US stock futures retreated on Thursday as rising oil prices and fresh tensions in the Middle East rattled investor sentiment.
Dow Jones Industrial Average futures tumbled 351 points while the futures tied to the S&P 500 dropped 0.8%.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 futures slipped 1% before the market bell on Thursday.
The selloff came as crude prices climbed on geopolitical uncertainty as Iran denied any ceasfire talks with the United States.
5 things to know before Wall Street opens
1. The geopolitical context remained tense on Thursday as President Trump is pressing hard for a diplomatic exit from the US-Iran conflict.
“They’d better get serious soon, before it is too late, because once that happens, there is NO TURNING BACK, and it won’t be pretty!” Trump posted on Truth Social on Thursday.
Trump’s administration has floated a 15-point peace plan through Pakistan, which calls for Iran to dismantle its nuclear and enrichment programs.
On Thursday, Iran denied any negotiations with the US and instead presented its own 5 demands to end the conflict.
2. Amid the diplomatic push, Iran has begun charging select vessels up to $2 million to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian lawmaker Alaeddin Boroujerdi confirmed the fee is already being collected, calling it a reflection of Tehran’s “new sovereign regime” over the waterway.
Passage through the Strait has plunged by roughly 95% since the US–Israel conflict with Iran erupted in late February.
The conflict has since left nearly 2,000 vessels and around 20,000 seafarers stranded across the Gulf.
3. As oil prices witness some sharp volatility amid the Middle East conflict, the world’s top oil executives are sounding the loudest alarm.
Shell CEO Wael Sawan warned at CERAWeek in Houston that Europe is next in line to feel the energy squeeze.
“You cannot have national security without energy security,” he told attendees.
TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanné was equally blunt as he called today’s markets “dislocated.”
4. Gold retreaded Thursday, slipping 1% to $4,476.51 per ounce after back-to-back sessions of gains.
April gold futures dropped 2.1% to $4,457, with the selloff partly driven by crude oil climbing back above $100 a barrel.
Such a move typically pressures bullion by reviving inflation concerns.
Higher oil fuels inflation, which normally lifts gold, but also raises the odds of the Fed staying hawkish, which hammers the non-yielding metal.
5. Global investors remained cautious on Thursday as they sought more clarity on the resolution of the conflict in the Middle East.
Across Asia, South Korea’s Kospi led declines, dropping 1.55%, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.4% to 24,978 and Japan’s Nikkei slipped 0.3% to 53,607.
European markets followed suit, with the pan-European Stoxx 600 falling 0.7%, Germany’s DAX down 0.9%, France’s CAC 40 off 0.5%, and Italy’s FTSE MIB down 0.7%.
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