Stock Market Updates

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Trump signals Iran conflict "close to over" Global markets rallied as optimism grew that Washington and Tehran were moving toward a framework agreement — easing fears of prolonged energy supply disruptions and helping broad markets recoup losses from the recent conflict. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite closed at fresh all-time highs, with t...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Hopes of resumption of US–Iran negotiations buoy the markets US President Trump signalled a second round of U.S.-Iran talks within two days, potentially to be hosted by Pakistan, to ease tensions in the Middle East. Brent crude plunged to $95 as supply disruption fears faded, while spot gold climbed above $4,800/oz on a softer dollar and risk-on sentiment post-coo...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary S&P 500 notched its longest winning streak since October Major U.S. stock indexes rose as investors reacted positively to a fragile two-week ceasefire and reports of direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon. The S&P 500 closed above the key 6,800 psychological level, while the Dow Jones turned positive for the 2026 calendar year. The Nasdaq outperfor...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary US and Iran agree to 2-week ceasefire President Trump announced a two-week suspension of military strikes against Iran just hours before his 8 p.m. ET Tuesday deadline, following last-minute Pakistani diplomatic efforts. Iran agreed to allow safe navigation through the Strait of Hormuz during the ceasefire, triggering sweeping market moves across oil, equities, cu...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Markets Brace as Trump's Iran Ultimatum Nears Global markets are on high alert as a critical geopolitical deadline approaches. Investors are focused on President Donald Trump’s 8:00 PM ET (6:30 AM IST, Wednesday) ultimatum for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, with threats of military escalation if a deal is not reached. WTI Crude Oil climbed to $115 as Pre...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Markets Pin Hope on Early Resolution to the Hormuz Crisis The weekend offered no respite - fighting in the Iran–Israel–U.S. conflict intensified, peace talks made no headway, with President Donald Trump sharply escalating rhetoric on social media. President Donald Trump has repeatedly extended his self‑imposed deadlines for bombing Iran’s civilian infrastructure t...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Trump vows to hit Iran ‘extremely hard’ within weeks, Crude oil surges 5% on Trump's defiant tone In his address to the nation, President Trump declared that U.S. military objectives in Iran are “nearing completion” and that the war could wind down in about two to three weeks, assuming continued pressure and ongoing talks Trump also struck a defiant tone on en...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Geopolitical Risk Takes Centre Stage, RBI Comes to the Rupee Rescue U.S. equity markets ended last week on a negative note, with the S&P 500 down about 2.1% and the Nasdaq Composite slipping about 3.2%, marking the Nasdaq's worst weekly performance since the start of the U.S.–Iran conflict. The S&P 500 closed at 6,369, suffering its fifth consecutive w...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Trump announces 10-Day Pause on Strikes, A Reprieve for Oil and Markets President Trump announced a 10-day pause on strikes against Iran's energy infrastructure, extending the deadline to April 6 and offering markets near-term relief — though substantial uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz closure persists. Brent crude and WTI each fell nearly 1% in early tr...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Markets Celebrate Trump's Peace Overtures U.S. stock indexes posted their best single-day performance since early February, after a five-day pause in planned military strikes against Iranian infrastructure. The Dow gained over 630 points, the S&P 500 rose 1.15%, and the Nasdaq climbed 1.38%. Iranian state media, however, denied that any direct negotiations...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Beginning of the End of War? Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu said that Israel is supporting U.S. efforts to reopen the Strait, would not strike Iranian oil and gas targets again, and that the war could end sooner than expected. His "verge of victory" remarks lifted risk assets as markets priced in a shorter conflict — though volatility persisted, with r...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Stocks surge on crude oil pullback Stocks rebounded sharply on Monday after several consecutive sessions of notable losses, with all major averages closing higher. The tech-heavy Nasdaq led the advance. The indexes finished off their intraday highs but remained strongly positive. The Nasdaq surged 268 points, or 1.2%, to 22,374; the S&P 500 jumped 67 points, o...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Some Semblance of Sanity. Amid the global fuel crisis triggered by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said the strait “remains open" to most vessels and is only closed to ships belonging to the United States, Israel. This is likely to restore a measure of stability to international energy markets and ease pressure...