September S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESU26) are up +0.02%, and September Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQU26) are up +0.12% this morning, pointing to a muted open on Wall Street as oil prices rose amid growing doubts that the Strait of Hormuz will reopen anytime soon.
The price of WTI crude rose over +1% on Monday as Iran and Oman remained short of an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. While Iran said on Sunday that the deal with Oman was in its “final stages,” it reiterated on Monday that the waterway would only reopen once Washington met a series of demands, including lifting its blockade of Iranian shipping and providing compensation for damages. Meanwhile, Houthi militants claimed an attack on a Saudi refinery near the Red Sea. U.S. President Donald Trump, in an interview with Axios on Sunday, indicated the U.S. was prepared to allow economic pressure on Iran to intensify rather than escalate militarily, saying the U.S. was only “semi-negotiating” with Tehran over the Strait of Hormuz.
