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US Equity Futures Drop Pre-Bell as Iran Says Strait of Hormuz Closed Once Again, Oil Prices Jump

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US equity futures were lower pre-bell Monday as hostilities continued to re-escalate in the Middle East and Iran declared the Strait of Hormuz once again closed, driving up oil prices.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were down 0.1%, S&P 500 futures were down 0.3%, and Nasdaq futures were 0.9% lower.

The US and Iran traded heavy missile and drone attacks over the weekend, with the US military saying they hit Iranian military facilities, while Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they had struck US installations in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman and Jordan.

Iran, which is seeking to set up a permanent fee and permit system for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, said Sunday that the waterway remains closed until "stability and calm" is restored.

In a post on X, US Central Command said that its forces are "postured and prepared to ensure that freedom of navigation remains available to commercial shipping."

Traders await a slew of earnings releases this week, including results from major US banks JPMorgan (JPM), Bank of America (BAC), Wells Fargo (WFC), Goldman Sachs (GS), and Citigroup (C) on Tuesday; Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Morgan Stanley (MS), and BlackRock (BLK) on Wednesday; and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM), UnitedHealth Group (UNH), GE Aerospace (GE), and Netflix (NFLX) on Thursday.

Oil prices were higher, with front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude up 3.4% at $78.59 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 3.4% higher at $73.88 per barrel.

Federal Reserve board members Michelle Bowman and Christopher Waller are slated to speak on Monday.

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