Hello, this is Dylan Butts writing to you from Singapore. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.
We’re now entering the sixth week of the Iran war, and it appears that U.S. President Donald Trump is growing increasingly frustrated with the fallout of the conflict.
In an expletives-laden social media post on Sunday that drew a sharp backlash from opposition leaders and civil society groups, Trump vowed to strike Iran’s power plants and bridges if the Strait of Hormuz was not opened to all marine traffic by Tuesday.
What you need to know today
Trump’s aggressive social media post comes as his deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz was set to end Monday, after he extended it by 10 days last month.
The strait is a vital shipping route for the world’s oil and gas supplies, and its continued blockade has seen oil prices surge, with U.S. crude topping $114 per barrel on Sunday.
In a separate post later on Sunday, Trump had said “Tuesday, 8:00 P.M. Eastern Time!” with the White House clarifying to MS NOW that the date was the new the deadline for Iran to reach a deal with the U.S.
Iran, so far, has shown no signs of backing down and has continued to strike economic and infrastructure targets in neighboring Gulf Arab countries.
Tehran also downed an American F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet over the weekend, with Trump saying on Sunday that the missing service member had been rescued.
Trump is scheduled to hold a news conference at the Oval Office on Monday at 1 p.m. ET.
With the conflict in the Middle East raging on during the Weekend, stock futures fell on Sunday, after posting gains last week on hopes of a de-escalation.
Markets will also monitor upcoming developments with the Federal Reserve. The Senate Banking Committee is set to hold a nomination hearing on April 16 for Trump-backed Kevin Warsh to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve, a person familiar with the matter told CNBC.
Warsh’s nomination is moving ahead even as a separate criminal probe into the Fed continues, setting up a potential clash between the two parallel processes set in motion by the Trump administration.
— Dylan Butts
And finally…
‘Silent killers’: How AI start-ups are trying to solve one of the retail industry’s biggest problems
It pinches here; drags there; the draping is wrong. These are some of the examples of the feedback a new crop of artificial intelligence apps might give a prospective customer trying on clothing ahead of a purchase, and in the process, reduce the chances of a product being returned to a store.
Fashion retailers are increasingly turning to AI to solve the issue of rising product returns, a persistent drag on profitability and something many in the industry refer to as the industry’s “silent killer.”
A growing number of AI start-ups have emerged to provide virtual try-on technology, allowing potential customers to visualize fit and style before they buy.
While tech companies have attempted to solve online fit issues since the 2010s, the rapid development of generative AI has finally made these applications good enough to meaningfully impact retailers’ bottom lines.
— Elsa Ohlen
Source: CNBC