investingLive European markets wrap: Oil down, risk mood picks up on hopeful optimism

Headlines:Trump successfully capped the upside in oil, raising market hopes for an end to the warOil holds near the lows for the week though the drums of war continue to beatUS futures push higher so far today, technical breakdown on hold for nowGold recovers some ground as hopes for the end of the US-Iran war drive prices higherIran’s ambassador to Pakistan reaffirms that there was no talks between US and IranJapan reportedly calls on IEA to coordinate release of additional oil stockpileECB president Lagarde: Monetary policy cannot bring down energy pricesECB’s Lane: We will be considering at every meeting what the scenario isGermany March Ifo business climate index 86.4 vs 86.1 expectedUK February CPI +3.0% vs +3.0% y/y expectedMarkets:WTI crude oil down 5.8% to $86.85Germany DAX up 1.7%, France CAC 40 up 1.7%S&P 500 futures up 0.9% on the dayUSD little changed, AUD lags on the day10-year Treasury yields down 7 bps to 4.32%Gold and silver both up a little over 2% to $4,571 and $73.06 respectivelyMarkets are keeping more hopeful this morning in Europe, with cautious optimism continuing to flow surrounding the US-Iran conflict.There’s still a lot of mixed messages all over the place but the narrative seems to be that we will be moving forward to the next phase of the war, whatever that may be.While the US is insisting that talks have been had, Iran has not officially confirmed that but there seems to be some movement via back channels and indirect parties such as Pakistan and Egypt. So, we’ll have to wait and see on that.Come what may, it’s still all about what happens next with the Strait of Hormuz. And for now at least, Iran continues to hold significant leverage as they stay in control of the strait. That means the main thing to watch is mostly on Iran’s willingness to engage with the US in the days/weeks ahead.In markets today, things were much calmer as traders and investors seek out some relief. Oil prices cooled with WTI crude dropping back near the lows for the week, down nearly 6% to $86.85. Meanwhile, Brent crude has also dropped back below $100 to $97.75 on the day – down 6%.In the equities space, European stocks are pushing higher with gains nearing 2% across the board. Meanwhile, US futures are pointing to a rebound with S&P 500 futures up 0.9% as tech shares lead the way.There wasn’t much in the major currencies space with the dollar keeping more mixed and little changed. As for precious metals, we are seeing a bounce back as well. Both gold and silver are posting over 2% gains to $4,571 and $73.06 respectively.In the bond market, yields are coming off the boil in keeping with the market mood today. 10-year yields in the US are down 7 bps to 4.32% as we await further key developments from the Middle East.
This article was written by Justin Low at investinglive.com.

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