Finance

Financial markets found a strong late-week reprieve as global crude oil prices cooled down, with West Texas Intermediate futures dropping to around $92 per barrel. The downward momentum was largely driven by reports that American and Iranian negotiators are holding discussions to potentially reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz. This retreat in energy costs provided equity investors much-needed relief from lingering fears over persistent inflation.

A historic selloff in the global bond market paused late in the week, allowing government bond yields to moderate slightly after hitting multi-decade highs. The 10-year Treasury yield hit an intra-day high near 5.22%, its highest closing level since 2007, before settling back down to 5.18% as energy prices fell. Long-duration paper continues to face pressure from an expanding domestic economy, rising government debt loads, and expectations of sustained tightening by the Federal Reserve.

Investors closely monitored the recent bilateral summit between political leadership from Washington and Beijing covering tariffs, artificial intelligence, and geopolitical tensions. While initial progress on broader economic integration remained limited, both countries officially agreed to prolong their current trade truce by an additional two months. More granular details regarding the ongoing economic negotiations are expected to be publically released.