The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) denied on Monday that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had successfully attacked theUSS Tripoli.
"USS Tripoli has not been attacked and continues to sail in the Arabian Sea in support of Operation Epic Fury. The America-class amphibious assault ship serves as the flagship for the Tripoli Amphibious Ready Group / 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit composed of about 3,500 Sailors and Marines in addition to transport and strike fighter aircraft, as well as amphibious assault and tactical assets," CENTCOM stated.
Earlier during the day, the IRGC claimed it had struck the warship with missiles, forcing it to retreat to the southern Indian Ocean, and also targeted an Israel-linked container ship identified as "SDN7," without disclosing its location.
United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that the US could destroy Iran's power plants and bridges within hours, warning of sweeping strikes if no agreement is reached.
"Every power plant in Iran will be burning, exploding, never to be used again," Trump said, adding that "complete demolition" could occur "over a period of four hours if we wanted to." He stressed that "we don't want that to happen," but warned the attacks could begin by midnight Tuesday without a deal.
Trump also said bridges would be targeted, warning "every bridge in Iran will be decimated," and added the damage could take "100 years" to recover. He noted US forces had already struck one of Iran's tallest bridges near Karaj.
Zohran Mamdani’s tax package is a warning to America.
It is what you may expect when the radical left takes power. Demolition of the private sector and destruction of potential growth and jobs.
Mamdani’s plan is not ambitious nor innovative; it is precisely the interventionist system that has been implemented throughout decades in countries that now suffer stagnation and elevated unemployment. It concentrates New York City’s fiscal risk onto a narrow and mobile base of taxpayers and companies in a way that could undermine growth, jobs, and long-term stability. The likely impact on jobs and growth will not improve public services but will likely be used to bloat political spending, leading to increased dissatisfaction among taxpayers and potentially exacerbating economic inequality. Furthermore, it is deeply regressive as it hurts middle-class property owners.
The most aggressive element is the estate-tax redesign, which would slash the exemption threshold from roughly 7.35 million dollars to 750,000 dollars and push the top estate tax rate from 16% to 50%. This would move New York from taxing only very large fortunes to reaching into the middle class, particularly downstate homeowners with substantial housing equity and retirement assets but little income. Such an aggressive move on estates, on top of high income and property taxes, is the perfect example of stealth confiscation of wealth and risks accelerating the long-running migration of wealth and domicile to lower-tax states like Florida, Texas, and the Carolinas.
Mamdani’s core proposal is a 2-percentage point increase in the city personal income tax for residents earning over 1 million dollars, lifting the top city rate from roughly 3.88% to about 5.88%. When combined with the existing state top rate of nearly 10.9%, this proposal would raise the total marginal income tax on top earners in New York City to over 16%, in addition to the current national taxes, resulting in the highest tax burden on high incomes among major cities in the country.
Mamdani claims that this surcharge could raise 7 to 9 billion dollars a year. We have evidence from all over the world that these measures generate substantially less tax revenue than estimated and the negative impact offsets any receipt increase.
On the business side, Mamdani backs raising the state’s top corporate tax rate from 7.25% to 11.5%, effectively a roughly 60% jump in the headline rate for the profitable firms. He says that only about 1,000 companies—less than 1% of New York’s 250,000 businesses—would be directly hit, but these are precisely the firms that account for the largest share of capital spending, high-wage employment, and fiscal revenue. In addition, he has signaled a willingness to raise city property taxes by about 9.5% as a “last resort” if Albany does not fully approve the income and wealth tax agenda, a move that would hit more than 3 million residential properties and over 100,000 businesses.
By lifting the top city income tax rate by 2 percentage points for million-plus earners, the plan pushes combined city-state marginal rates for high-income residents to the upper teens, the highest of any major US city. These taxpayers already provide a disproportionate share of revenue, as the top 1% of taxpayers contribute over 40–50% of income tax collections; under Mamdani’s proposal, that dependence tightens further. This concentration creates a fragile fiscal structure. Any small shift in residency among high earners can suddenly create a large hole in the budget.
