U.S. Economy
Volatility

Trump Extends Iran Deadlines, Markets Under Pressure

PUBLISHED  | 3 min read
Thomas White

Thomas White

Co-Host

U.S. stock futures are lower in premarket trading as traders monitored the latest developments on the U.S.-Iran war. The moves come even after President Donald Trump extended a deadline to attack Iran’s energy infrastructure.

Trump said he would extend a pause to attack Iran’s energy facilities to April 6, a little over a week after the original deadline that was set to end Friday. Uncertainty remains for investors, however, after Iran’s foreign minister reportedly told state media this week that Tehran has no intention of holding talks with the U.S., even if its leaders are reviewing an American proposal to end the war.

Rising oil prices near $97 a barrel and higher yields with the benchmark 10-Year at 8-month highs have also pressured stocks this morning.  

Snapshot (as of 7 AM ET)

  • Oil (/CL) – Oil prices are up 2% near $97 a barrel as U.S. President Donald Trump’s move to give Iran a 10-day extension to open the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz failed to soothe supply concerns. Speaking during a Cabinet meeting on Thursday, Trump also said that Iran had allowed 10 oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz this week as a “present” to the U.S.
  • Gold (/GC) – Gold prices are up 1% near $4,450 but have been under pressure by a firmer dollar and higher oil prices that have kept inflation fears intact and ‌sustained expectations of elevated interest rates while market participants reconsidered the chances of a Middle East ceasefire.
  • Bitcoin (/BTC) – The Crypto Future is down 3% near 66,700 in premarket trading.
  • VIX – The CBOE Volatility Index was up 8.3% on Thursday and settled at 27.44 as stocks fell. The VIX is up another 6% this morning near the 29 level.
  • U.S. Dollar (/DX) – The dollar is up 0.2% to 99.9.

Biggest Premarket Movers (as of 7 AM ET - Mark % Change)

  1. Diamondback Energy (FANG): +1.14%
  2. APA Corp. (APA): +1.10%
  3. Coterra Energy (CTRA): +1.01%
  4. Devon Energy (DVN): +0.97%
  5. Occidental Petroleum (OXY): +0.84%


  1. CrowdStrike (CRWD): -2.96%
  2. Coinbase (COIN): -2.87%
  3. Palo Alto Networks (PANW): -2.79%
  4. SanDisk (SNDK): -2.35%
  5. Huntington-Ingalls (HII): -2.28%

Economic Data

  • 8:30 AM ET: Intl. Trade in Goods (Delayed)
  • 10:00 AM ET: Consumer Sentiment
  • 11:00 AM ET: Fed’s Barkin Speaks
  • 11:30 AM ET: Fed’s Daly Speaks, Fed’s Paulson Speaks

Notable Earnings

  • Premarket: CCL
  • Postmarket: None
  • Premarket Monday: None
  • Postmarket Monday: APC, PRGS, SPCE

Upgrades/Downgrades

  • Evercore ISI upgrades Knight-Swift (KNX) to Outperform from In Line
  • Nomura upgrades PDD Holdings (PDD) to Buy from Neutral
  • JPMorgan Chase upgrades Brown-Forman (BF/B) to Neutral from Underweight
  • JPMorgan Chase downgrades Wix.com (WIX) to Underweight from Neutral
  • Raymond James downgrades Masimo (MASI) to Market Perform from Outperform
This material is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered a personalized recommendation or investment advice. Investors should review investment strategies for their own particular situations before making any decisions.
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