Doug Krisner

With Bloomberg News Now, I'm Doug Krisner, and this is Bloomberg.

News when you want it.

With Bloomberg News Now, I'm Doug Krisner.

The U.S.

and Iran are preparing for peace talks this weekend in Pakistan, and Israeli strikes in Lebanon are sure to be a major issue.

Iran called it a clear violation of a ceasefire agreed this week.

However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said there is no ceasefire in Lebanon.

Netanyahu did agree to hold talks with Lebanon with a focus on disarming Hezbollah.

Early on Thursday, the Israeli military told residents in eight Beirut neighborhoods to leave ahead of strikes.

And Netanyahu said Israel will not stop striking until security of communities in northern Israel is ensured.

Here is Bloomberg's Jeff Mason.

That is Bloomberg's Jeff Mason.

Now, earlier today, NBC reported President Trump told Netanyahu to scale back on those strikes to ensure the success of negotiations with Iran.

Trump also said the US military will remain in place around Iran until a ceasefire is firm.

The Strait of Hormuz remains largely blocked.

A handful of Iran-linked ships have traveled through this choke point, and three Chinese oil tankers, fully laden with Saudi and Iraqi crude, sailed toward Hormuz.

Iran said any vessels transiting the strait would need army approval.

But even with a pickup in traffic, the return of energy supplies will not be instant.

Output has been reduced at oil and gas fields, while refineries have curtailed production or even shut it down.

And Saudi Arabia has lost more than a half million barrels of daily output due to those Iranian attacks.