Top story for the morning: US and Iran may extend deal, Musk presses suppliers for chips

The U.S. and Iran are discussing a truce extension amid the crisis over the Strait of Hormuz, which is keeping oil market tensions at bay. At the same time, Washington is looking for ways to increase defense production by attracting automakers amid depleting arsenals and rising military spending. On these and other topics - in our review of key events for the morning of April 16.

The U.S. and Iran are considering extending the truce by two weeks to buy time for talks on key issues - the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and Tehran's nuclear program, Bloomberg has learned. Despite a pause in hostilities since April 8, tensions remain: the strait is effectively closed, the U.S. is increasing its naval presence, and Iran has threatened to completely cut off "exports or imports" in the Middle East region in response to the blockade.

Declining oil supplies are exacerbating the global energy crisis, but Pakistan-brokered talks have so far failed to yield results, the agency points out.

Senior Pentagon officials have held talks with executives from General Motors, Ford, GE Aerospace and Oshkosh about possible arms production and military supplies, The Wall Street Journal has learned. U.S. authorities want to bring in commercial manufacturers to expand the defense base and are figuring out whether the companies can quickly switch to military orders.

The initiative is linked to the depletion of weapons stockpiles after recent conflicts, including the war with Iran. The administration of US President Donald Trump also requested an increase in the military budget to $1.5 trillion to speed up the rebuilding of arsenals and strengthen defense capabilities, the newspaper recalled.

Elon Musk, through the structures of Tesla and SpaceX, has intensified negotiations with major semiconductor equipment suppliers, demanding the fastest possible estimates and deadlines for the Terafab project, Bloomberg writes. The team is already soliciting prices and capacity from equipment manufacturers and discussing cooperation with Samsung, while providing a minimum of details and pushing contractors to work faster.

The project, according to one of the agency's sources, involves the creation of its own production of chips for AI, robots and space with the launch of a pilot line by the end of the decade. Bernstein analysts estimate potential costs at $5 trillion-$13 trillion. Musk hopes to solve the chip shortage amid a boom in investment in AI and data centers.

Shares of Japanese climate equipment maker Daikin Industries jumped nearly 14% after fund Elliott Investment Management said it intends to seek to improve the company's efficiency and narrow the discount to competitors, CNBC reported. According to Nikkei, Elliott acquired about 3% of the shares and expects its new medium-term strategy to boost margins, improve returns to shareholders and review non-core assets.

Shares are rising, although the company has previously lagged behind competitors and is facing a lawsuit in the US alleging possible price fixing. Meanwhile, demand for refrigeration and air conditioning systems is increasing due to data center construction and hot weather, which generally supports the business outlook.

SpaceX is planning to hold a tour for major investors at its key sites in the U.S., including sites in California, Texas and possibly Mississippi, where the xAI data center is being built, Bloomberg writes. So the company is preparing for an IPO, expecting to raise up to $75 billion at a valuation of more than $2 trillion - this could be the largest offering in history, the agency notes.

Preparations are being held in strict confidentiality: the management is unhappy with the leaks and has introduced a "quiet period", prohibiting employees from discussing details. Public filing of documents (earlier Bloomberg wrote that SpaceX has already done it confidentially) is expected at the end of Ma, marketing - in June, and the placement itself - closer to the middle of the month with the participation of major Wall Street banks.

- Japan's broad Topix index rose 1 percent in trading on April 16, while the Nikkei 225 rose 2 percent.

- Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index rose 1.4 percent, while mainland China's CSI 300 Index gained 0.9 percent.

- In South Korea, the Kospi index rose nearly 1.6%, while the Kosdaq added 0.7%.

- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.4 percent.

- S&P 500 futures were up nearly 0.2 percent, Nasdaq Composite futures were up 0.3 percent and Dow Jones Industrial Average exchange-traded contracts were up 0.1 percent.

This article was AI-translated and verified by a human editor