Public Markets 3 Hours

Last updated: April 18, 2026, 5:30 PM ET

Geopolitics & Market Sentiment

Credit investors are aggressively dialing up risk, abandoning safe-haven assets favored since late February amid expectations that tensions between Iran and the U.S. will continue to ease, allowing traders to look past immediate conflict. This shift in risk appetite comes as the cumulative impact of war on the global economy, specifically rising stagflation dangers, is set to be quantified next week through new business surveys across multiple nations. Separately, in diplomatic activity, a U.S. delegation visited Havana to press Cuban leadership on necessary economic and political reforms, emphasizing a tight timeframe for change demanded by the previous administration.

Domestic News & Policy Focus

In domestic political news, Mayor Zohran Mamdani made his first public appearance with former President Obama at a Bronx facility to champion his core policy objective: the establishment of universal child care services for city residents. Meanwhile, tragic violence struck Ukraine, where a mass shooting in Kyiv left six people dead before the gunman was neutralized, marking the deadliest such incident in years amid the widespread proliferation of firearms since the conflict with Russia began.