US stock futures wavered early Friday as the world awaited an update on US-Iran peace talks.
Stocks rebounded on Thursday after Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Iranian media signaled progress on negotiations between the US and Iran for a peace deal.
However, clear sticking points remain.
Futures attached to the Dow Jones Industrial Average (YM=F) rose .2% while the benchmark S&P 500 (ES=F) and the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 (NQ=F) were both mostly flat. The S&P 500 is vying for the index’s longest weekly winning streak since 2023.
Markets started the week on a down note, with concerns of persistent inflation stoking worries about Federal Reserve rate hikes. Since reports of movement on US-Iran talks picked up on Wednesday, however, investors have had reason to believe a primary source of rising prices could be resolved soon.
On Friday, the University of Michigan’s latest readings on consumer sentiment and inflation expectations will offer fresh insight into how much price pressures are rising as the war drags on.
Earnings season also continues to wrap up, with major government contractor Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH) reporting its results before the bell.
LIVE 2 updates
Estée Lauder stock jumps after Puig merger talks fail
Estée Lauder (EL) stock jumped 10% after late-stage merger talks with Spanish beauty group Puig (B1B.F) ended. Puig’s stock fell 13%.
Bloomberg reported that Charlotte Tilbury’s compensation demands for the deal were a sticking point in the negotiations. Charlotte Tilbury sold her makeup brand to Puig in 2020.
Estée Lauder, which owns cosmetics brands including Clinique and Mac, said the company remains focused on executing its turnaround strategy.
“Today, we are reiterating our confidence in the power of our incredible brands, our talented teams, and our strength as a standalone company,” CEO Stéphane de La Faverie said. “We are more optimistic than ever about our ability to unlock significant long-term value through Beauty Reimagined, and we remain focused on accelerating that progress.
Oil pushes higher as Iran talks on uranium puts pressure on global stability
Bloomberg reports:
Oil rose after three days of declines, as statements by Iran on uranium and the Strait of Hormuz pared earlier optimism over progress in the negotiations with the US.
Brent (BZ=F) climbed toward $105 a barrel, but is still down more than 4% this week. West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) was near $98. Iran said the latest proposal from the US partly bridged the gap between the warring sides, but comments from the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader about keeping Tehran’s uranium stockpile and a dispute over tolls in the Strait of Hormuz clouded the outlook for a breakthrough.
The conflicting statements on key issues left it unclear if the two sides were any closer to a deal after renewed threats of escalation in recent days, buffeting oil prices as traders try to gauge when energy flows through the strait will fully resume. The war and the curtailment in supplies has seen global stockpiles of crude oil and products being drawn down at a record pace, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.