- S&P 500 futures were relatively unchanged on Monday as stalled Iran peace
talks and a fresh escalation in the Strait of Hormuz pushed oil prices higher,
keeping geopolitical tensions front and center heading into a pivotal week
- President Donald Trump on Saturday scrapped plans to send U.S. special envoy
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner to Pakistan for ceasefire talks related to Iran,
noting the negotiations could happen by phone.
- Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said no meeting between
Tehran and Washington is currently planned.
- Axios report that said Iran has offered a new proposal to the U.S. for
reopening the Strait of Hormuz and ending the war while suggesting that nuclear
talks be deferred.
- On the corporate front, five of the “Magnificent Seven” companies are set to
report results in the final week of April
- Attention will also turn to the Federal Reserve’s policy decision on
Wednesday, which could mark Jerome Powell’s final meeting as chair before Kevin
Warsh is expected to take over in May
- The Department of Justice decided to drop its criminal probe into Powell on
Friday, causing Sen. Thom Tillis to end his block of Warsh’s confirmation.
- United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby confirmed he reached out to American Airlines
about a potential merger, which was rejected by American as anticompetitive.
- Qualcomm, Apple — The chipmaker surged more than 12% after TF International
Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a post on X that OpenAI is working with
Qualcomm to develop smartphone processors. Apple, the iPhone maker, slipped 1.5%
on the report of a potential new competitor.
- Japan, South Korea stocks close at record highs as Iran reportedly proposes
Hormuz deal
- Traders are currently pricing in a 100% chance that the Fed will leave rates
unchanged at this week’s meeting, with fed funds futures indicating policy is
most likely to stay on hold for the rest of the year
