Trump asked to delay ultimatum to Iran: S&P 500 and Nasdaq recouped losses

Major U.S. equity market indexes trimmed most or even all of the day's losses by the close of trading on Tuesday, April 7. Half an hour before the end of the session and more than four hours before the deadline the U.S. president announced to Iran, Pakistan, which is mediating the talks, asked Donald Trump for a two-week delay. At the same time, it urged the Iranian leadership to open the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks "as a goodwill gesture" and for both sides to honor the truce during those two weeks.White House spokeswoman Caroline Leavitt said Trump was "briefed on the proposal and a response will follow," The Wall Street Journal reported. The U.S. and Iran are in the midst of "intense negotiations," the U.S. leader told Fox News by phone, promising to comment on Pakistan's request later.

- The broad market index S&P 500 ended the trading session in the plus, adding about 0.08%. During the day it was falling by 0.7%.

- The Nasdaq Composite Technology Sector Index rose 0.1%, also coming out of negative territory by the close. At the lows, it was down more than 1%.

- Blue chips index Dow Jones Industrial Average lost 0.2% at the end of trading.

- The Russell 2000 index of small and mid-capitalization companies compensated for the losses and remained virtually unchanged, showing a slight increase.

- The so-called CBOE Wall Street Fear Index (VIX) rose 6.6%, remaining above the 25-point mark. A psychologically important level indicating high market volatility is considered to be 20.

- Brent crude futures were down 3.2% by closing time and then continued their decline, falling to $104 per barrel. North American WTI was trading at $110 per barrel. Meanwhile, the Dated Brent indicator, which reflects the price of current North Sea supplies and is used to price much of the world's oil, jumped to $144.42 a barrel on Tuesday. That's the highest level since 1987, according to S&P Global Energy data cited by Bloomberg.

- "Investors are likely to remain jittery and markets won't be able to form a sustainable trend until there is a clear outcome," Paul Christopher, head of global market strategy at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, told Bloomberg.

- "Even if the U.S. strikes tonight, markets seem to expect it will be limited, and eventually Iran will come to the table - and perhaps that will hasten a cease-fire," MarketWatch quoted Anthony Saglimbene, chief market strategist at Ameriprise Financial, as saying.

- According to Argent Capital manager Jed Ellerbrockm, the most likely scenario is another postponement of U.S. military action on Iranian infrastructure: in that case, a short-term rise in stocks is possible, although overall "there is a sense of an endless cycle of escalation."

- "Amid such uncertainty, we recommend investors gradually de-risk portfolios if oil prices remain high," Bloomberg quoted UBS Global Wealth Management strategist Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi as saying.

- As Facet's Chief Investment Officer Tom Graff predicts, Iran will continue to blockade the strait to strengthen its negotiating position and will seek to restore shipping in the strait on its terms, not those of the U.S. No one, including Iran itself, benefits from a prolonged blockade, Graffy believes. "I just don't think a situation where the strait remains closed for months can be sustainable," he told CNBC. - Something has to change at some point." However, investors should assume that oil prices will remain "well above" pre-war levels, the financier warned.

The news is supplemented.

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