US Equities Rise for a Second Session
For the second consecutive trading session, US stock indexes rose after President Donald Trump threatened to escalate the war if Iran continued targeting ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
Contracts for the S&P 500, Dow, and Nasdaq 100 rose about 0.5%. President Trump stated that Iran had requested a ceasefire, but reiterated that the US would reject the deal and continue attacking Iran until energy exports in the region were restored.
These developments maintained price volatility despite further attacks on tankers and infrastructure in the Gulf states, which supported benchmark bonds. However, pressure on bonds remained due to strong retail sales data and private sector job growth, which bolstered the US economy's ability to absorb energy shocks.
Tech giants such as MetaTrader, Alphabet, and Amazon each posted 1% gains, driven by more positive risk sentiment and bullish signs in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector following OpenAI's new funding round, backed by Nvidia, Amazon, and SoftBank. However, Nike saw a 12% decline after providing lower guidance.
Source: newsmaker.id