Good morning from the Financial Times.

Today is Tuesday, March 3rd, and this is your FT&E's briefing.

The crisis in the Middle East has got investors looking for safety,

and Gulf states are struggling under Iranian strikes.

Plus, can the American economy withstand spiking oil prices?

I'm Mark Filipino, and here's the news you need to start your day.

Investors poured into gold and the U.S. dollar yesterday.

They were looking for safe haven assets as strikes continued in the

Middle East. Gold nearly hit a record high on Monday, jumping as much as 2.5%. Investors avoided government

bonds, though, which are also normally perceived as safe. Traders braced for a rise in inflation.

More on that and just a sec. Meanwhile, hedge funds are backing

out of emerging markets. MSCI's broad EM equities index slid almost 2% on Monday.

Markets including Turkey and India came under pressure.

The U.S. and Israel's assault on Iran has led to ships being attacked in the Strait of Ormuz.

That's the waterway that leads in and out of the Arabian Gulf.

Oil is no longer flowing through the strait, which has caused the price to skyrocket.

That could be bad news for U.S. President Donald Trump and his fight on the American affordability crisis. Here to discuss is the FTs U.S.

U.S. economics editor, Claire Jones. Hi, Claire. Hi, Mark. So, Claire, how much does the U.S.

rely on oil from outside of the country? So the U.S. is now largely self-sufficient in terms of energy production. The latest

figures, which were for 2024, showed that just 17% of the energy used by Americans was imported,

which was the lower share in 40 years. Still, everyone is keeping an eye on oil prices, potentially crossing $100 a barrel.

And if that happens, Claire, what would that mean for the US?

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