Qatari LNG tanker struck by missile in Strait of Hormuz

A fully loaded Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) tanker was struck by an Iranian missile near the coast of Oman, according to reporting from ZeroHedge. The vessel, identified as the Al Rekayyat and owned by Qatar's state shipping company, was exiting the Strait of Hormuz when the projectile hit. Following the incident, Brent crude prices rose more than 1% to $72.76 a barrel as energy markets adjusted for a higher geopolitical risk premium in the region.

The maritime strike comes amid broader pressure on global oil benchmarks, as Russian Urals crude collapsed to an average of $41.66 a barrel during the first three days of July, ZeroHedge reported. The decline in Russian Urals below its assumed federal budget level of $59 a barrel indicates deteriorating physical demand in European and Asian manufacturing hubs, which has historically limited the duration of geopolitical price spikes in Brent crude.

Concurrently, Microsoft (MSFT) announced a workforce reduction of approximately 4,800 positions, according to a DW.com report. The layoffs hit the company's Xbox gaming division particularly hard, with more than 1,600 job cuts originating from that unit. Microsoft has framed the restructuring as an efficiency-driven consolidation designed to shift resources toward core artificial intelligence priorities.

The structural pivot by Microsoft occurs as broader market indexes show divergence. Early Tokyo trading on Tuesday showed the Nikkei 225 falling 0.34 percent to 69,500.83, while the broader Topix index gained 19.94 points, according to data published by the Mainichi.