FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

Persian Gulf Tensions Undercut Wall Street Pre-Bell; Asia Up, Europe Down

By

Wall Street futures pointed moderately lower pre-bell Monday while crude oil prices rose as traders mulled recurrent Middle East tensions.

Iran said Saturday it was again closing the Strait of Hormuz to shipping in response to Washington's refusal to lift its naval blockade.

In the futures, the S&P 500, the Nasdaq and the Dow Jones were all off about 0.5% from Friday's close.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil traded higher at $87.50, up 6% in morning action.

Investors this week also look forward to the March retail sales bulletin slated for a pre-bell release Tuesday in Washington, and the S&P Global flash composite purchasing manager index (PMI) for April, scheduled for a Thursday morning release.

The Senate Banking Committee will hold a hearing on the nomination of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chairman on Tuesday morning.

Blue-chips reporting earnings later this week include Tesla (TSLA), Intel (INTC), Texas Instruments (TXN), International Business Machines (IBM), UnitedHealth Group (UNH), GE Aerospace (GE), RTX (RTX), Lockheed Martin (LMT), Boeing (BA), AT&T (T) and American Express (AXP), among others.

Asian exchanges traded mostly higher overnight, while European bourses tracked south midday on the continent.

The economic calendar is vacant.

In pre-market action, bitcoin traded at $75,304 and 10-year US Treasuries offered 4.26%. Spot gold commanded $4,797 an ounce.

Related Articles

International

New Zealand's Q1 Consumer Price Index Set to Rise, BofA Securities Says

New Zealand's first-quarter consumer price index is anticipated to rise by 0.8% quarter on quarter and 2.9% year on year, which is slightly below the Reserve Bank of New Zealand's revised April forecast of 3%, brokerage firm BofA Securities said in an April 17 report.Headline inflation is driven by soaring fuel prices in March due to the Middle East conflict, with petrol prices surging nearly 19% and diesel by nearly 43% month on month.The Reserve Bank will continue to prioritize medium-term inflation pressures and expectations amid uncertain outlook stemming from the global energy shock, the brokerage firm said.Energy prices are expected to push headline inflation up in the second quarter, but "significant" spare capacity is anticipated to limit second round effects and weigh on non‐tradable inflation, per the report.

^NZ50
International

ANZ Sees Little Change in Australia's Budget Deficit, Flags Cost-of-Living Relief

ANZ said it expects Australia's underlying cash deficit to be little changed from the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook at AU$37 billion in fiscal 2025 to 2026 and AU$36 billion in fiscal 2026 to 2027, with deficits averaging about 1% of gross domestic product likely over the forward estimates through to fiscal 2029 to 2030, according to a Monday note by the bank.ANZ said it expects the budget to include additional temporary cost-of-living relief for households and businesses in the near term, including a possible extension of the fuel excise reduction.The bank said it expects a medium-term focus on energy security, given Australia's reliance on imported refined petroleum products, including via the Future Made in Australia package, alongside a previously announced increase in defense spending.ANZ said changes to the taxation of investment properties are expected to strengthen the fiscal position over the next decade and provide a path for revenues as a share of GDP to rise.

ASX 200
International

China Keeps Key Rates On Hold

China kept its loan prime rate or LPR, which is the benchmark for new loans, unchanged after posting a better-than-expected economy amid the Middle East conflict.The People's Bank of China held the one-year LPR at 3% and the LPR of five years or more at 3.5% according to a Monday press release from the central bank.Analysts from ING expected no changes to the LPR, which was kept steady for the 11th consecutive month, following the country's first-quarter economy, which remained within the year's target range of 4.5% and 5%.The move came after China's gross domestic product posted a 5% growth in the first quarter, according to last week's data from the National Bureau of Statistics.

Shanghai Composite^SZSE