Rail Merger Review: The U.S. Surface Transportation Board denied motions seeking to block the UP–NS merger before its formal review, keeping the $50,000+ route-mile plan alive amid shipper and carrier competition concerns. Middle East Energy Buildout: The Trump administration proposed a $5bn fund to rebuild Iran-war-damaged energy infrastructure and reduce reliance on the Strait of Hormuz, with matching contributions aimed at a $10bn total. Cross-Border Trade Corridors: Ukraine and Romania signed an MoU to modernize shared border infrastructure across 17 crossing points, including rail links, faster procedures, and higher cargo transshipment capacity at Romanian ports. AI + Data Centers: Anthropic agreed to use space at Queensland’s Western Downs Digital Park for Claude inference, underscoring Australia’s growing AI infrastructure demand. Freight Cost Pressure: Diesel hit record highs, squeezing U.S. trucking and construction budgets and raising the odds of higher prices for delivered goods. Aviation Disruption: A Northeast U.S. travel meltdown tied to telecom/air traffic system failures led to ground stops and hundreds of cancellations before repairs restored operations. Public Infrastructure Security: Seattle ramped up plans to replace West Seattle Bridge streetlight wiring after copper theft left spans dark, highlighting a growing logistics-adjacent security problem. Regulatory Reform: Canada introduced Bill C-39 to speed infrastructure project reviews and approvals, aiming for more predictable delivery for builders and supply chains.