Finance

Energy prices spiked to their highest level in over a month following a series of military strikes between the United States and Iran around the Persian Gulf. Maritime traffic through the critical Strait of Hormuz slowed to near a standstill amid an active naval blockade, driving international benchmark Brent crude up roughly 4% to around $88 per barrel. The ongoing geopolitical disruptions continue to spark inflationary concerns while providing a trading buffer for large oil and gas producers.

While broader market indices faced downward pressure, the kickoff of the second-quarter corporate earnings season provided strong fundamental support. Major companies across insurance, healthcare, and transport sectors reported profits that significantly handily outpaced Wall Street estimates. Strong individual performance updates from market heavyweights like UnitedHealth, Abbott Laboratories, and The Travelers Companies led to single-day stock price gains for those firms, underscoring resilient underlying fundamentals.

Digital assets experienced a widespread pullback as macroeconomic headwinds and geopolitical uncertainties reduced investor appetite for risk assets. Bitcoin fell below the $63,000 threshold, remaining more than 50% below its previous historical peak. Analysts attribute the current stagnation to intense equity competition from AI sectors, fading expectations for monetary easing, and persistent outflows from spot exchange-traded funds.