contracts will be in terms of royalties, in terms of taxes.