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US Equity Futures Rise Pre-Bell as Oil Prices Drop Amid Optimism on US-Iran Peace Deal

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US equity futures were higher pre-bell Tuesday as oil prices receded on optimism that a US-Iran peace agreement could happen soon.

Dow Jones Industrial Average futures were 0.3% higher, S&P 500 futures were up 0.4%, and Nasdaq futures were 0.8% higher.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil dropped to below $90 a barrel as President Donald Trump said in a CNBC report that a deal to end the Middle East war could be reached in "two to three days," with the Strait of Hormuz reopening "immediately" after the agreement is signed. The two countries are nearing a deal "that will not in any way allow nuclear weapons," Trump said, according to the report.

Front-month global benchmark North Sea Brent crude was down 1.5% to $92.85 per barrel and US West Texas Intermediate crude 2.1% lower at $89.39 per barrel.

The US international trade deficit narrowed to $55.88 billion in April from the downwardly revised $56.59 billion gap in March, compared with a $56.1 billion gap expected in a survey compiled by Bloomberg.

The existing home sales report, scheduled for release at 10 am ET, is expected to show an increase of 1.1% for May after a gain of 0.2% in the prior month.

In other world markets, Japan's Nikkei closed 2.2% higher, Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 0.4% lower, and China's Shanghai Composite finished 1.3% higher. Meanwhile, the UK's FTSE 100 was down 0.3%, and Germany's DAX index was 0.5% higher in Europe's early afternoon session.

In equities, Meta Platforms (META) stock was up 1% after a Reuters report that a probe on the use of AI tools on its messaging service WhatsApp was stopped by Italy's competition authority due to jurisdictional overlap with European Union regulators. Broadcom (AVGO) and Micron Technology (MU) shares rose 1.2% and 4.5%, respectively, as part of a broader rally in the tech sector. J.M. Smucker was up 4.7% after the company posted higher fiscal Q4 adjusted earnings and net sales.

On the losing side, SailPoint (SAIL) shares fell more than 12% despite posting higher fiscal Q1 adjusted earnings and revenue. Sony (SONY) stock was down 2.6% after Nikkei Asia reported that the company will release a new flagship version of its Xperia smartphone with AI-enabled camera functions on Thursday.

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Asia Markets

US Equity Indexes Mixed Amid Big-Tech Gains as Iran, Israel Halt Strikes After Trump Calls for Ceasefire

US equity indexes were mixed as technology led sector charts, while President Donald Trump's diplomatic efforts to engineer a halt in strikes between Iran and Israel led to a retreat in crude oil prices from intraday highs.The Nasdaq Composite jumped 0.9% to 25,929.66, with the S&P 500 up 0.3% to 7,405.73, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.2% to 50,786.01 on Monday.All but three sectors fell at the close. Utilities, real estate, and materials led the decliners.Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google and Nvidia (NVDA) have turned to Intel (INTC) as their backup manufacturer of advanced processors, as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) struggles to meet demand, The Information reported Monday, citing four people with direct knowledge of discussions. Intel jumped 11%, one of the top gainers in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.Cantor Fitzgerald adjusted its price target for Micron Technology (MU) to $1,500 from $700 while maintaining its overweight rating. Wells Fargo tuned its price objective for Micron to $1,220 from $550 and kept its overweight rating. Shares of Micron were up 9.9%, making it one of the biggest outperformers in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.Israel and Iran are "looking to do an immediate CEASEFIRE," CNN cited President Donald Trump as saying, after an overnight exchange of strikes between the two warring countries risked the fragile April truce brokered by the US."Final negotiations on 'Peace' are proceeding, subject to ignorance or stupidity getting in its way," Trump said on Truth Social. "The Blockade will remain in place, and in full force and effect, until a 'Final Deal' is reached. Things should move quickly."Israel has halted attacks on Iran, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, stopping short of acknowledging a ceasefire, CNN reported. Iran has also suspended its operations against Israel, but warned it would resume if strikes in southern Lebanon continue, the news report added.A situation of "no deal, no war" between the US and Iran may not be able to last indefinitely, Thierry Wizman, a global foreign-exchange and rates strategist at Macquarie, said in a note."If a US-Iran deal is not reached - presumably via concessions made by both sides - then the prospect is that a new round of large-scale kinetic warfare will resume," Wizman said in the note. "According to most estimates, operational depletion [for inventories] could be reached in H2."West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures rose 0.8% to $91.25, and Brent crude futures climbed 1.2% to $94.16. Earlier in the session, crude oil futures were up more than 4% each amid reports of an overnight escalation between Iran and Israel.Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year up 2.8 basis points to 4.56% while the two-year leaned slightly higher to 4.17%.In precious metals, gold futures fell 0.3% to $4,351.50, while silver futures declined 1.3% to $68.24.

