Middle Eastern oil producers are pressing ahead with shuttling large volumes of crude out of the Persian Gulf, helping keep a lid on prices and assuaging fears of an energy-driven inflation spike, even as the Iran war drags on.

Akon reveals Middle Eastern royalty paid him $1 million for a private show "I can't say which family, but they booked me for a million dollars for a private event in the Middle East. 'My daughter's the biggest fan'. Okay, amazing. They set everything up, I had a dressing room with everything on my rider. Top notch." "The castle is so big I can't hear anything. They walk me to this huge hall with a monster stage, LED lights, lasers, everything. But there are only three chairs." "Three people came. The daughter, the son, and the wife. She's sitting in the middle just cheesing, can't wait. So we start singing Mr. Lonely. The song finishes and she goes, 'Again!' The whole hour, that's all we performed. Just Mr. Lonely on repeat."

With greater reliance on Middle Eastern #energy# supplies, #Asia# has been hardest hit by the Strait of Hormuz closures. Stronger regional coordination on energy security is needed.