April 1st International Headlines: Trump Signals Ceasefire; Iranian President Says Willing to End the War OpenAI Completes $122 Billion Funding

Global financial media headline news jointly covered overnight and this morning is mainly as follows:**

**　　1、Banning military aircraft from entering the airspace and refusing military involvement—Britain and France refuse to fight, drawing a warning from Trump: “The U.S. won’t help you anymore”**

**　　**2、Iran’s president: If there are no more attacks, Iran is willing to stop fighting

**　　3、OpenAI completes $122 billion in fundraising, valuation reaches $852 billion**

**　　4、Seasoning maker Wei Hao Mei “grow big by going small” to merge with Unilever Foods business**

**　　5、U.S. customs agency says the tariff tax refund system is progressing, but payment may take 45 days**

**　　**6、Iran continues to strictly control the Strait of Hormuz, but the number of vessels granted permission to pass in the past week has risen slightly

Banning military aircraft from entering the airspace and refusing military involvement—Britain and France refuse to fight, drawing a warning from Trump: “The U.S. won’t help you anymore”

On Tuesday, U.S. President Trump warned Britain and France, saying, “The U.S. won’t help you anymore,” to vent his dissatisfaction that these close allies refused to join U.S.-led military action against Iran.

Trump posted on the “Truth Social” platform, saying: “France does not allow military cargo to be loaded, nor do planes flying to Israel to overfly its territory.”

In another post, Trump specifically criticized Britain and urged other countries to take action in the Strait of Hormuz—this key oil transportation corridor has been effectively blocked by Iran during the war.

“For all the countries that can’t get aviation fuel because the Strait of Hormuz is blocked—like the UK, which refused to participate in clearing Iran—I have a suggestion: first, buy it from the United States—we have plenty; second, show the courage you were late to show, go to the strait, and take it back directly. You have to start learning how to fight for yourselves. The U.S. won’t help you anymore, just like you didn’t help us back then. Iran has basically been beaten down; the hardest part is already done. Go steal your oil yourselves!” he wrote.

Iran’s president: If there are no more attacks, Iran is willing to stop fighting

Iranian state media reported on Tuesday that Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran is ready to stop fighting as long as it is ensured that it will not be attacked again.

According to Iran International TV (Press TV), Pezeshkian said: “At no stage have we ever sought to create tension or start a war. As long as the necessary conditions are met, especially obtaining reliable guarantees to prevent aggression from happening again, we have enough determination to end this war.”

Iran International TV cited the above remarks in a report about a phone conversation between Iran’s president and Antonio Costa, the chairman of the European Council.

After the above statements emerged, U.S. stocks rose around the midday trading session; previously, remarks by officials from the Trump administration about ending the war had already led to a rebound in the market.

OpenAI completes $122 billion in fundraising, valuation reaches $852 billion

OpenAI has completed a round of fundraising, raising $122 billion from investors at a valuation of $852 billion. This is the largest round of fundraising the company has done to date, supporting its heavy spending in chips, data centers, and talent.

This fundraising process took several months and mainly came from three major technology companies. Among them, Amazon agreed to invest $50 billion, while Nvidia and SoftBank Group would invest $30 billion each. In Amazon’s investment, a large portion—$35 billion—would be subject to conditions tied to OpenAI going public or reaching milestones in general artificial intelligence (AGI) technology.

The ChatGPT developer also secured funding from many other well-known backers, including Andreessen Horowitz, Abu Dhabi’s MGX, D.E. Shaw Ventures, TPG, and Prudential. The company’s valuation already includes the amount raised in this round of financing.

Seasoning maker Wei Hao Mei “grow big by going small” to merge with Unilever Foods business

Unilever PLC has agreed to merge its food business with Wei Hao Mei, a seasoning manufacturer. This $44.8 billion deal will create a global company for seasonings, sauces, and condiments.

Under the agreement, Wei Hao Mei will pay Unilever $15.7 billion and $29.1 billion worth of Wei Hao Mei shares to acquire most of Unilever’s food business. Unilever and its shareholders will hold 65% of the shares in the combined entity. The merged company will include brands such as French’s mustard sauce under Wei Hao Mei.

The deal is the largest transaction in the history of the two companies, and will drive Unilever’s transformation into a global leader focused on beauty, personal care, and home care, while significantly enhancing Wei Hao Mei’s competitiveness in the global packaged foods market.

U.S. customs agency says the tariff tax refund system is progressing, but payment may take 45 days

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said on Tuesday that it is making progress in setting up a streamlined process to refund tariffs worth approximately $166 billion that the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled illegal, but its new system may take up to 45 days to review and process refund requests.

In a filing submitted to the U.S. Court of International Trade, CBP and CBP official Brandon Ladd said that development work for the new refund application portal, review, processing, and refund system is currently 60% to 85% complete. He did not provide a start date for applications, but the agency previously said the target was 45 days, which will end by late April.

In the Tuesday submission, Ladd said the new system will begin accepting applications in phases: first prioritizing entry documentation cleared or finally cleared within the first 80 days, as well as entry documentation whose clearance status is “paused, extended, or under review.”

Iran continues to strictly control the Strait of Hormuz, but the number of vessels granted permission to pass in the past week has risen slightly

Although most merchant ships still cannot pass through the Strait of Hormuz without Iran’s permission, the number of ships transiting the strait in an active signaling state has risen moderately.

Tracking data shows that for the week ending Monday, the two-way passage volume through the Strait of Hormuz rose to an average of 7 ships per day, up from 5 ships the previous week. While this figure is still far below normal levels, the increase suggests that a small number of filtered ships—mainly related to Iran or other non-Iranian hostile Asian partners—are continuing to pass.

By allowing friendly-country vessels to transit while restricting Western shipping, Iran’s blockade has become a powerful tool of economic warfare. Its spillover effects are causing a supply-side crisis for countries that rely on exports from the Persian Gulf.

Massive information, precise analysis—available on the Sina Finance app

责任编辑：丁文武