The plan assumes that wealthy households and high-earning professionals will mostly absorb the extra burden without materially changing their behaviours. This makes no sense. The tax hike will be devastating for many professionals who currently work from home and online, leading to an exodus of talent. Even modest annual outflows of top-bracket taxpayers, compounded over a decade, could erase much of the projected revenue gain.
Raising the top corporate tax rate from around 7.25% to 11.5% for the most profitable firms sharply increases the tax wedge on capital in a city already dealing with high rents, labor costs, and regulatory burdens. As effective tax rates rise, the hurdle rate for new projects in New York climbs, making it easier for CFOs to justify shifting marginal investments, new teams, or back-office functions to lower-cost jurisdictions.
Mamdani forgets that in 2026, there is no competitive advantage to being in Manhattan. When location becomes more flexible, tax and regulatory differences matter more. The risk is not an immediate wave of closures but a steady pattern of decisions that reduce New York’s headquarters, senior roles, and wage growth.
Mamdani’s threat to deploy a near 10% property tax hike adds another layer of risk, particularly for a real estate market still digesting high interest rates and structural changes in office demand. Higher property taxes increase costs for businesses and homeowners, which can lower property values and create a cycle of problems: falling prices lead to less money spent on upkeep and new projects, and more financial strain as property values stay the same or drop.
The overhaul of the estate tax is even more problematic. Cutting the exemption from about 7.35 million dollars to 750,000 dollars and tripling the top rate to 50% would drag many middle-class families into a regime previously targeted at large fortunes. Such a change inevitably leads to defensive strategies that ultimately reduce the taxable base, as families may seek to shelter their income or relocate to avoid higher taxes. Over time, this behaviour reduces revenues instead of increasing them.
The most serious danger is not a dramatic, overnight exodus but a slow-motion erosion of New York’s competitive position. High-earning individuals can reclassify their primary residence, spend fewer days in the city, or base themselves in low-tax states while maintaining only a minimal professional presence in New York. Firms can keep a Midtown address while quietly shifting jobs and new operations elsewhere, often to states with more favourable tax conditions, which allows them to reduce their overall tax burden significantly. Each marginal decision looks small; their cumulative effect over a decade is large, according to studies at Cornell University.
When a city repeatedly shows that its default solution to budget gaps is “tax more,” businesses and high-skill workers interpret that as a structural feature of the environment. That expectation raises risk premiums and discourages long‑term commitments—exactly the opposite of what a high-cost, high-productivity city needs, as businesses may seek to relocate to more favourable tax environments or reduce their investments in the city. New York’s agglomeration advantages are real, but they are not infinite; Mamdani’s plan assumes they can withstand ever‑rising fiscal pressure without a meaningful loss of dynamism.
Mamdani and his team know all these negatives. However, they maintain these policies because socialism seeks control rather than progress. Their objective is to create a hostage-dependent subclass that will always vote for them even if the economic and social results are negative for all.
United States President Donald Trump claimed on Monday that the supposed new regime in Iran is negotiating "in good faith."
While speaking to the press at the White House Easter Egg Roll, Trump said that "we've had a total regime change," claiming that "people there are now much more reasonable than the lunatics you had in phase one and phase two." He added that "people we are negotiating with now ... are much more reasonable. You can call it what you want, but I call it regime change ... the group of people we are dealing with is not as radicalized."
An earlier report from Axios and Tehran's IRNA revealed that Iran issued a 10-point response to Washington's peace proposal, reportedly rejecting the ceasefire.
