Good afternoon and welcome to Markets Desk.
Brent crude crossed one hundred eleven dollars a barrel today as the Strait of Hormuz standoff shows no signs of resolution. U.S.-Iran peace talks have stalled, and with the waterway effectively closed, energy markets are pricing in a sustained supply disruption. That's roughly a fifth of the world's seaborne oil at risk, and traders are not waiting for clarity.
That geopolitical pressure is rippling directly into European equity markets, where a second China shock is compounding the stress. Strategists warn that Beijing is rerouting hi-tech electronics and computer equipment into Europe following U.S. tariff barriers, which threatens to materially compress margins for U.K. and continental manufacturers. The message is clear — even trade barriers may not fully absorb the hit.
Against all of that turbulence, Citi's U.K. chief executive Tiina Lee struck a cautiously measured tone, describing market resilience as, quote, phenomenal. Lee acknowledged the economic disruption from the Middle East conflict but noted that markets have remained orderly, suggesting recession risk is contained — though she was careful to add, for now.
That's the tape. Markets Desk, signing off the floor.
