Friday 13th brings explosions in Tehran, race to safe havens
A look at the day ahead in European and global markets from Rocky Swift
It had to be Friday the 13th, right?
The morning began with explosions in Tehran that appeared to be much more serious than tit-for-tat strikes between Israel and Iran last year.
Though a preemptive strike by Israel on Iran's budding nuclear capability had been suspected, the timing and severity still took markets by surprise, with oil prices jumping over 11% at one point.
What remains unclear is what role or knowledge the United States had about the offensive and what will Washington do if Iran retaliates. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. was not involved, while Israel's state broadcaster said Washington had been notified before the strikes. Steve Witkoff, President Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, had been expected to meet Iran's foreign minister in Oman on Sunday.
Oil's jump put it on course for the sharpest daily gain in more than five years. Gold and Treasuries surged in Asian trading, while stock futures pointed to roughly 1.5% declines in Europe and U.S. Britain's FTSE was down less than 0.5% in the futures market.
With rubber bullets flying in Los Angeles and missiles dropping in Tehran, global economies are clearly prioritising guns over butter. Major defence contractors in Europe such as Britain's BAE Systems, France's Dassault Aviation, and Sweden's Saab AB may be active today.
Key developments that could influence markets on Friday:
- German, French final CPI readings for May
- Euro zone trade balance, industrial production data for April
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