Public Markets 3d Briefing
×Market Turmoil
US stocks investing.com posted their worst week since October as the Iran conflict raged on, with the S&P 500 futures down 0.6% as oil climbed again. Oil prices bloomberg.com jumped, fanning concerns that the Middle East war is fueling inflation jitters. A weak jobs report hit stocks at a time when a widening war in the Middle East is lifting oil prices and fueling inflation jitters. Energy markets were rocked this week by the outbreak of war in the Persian Gulf, where roughly one-fifth of the world's oil supply originates.
Geopolitical Crisis
Iran investing.com targeted US sites in the UAE despite vowing to halt attacks on neighbors, while Saudi Arabia bloomberg.com intercepted drones heading toward the Shaybah oil field. Iran's Guards challenged Trump to have US Navy escort oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran-linked ships continued transiting the strait as others stayed away, with transit remaining near a standstill for a sixth day. Emirates resumed flights after a brief halt on missile threats, while Etihad Airways bloomberg.com prepared to restart flights to around 70 destinations after almost a week of complete shutdown.
Economic Impact
Asia's big economies ft.com braced for Iran war energy shock as some of the world's biggest fuel importers rushed to secure oil and gas supplies. US-to-Asia oil shipment costs bloomberg.com hit a record, with some deals faltering already as rates sky-high. Thailand's farmers bloomberg.com raced for diesel while Indian refinery executives monitored the Persian Gulf through the night. Queues, price hikes and shortages emerged as Asia battled a fuel crunch. Vietnam's richest man bloomberg.com handed the reins of his EV taxi company to his wife as the country navigates energy uncertainty.
Financial Markets
Goldman Sachs bloomberg.com junior banker fashion shoot set off a blame game inside the famously restrained investment bank. BlackRock retail private-credit hopes ran into market's angst as it plunked down $12 billion to buy HPS Investment Partners. Apollo's Zito bloomberg.com saw private credit pain lasting up to 18 months, while BlackRock's Kapnick bloomberg.com said big firms will gain from credit turmoil. Clearlake and Goldman bloomberg.com examined whether expanding liquidity strengthens or weakens private markets. Fixed income investing faces uncertainty as traditional strategies are tested by geopolitical risks.
Corporate Developments
OpenAI ft.com scrapped a deal to expand its flagship Texas data center, with Meta in talks to take up additional computing capacity. Amazon investing.com secured a landmark $138 billion AWS deal as OpenAI bets on Trainium. Novo Nordisk bloomberg.com and Hims ended their feud, planning to sell obesity drugs together. CVS finance.yahoo.com tapped Google Cloud to roll out AI-powered health platform. Morgan Stanley finance.yahoo.com recommended buying the dip in three software stocks. Nvidia investing.com tied CEO Huang's $4 million bonus to 2027 revenue milestones.
Central Bank Response
The Fed's Hammack investing.com warned of potential "tighter" policy as oil shock lingers. The Fed's Collins investing.com saw no urgency for rate cuts amid inflation. The ECB rate-hike bets tested officials' attempts to keep their cool as markets priced in a hike in interest rates this year. Morgan Stanley investing.com no longer expects ECB to roll out rate cuts in 2026. UK lenders ft.com raised mortgage rates amid warnings over inflation and energy prices as market mood "completely changed" following the outbreak of Middle East war.
Technology & AI
China investing.com pivoted to AI to manage record-breaking 12.7 million graduate influx. China yahoo.com vowed to accelerate technological self-reliance and AI push. The PBOC investing.com extended gold-buying streak to 16 months amid Middle East turmoil. China's health ministry bloomberg.com urged people at potential risk to undergo cancer screenings as part of broader prevention efforts. The latest AI model finance.yahoo.com read 48 years of Warren Buffett advice and built a stock portfolio for today's market.
Energy Sector
Energy Secretary Wright bloomberg.com called to reopen Indian Point nuclear plant, saying it's needed to meet surging power demand. Allowing 401ks to invest in private markets ft.com is a bad move at a bad time, critics argue. Amid European energy fears ft.com coal crept back into favor as a protracted conflict in the Middle East would dent expectations that global coal consumption will start to fall. The energy price shock from Iran war exposed Europe's weakness as French President Macron addressed executives from heavy industries.
Market Analysis
Morgan Stanley investing.com said energy shock risks pushing EUR/USD toward 1.13 floor. Barclays investing.com said oil at $100 could lift US inflation, but persistence is key. Transversal's Wald bloomberg.com said "triple-digit" oil prices are possible if Iran war extends. JPMorgan investing.com looked to Ukraine 2022 to analyze how markets behave in wars. 7IM bloomberg.com said markets are not pricing in Iran war risk yet, expecting it won't be priced in "until we get another week or two" into the war.