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Wall Street ends sharply lower as Iran war intensifies All three major U.S. indexes closed at their lowest points of 2026. The Dow Jones fell more than 700 points to settle below 47,000 for the first time this year, while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq sold off sharply after Iran's new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, vowed to keep the Strait of Hormuz closed, de...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Geopolitical Uncertainties Keeps Markets on Edge. Crude oil fell sharply after reports that the International Energy Agency (IEA) is preparing its largest-ever emergency release to address the ongoing supply shortage. The Paris-based body, comprising 32 member states and 13 associate countries, represents up to 75% of global energy demand. Brent Crude oil is curre...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary A Crude Waiver Paves the Way for Rupee Revival The U.S. Treasury Department issued a 30-day waiver permitting Indian refiners to purchase Russian crude already in transit. The exemption allows those shipments to proceed notwithstanding existing sanctions on Russia's energy sector. The move is intended to ease pressure on global oil markets amid rising geopolit...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Oil Soars as Middle East Conflict Widens, Global markets sell off as disruption of Middle East energy supplies threatens to reignite inflation Financial markets turned sharply risk-off on Tuesday as mounting fears of an inflation surge rippled across stocks and bonds worldwide. Global equities slid as disruptions to Middle East energy supplies threatened to reigni...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Israel-Iran Conflict Rattles Global Markets Israel's preemptive strike on Iran, carried out jointly with the US, has ignited geopolitical fears and driven global markets to open on a weak footing. Israeli-US military operations entered their third day with casualties reported on all sides, marking the most severe regional conflict in decades. US stock futures...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Nasdaq Pulls Back Sharply as Nvidia Slumps, but Dow Inches Higher. The benchmark S&P 500 and European equities finished lower as investors digested another blowout quarter from Nvidia — the world's most valuable company — yet remained uneasy about its valuation even as the chipmaker forecast first-quarter revenue of $78 billion. The retreat on Wall Street...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Wall Street stocks tumbled on fears of AI-driven disruption All three major U.S. indexes closed more than 1% lower in a broad selloff, as risk appetite was weighed down by two converging forces - persistent concerns over AI's disruptive potential and President Trump's erratic trade policy, which has been a primary source of market volatility throughout the...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Iran War Clouds Send Markets Sliding Wall Street ended lower on Thursday, with losses in private equity companies and weakness in Walmart and Apple, while earnings-driven gains in industrials limited losses. The weakness on Wall Street partly reflected a negative reaction to Walmart's earnings, with the retail giant slumping 1.4 per cent. The company provided...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Markets Inch Up Amid AI Cost Concerns U.S. stocks edged higher Tuesday after a sluggish open, lifted by a rebound in technology shares and support from financials. Amazon shares swung violently after shedding roughly $450 billion in market value over nine consecutive sessions. Investors are scrutinising the company's plan to spend $200 billion on AI infrastruc...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary RBI Circular on Capital Market Exposures to Impact Liquidity in Derivative Markets The US stock market's recent moves can be characterised by a shift from cautious optimism to a sharp mid-week sell-off, which was ultimately stabilised by a cooling inflation report. Last week began with the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 hovering around key psycho...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Asian Stocks Hit Record Highs, Nifty Primed for All-Time High Rally Above Key 26,000 Resistance Asian stocks rose to a record high on Thursday, while the dollar firmed a touch against most currencies, except the yen, after stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data dented near-term rate-cut expectations, setting the stage for the inflation report on Friday. The US econ...

Opening Bell - Morning Commentary Major US stock indexes were mixed on Tuesday. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq closed lower, while the Dow edged up to its third record close in a row, as investors digested disappointing retail sales figures and waited for a key labour market report. U.S. retail sales were unexpectedly unchanged in December as households scaled back spending on motor vehicles and o...