Brent crude rises 8% as US president vows to hit Iran ‘extremely hard’ over coming weeks Business live – latest updates Oil prices have soared after Donald Trump vowed in a televised speech to hit Iran “extremely hard” over the coming weeks , knocking hopes of a near-term end to the conflict in the Middle East. Brent crude prices jumped by as much as 8% on Thursday to $109.74 a barrel, reversing W...
Brent crude rises 8% as US president vows to hit Iran ‘extremely hard’ over coming weeks Business live – latest updates Oil prices have soared after Donald Trump vowed in a televised speech to hit Iran “extremely hard” over the coming weeks , knocking hopes of a near-term end to the conflict in the Middle East. Brent crude prices jumped by as much as 8% on Thursday to $109.74 a barrel, reversing Wednesday’s drop when hopes of a de-escalation in the Iran war pushed the international benchmark below the $100-a-barrel mark at one point. Continue reading...
Kirillm/iStock via Getty Images Stephen Roach, former chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia and senior fellow at Yale Law School, said the conflict in Iran has put China in a stronger position relative to the U.S. As the Trump administration threatens to pull out of NATO and urges other nations to take oil from the Strait of Hormuz, Roach argues that America’s global standing is deteriorating while Chin...
Kirillm/iStock via Getty Images Stephen Roach, former chairman of Morgan Stanley Asia and senior fellow at Yale Law School, said the conflict in Iran has put China in a stronger position relative to the U.S. As the Trump administration threatens to pull out of NATO and urges other nations to take oil from the Strait of Hormuz, Roach argues that America’s global standing is deteriorating while China benefits from its more measured approach. In an interview with CNBC, Roach drew a stark contrast between the leadership styles of President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. “You’ve got a disruptive president enacting personalized, whimsical policies that make no sense legally or strategically,” Roach said. “Xi Jinping represents a China that attempts to think strategically. They’ve done that for years, and I think the comparison between the two of them is day and night.” Roach was particularly critical of the president’s recent public address on the conflict, describing it as a “nothing burger of a speech that really didn’t describe anything that you could call strategic.” He noted that the address was “completely inconsistent” with the administration’s own national strategic strategy published months earlier. On the question of responsibility for securing the Strait of Hormuz, Roach placed the burden squarely on the United States. “The U.S. started the war, and the U.S. has responsibility for, I think, cleaning up the consequences of the war that it started,” he said. By stepping back from those obligations, Roach argued, Trump is “walking away really with a classic defeat on his hands and trying to hold others accountable for it.” Rather than acting aggressively, China appears content to watch from the sidelines. Roach said the Chinese are “just sitting back and watching the U.S. under Donald Trump continue to act in a manner that is not befitting its status in the world, and China almost wins by default here.” He added that he does not expect China to step in an...
Ralf Hahn/iStock via Getty Images By Łukasz Zembik Energy-driven surge in inflation On Tuesday, inflation data for the euro area was released. Inflation in the euro area accelerated noticeably in March, rising from 1.9% to 2.5% year-on-year. The main driver of this increase was energy prices, particularly fuels and heating oil, which reacted strongly to geopolitical tensions related to the conflic...
Ralf Hahn/iStock via Getty Images By Łukasz Zembik Energy-driven surge in inflation On Tuesday, inflation data for the euro area was released. Inflation in the euro area accelerated noticeably in March, rising from 1.9% to 2.5% year-on-year. The main driver of this increase was energy prices, particularly fuels and heating oil, which reacted strongly to geopolitical tensions related to the conflict in Iran. At the same time, core inflation, which excludes energy and food, not only failed to rise but actually edged down slightly to 2.3%. The readings came in slightly below market expectations. Impact of the war limited to the energy sector The data indicate that the increase in inflation is almost entirely due to rising energy prices. Energy price dynamics shifted from negative territory to clearly positive, directly lifting the headline inflation rate. Meanwhile, other components such as food, industrial goods, and services recorded a slowdown in price growth. This suggests that, for now, the conflict has not broadly spread across the economy. Additionally, government measures, such as tax cuts in Spain and Italy, have partially mitigated the impact of rising energy prices. Contributions to Eurozone HICP YoY% NSA (Source: Bloomberg) Lagged effects may push core inflation higher In the coming months, however, higher energy prices are expected to gradually feed through into other sectors of the economy. Rising production costs and fertilizer prices may translate into higher food and service prices, which could, with a lag, lift core inflation. Even if the conflict subsides in the near term, cost effects may persist through the end of the year, potentially leading to a renewed increase in core inflation in the fourth quarter. Limited response from the European Central Bank Despite the rise in headline inflation, the current data remain consistent with the most dovish scenario of the European Central Bank. This means that pressure for aggressive interest rate hikes is l...
Here are some of the stocks making headlines in midday trading. Tesla – The electric vehicle manufacturer lost about 4% after first-quarter deliveries fell short of expectations. Tesla reported 358,000 vehicles delivered in the period, down 14% from the prior quarter. Analysts polled by StreetAccount were looking for 370,000 deliveries. Nike – The sneaker giant dropped more than 2% and headed for ...
Here are some of the stocks making headlines in midday trading. Tesla – The electric vehicle manufacturer lost about 4% after first-quarter deliveries fell short of expectations. Tesla reported 358,000 vehicles delivered in the period, down 14% from the prior quarter. Analysts polled by StreetAccount were looking for 370,000 deliveries. Nike – The sneaker giant dropped more than 2% and headed for a second straight day of losses. Earlier this week, Nike issued a bleak outlook , calling for a 20% decline in sales in China during the current quarter. Shares had tumbled more than 15% on Wednesday. Coherent , Lumentum – The companies, makers of optical transceivers, were the top gainers in the S & P 500, heading for a third straight day of gains. Coherent was last up more than 4%, while Lumentum advanced more than 5%. Wingstop – The chicken wing chain saw shares pop about 6% on the back of an upgrade from Piper Sandler. The firm lifted its rating on Wingstop to overweight and gave it a price target of $190, citing an improving risk-reward setup. Blue Owl – The alternative asset manager slumped 1% after the company disclosed unusually high redemption requests in two of its private credit funds. Blue Owl chose to cap the requests at 5% for both funds. Oil stocks — Shares of energy companies jumped alongside the move higher in oil prices , which surged more than 10% after President Donald Trump's speech Wednesday night indicated the war in Iran would continue. Diamondback Energy gained 2%, while, APA , ConocoPhillips and Chevron all added about 1%. Cruise stocks — Major cruise operators tumbled after Trump's speech failed to outline a clear path to end the war in Iran, leading oil prices to surge and reigniting demand fears. Carnival fell 3%, while Royal Caribbean dropped 1% and Norwegian Cruise Line lost 2%. Airliners — Higher oil prices also sent airline stocks tumbling, with Delta Air Lines and Southwest Airlines falling 2%. United Airlines declined 3%. General Motors — ...