Risk of a US-Iran Conflict Rises; Dollar Strengthens | Horizons Middle East & Africa 2/19/2026

Risk of a conflict between the US and Iran back on table. The White House warned Iran would be ‘wise’ to make a deal as President Donald Trump once again hinted at military action. Also on the show: The dollar edges higher as currency traders bet the Federal Reserve won’t be able to deliver three rate cuts in 2026; OpenAI funding on track to top $100 billion in latest round; Dubai stocks are off to their strongest start in 12 years; African nations rush to sell dollar bonds; emerging-market stocks nudge higher as the rebound in gold lifts equities in South Africa.
Guests include: Parisha Saimbi, EM Asia FXLM Strategist, BNP Paribas; Arthur Budaghyan, Chief Emerging Markets Strategist, BCA

Horizons Middle East & Africa is your daily spotlight on one of the world’s fastest-growing regions. Live from Dubai, we bring you the latest global markets and analysis, plus news-making interviews, with a special focus on MEA. All that and more, as you head to the office in the Gulf, pause for lunch in Hong Kong, or start your day in London or Johannesburg.

Chapters:
00:00:00 – Introduction
00:05:10 – Rising risk of a US-Iran conflict
00:09:15 – Parisha Saimbi, EM Asia FXLM Strategist, BNP Paribas
00:15:42 – Brad Smith, Microsoft President
00:18:25 – OpenAI funding on track to top $100B
00:26:25 – Dubai stocks post best start since 2014
00:29:15 – Demis Hassabis, Google DeepMind CEO
00:32:04 – African nations rush to sell dollar bonds
00:37:04 – Arthur Budaghyan, Chief Emerging Markets Strategist, BCA Research
——–
More on Bloomberg Television and Markets

Like this video? Subscribe and turn on notifications so you don’t miss any videos from Bloomberg Markets & Finance: https://tinyurl.com/ysu5b8a9
Visit http://www.bloomberg.com for business news & analysis, up-to-the-minute market data, features, profiles and more.

Connect with Bloomberg Television on:
X: https://twitter.com/BloombergTV
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BloombergTelevision
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloombergtv/

Connect with Bloomberg Business on:
X: https://twitter.com/business
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bloombergbusiness
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bloombergbusiness/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@bloombergbusiness?lang=en
Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/bloomberg/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/bloomberg-news/

More from Bloomberg:
Bloomberg Radio: https://twitter.com/BloombergRadio

Bloomberg Surveillance: https://twitter.com/bsurveillance
Bloomberg Politics: https://twitter.com/bpolitics
Bloomberg Originals: https://twitter.com/bbgoriginals

Watch more on YouTube:
Bloomberg Technology: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergTechnology
Bloomberg Originals: https://www.youtube.com/@business
Bloomberg Quicktake: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergQuicktake
Bloomberg Espanol: https://www.youtube.com/@bloomberg_espanol
Bloomberg Podcasts: https://www.youtube.com/@BloombergPodcasts