Good afternoon and welcome to Markets Desk.
Crude oil is driving the headline trade today, with June WTI settling up more than four percent after President Trump cast doubt on the Iran ceasefire, reigniting fears of a prolonged Strait of Hormuz closure. RBOB gasoline followed, closing nearly three percent higher, marking a second straight session of sharp gains for energy markets.
That Hormuz anxiety is rippling well beyond oil. Chinese exporters, already battered by tariff pressures, are now watching the strait situation closely as Trump and Xi prepare to meet. Beijing and Washington are expected to signal shared interest in restoring regional stability, but the uncertainty is weighing on trade flows and supply chain calculations across Asia.
Meanwhile, chip stocks took a rare hit, and technical analysts are pointing to a bearish key reversal pattern in South Korea's Kospi Composite Index as a potential warning sign. Given how closely the Kospi and American semiconductor names have tracked each other through their recent run-up, that divergence is worth watching carefully heading into the rest of the week.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
