Iran offers two-day Hormuz reopening while Trump keeps strike optionDemocrats favoured as US midterms open after Michigan Senate endorsementRussian bombs kill 18 at Zaporizhzhia aid site as Oleshky truce is disputedHormuz tanker fires continue as IMO says attack count is understatedEbola deaths pass 5,300 as Congo's fatality rate tops 50%Oil hits two-week low on Iran talks as Gulf growth and Europe's gas buffers strainHouthis reported near Aden as fighting spreads to al-Jawf and Saudi airportsSpain train crash toll holds at 69 as investigators cite chain of faults and polls turn against SánchezMarvell agrees $115bn all-stock takeover of LumentumNewborn among 15 killed as Myanmar military strikes maternity clinic and schoolAnthropic discloses revenue surge and $895bn commitments ahead of IPOSupermarket freezers overheated across Europe weeks after French attackBank of England and RBA expected to hike as ECB and BOJ signal tighteningAt least 19 dead in Venezuelan army attack on Colombian rebel campIndia evacuates thousands ahead of second cyclone in a weekFrench school protests resume on smaller scale as German unions launch strikesEisenkot gains backing as Netanyahu questions Israeli election resultIsrael ends 10-day Hebron siege as UN logs record settler attacksOracle and Alphabet tap bond markets as AI selloff easesTrump administration asks Supreme Court to block 20,000 California mail ballotsTigray fighting pushes Ethiopia's health system toward collapse as Sudan complains to UN about dronesNine dead after Learjet crash in Palm Beach, FloridaChina steps up Gulf diplomacy as Xi hosts Oman's sultan and Wang Yi meets Iranian officialPoland's Constitutional Tribunal clash deepens as EU Commission backs parliament's right to appoint judgesBinance customers withdraw billions after record hack linked to North KoreaUS pushes Russian gas deliveries to Europe, Kremlin says transit not possible nowUN envoy expects Sudan transition talks with RSF within weeksBelgian PM De Wever offers resignation after budget talks failChina launches $15bn swap facility to support stocks after sell-offJapan weighs near-doubling of defence spending over five yearsIotova wins Bulgarian presidential runoffHackers send false nuclear warnings through Russian and Ukrainian alert appsSouth Korean sergeant dies at frontline unit as North Korea vows faster nuclear buildupOpenAI signs deals with ADNOC, G42 and Abu Dhabi as Altman travels to UAEIsraeli strikes kill at least three in Gaza despite ceasefireWestern Sahara refugees face uncertain future as UN mission MINURSO endsBolivia declares drought emergency as super El Niño hits Peru's fisheriesBangladesh garment workers block highway as wage protests enter third dayTrump removes South Africa from AGOA trade programmeIran offers two-day Hormuz reopening while Trump keeps strike optionDemocrats favoured as US midterms open after Michigan Senate endorsementRussian bombs kill 18 at Zaporizhzhia aid site as Oleshky truce is disputedHormuz tanker fires continue as IMO says attack count is understatedEbola deaths pass 5,300 as Congo's fatality rate tops 50%Oil hits two-week low on Iran talks as Gulf growth and Europe's gas buffers strainHouthis reported near Aden as fighting spreads to al-Jawf and Saudi airportsSpain train crash toll holds at 69 as investigators cite chain of faults and polls turn against SánchezMarvell agrees $115bn all-stock takeover of LumentumNewborn among 15 killed as Myanmar military strikes maternity clinic and schoolAnthropic discloses revenue surge and $895bn commitments ahead of IPOSupermarket freezers overheated across Europe weeks after French attackBank of England and RBA expected to hike as ECB and BOJ signal tighteningAt least 19 dead in Venezuelan army attack on Colombian rebel campIndia evacuates thousands ahead of second cyclone in a weekFrench school protests resume on smaller scale as German unions launch strikesEisenkot gains backing as Netanyahu questions Israeli election resultIsrael ends 10-day Hebron siege as UN logs record settler attacksOracle and Alphabet tap bond markets as AI selloff easesTrump administration asks Supreme Court to block 20,000 California mail ballotsTigray fighting pushes Ethiopia's health system toward collapse as Sudan complains to UN about dronesNine dead after Learjet crash in Palm Beach, FloridaChina steps up Gulf diplomacy as Xi hosts Oman's sultan and Wang Yi meets Iranian officialPoland's Constitutional Tribunal clash deepens as EU Commission backs parliament's right to appoint judgesBinance customers withdraw billions after record hack linked to North KoreaUS pushes Russian gas deliveries to Europe, Kremlin says transit not possible nowUN envoy expects Sudan transition talks with RSF within weeksBelgian PM De Wever offers resignation after budget talks failChina launches $15bn swap facility to support stocks after sell-offJapan weighs near-doubling of defence spending over five yearsIotova wins Bulgarian presidential runoffHackers send false nuclear warnings through Russian and Ukrainian alert appsSouth Korean sergeant dies at frontline unit as North Korea vows faster nuclear buildupOpenAI signs deals with ADNOC, G42 and Abu Dhabi as Altman travels to UAEIsraeli strikes kill at least three in Gaza despite ceasefireWestern Sahara refugees face uncertain future as UN mission MINURSO endsBolivia declares drought emergency as super El Niño hits Peru's fisheriesBangladesh garment workers block highway as wage protests enter third dayTrump removes South Africa from AGOA trade programme
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Symbolic image: Stocks hit record as US signals Hormuz deal is closeSymbolic image

Stocks hit record as US signals Hormuz deal is close

6 sources

Wall Street closed at record highs on Tuesday after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said a deal with Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz could be close. Brent crude fell below $80 for the first time in nearly a month.

What happened

  • Bessent told CNBC there was a chance of a deal "today or tomorrow" to open the strait.
  • The S&P 500 closed at 7,736.52, the Dow at 54,085.88, the Nasdaq up 2.6% to 26,584.99.
  • Breitbart put the Dow gain above 1,000 points (1.87%), the Guardian at 907 points (1.7%).
  • Brent fell about 5% to near $79.40; West Texas Intermediate dropped to roughly $76.
  • The 10-year Treasury yield fell to 4.62% from 4.70%, still above 3.97% before the war.

The view from outside

The Guardian ties the rally mainly to earnings: Palantir rose 29.5%, Caterpillar 5.6%, and S&P 500 firms are on track for nearly 50% earnings-per-share growth. The National (UAE) adds that Saudi Aramco is studying new export routes as Houthi attacks squeeze Red Sea shipping.

What could happen next

  • No deal announced by Wednesday; The Hindu reported Bessent saw a chance of an agreement by 5 August.
  • US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said talks with Iran and Oman had progressed, without a final agreement.
  • OPEC+ agreed on Sunday to raise crude output for a sixth straight month in September.
  • A strategist told The National that $100 oil cannot be ruled out; investors have not priced out escalation.
How the camps see it

  • United States: Washington says it is negotiating directly with Tehran and that an agreement to open the strait may be imminent, while Trump has called Iran duplicitous.

  • Iran: Tehran denies talks with Washington and says its only active discussions are with Oman on reopening the Strait of Hormuz.

Also involved

OmanGulf exporters

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