Daily Brief, November 8, 2026

Top Story

178 US tariff exclusions on Chinese goods expire November 9th

The 178 exclusions spare the goods they cover from the additional US tariffs on Chinese products, and they end at 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on November 9th unless the US Trade Representative extends them again, as it has repeatedly since 2024, according to its notice.

Source: US Trade Representative

Strait of Hormuz

US aircraft disables a cargo ship that tried to breach the US blockade of Iran

A US military aircraft fired on the stern of the St. Kitts-flagged M/V Huda in the Gulf of Oman after its crew ignored repeated warnings. Since July US forces have redirected 147 merchant ships that complied and disabled five that refused, US Central Command, which runs US forces in the Middle East, said.

Source: DVIDS

US Central Command sets up a task force against Iran's overland and Caspian routes

Admiral Brad Cooper, who leads the command, ordered the formation of Task Force Iron Gate on November 7th, putting about 20 civilian and military staff in Tampa, Florida, to work with other US agencies against movements of advanced weapons, goods with both civilian and military uses, sanctioned materials and illicit revenue, the command said.

Source: DVIDS

Iran's Revolutionary Guard says mines hit two more tankers near the Strait of Hormuz

Both tankers were seriously damaged and stopped moving after taking a route Iran had not agreed to, the Guard said on Iranian television, as carried by Interfax, the Russian news agency. The report names no ship or owner, and no other source had confirmed the claim at the time.

Source: Interfax

United States

Enforcement & Liability

Four US states settle with Perry Johnson Companies over a 2023 health-data breach

The medical transcription, coding and imaging subsidiaries of Nevada-based Perry Johnson Companies will pay $300,000, and $9.7 million more if they fail to make the required security reforms, after a March 2023 breach exposed the data of more than 13 million people. Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Michigan brought the case.

Source: The Record

Around the World

Supply Chain Risk

Codelco says its reported 2024 copper output was inflated by 27,600 metric tons

Duplicate counting also overstated copper inventories by 18,800 metric tons. The preliminary financial impact is $120 million to $140 million, which auditors are still determining and which could change as the investigation goes on, the Chilean state copper producer told shareholders on November 5th.

Source: Codelco

Itaipu's Paraguayan side asks prosecutors to recover money it held at Ueno Bank

[PT - Estadao]

The Paraguayan administration of Itaipu Binacional, which runs the Paraguay-Brazil hydroelectric dam, held about $182 million at Ueno Bank, its depository since January 2025, on November 3rd and has gone to Paraguay's public prosecutor's office to get it back, the Brazilian newspaper Estadao reported. It has set no deadline for recovering the money.

Source: Estadao

Geopolitical Shocks

South Africa's African National Congress takes 30.88% of valid votes in local elections

With 99% of the national vote counted by Saturday evening, Independent Electoral Commission data showed the party leading in 125 of 213 municipalities, the Daily Maverick, a South African news site, reported.

Source: Daily Maverick

Explosive drones kill three soldiers at a Colombian army post in Bolivar

[ES - El Tiempo]

The afternoon attack on the army post at Santa Rosa, in Bolivar department, also injured others. One theory from unnamed official sources is that it was retaliation for the recent capture of an alleged leader of the ELN, Colombia's National Liberation Army guerrilla group, the Colombian newspaper El Tiempo reported.

Source: El Tiempo

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