$^DJI$^IXIC$^SPX$GOOG$GOOGL$INTC$MU$NVDA$TSM
Asia Markets

US Equity Indexes Mixed as Trump's Call to Halt Iran-Israel Strikes Yields Results, Ceasefire Remains at Risk

US equity indexes traded mixed, as technology topped sector charts after President Donald Trump's efforts to keep the Iran ceasefire intact produced results, while negotiations to reach a peace deal with Tehran remain stalled.The Nasdaq Composite jumped 1.1% to 25,991.2, with the S&P 500 up 0.5% to 7,417.3, but the Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 0.1% to 50,817.6 in Monday's midday trading. Utilities, communication services, and materials led the decliners.Israel and Iran must immediately stop "shooting," Trump said in a Truth Social post.Israel accepted the US request to halt strikes on Iran but will continue attacks on southern Lebanon, sources told CNN. Iran has suspended its operations on Israel, but warned it would resume if strikes in southern Lebanon continue, the news report said Monday.The Israel Defense Forces said that the Israeli Air Force hit military targets in western and central Iran, according to a post on X. Meanwhile, Iran's military reportedly said it targeted two Israeli air bases in retaliation."If a US-Iran deal is not reached - presumably via concessions made by both sides - then the prospect that a new round of large-scale kinetic warfare will resume," Thierry Wizmna, a global foreign-exchange and rates strategist at Macquarie, said in a note. "According to most estimates, operational depletion [for inventories] could be reached in H2 2026."West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures rose 0.9% to $91.36, and Brent crude futures climbed 1.6% to $94.54. Earlier in the session, crude oil futures were up more than 4% each amid reports of an overnight escalation between Iran and Israel.Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year up two basis points to 4.56% while the two-year was unchanged at 4.16%.In precious metals, gold futures were steady at $4,367.2, while silver futures slipped 0.4% to $68.81.In company news, Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google and Nvidia (NVDA) have turned to Intel (INTC) as a backup manufacturer for their most advanced processors as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM) struggles to meet overwhelming demand, The Information reported Monday, citing four people with direct knowledge of the discussions. Shares of Intel jumped 13%, making it one of the top gainers in the S&P 500.Cantor Fitzgerald adjusted its price target on Micron Technology's (MU) shares to $1,500 from $700 while maintaining its overweight rating. Wells Fargo adjusted its price objective for Micron to $1,220 from $550, while keeping its overweight rating on the stock. Shares of Micron were up 13%, making it one of the biggest outperformers in the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq.In economic news, consumer expectations for one-year US inflation growth was 3.5% in May, down from 3.6% in April, according to a survey released by the New York Federal Reserve Bank on Monday. The median inflation growth expectations remained unchanged at 3.1% three years ahead and 3.0% five years forward.

$^DJI$^IXIC$^SPX$GOOG$GOOGL$INTC$MU$NVDA$TSM
Asia Markets

Exchange-Traded Funds Rise as US Equities Advance After Midday

Broad Market IndicatorsBroad-market exchange-traded funds IWM and IVV were higher. Actively traded Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ) added 2%.US equity indexes rose, with technology and energy leading the gainers, as President Donald Trump's efforts to keep the Iran ceasefire intact produced some results.EnergyIShares US Energy ETF (IYE) and the State Street Energy Select Sector SPDR (XLE) each gained about 1.1%.TechnologyThe State Street Technology Select Sector SPDR ETF (XLK) added 2.9%; iShares US Technology ETF (IYW) rose 2.3%, and iShares Expanded Tech Sector ETF (IGM) was up 2.3%.The State Street SPDR S&P Semiconductor (XSD) climbed up 5.4%, and iShares Semiconductor (SOXX) added 6.6%.FinancialThe State Street Financial Select Sector SPDR (XLF) slipped 0.2%. Direxion Daily Financial Bull 3X Shares (FAS) declined 0.5%, and its bearish counterpart, Direxion Daily Financial Bear 3X Shares (FAZ), advanced 0.7%.CommoditiesCrude oil rose 0.9%, and the United States Oil Fund (USO) added 1.7%. Natural gas dipped 3.1%, and the United States Natural Gas Fund (UNG) shed 2.7%.Gold on Comex rose fractionally, and the State Street SPDR Gold Shares (GLD) added 0.7%. Silver declined 0.5%, and iShares Silver Trust (SLV) was up 0.9%.ConsumerThe State Street Consumer Staples Select Sector SPDR (XLP) was down 0.4%. The Vanguard Consumer Staples ETF (VDC) fell 0.1%, and iShares Dow Jones US Consumer Goods (IYK) shed 0.7%.The State Street Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR (XLY) rose 0.7%. VanEck Retail ETF (RTH) fell fractionally, and the State Street SPDR S&P Retail (XRT) advanced 1.8%.HealthcareThe State Street Health Care Select Sector SPDR (XLV) shed 0.2%, iShares US Healthcare (IYH) fell 0.2%, and Vanguard Health Care ETF (VHT) was down 0.2%. IShares Biotechnology ETF (IBB) dropped 0.9%.IndustrialThe State Street Industrial Select Sector SPDR (XLI) slipped 0.1%. Vanguard Industrials Index Fund (VIS) added 0.1%, while iShares US Industrials (IYJ) fell 0.1%.CryptocurrencyIn midday activity, bitcoin (BTC-USD) rose 2.6%. Among cryptocurrency ETFs, ProShares Bitcoin ETF (BITO) climbed up 5.1%, ProShares Ether ETF (EETH) advanced 7.3%, and ProShares Bitcoin & Ether Market Cap Weight ETF (BETH) was 5.8% higher.

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