FINWIRES · TerminalLIVE
FINWIRES

US Equity Indexes Decline as Fate of Iran Peace Talks Hangs in Balance

By

US equity indexes fell, while crude oil futures jumped amid high-stakes diplomacy aimed at bringing Iran back for a second round of talks in Pakistan.

The Nasdaq Composite fell 0.5% to 24,344.1, with the S&P 500 down 0.3% to 7,101.5, after breaking records late last week when President Donald Trump talked up the likelihood of an Iran peace deal before the end of the current, two-week ceasefire on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.1% to 49,378.5.

Consumer discretionary, communication services, and technology led decliners intraday. Energy and materials were among the biggest gainers.

Risk appetite is "on the run" to start the fresh trading week, Derek Holt, head of capital markets economics at Scotiabank, said in a note on Monday. Trump, on Friday, appears to have "grossly overstated" progress toward an agreement with Iran, Holt added.

Trump said the ceasefire with Iran ends "Wednesday evening Washington time," adding it's "highly unlikely" he would extend it if a deal is not reached before then, CNN reported Monday.

Vice President JD Vance and top US officials are expected to depart Tuesday for Islamabad, Pakistan, ahead of a potential second round of talks with Iran, CNN reported. Iran is considering attending peace talks, a senior official from the Middle East nation told Reuters on Monday, following moves by Islamabad to end a US blockade of Tehran's ports, a major hurdle for the country under threat of widespread attack to rejoin peace efforts.

The US president said in a Monday phone interview that the second round of talks with Iran is set to begin Tuesday, Bloomberg reported.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures jumped 5% to $88.80, and Brent crude futures advanced 4.8% to $95.21.

Most US Treasury yields rose, with the 10-year up 1.8 basis points to 4.26% and the two-year climbed 2.5 basis points to 3.73% as rising crude oil prices fueled inflation worries. Reflecting the potential upside risk to price pressures, gold futures declined 1.2% to $4,822.1 and silver futures dropped 2.5% to $79.78.

In company news, Norwegian Cruise Line (NCLH) dropped 4.2% intraday, among the worst performers on the S&P 500, amid worsening geopolitical risk in the Middle East.

Meta Platforms (META) plans to initiate its planned layoffs for this year on May 20, and more cuts are expected later, Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The Facebook-owner's shares dropped 2.3% intraday, among the worst performers on the Nasdaq.

Alphabet's (GOOG, GOOGL) Google is negotiating with Marvell Technology (MRVL) to develop two new processors optimized for artificial intelligence inference tasks, The Information reported, citing two people with knowledge of the discussions. Shares of Marvell jumped 4% intraday, the top gainer on the Nasdaq.

Related Articles

Asia Markets

Tadawul Shares Start Week Lower Amid Continued Middle Eastern Conflict Jitters

The Tadawul All Share Index closed 0.78% lower on Sunday amid market jitters on the updates regarding the fragile ceasefire agreement between the US and Iran.Reuters reported that the Strait of Hormuz closed again after reopening for one day. The area was blocked off again after Iran accused the US of violating its agreement due to the blockade of ports in the Middle Eastern nation.Further to this, the two sides noted that their talks to end the conflict were making progress. However, Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh noted that there was no exact date for its next round of in-person discussions."We are now focusing on finalising ⁠the framework of understanding between two sides. We don't want to enter into any negotiation or meeting which is doomed to fail and which can be a pretext for another round of escalation," Khatibzadeh said. "Until we agree the framework, we cannot set the date... There was significant progress made actually. But then the maximalist approach by the other side, trying to make Iran an exception from international law prevented us to reach an agreement."Back at home and on the corporate front, the board of Maharah Human Resources (SASE:1831) proposed to distribute a 0.13 Saudi riyal-per-share interim cash dividend for the second half of 2025, as well as increase its capital to 600 million riyals through bonus share issues. Shares of the human resources and outsourcing company closed 0.16% higher.Looking ahead to the week, the local economic calendar will see the release of the real estate price index for the first quarter and the February short-term business indicators statistics figures on Monday, as well as the February import and export data on Thursday.

