U. S Stock Market indexes S&P 500, Dow Jones, Nasdaq futures were up little as the Wall Street investors on Monday will be eyeing development on the Iran-U.S. war front. S&P 500 futures were up by 0.46 per cent, Dow Jones futures jumped 0.31 per cent, Nasdaq futures rose 0.29 per cent.
Oil prices rose on Monday following days of tit-for-tat strikes by the United States and Iran in the Middle East that underscored the fragility of their interim peace deal and again slowed energy shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Brent crude futures climbed 52 cents, or 0.672 per cent, to $72.51 a barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was at $69.94 a barrel, up 71 cents, or 1.03 per cent. Brent crude fell 10.6 per cent last week, its third weekly decline, after crude shipments through the strait rose last week to their highest level since the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran began in February.
However, traffic has since slowed following renewed attacks on ships in the strait from Thursday, including a Qatar-linked oil tanker, that triggered strikes from the U.S. and Iran in the worst escalation since they signed an interim peace deal.
Major U.S. equity indexes this week are set to close out a solid first half of the year, with the benchmark S&P 500 up more than 7 per cent so far in 2026. But equities have had a rougher time in June. High-flying shares of semiconductor companies have seen huge moves this week as investors calibrate their optimism over AI-driven profits.
A Federal Reserve meeting this month revealed policymakers were laser-focused on containing inflation. Investors said the monthly jobs report due on Thursday could increase bets on rate hikes if it indicates a hot economy. U.S. financial markets will be closed on Friday for the Independence Day holiday.
The Philadelphia SE Semiconductor Index has soared 85 per cent since the market's late-March low for the year, but has pulled back this week as investors assess if the trade is overheated. Blowout results from memory chipmaker Micron Technology late on Wednesday gave support to the group, but the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite fell more than 4 per cent on the week.
Short-dated U.S. Treasury yields fell on Friday, tracking lower oil prices, after crude shipments through the Strait of Hormuz rose to their highest level since the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran began, fueling hopes that the worst of the recent inflation shock may be passing. The yield on benchmark U.S. 10-year notes fell 2.15 basis points to 4.371 per cent.
