Kamal Ghorui
US stocks today: Wall Street fell in red on Monday, as uncertainty over the Middle East conflict intensified after Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz after a brief reopening. Dow Jones dipped 10 points to 49,437 while Nasdaq tumbled 100 before recovering to 54 points or 0.2% to 24,413. S&P 500 was also down, slipping 0.1% to 7,119 around 7:40 pm IST.Investor sentiment weakened further as the US-Iran ceasefire approached its expiry, with Iran stating it will not participate in a fresh round of negotiations with the United States.“The market mood is very different at the start of the week compared to Friday,” said Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading group XTB.Crude oil had dropped on Friday after Iran announced it would allow ships to pass again through the Strait of Hormuz, a key global route through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil and liquefied natural gas flows. However, prices rebounded sharply on Monday after Iran closed the waterway once again, saying the US blockade and seizure of an Iranian cargo ship violated the two-week ceasefire. US benchmark crude rose $5.18, or 6.3%, to $87.88 a barrel. Brent crude, the global benchmark, gained 5.3% to $95.20 a barrel.“Renewed attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz increased fears of supply disruptions and raised the risk of a broader escalation in hostilities between the US and Iran,” said Trade Nation analyst David Morrison.“Uncertainty also remains over whether negotiations in Islamabad will proceed after Iran said it would not attend talks while the blockade remains in place,” he added.Meanwhile, European markets also closed in negative territory, with Frankfurt down 1.0%, Paris off 0.8% and London lower by 0.5% during afternoon trading.This followed gains in Asian markets, including Tokyo, Hong Kong and Shanghai.The closure of Iranian ports remains a key sticking point in negotiations between the two sides, with both blaming each other for breaches of the ceasefire. So far, only one round of talks has taken place in Islamabad on April 11, which ended without any conclusion, though preparations for further discussions have continued.
