Stocks are mixed in early trading. Gold and silver are up modestly, while crude oil is dipping a bit. The dollar and Treasuries are flat.
Shifting deadlines and ongoing attacks are – still – the story in the Middle East. President Trump moved his deadline for amped-up attacks to Tuesday night, while a 45-day ceasefire proposal is reportedly making its way between diplomats inside and outside the Persian Gulf region.
WTI Crude Oil Futures (5-Day Chart)
Source: TradingView
Crude oil prices are holding most of their recent gains, though they’re off overnight highs. WTI futures briefly topped $115 on Sunday, before changing hands around $110 this morning. A handful of vessels have managed to transit the Strait of Hormuz under negotiated deals, with the latest being a tanker laden with as much as 1 million barrels of Iraqi crude.
In other war-related news, President Trump asked for an eye-popping $500 billion increase in the US defense budget for fiscal 2027. His $1.5 trillion in proposed spending would pay for everything from the “Golden Dome” missile defense program to new ships for the Navy to weapons restocking to higher pay for military personnel.
Congress will have its say during negotiations, so the final approved amount will likely differ. But defense stocks have outperformed notably the last couple years given heightened geopolitical chaos.
Finally, Neurocrine Biosciences Inc. (NBIX) said it would buy Soleno Therapeutics Inc. (SLNO) for $2.9 billion. While not on par with some of the mega-deals we’ve seen lately, it is the latest in a big wave of M&A across multiple market sectors. Neurocrine will add Soleno’s hyperphagia drug Vykat to its arsenal. Patients with hyperphagia experience intense, persistent hunger.
