By Dow Jones Newswires Staff
Oil edged higher and U.S. futures gained in volatile trade as investors weighed a fresh round of conflicting signals around the war in the Middle East.
Brent crude moved back toward $114 a barrel, recovering from an earlier dip to $111 a barrel in Asian trade, after President Trump told aides he is willing to end the conflict even if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, according to The Wall Street Journal. The dollar and U.S. Treasury yields declined following the report.
However, a Kuwaiti oil tanker was struck by Iranian drones near Dubai, a reminder of the continued threat to shipping through the Gulf.
Concerns around the war's impact on growth are growing. Investors will watch Tuesday's February job openings data for a check on the health of the U.S. economy before the conflict started. The yen held steady against the dollar as traders watched for confirmation of Bank of Japan intervention.
--Brent crude for May delivery rose 0.6% to $113.51 a barrel in early European trade, while WTI was up 0.1% to $103 a barrel. "Any de-escalation is unlikely to quickly restore flows through the Strait of Hormuz, keeping the market tight and limiting downside in crude," analysts at IG said.
--U.S. stock futures pointed to a positive opening, even as oil prices climbed. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 1.1%, while the S&P 500 was 1% higher. Futures for the tech-heavy Nasdaq were up 0.9% as tech giants pared some of Monday's losses. Nvidia jumped 1.2% premarket, while Microsoft gained 1.3%.
--Asian stock markets largely fell. The Korean Kospi 200 fell 4.6%, while Japan's Nikkei was 1.6% lower. Hong Kong's Hang Seng was flat, while the Shanghai Composite slipped 0.8%.
--European blue-chip indexes were largely higher in early trade after falling at the opening bell. Software stocks rallied across the continent. The Europe-wide Stoxx 600 was up 0.7% after falling 0.1% earlier. London's FTSE 100 was 0.7% higher, led by miners as metal prices rose. The London Stock Exchange Group gained 2.5%.
Germany's DAX was 0.5% higher as oil-sensitive industrials pared losses throughout the morning. SAP--up 0.9%--and other software stocks gained. The CAC 40 traded up 0.55% in Paris as Capgemini climbed 3.4%.
--The dollar eased after reaching a 10-month high against a basket of currencies overnight on The Wall Street Journal report on Trump's comments on the Iran war. The DXY dollar index fell 0.1% to 100.455 after reaching a high of 100.643 overnight.
--U.S. Treasury yields declined in Asian trade, as worries over the prospect of weakening growth due to the Middle East conflict gained traction. What initially seemed unlikely is now becoming more plausible, with the risk of a stagflationary environment starting to take shape, SimCorp's Olivier d'Assier said in a note. Two-year Treasury yields declined 2.1 basis points to 3.806%, while the 10-year yields fell 1.9 basis points to 4.322%, according to Tradeweb.
The 10-year German Bund yield rose by 1 basis point to 3.045% while the French 10-year OAT yield was up 1.6 basis points at 3.777%.
--Bitcoin rose 1.2% to $67,362 after reaching a one-month low of $64,991 on Monday.
--Gold prices rose in early trading, with futures in New York up 0.7% to $4,589.30 a troy ounce. "The precious metal appears to have found some support near $4,500 an ounce, with investors taking advantage of cheaper gold as inflation worries weighed on the metal," analysts at ANZ said.
Write to Barcelona Editors at barcelonaeditors@dowjones.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
03-31-26 0448ET