Beijing has reserved large sections of offshore airspace from March 27 to May 6 without any official explanation, in a move described by experts as highly unusual. Notices to Air Missions (NOTAMs) were issued for zones from the Yellow Sea near South Korea to the East China Sea off Japan, covering an area larger than Taiwan and extending from surface to unlimited altitude. Such prolonged closures are normally associated with major military activity, yet no drills have been announced, raising questions about China's intentions.NDTV World + 4
Analysts see shift to sustained readiness
Military experts, including Ray Powell of Stanford University, say the combination of unlimited altitude and 40-day duration points to a sustained operational readiness posture rather than a short-term drill. Christopher Sharman of the US Naval War College suggested the restricted zones could be used for practising air combat manoeuvres relevant to a Taiwan conflict scenario. Taiwanese security officials believe China is exploiting US distraction in the Middle East to boost its military presence and pressure regional allies, particularly Japan. NDTV World + 4
Chinese forces operate near Taiwan
Taiwan's Ministry of National Defense reported three Chinese military aircraft, six naval vessels, and two official ships near its territory on April 6. All three aircraft crossed the median line into the island’s northern and eastern air defence identification zone. Taiwan’s armed forces monitored the situation and issued a response to the activity. Newsable Asianet News + 1
Potential scenarios and strategic implications
If linked to military drills, the airspace closure could be a rehearsal for controlling critical routes used by US forces in a Taiwan crisis, signalling deterrence to Japan and South Korea. Alternatively, it may serve as a long-term readiness measure to project power and test operational endurance without overtly escalating tensions. With US carrier groups currently in the Gulf and a Trump–Xi meeting scheduled for mid-May, the closure could also be a calculated move to shape the strategic environment ahead of high-level diplomacy. NDTV World + 4
AbbVie Inc. updated its 2026 earnings guidance to reflect a sizeable first-quarter charge for acquired in-process R&D and milestones. The company expects to record $744 million of pre-tax acquired IPR&D and milestones expense in the first quarter of 2026, which is estimated to reduce both GAAP and adjusted diluted earnings per share by $0.41.
Including this impact, AbbVie now guides full-year 2026 adjusted diluted EPS to a range of $13.96 to $14.16, compared with prior guidance that excluded this expense. First-quarter 2026 adjusted diluted EPS guidance, including the charge, is $2.56 to $2.60, down from the previously announced range of $2.97 to $3.01 that did not include the IPR&D and milestones expense.
Takeda and Denali Therapeutics first partnered in early 2018 to advance drugs for neurodegenerative diseases. One asset, for Alzheimer’s disease, was previously discontinued after an FDA hold and disappointing early data.
More than eight years after linking up, Takeda and Denali Therapeutics are going their separate ways, with the Japanese pharma handing all rights to a dementia program back to Denali.
Takeda’s decision to terminate its partnership with Denali “was driven by strategic considerations,” the California biotech said in an SEC document dated April 3, and “is not related to efficacy or safety data.” The Japanese pharma informed Denali of its decision that same day, according to the securities filing.
The companies inked their partnership in January 2018, with Takeda fronting $150 million and promising unspecified milestone payments.
Takeda and Denali had also previously been working on the TREM2 agonist DNL919 for Alzheimer’s disease—but this molecule’s development path has been bumpy. In January 2022, the FDA slapped a clinical hold on the asset, though the partners at the time did not disclose why. The hold was eventually lifted, but Takeda and Denali in August 2023 nevertheless discontinued DNL919’s development, pointing to Phase 1 findings suggesting the drug had only a “narrow therapeutic window.”
In 2021, Takeda also exercised its option to co-develop and co-commercialize DNL593, a protein replacement therapy that can cross the blood-brain barrier, for frontotemporal dementia.
That asset has since been returned to Denali, the biotech said on April 3. “We are looking forward to advancing DNL593 independently,” CEO Ryan Watts said in a press statement that day, adding that the company “remain[s] confident” in the scientific rationale behind DNL593.
DNL593 works by replacing the progranulin protein, which in frontotemporal dementia is deficient, leading to lysosomal defects that, in turn, result in the accumulation of toxins across different tissues. The asset is currently in a Phase 1/2 study, enrollment for which has completed with 40 recruited participants, according to Denali’s April 3 release. There have been no reported safety signals to date, the biotech noted.
Phase 1/2 data for DNL593 are expected before the end of this year, Watts said.
Takeda’s pullback comes just days after Denali delivered a much-needed win for the rare disease space with the FDA approval of its Hunter syndrome therapy Avlayah. Like DNL593, Avlayah works by replacing a deficient player, this time targeting the IDS enzyme, which under healthy conditions clears toxic byproducts from several organs, including the brain.
Avlayah is the first Hunter syndrome therapy in nearly 20 years and is the first FDA-approved treatment to exploit the transferrin pathway to cross the blood-brain barrier.
