CNBC Daily Open: War by other means turns to armed conflict — again

An F-35B Lighting II, attached to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 121, takes off from the flight deck of America-class amphibious assault ship USS Tripoli (LHA 7), May 13, 2026.Courtesy: U.S. NavyHello, this is Hui Jie writing to you from Singapore. Welcome to another edition of CNBC's Daily Open.For the past couple of weeks, Washington had been signaling that it could wage war on Iran by other means. Then it returned to the original kind.On Sunday, the U.S. struck Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, in its first publicly acknowledged attack on Iran since late-July, raising worries of renewed armed conflict.Markets have more to contend with besides the latest escalation in the Middle East as Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh is now indicating that interest rates may have to rise. What you need to know todayU.S. President Donald Trump had vowed "Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale," against Iran, signaling a shift from armed conflict to economic pressure. That shift was short-lived.U.S. forces struck two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island on Sunday, with the Iran war set to enter its seventh month, and a return to military actions raising conce...