War in the Middle East is ricocheting through markets and diplomacy to start the week, with India’s rupee sliding, London trying to mend fences with Washington, and U.S. politics and culture serving up fresh flashpoints.

Markets on edge as conflict escalates

• India’s rupee and sovereign bonds remain under pressure as the regional war drags on. Traders say the Reserve Bank of India has been a key buyer to steady markets, with policy buffers helping manage volatility. Key data this week includes India’s February CPI on March 12 (Reuters poll: 3.1%) and U.S. CPI on March 11 (poll: 2.4%). Late Monday in Asia, the dollar traded near ₹91.93 [1].
• Regional tremors continue: Australia has told families of diplomats to leave the UAE as the conflict intensifies, while regional officials say Tehran’s clerical leadership chose confrontation by tapping Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father—a move read as a direct rebuke to U.S. President Donald Trump [1].
• Separately, the Washington Post reported that Russia has provided Iran with targeting data to attack U.S. assets, underscoring the risk of wider entanglements [2].

Allies strain, then seek resets

• In the UK, Prime Minister Keir Starmer is working to repair ties with Trump after a bruising week over Iran policy. The Guardian described a bid to smooth relations amid Labour infighting over Tony Blair’s call to back initial U.S. strikes, while the Daily Mail framed Starmer’s outreach as a “humbling” call to the U.S. president [2].
• China’s foreign minister Wang Yi blasted the Middle East war and urged the U.S. to stabilize ties with Beijing as global fault lines harden [3].

U.S. politics and the courts

• The Justice Department has posted additional Jeffrey Epstein records, including some containing allegations involving Trump, following sharp criticism over transparency—an expected jolt to a case that continues to ripple through politics and media [2].
• Trump, meanwhile, threatened to hold up signing any bills until a package of voting reforms passes, escalating pressure on a Republican-led Senate skeptical of the measure [3].

Economy and sport

• A fresh warning light flashed for the U.S. economy as employers shed an estimated 92,000 jobs in February and unemployment ticked up—signs that recent resilience may be fraying, particularly after weakness in health care hiring [2].
• The Milan-Cortina Paralympic Winter Games opened with spectacle—and a debate: athletes with cognitive disabilities remain barred from competition, though advocates hope for inclusion by 2030 [2].

Culture watch: WGA gets political

• At the Writers Guild Awards, Roy Wood Jr. jolted the room by quoting former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, warning attendees they were being “incited into civil war.” He skewered the industry’s upheaval—from streamers’ pivot to “video podcasts” and turmoil at CBS News after David Ellison tapped Bari Weiss to lead the network, to Amazon’s reported $75 million spend on Melania Trump—turning the gala into a mirror of America’s broader anxieties [4].

What I’m watching next

• Data: U.S. CPI (Mar 11), India CPI (Mar 12), U.S. jobless claims and housing starts (Mar 12), and U.S. durable goods, PCE, GDP and Michigan sentiment (Mar 13). Each could amplify—or soothe—the war’s market shock [1].

References

1. Indian rupee, bonds to remain under pressure amid escalating Mideast conflict – Reuters
2. PressReader: The Press and Journal (Aberdeen & Aberdeenshire) – March 9, 2026 roundup
3. PressReader: The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands and Islands) – March 9, 2026 politics/world digest
4. Roy Wood Jr. Uses Words Of Marjorie Taylor Greene To Inspire Unwitting Crowd In Politically Charged WGA Awards Opening – Deadline