S&P 500 — US Large Cap Index
FTSE 100 — UK Blue Chips
Euro Stoxx 50 — Eurozone Leaders
DAX 40 — German Equities
CAC 40 — French Market Index
Nikkei 225 — Japan Benchmark
Hang Seng — Hong Kong Index
Shanghai Composite — China Mainland
ASX 200 — Australian Market
TSX Composite — Canada Index
Nifty 50 — India Large Cap
STI Index — Singapore Market
KOSPI — South Korea Index
Bovespa — Brazil Equities
JSE Top 40 — South Africa Index
IPC Index — Mexico Market
- WTI attracts some dip-buying following a modest bearish gap down opening on Monday.
- Rising Iran tensions and Hormuz risks turn out to be key factors supporting the commodity.
- The OPEC+ decision to increase Oil output and a modest USD rebound cap further upside.
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) – the benchmark US Crude Oil price – rebounds following a bearish gap opening to the $96.45 area on Monday, though it sticks to modest intraday losses through the Asian session. The commodity currently trades just above mid-$98.00s, still down over 1% for the day, amid mixed cues.
US President Donald Trump announced over the weekend that the US would begin an effort to free up ships stranded in the Strait of Hormuz. In response, Ebrahim Azizi, head of the Iranian parliament’s National Security Commission, issued a formal warning that any US interference in the strategic waterway would constitute a ceasefire violation. This, in turn, raises the risk of a further escalation of tensions in the region and revives concerns about a further disruption of supplies through the Strait. Apart from this, the lack of progress in the US-Iran peace talks turned out to be a key factor acting as a tailwind for Crude Oil prices.
Meanwhile, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, or OPEC+, agreed to increase oil output for the third consecutive month, by 188,000 barrels per day in June for seven members. Moreover, the emergence of some US Dollar (USD) dip-buying keeps Crude Oil prices in the red for the third consecutive day. Persistent geopolitical uncertainties, along with reviving bets for a rate hike by the US Federal Reserve (Fed), support the Greenback. This warrants some caution before confirming that the recent pullback from a nearly two-month high, touched last Thursday, has run its course.
