Good evening, and welcome to Markets Desk.
Persian Gulf oil flows have nearly fully recovered, with JPMorgan putting Middle East crude exports at roughly seventeen and a half million barrels per day, about ninety-eight percent of prewar levels. But analysts warn Iran, losing leverage over the Strait of Hormuz and facing a crumbling domestic economy, may resort to a scorched earth campaign as Washington deploys additional ships and Marines to the region.
Shifting to deal flow, the M&A boom that opened the year at record pace is showing signs of fatigue. Rising interest rates, uncertainty around artificial intelligence valuations, and political headwinds are cooling boardroom appetite for big transactions — a meaningful signal for capital markets heading into the final stretch of the year.
And in industrial software, Schneider Electric is closing in on a roughly twenty billion dollar acquisition of PTC, which would mark the French conglomerate's largest deal to date. The move signals continued appetite among European industrials to deepen their software capabilities, even as broader dealmaking conditions tighten on both sides of the Atlantic.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
