Markets
A shipping vessel in the Strait of Hormuz
Anton Petrus, Getty Images

Stocks rise despite escalating tensions in Iran

Tensions in the Middle East are reaching levels not seen since April. Markets don’t seem that bothered yet.

J. Edward Moreno

Stocks are rebounding and oil prices are flat despite the conflict in Iran reaching its testiest point in months.

The US and Iran exchanged attacks early Thursday morning after several days of hostilities, marking the biggest escalation since the early April ceasefire was announced.

The US Central Command said Wednesday evening that the latest “additional self-defense strikes” had been completed, catalyzing a bid for risk assets. But President Trump said in a Thursday morning Truth Social post that the US would strike Iran “VERY HARD TONIGHT” and also threatened to take over the country’s oil infrastructure.

Futures for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite dipped after that post, but remained in the green on Thursday after each index had shed 3.3% and 5.3% in the past week, respectively.

The key indexes are getting a boost from major AI stocks — such as Sandisk, Applied Materials, Intel, Micron, and Corning — which are all up in premarket trading and on track to return some of their recent losses. After yesterday’s CPI print was a little cooler than expected, this morning’s PPI release was little hotter; PPI rose 1.1% month on month, ahead of expectations for a 0.7% gain.

Oracle signaled a further rise in capex and investment in AI infrastructure, which isn’t hurting the AI trade either — though it is weighing on Oracle’s shares.

Futures for Brent crude initially ticked down Thursday morning before climbing back up to previous levels, suggesting investors don’t necessarily see the escalations translating to a scarcity of oil. Iranian officials said the Strait of Hormuz, a key trading route for oil tankers, would close on Thursday morning. US Central Command said Wednesday evening that the key waterway was still open.

Travel companies — such as Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, and Royal Caribbean — which are sensitive to oil prices, also ticked higher in premarket trading on Thursday, giving back some of their recent losses.

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Nike sinks to lowest level since 2014 after warning of “challenged” sales environment in Q4 report

Did Nike do it?

Investors had a mixed reaction after the global sports apparel company reported its fourth quarter earnings on Tuesday after the bell. Shares initially rose 5% as Nike beat out Wall Street expectations amid a hefty tariff refund bonus. However, the stock then sank to its lowest level since August 2014 in postmarket trading.

Here are the Q4 numbers:

  • Revenue of $11.0 billion (estimate: $10.8 billion).

  • Adjusted earnings per share of $0.20 (estimate: $0.12).

Ahead of this report, Nike warned that results would be flattered by a one-time tariff refund (now estimated at roughly $0.52 per share for the bottom line). That gave the company an extra cushion in snapping its streak of seven quarters of year-over-year profit declines.

Over the past year, the company had been punished by tariffs on imported goods, stagnant consumer spending, and increasing competition from other footwear brands like New Balance, Adidas, and Hoka.

Outgoing CFO Matthew Friend deemed it an “increasingly challenging operating environment, where sell-through remains challenged.”

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