Transcription
Good morning, Neha. Tell me, what is currently happening with the US and Iran, and what are the US markets indicating from here?
Absolutely, Swati. Good morning. The war is indeed continuing, but in the meantime, we are seeing some statements being made regarding agreements, and media reports are also emerging. Nevertheless, the latest update is that US President Trump has claimed that his negotiations for an agreement with Iran are proceeding well. Marco Rubio has also confirmed this in a similar manner and has strongly refuted any news of a deal breaking, particularly that which is coming from Iranian media. He stated that all of it is fake news and that people should not believe it.
Now, coming to the US markets, if we talk about them, the record rally here, that streak, is still continuing. We have seen all three major indices – Dow, S&P, and Nasdaq – achieve life-high closings simultaneously. In intraday trading, the Dow Jones managed to move above 51,300 for the first time. An all-time high was made in intraday trading, and a record closing was also registered here.
Meanwhile, regarding the S&P, we have seen a ninth consecutive gain. This means it closed in the green for the ninth time. However, a record closing was also registered here for the sixth consecutive time. In intraday trading, we saw it touch a life high of 7621, and we have also seen a sixth life-high closing in the Nasdaq. From its day's low levels, the Nasdaq managed to climb 160 points and closed at the level of 2793 for the first time. While no new all-time intraday high was made, a record closing was registered here as well, which was its sixth consecutive closing.
The dollar index closed above 99 for the second day. The 10-year US bond yield has been seen trading around 4.5%, around 4.4546%. It appears to be trading in a very tight range. Keep an eye on crude oil. It closed at $96 yesterday, and today we are seeing it move past $7. Global supply is indicating a reach to record low levels. It is believed that given the current situation, crude oil reserves are dangerously low, and because of this, prices may strengthen further.
American industrial API, industrial figures have come from the American Petroleum Institute, according to which, for the sixth consecutive week, a decline in weekly inventories in America can be seen, and currently, a decline of around 6.8 million barrels is indicated from their side. Of course, we will wait for the official data today.
Base metals have strengthened considerably in the meantime. The shine of aluminum and zinc here is not fading at all. And after two weeks, we have seen copper move past $14,000 on the LME. One thing is noticeable in the case of aluminum: the cash premium against the 3-month future contract has gone up to a 19-year high. So, you can understand what kind of supply crisis and supply shortage exists here. LME zinc has also reached its August 2022 high, nearing $300. Keep an eye on lead contracts. This commodity has also reached its January 2026 high.
However, in gold and silver, the trading is quite subdued, the opposite of this. The reason behind this is that we have seen very strong labor data in America. The job opening numbers that came yesterday for the month of April were the strongest in 2 years. This means the Fed may decide on higher-for-longer interest rates. The market fears that rates will remain high for a long time, given the inflation situation. Because of this, we have seen a sluggishness in gold and silver. Silver has closed in the red for the third consecutive day.