CNBC Daily Open: Washington tightens squeeze on the Iranian economy

Children swim as ships are seen anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on August 10, 2026 off the coast of Bandar Abbas, Iran. Ali Saeedi | Getty ImagesHello, this is Anniek Bao writing to you from Singapore. Welcome to another edition of CNBC's Daily Open.Six months into its Iranian blockade, Washington is shifting weapons. The pressure campaign against Iran is now migrating from the Strait of Hormuz to the financial system — and the second-order effects are landing squarely in Europe. Britain is the G7's fastest-growing economy and, per the IMF, the rich world's most exposed to this war.Greenland has just told a Trump-linked oil venture that its permits aren't in order. And Chinese robotaxis are heading for four more European cities.What you need to know todayU.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. will apply measures as "never been seen" against Iran, describing Washington's next move as economic isolation on a scale without precedent. The statement came as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's said that the U.S. Navy can sustain its blockade of Iranian ports "indefinitely" by rotating warships in and out of the region. Iran, for its part, has rushed to look for a way around U....