The Dow Jones fell 450 points, pressured by a fall of over 3% in Salesforce, a key constituent, which announced a leadership change. The 30-stock blue chip index snapped a five-day winning run, during which it added over 2,500 points to its tally. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq traded and ended below the flat line, extending their losses for the second day in a row.
Brent Crude prices surged over 4.5% on Thursday after a media reports circulated the draft of a temporary proposal between Iran and Oman to restore maritime navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. A proposal of the draft included a ban on US and Israeli ships through the region.
It must be noted that these are not independently confirmed reports and that no official draft has been shared by either Iran or Oman with regards to this deal. Brent crude closed above the mark of $83 a barrel overnight.
The Houthis also claimed an attack on Yemen’s government-run forces, which, according to their statement on Telegram, “killed and injured hundreds of them.”
Bond yields were also pressured as a result of the rebound in oil prices. The 10-year bond yield returned to the 4.67% mark after cooling off since the start of the week.
The US Dollar also staged a rebound on Thursday, with the US Dollar index returning to the mark of 100, after marking its best day in two weeks.Elsewhere, SpaceX shares ended 6% higher on Thursday, the day its shareholder lock-in ended, freeing up over 911 million shares worth over $100 billion. More supply is set to follow in the coming weeks and months, with another 300 million shares freeing up on August 20, and nearly or over 700 million each in September and October.
All eyes today will be on the non-farm payrolls report, which will be reported later this evening, Indian Time, before market open. The consensus estimate of economists is pegging the figure to be 83,000, with unemployment rate expected to be steady at 4.2%.
