By Dow Jones Newswires Staff
Oil prices rose for a third straight session and U.S. stock futures fell back as markets await President Trump's Tuesday-night deadline for Iran to agree to a deal.
Trump said the U.S. could take out Iran "in one night", bombing bridges and power plants, unless Iran reopened the Strait of Hormuz. Hopes for a deal soured after Iran rejected the latest proposal to end hostilities for 45 days and asked for guarantees for a permanent cease-fire and other conditions.
Front-month Brent crude held above $111 a barrel and U.S. Treasury yields edged higher. U.S. stocks looked set to fall at the open, though equity trade in Asia and Europe was mixed.
--In early European trading, Brent crude rose 1.3% to $111.15 a barrel, while WTI was up 2.6% to $115.3 a barrel. "Oil is holding its gains because the battlefield risk is no longer theoretical," said Priyanka Sachdeva from Phillip Nova. "Attacks on energy and shipping assets continue, and traders fear that even if the war ends, damage to infrastructure could sideline barrels for months, not days."
European natural-gas prices rose, with the benchmark Dutch TTF front-month contract up 1.2% at 50.67 euros a megawatt-hour. According to Kpler data, two Qatari LNG shipments that appeared to be heading toward Hormuz reversed course on Monday.
--U.S. stock futures pointed down after blue-chip indexes edged higher Monday. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were 0.2% lower. Futures for the S&P 500 dropped 0.4%, while the Nasdaq composite fell 0.5% premarket, as traders looked set to pause a four-day run of gains for the indexes--their best such run since May last year.
--Asian equities were mixed as Japan's Nikkei 225 index was flat, and China's benchmark Shanghai Composite climbed 0.3%. Korea's Kospi 200 was 1.1% higher, where Samsung Electronics gained 1.8% after a volatile trading day following the company's report of an eightfold profit leap. Markets in Hong Kong were closed.
--European stock indexes moved higher at the opening bell as non-cyclical stocks--which are insulated from economic shock--rallied. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 gained 0.3%, helped by gains for oil majors and for Unilever and Associated British Foods, which gained 1% and 0.85%, respectively. In Paris, the CAC 40 was 0.45% higher as advertising and technology stocks gained. The German DAX traded flat, with energy-sensitive Siemens Energy falling 1.6%. Italy's FTSE MIB was 0.3% higher, though Leonardo and Stellantis both fell around 4%. The Spanish IBEX 35 was up 0.2%.
ASML, Europe's most valuable company, fell 4.4% in Amsterdam, dragging the AEX down 0.2%.
--The dollar traded steady ahead of Trump's Tuesday-night deadline. The DXY dollar index was flat at 100.031. The euro was also steady at $1.1540.
--U.S. Treasury yields rose as hopes for a U.S.-Iran deal faded. The U.S. macro backdrop remains mixed but resilient, with rising inflationary pressures alongside solid activity indicators such as retail sales, consumer confidence, and a strong March jobs report, Danske Bank's Jesper Fjaerstedt said in a note. Stagflationary undertones were present in the ISM services print, however, Fjaerstedt said. The two-year Treasury yield rose 1.6 basis points to 3.865%, the 10-year yield was up 1.9 bps at 4.354% and the 30-year yield rose 2.2 bps to 4.912%.
Eurozone bond yields also rose. "Markets walk a fine line between escalation fears and cease-fire hopes, with a new deadline looming," Commerzbank's Hauke Siemssen said in a note. The 10-year German Bund yield rose 3.8 basis points to 3.026% and the 10-year Italian BTP yield was up 4.5 bps at 3.898%, according to Tradeweb.
--Bitcoin fell 1.9% to $68,519, LSEG data show.
--Gold edged lower in early trading. Futures in New York were down 0.1% to $4,678 a troy ounce.
Write to Barcelona Editors at barcelonaeditors@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04-07-26 0440ET
