Minutes before Donald Trump signalled a pause on strikes against Iranian power plants, Wall Street had already moved ahead of him. Photograph: Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty ImagesMinutes before Donald Trump signalled a pause last Monday on strikes against Iranian power plants, Wall Street had already moved ahead of him, by more than half a billion dollars. That remains to be seen, but the episode is not an isolated one. First, insider policy information has probably always seeped into market prices on occasion, something observed not just today but across past US administrations. Second, the issue is not confined to politics or markets: bets on everything from Google’s search rankings to Taylor Swift announcements indicate that well-timed wagering is a modern, widespread challenge.

Source: The Irish Times March 28, 2026 07:31 UTC