Stocks Extend Highs as Hormuz Optimism Holds Firm: Markets Wrap
(Bloomberg) — US stock futures extended record highs while oil prices eased as traders waited for further updates on progress toward a peace deal in the Middle East.
Contracts on the S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 rose 0.1% after a monthslong rally in chipmakers fueled both gauges to another round of record highs. South Korea’s SK Hynix Inc. joined US memory peer Micron Technology Inc. above $1 trillion in market capitalization for the first time. The sector powered fresh highs in Asia, while autos and consumer stocks drove a 0.2% gain in Europe.
With little overnight news flow from the Middle East, optimism that the US and Iran are nearing an agreement to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz pushed Brent down 2.4% to $97.23 a barrel. Bonds continued their rebound, with the 10-year Treasury yield two basis points lower at 4.47%. The dollar was little changed.
The moves reinforced momentum behind the AI trade, with investors betting chipmakers will capture an outsized share of spending tied to the global AI buildout. Meanwhile, memory chips have emerged as a critical bottleneck determining how quickly data centers can expand capacity.
“Given the capex plans of the AI hyperscalers, there’s no reason to think that the rally is about to end,” said Fares Hendi, a portfolio manager at Societe de Gestion Prevoir in Paris. “If there’s a breakthrough between the US and Iran, the trend could accelerate, with investors buying back their shorts.”
Corporate Highlights:
Akzo Nobel NV has rejected a cash offer from Japanese peer Nippon Paint and US paintmaker Sherwin-Williams Co. and will press on with plans to merge with US firm Axalta Coating Systems Ltd. The shares jumped as much as 6% in Amsterdam. Taiwan prosecutors suspect that three individuals successfully smuggled at least one shipment of Nvidia Corp. AI chips to China after first exporting them to Japan, people familiar with the matter said. China has been slow-walking approval of Airbus SE plane deliveries to signal impatience with how long European regulators are taking to certify Chinese-made aircraft, according to people familiar with the matter. European car sales climbed for the third consecutive month in April as consumers continued to snap up more electric and hybrid models. Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
The Stoxx Europe 600 rose 0.2% as of 8:41 a.m. London time S&P 500 futures rose 0.1% Nasdaq 100 futures rose 0.1% Futures on the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.2% The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rose 0.6% The MSCI Emerging Markets Index rose 1.1% Currencies
The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro rose 0.1% to $1.1645 The Japanese yen was little changed at 159.33 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.7835 per dollar The British pound was little changed at $1.3447 Cryptocurrencies
Bitcoin fell 0.3% to $75,764.12 Ether was little changed at $2,076.91 Bonds
The yield on 10-year Treasuries declined two basis points to 4.47% Germany’s 10-year yield declined two basis points to 2.96% Britain’s 10-year yield declined four basis points to 4.83% Commodities
Brent crude fell 2.2% to $97.37 a barrel Spot gold fell 0.6% to $4,482.65 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
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