Stock futures were relatively unchanged on Tuesday as oil prices fell after a wild session as traders kept a close eye on the latest developments out of Iran.
Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average were flat. S&P 500 futures also hovered around the flatline, as did Nasdaq 100 futures.
Oil prices, which had been on a tear of late, fell broadly. West Texas Intermediate futures lost 6% to trade around $88 per barrel. Brent crude shed 7% to roughly $91 a barrel.
Those moves come after President Donald Trump on Monday evening said, “We’re achieving major strides toward completing our military objective,” reinforcing earlier comments that the military campaign could soon end. Speaking at a press conference at his golf club near Miami, Trump also said, “We are also focused on keeping energy and oil flowing to the world.”
Stocks staged a stunning comeback on Monday from their session lows after Trump told CBS that “the war is very complete, pretty much.” The president also told CBS News that the U.S. is “very far” ahead of his previously stated timeframe of four to five weeks and that he is “thinking about” taking over the Strait of Hormuz.
The comments sent crude lower and gave stocks a boost.
“This is just a real clear indication that oil’s in the driver’s seat in the near term. Just from peak to trough, in one day, we saw oil prices correct down 30%, and risk assets, and specifically the stock market, rally throughout the news,” Matt Stucky, Northwestern Mutual chief portfolio manager, said Monday.
On Tuesday morning, energy ministers from the Group of Seven nations — specifically Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the U.S. — are set to meet virtually to discuss a potential release of strategic oil reserves.
It comes after G7 finance ministers met to discuss the situation on Monday. In a statement, International Energy Agency Executive Director Fatih Birol — who attended the meeting — said the conflict in the Middle East was “creating significant and growing risks for the market,” but said various options, including freeing up IEA emergency oil stocks, had been discussed.
Amin Nasser, CEO of Saudi oil giant Aramco, told an earnings call on Tuesday that the Iran war will have “catastrophic consequences for the world’s oil market.”
In a note on Tuesday morning, Paul Gooden, head of global natural resources at Ninety One, said oil prices could spike above $120 a barrel if the disruption to the market is extended.
“Oil prices could spike further until higher prices begin to curb demand,” he said. “At that point, consumers and businesses change behaviour: driving less, flying less, or shifting to alternative energy sources. That process of “demand destruction” has historically acted as a natural ceiling for sustained price spikes.”
Iran defends attacks on Gulf neighbors
Iran has defended its strikes against its Gulf neighbors, telling CNBC that U.S. military assets located in surrounding territories were “legitimate” targets in its fight back against America and Israel.
But Gulf states told CNBC that the attacks have created a “huge trust gap” that will last for years to come.
Iran’s decision to attack its neighbors as part of its retaliation against U.S.-Israeli strikes has confused analysts and Tehran itself has sent mixed messages over its strategy, apologising for strikes against neighbors including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain, before carrying out yet more strikes.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson in Tehran told CNBC on Monday that the Islamic Republic felt “no hostility” toward Gulf countries, but that U.S. military assets in the region were legitimate targets. Read more.
— Holly Ellyatt, Emma Graham
Pershing Square files for NYSE IPO
Bill Ackman’s hedge fund, Pershing Square, filed for an initial public offering at the New York Stock Exchange, a regulatory filing showed Tuesday.
Shares will trade under the ticker “PS.” Read more.
— Fred Imbert
Oil extends slide as investors assess Trump comments on Iran war, Strait of Hormuz
Oil prices plunged as much as 10% Tuesday before paring losses, as investors assessed comments from U.S. President Donald Trump on the conflict in the Middle East and on oil flows via the critical Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude was down around 8% at $91 per barrel as of 5:30 a.m. ET Tuesday. U.S. crude oil also fell 8% to about $87.25 per barrel. The declines come after oil surged past $100 on Monday.
On Tuesday, the CEO of Saudi oil giant Aramco warned that the war threatens “catastrophic consequences” for the global oil market.
Amin Nasser told an earnings call that the war had caused “a severe chain reaction” and “a drastic domino effect” beyond shipping, on “aviation, agriculture, automotive, and other industries.” Read more.
— Lee Ying Shan
European stocks jump 2% as sliding oil prices buoy sentiment
European stocks opened notably higher on Tuesday, as traders watch developments in the Middle East and reduced but still elevated oil prices.
By 9:19 a.m. in London (5:19 a.m. ET), the pan-European Stoxx 600 was 2.2% higher, with most sectors — barring oil and gas stocks — in positive territory. The Stoxx Europe Oil and Gas index shed around 0.8% as global oil prices continued to slide.
— Chloe Taylor
Asia markets rebound as oil plunges after Trump signals Iran war might end ‘soon’
South Korea’s Kospi opened more than 5% higher Tuesday, leading a rebound in the region, after oil prices fell and Wall Street bounced back as U.S. President Donald Trump signaled the conflict with Iran could be nearing its end.
Oil prices fell more than 10% after Trump said he was considering seizing control of the Strait of Hormuz, a critical chokepoint for crude flows. Trump also told a CBS News reporter, who shared the comments in a post on X, that “the war is very complete, pretty much.”
International Brent crude was down 10% at $89.03 per barrel at 9.10 p.m. ET Monday. U.S. crude oil fell more than 9% to $86.05 per barrel. The declines came after oil surged past $100 on Monday.
Other Asia stock indexes also gained. The small-cap Kosdaq added over 4%.
Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.35% in early trade.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 jumped 1.66%, while the Topix gained 1.3%.
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 1.56%, while the CSI 300 gained 0.9%.
—Lee Ying Shan
Vail Resorts, Vertex Pharmaceuticals, HPE moving in after-hours trading Monday
Take a look at the stocks moving in extended trading Monday:
- Vail Resorts — The ski resort’s stock price slid 1.2% on the back of weak earnings results. Vail reported $5.87 per share in earnings on $1.08 billion in revenue, while analysts polled by LSEG expected $6.10 per share on $1.11 billion in revenue. The company also lowered its guidance “due to the persistent, historically challenging weather conditions in the Rockies.”
- Hewlett Packard Enterprise — The technology company saw shares rise 1% in the after-hours session. HPE earned 65 cents per share, on an adjusted basis, for its first quarter. That exceeded analysts’ estimate of 59 cents per share, according to LSEG. The company’s $9.30 billion in revenue fell slightly short of the $9.33 billion expected, meanwhile.
- Vertex Pharmaceuticals — Vertex Pharmaceuticals shares popped more than 5% after the biotech company said its drug met its goals in a late-stage trial for IgA nephropathy, a chronic condition that can lead to kidney failure.
— Pia Singh
WTI April crude oil futures open lower around $85 per barrel
WTI April crude oil futures on Monday evening opened lower by more than 9% at $85.60, after settling the regular session at $94.77 per barrel. The move lower comes after U.S. President Donald Trump said in an interview with a CBS News reporter that the Iran war is “very complete, pretty much.”
— Pia Singh
