01 Stock Market
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped on Monday as the latest developments in the Middle East sent oil prices higher, sparking further worries about instability in the region.
Futures tied to the blue-chip index were off 177 points, or 0.4%. S&P 500 futures fell 0.1%, while Nasdaq 100 futures traded around the flatline. Futures came well off their lows after conflicting reports of an Iranian attack on a U.S. warship and as Iranian media was reporting that a ship was turned back from the Strait of Hormuz.
Notable Stock Movers: Memory and storage names were active, with MU, SNDK up 3%, and controller supplier SIMO up 4.03% at $243.97. Semiconductor bellwether NVDA down 0.08% at $198.30 hovered near a closely watched price threshold, while CPU peers showed mixed trade as AMD down 0.43% at $359.00 and INTC down 0.30% at $99.32. Electric-vehicle heavyweight TSLA up 0.12% at $391.30 inched higher ahead of upcoming delivery updates.
Additional highlights: Optical and cloud software names saw interest, with enterprise stalwart ORCL up 2.78% at $176.60. Meme favorite GME fell 2.71% at $25.81 after unveiling an ambitious acquisition proposal, while cybersecurity and analytics play PLTR up 2.28% at $147.36 attracted bids before its evening earnings release. Overall breadth was firm in technology hardware but more muted across defensives as traders awaited micro- and macro-level catalysts.
02 Other Markets
• 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose 0.64%, to 4.41%.
• U.S. Dollar Index rose 0.24% to 98.44.
• WTI crude oil futures rose 2.13% to 104.11 USD/barrel; COMEX gold futures fell 1.59% to 4,570.70 USD/ounce.
03 Key News
Iran Says It Turns Back US Warship from Strait of Hormuz, US Official Denies Missile Strike
Iran said it had forced a U.S. warship to turn back from entering the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, but a U.S. official denied a report that it had been struck by Iranian missiles, according to an Axios journalist.
Iran's navy said it had prevented "American-Zionist" warships entering the Strait of Hormuz area by issuing a "swift and decisive warning".
Iran's semi-official Fars news agency said two missiles had hit the warship near the port of Jask at the southern entrance to the strait, where Iran's navy has a base, but a senior U.S. official immediately denied the report, Axios' Barak Ravid said.
Reuters could not independently verify the reports.
GameStop Makes Bold $56 Bln Play for eBay, Ready to Go Hostile
GameStop proposed on Sunday to buy eBay for about $56 billion in a cash-and-stock deal, with CEO Ryan Cohen saying he was prepared to take the bid directly to shareholders should eBay's board be unreceptive.
GameStop - once a stock market minnow that shot to fame during a meme-stock frenzy five years ago - is offering to pay $125 a share in a 50-50 mix of cash and stock, Cohen said in a letter to eBay's board. Based on eBay's Friday close, the bid represents a premium of about 20%.
Norwegian Cruise Line Cuts Outlook Amid Soft Demand, Higher Fuel Costs
Norwegian Cruise Line cut its full-year outlook and said it is seeing softer demand amid heightened geopolitical uncertainty.
Chief Executive John Chidsey said Monday that the cruise operator worked quickly to simplify, optimize and streamline the business during the recent quarter, cutting an expected $125 million in annual run-rate costs to help offset near-term pressures, such as higher fuel costs.
Sources: Reuters, Dow Jones, Tiger Newspress, public market data
Disclaimer: For informational purposes only; not investment advice.