On Thursday, the Trump administration announced a new round of “toughest-ever” economic sanctions against Iran and threatened to take economic action against any country that conducts business with Iran.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Bessent stated regarding bond repurchases that the size of a single repurchase (upper limit) could exceed $4 billion. The U.S. Dollar Index held steady near 98.9 and ultimately closed up 0.07% at 98.87;The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield closed up 6.7 basis points at 4.705%, while the 2-year U.S. Treasury yield—which is sensitive to the Fed’s policy rate—closed up 2.8 basis points at 4.19%.
Following profit-taking by bulls after the previous day’s sharp rally, spot gold edged lower, ultimately closing down 0.08% at $4,519.33 per ounce;spot silver maintained its strength, ultimately closing up 1.60% at $68.09 per ounce.
As the U.S. announced a new round of severe sanctions against Iran and navigation through the Strait of Hormuz remained restricted, WTI crude oil closed up 2.08% at $85.98 per barrel; Brent crude oil closed up 1.79% at $91.69 per barrel.
U.S. stocks closed lower, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average down 1.3%, the S&P 500 down 0.86%, and the Nasdaq down 1%. Moderna (MRNA.O) fell 23.5%, and Walmart (WMT.N) fell 9%.M-Ville Technologies (MRVL.O) rose 5.8%, Micron Technology (MU.O) rose about 4%, and SanDisk (SNDK.O) rose about 2%. The Nasdaq China Golden Dragon Index closed down more than 1%, while Alibaba (BABA.N) rose 1.3%.