Good evening, and welcome to Markets Desk.
The dominant story tonight sits squarely at the intersection of geopolitics and markets. U.S. forces conducted what the Pentagon is calling self-defense strikes against Iranian missile launch sites and boats attempting to lay mines in the region, even as diplomatic efforts toward a Hormuz deal continue in parallel. The White House appears to be applying simultaneous military and negotiating pressure.
Markets, for their part, are reading the diplomatic signal louder than the military one. Futures surged Monday evening on reports that a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is taking shape. Dow futures climbed nearly three hundred points, S&P futures added nearly two thirds of a percent, and Nasdaq futures led the charge, jumping nearly one full percent. Oil prices and bond yields both fell sharply, a classic risk-on rotation signaling that traders believe the chokepoint threat is easing.
Shifting to credit markets, JPMorgan Chase disclosed it holds roughly fifty billion dollars in private credit exposure and says it is comfortable there. That number is drawing scrutiny given that non-traded business development companies have recently begun limiting investor withdrawals, raising broader questions about liquidity conditions inside the private credit ecosystem as institutional appetite gets tested.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
