President Donald Trump speaks during a ceremony for newly sworn in Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security Markwayne Mullin in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, March 24, 2026.<\/p>\n
Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images<\/p>\n
Hello, this is Dylan Butts writing to you from Singapore. Welcome to another edition of CNBC’s Daily Open.<\/p>\n
Markets are struggling for direction as investors weigh ever-shifting signals from the Iran conflict. <\/p>\n
On Tuesday, there were some indications from Washington on a possible de-escalation in the Mideast conflict. But between Trump’s claims of talks with Iran and Tehran’s denial, as well as reports on a potential U.S. troop deployment in the Middle East, investors and observers are understandably confused.\u00a0<\/p>\n
What you need to know today<\/p>\n President Donald Trump<\/a> reiterated on Tuesday that the U.S. and Iran were “in negotiations right now<\/a>” and suggested Tehran was eager to make a peace deal, even as the Islamic Republic denies it is in direct talks with Washington.<\/p>\n Those comments were followed by a report from The New York Times<\/a>, citing two unnamed officials, suggesting that Washington had sent Iran a 15-point plan to end the war.<\/p>\n That plan was reportedly sent through Pakistan, with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif recently saying that his country was willing to facilitate talks<\/a> between the warring parties.\u00a0<\/p>\n The Wall Street Journal<\/a> on Tuesday, however, reported that the Pentagon was readying plans to deploy about 3,000 soldiers from the Army’s 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East.<\/p>\n As investors track these quickly shifting signals and reports, U.S. stocks pulled back<\/a> in Tuesday trading, giving back some of the sharp gains seen in the previous session. Futures for key indexes, however, were trading higher.<\/a> <\/p>\n Oil prices, which rallied on Tuesday after tumbling in the prior session<\/a>, resumed their slide and were last down 6%.<\/a> <\/p>\n Meanwhile, impacts from the conflict in the Middle East continue to reverberate worldwide.\u00a0The Philippines on Tuesday became the first country to declare a “national energy emergency” as the ongoing conflict threatens fuel supply chains.<\/p>\n \u2014 Dylan Butts\u00a0<\/p>\n And finally…<\/p>\n Meta must pay $375 million for violating New Mexico law in child exploitation case, jury rules<\/a>.<\/p>\n A New Mexico state court jury on Tuesday held Meta<\/a> liable for $375 million in civil damages after a trial that centered on allegations that the tech giant violated state consumer protection laws and misled residents about the safety of apps like Facebook and Instagram. <\/p>\n The civil trial began with opening arguments in Santa Fe last month. New Mexico attorney general Ra\u00fal Torrez\u00a0sued<\/a>\u00a0Meta in 2023 following an undercover operation involving the creation of a fake social media profile of a 13-year-old girl that he\u00a0previously told<\/a>\u00a0CNBC\u00a0“was simply inundated with images and targeted solicitations” from child abusers.<\/p>\n \u2014 Jonathan Vanian<\/p>\n