[US Stock Market] Trump: If the Strait of Hormuz cannot reopen, will bomb all Iran's power plants and oil wells. Oil prices jump 2%. Dow rises 233 points (updating)

U.S. President Trump posted on the social platform Truth Social on Monday (the 30th), saying the United States is engaged in serious talks with a brand-new, more rational Iranian government, to end military operations in Iran. He also said the talks have made major progress, but if an agreement is not reached as soon as possible for any reason, and if the Strait of Hormuz is not opened immediately for commercial navigation, it will blow up and completely destroy all of Iran’s power plants, oil wells, and Khark Island—even including all seawater desalination plants.

He also emphasized that the United States has deliberately not touched the facilities mentioned above, saying the action is meant as retaliation for Iran killing and murdering many U.S. soldiers and other personnel during the previous regime’s “terror rule” for as long as 47 years.

Iran’s National Development Fund executive committee chairman Gazanfari then rebutted the remarks, saying Iran’s power plants are widely distributed and more numerous, reducing the likelihood of a complete nationwide blackout. He also said that if Iran’s power generation facilities are targeted, Iran will plunge the entire region into a blackout state, adding that Iran’s armed forces have the capability to do so.

Gazanfari also said that countries supporting U.S. and Israeli actions will eventually have to pay a price for it, which could be reflected in damage to their own territory or future compensation for losses suffered by Iran.

When the U.S. Treasury Secretary Besent was interviewed by foreign media, he said that the global oil market has sufficient supply, with more and more vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz. As time goes on, the United States will regain control of the Strait of Hormuz, and the Strait of Hormuz will achieve freedom of navigation, whether through U.S. escort or multilateral escort.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that although the situation between the U.S. and Israel and Iran remains tense, Trump still leans toward resolving the Iran issue through diplomatic channels. In the interview, he pointed out that the U.S. and Iran are still communicating indirectly through intermediaries, which shows that even if there is a conflict, diplomatic channels remain open.

He also accused Iran’s leadership of using national resources to support regional armed groups, including Hezbollah, Hamas, and Iraqi Shiite militias, while also threatening neighboring countries. He welcomed, however, Iran’s leadership changing its political理念, and said the U.S. side will “seize” any opportunity that could cause Iran to change its political direction.

There are signs that the situation in the Middle East is escalating; oil prices continue to rise. Brent crude May futures climbed by more than 2% again, to $115.08 per barrel. June futures also rose to $107.71. New York crude broke above $100 per barrel, at $101.81, up 2.2%. The gold price decline is under control, up temporarily 0.8% to $4,531.24 per ounce.

U.S. stocks rebounded when the market opened on Monday. The Dow rose 230 points to 45,397. The S&P rose 18 points to 6,387. The Nasdaq rose 31 points, or 0.2%, to 20,980. This week, the United States will release March ADP employment changes, March ISM manufacturing index, March unemployment rate, and non-farm employment data.

U.S. President Trump claimed that Iran has “agreed” to most of the 15 war-ending demands the U.S. presented to Tehran, although it is not yet clear whether the two sides are actually negotiating.

Trump said, “They agreed to most of what we asked. How could they not?” and added, “We will also提出 some other demands.” However, he refused to disclose what specific concessions Iran has made.

Hong Kong stocks and ADR market updates are continuously being revised—see the next page for details

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Intraday trend:

【19:55】Trump: If the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened, it will blow up all of Iran’s power plants and oil wells; oil prices jump another 2%; Dow Jones futures rise 244 points

【18:15】Dow Jones futures rise 153 points, Nasdaq futures up 0.3%; this week focuses on Middle East battle developments + non-farm data

【18:10】【Iran crisis】Iran confirms the death of the naval commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps; denies any direct negotiations (updated continuously)

【13:26】Dow Jones futures rise 13 points to 45,437; S&P rises 6 points to 6,418; Nasdaq rises 22 points, or nearly 0.1%, to 23,351.

【13:26】NYMEX crude oil rises 1.3% to $100.98; Brent crude futures rise 2.3% to $115.17. As for gold, the latest rebound stabilizes: NY gold futures rise 0.2% to $4,534; spot gold rises 0.4% to $4,512.

【12:19】【European Central Bank】Members: Lock in the 2% inflation target; it’s too early to talk about rate hikes now; warn of a U.S. financial system-wide risk

【10:58】【Iran crisis】Trump says the U.S. may seize Iranian oil and occupy Khark Island, the export hub

【10:21】【Japanese yen trend】Jun Muramura warns it will take “bold action”; 4.9 HKD per 100 JPY

【09:30】【Oil price trend】Schroders expects high oil prices to last longer, but the level of pain is only half of the 2007 crisis peak

【09:17】【Gold price trend】After gold prices recorded their first rise since the outbreak of the Middle East war last week, gold prices fell again this week

【08:33】【Iran crisis】War escalation in Iran pushes oil prices higher; stock markets in Japan and South Korea also experience a “Black Monday”

【07:30】【Iran crisis】Oil prices rise another 2%. Pakistan: Will hold Iran-U.S. talks in the coming days; Iran allows 20 ships to pass through the strait; Trump considers deploying ground forces (updated continuously)

【07:30】U.S. President Trump said he will extend by another 10 days the bombing of Iran’s power plants. It has not eased market concerns; instead, fears that the war will drag on could affect oil supplies, worsening the global economic impact. U.S. stocks fell last Friday: the Dow closed at 45,166, down 793 points; the S&P fell 1.67%; the Nasdaq fell 2.15%.

Watch U.S. stock market close:

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U.S. stocks’ performance last week—see details: 【U.S. stock market close】Iran says its nuclear facilities were attacked; fears that the conflict may expand; the Dow plunges 793 points; oil prices rise again; the U.S. dollar breaks above 100

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