The briefing for Saturday, April 11.

Vice President JD Vance arrived in Pakistan on Saturday for the first high-level U.S.-Iran talks since the war began more than a month ago. The American delegation, including Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, met with Iranian representatives led by Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf in Islamabad. Streets in the normally bustling capital were deserted as security forces sealed roads ahead of the negotiations, with authorities urging residents to stay inside.

The talks face significant hurdles from the start. Iran has set preconditions, insisting on an Israeli ceasefire in Lebanon and the release of blocked Iranian assets before negotiations can proceed. Israel and Hezbollah have continued trading fire along Lebanon's southern border despite the ceasefire, with Israeli strikes in Beirut killing more than 300 people on the day the truce was announced. President Trump has posted repeatedly on social media, saying Iranian officials 'have no cards' and accusing them of using the Strait of Hormuz for extortion.

Five major sticking points dominate the agenda: Lebanon's ceasefire, the Strait of Hormuz passage fees and new transit routes Iran announced, Iran's nuclear enrichment program, Tehran's regional proxy network, and long-term peace framework terms. Only a trickle of vessels have passed through the strait since the ceasefire began, with reports that some ships paid $2 million tolls. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif described the conflict as entering a 'difficult phase' and called it a 'make-or-break' moment as the sides attempt to shift from a temporary pause to a more lasting settlement.

Consumer prices rose 3.3% in March from a year earlier, the Labor Department reported Friday, up sharply from 2.4% in February and marking the biggest yearly increase since May 2024. The surge was driven primarily by the largest monthly jump in gas prices in six decades, directly tied to Iran's control over the Strait of Hormuz. On a monthly basis, prices rose 0.9% in March from February, the largest such increase in nearly four years.

The gas price shock is already spreading through the economy. Airlines saw costs jump, with fares rising 2.7% in just one month and up 14.9% from a year earlier. Delivery services including UPS and FedEx have announced fuel surcharges that raise shipping costs for businesses and households. Grocery prices, which slipped 0.2% last month, are expected to rise in coming months as diesel fuel prices surge and increase production costs across the food supply chain.

Excluding volatile food and energy, core prices rose 2.6% in March from a year earlier, up from 2.5% in February, though monthly core prices rose a modest 0.2%. The inflation surge will almost certainly postpone any Federal Reserve interest rate cuts for months. Economists say the impact may be shorter-lived than the post-pandemic spike, describing it as 'a short, sharp shock' rather than the sustained inflation surge seen in 2022, but much depends on how long the oil and gas price shock lasts and whether it spreads more broadly.

The Trump administration published an updated charter Thursday for the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, the key federal panel that recommends how to use the nation's vaccines. The changes broaden qualifications for panel members and echo language used by vaccine critics, including new focus on studying 'gaps in vaccine safety research' and considering 'cumulative effects' of shots. The updated charter also directs the panel to consider other countries' vaccination schedules.

The changes follow recent controversial actions by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime vaccine skeptic who ousted all ACIP members soon after taking office and replaced them with his own picks. The revamped panel subsequently declined to recommend COVID-19 vaccines even for high-risk populations and voted to stop recommending most newborn hepatitis B shots. The administration also separately narrowed the childhood vaccine schedule.

A federal judge blocked those steps last month after the American Academy of Pediatrics and other health groups sued, though the administration has indicated it plans to appeal. The charter's renewal deadline coincided with the lawsuit proceedings, but doesn't resolve the legal challenge. Health groups warn the changes represent 'a continued effort to undermine ACIP, undermine vaccine policy' and public confidence in life-saving shots, though HHS spokesman Andrew Nixon said the renewal is a 'routine statutory requirement' that doesn't signal any broader policy shift.

A jury began deliberations Friday in Manhattan federal court on a civil antitrust case brought by 34 states against Live Nation Entertainment and its ticketing arm Ticketmaster. The states argue the company monopolizes the concert industry and drives up ticket prices, while Live Nation contends there is more competition than ever and the company operates fairly in a booming U.S. concert business. The jury asked to review certain testimony after starting deliberations in the five-week trial.

States carried forward with their case after the Justice Department settled separately with Live Nation last month. Federal prosecutors said they won important concessions from the company, particularly regarding ticket sales at dozens of Live Nation's amphitheaters. A lawyer for the states argued in closing arguments Thursday that Live Nation controls 86% of the market for concerts and 73% of the overall market when sports events are included.

Live Nation's lawyer acknowledged the company is the biggest entertainment company and ticketer in the country, but argued that 'success is not against the antitrust laws in the United States.' The case tests whether the company's dominant position constitutes illegal monopolization or simply reflects competitive success in the live entertainment industry.

Taiwan's opposition leader Cheng Li-wun met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday at Beijing's Great Hall of the People, marking the first such high-level encounter in over a decade. Both leaders emphasized the need for maintaining peace around the self-ruled island that China claims as its territory. Xi welcomed Cheng and her Kuomintang Party representatives to applause, saying compatriots on both sides walking 'nearer, closer, and together will not change' and expressing full confidence in this historical trend.

Cheng, who arrived in Beijing on Tuesday after visiting Shanghai and Nanjing, described herself as a promoter of peace between Taiwan and China. She said both parties respect each other and will 'seek systemic solutions to prevent and avoid war.' Both leaders reaffirmed support for the 1992 Consensus, a tacit agreement that Taiwan and China belong to one China, though interpretations differ. Cheng raised the issue of increasing Taiwan's international profile, including participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership free trade agreement, and said Xi responded 'positively.'

Taiwan's ruling Democratic Progressive Party criticized the visit, with President Lai Ching-te issuing a statement urging the KMT to approve his special defense budget and warning that 'compromising with authoritarian regimes only comes at the cost of sovereignty and democracy.' The KMT, which traditionally maintains warm ties with China, continues to block Lai's defense spending increases including building the Taiwan Dome air defense system. Beijing has refused formal dialogue with Lai, whom they label a 'separatist,' while most Taiwanese favor maintaining the status quo in cross-strait relations.