Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.
As trading days go, yesterday is up there with the most unusual sessions of my near-20 years at CNBC. President Donald Trump’s Truth Social post about a five-day halt on energy strikes in Iran sent shockwaves through the markets and the newsroom on Monday. The wild swings across asset classes were only exacerbated by denials from Iranian state media that talks had even happened. Indicators that suggest a spike in trading took place ahead of the social media post are now only adding to the confusion.
Going by the ‘morning-after trade,’ it looks like there is a high degree of skepticism over the long-term impact of this proclamation from the U.S. President.
What you need to know today
The 600 point rally for the Dow has already begun to fade in Asia. Indices across Asia-Pacific pared gains on Tuesday, while early indicators see European and U.S. stocks opening in the red. That’s mainly down to the fact that oil is once again marching higher, with Brent crossing $100 a barrel on skepticism over de-escalation in the Middle East.
An usual pattern has emerged, with markets appearing to have moved even before Trump’s Truth Social Post signaled a breakthrough in talks with Iran, with the S&P 500 futures and oil futures flashing an unusual burst of activity early Monday, minutes before a market-moving social media post from President Donald Trump. The activity stood out from an otherwise subdued premarket backdrop.
Still, the optimism came despite a cloud of uncertainty. Iranian state media, citing an unnamed “senior security official,” denied any talks had taken place, contradicting Trump’s description of events and raising questions about how durable the market rally may be.
Meanwhile, gold extended its slide on Tuesday, deepening its bear market phase, as investors unwind positions, with a stronger U.S. dollar and elevated Treasury yields reducing the yellow metal’s allure.
In corporate news, M&A is still on the menu amid the volatility. U.S. beauty giant Estée Lauder Companies said Monday that it is in talks with Spanish beauty group Puig to potentially merge the two firms. The announcement sent shares in the U.S. group down nearly 8%, while Puig rose around 3%.
— Leonie Kidd
And finally…
OpenAI calls out Microsoft reliance as risk in investor document ahead of expected IPO
In a document that resembles an IPO prospectus, OpenAI said its close ties with Microsoft could be a potential risk to its business, telling investors that the software company is responsible for “a substantial portion of our financing and compute.”
OpenAI included sections titled “Risks Related to the Transaction” and “Risks Related to our Business” in a financial document, viewed by CNBC, that the company shared with prospective investors tied to its recent record financing round.
— Lora Kolodny, Ashley Capoot
Source: CNBC