Trump Provokes Tariff War Again, US-Iran Tensions Escalate, Risk Aversion Sinks Three Major US Index Futures

TradingKey - The Trump administration said on Wednesday that it will launch a new round of Section 301 trade investigations into industrial overcapacity among 16 major trading partners, including China and the EU. This move has sparked fears of a new tariff war, and combined with the continuous escalation of U.S.-Iran tensions, global financial markets are under pressure.

In U.S. pre-market trading, futures for the three major U.S. stock indices fell across the board. As of 9:20 a.m. ET, Dow futures were down 0.79%, Nasdaq futures fell 0.6%, and S&P futures dropped 0.63%.

The MG7 came under pressure pre-market; Nvidia fell nearly 1% at the open, Apple dropped over 0.3%, Microsoft fell over 0.3%, Tesla was nearly flat, and Amazon, Google, and Meta all fell nearly 1%.

Furthermore, the International Energy Agency (IEA) recently planned the largest strategic reserve release in history, yet it still failed to suppress the rally in oil prices, reflecting deep market anxiety regarding the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.

Brent crude futures once returned to $98 per barrel, a gain of nearly 7%, while WTI crude futures returned to $93, an increase of over 6.8%.

Earlier reports stated that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) attacked the "Safisia," a U.S. tanker flying the Marshall Islands flag, because it ignored warnings from the IRGC Navy.

Meanwhile, U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in an interview with U.S. media that the U.S. is currently "not yet ready" to escort tankers through the Strait of Hormuz.

This stands in contrast to previous claims from the White House that the U.S. military could provide escorts through the Strait of Hormuz if necessary.