Iranian president dies in helicopter crash

Iranian state television has confirmed President Ebrahim Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian have died in a helicopter crash in the mountainous north-west of the country. Global equities rally on renewed interest rate optimism with Asian stocks hitting a two-year high, following last week’s Dow close above the 40,000-point level. Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te is sworn into office and calls for peace on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.