^TASISASE:1831
Asia Markets

S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite Scale Peaks as Trump Sets Stage for Iran Deal Over Weekend

US equity indexes jumped, with the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite making all-time highs, and crude oil futures sank on Friday amid mounting expectations of an Iran peace deal over the weekend.The Nasdaq Composite advanced 1.5% to 24,468.48, with the S&P 500 up 1.2% to 7,126.06, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average higher by 1.8% to 49,447.43.West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures plunged 11% to $84.68, and Brent crude futures plummeted 8.8% to $90.69.Bloomberg reported that President Donald Trump said Iran agreed to suspend its nuclear program indefinitely and will not receive any frozen funds from the US. Axios reported Friday that the US could release $20 billion in frozen Iranian funds in exchange for Iran turning over its stockpile of enriched uranium.Trump said in a phone interview on Friday that a deal to end the war is mostly complete, according to the Bloomberg news report. Talks over a lasting agreement will "probably" be held this weekend, the president was cited as saying. The US-Iran ceasefire ends next week, implying an extension to the truce may not be required.Earlier in the day, Iran announced the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz for the remainder of the ceasefire period."In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire, on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Rep. of Iran," Iran's foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said in a post on X. The 10-day truce between Israel and Lebanon came into force on Thursday.Trump also said Friday the US naval blockade will continue until a deal with Iran is "100% complete," CNN reported."The single war variable that has mattered for markets is whether oil continues to flow through the Strait of Hormuz," according to a Stifel Securities research note. "This is why today's announcement that the Strait of Hormuz is 'open to shipping' for the remainder of the ceasefire is significant."Most US Treasury yields dropped, with the 10-year down 6.5 basis points to 4.25% and the two-year slumped 7.8 basis points to 3.7% as falling crude oil prices damped inflation concerns. In precious metals, gold futures advanced 1.3% to $4,868.1 and silver futures jumped 3.2% to $81.24.All sectors except energy and utilities soared intraday. Consumer discretionary, industrials, and technology led the gainers.Airlines and cruise liners were the S&P 500's leaders. Royal Caribbean (RCL), United Airlines (UAL), and Carnival (CCL) led the outperformers, with gains of at least 7% each. Chevron (CVX), down 2.2%, was the Dow's worst performer.In company news, shares of Netflix (NFLX) slid 9.7%, among the worst performers on the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq, after the company released Q2 guidance late Thursday below market consensus. The streaming company also said that its chairman and co-founder, Reed Hastings, plans to step down when his term ends in June.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$CCL$CVX$NFLX$RCL$UAL
Asia Markets

US Equity Indexes Rise This Week as Hormuz Chokepoint Reopening Fuels Iran Deal Hopes

US equity indexes rose this week as a time-bound reopening of the Strait of Hormuz followed a truce between Israel and Lebanon, marking a breakthrough in Middle East diplomacy and boosting the probability of an Iran peace deal.* The S&P 500 closed at 7,126.06 on Friday versus 6,816.89 a week ago. The Nasdaq Composite stood at about 24,468.48, compared with 22,902.89 a week earlier, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended at 49,447.43, versus 47,916.57 at the end of last week.* Technology, consumer cyclicals, and communication services topped sector charts as geopolitical risk fell and Q1 earnings season began in earnest with financials first to report. Energy was the worst performer as expectations for the Iran deal increased.* President Donald Trump said Thursday that Lebanon and Israel have agreed to a 10-day ceasefire.* "In line with the ceasefire in Lebanon, the passage for all commercial vessels through Strait of Hormuz is declared completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire, on the coordinated route as already announced by Ports and Maritime Organisation of the Islamic Rep. of Iran," Iran's foreign minister, Seyed Abbas Araghchi, said in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Friday.* Trump said Friday the US naval blockade will continue until the Iran deal is "100% complete," CNN reported.* Bloomberg reported Friday that Trump said Iran agreed to suspend its nuclear program indefinitely and will not receive any frozen funds from the US. Trump said in a phone interview that a deal to end the war is mostly complete, according to the report. Talks over a lasting agreement will "probably" be held this weekend, the president was cited as saying. The US-Iran ceasefire ends next week, implying an extension to the truce may not be required.* Morgan Stanley (MS), Citigroup (C), and Bank of America (BAC) were among the biggest gainers in financial services firms with a market capitalization of more than $200 billion, after mega-cap banks kicked off the Q1 earnings season.

Dow JonesNasdaq CompositeS&P 500$BAC$C$MS