Amidst escalating Middle East tensions, global markets face volatility, with oil prices rising and significant shifts in currency values. Insights on the Federal Reserve’s future actions and corporate earnings forecasts are closely watched.

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Middle East Military Conflict Escalates

U.S. stock futures experienced a decline on Monday due to the escalating military conflict in the Middle East, which led to rising oil prices and Treasury values.

Furthermore, September’s impressive U.S. job figures amplified concerns about impending inflation statistics for the week.

Impact on Global Currencies and Commodities

Amidst holidays in Japan and South Korea, the demand shifted towards bonds, the Japanese yen, and gold as safe investments.

Consequently, oil prices saw a surge of over $3 per barrel.

The Israeli shekel dropped significantly to its weakest since the beginning of 2015, standing at 3.9880 against the dollar.

Israel’s central bank proposed selling up to $30 billion for shekels to counteract this decline.

This intervention by the bank led the shekel to regain some strength, settling at 3.9050.

Analysts from CBA expressed concerns over the possibility of higher oil prices, equity downfalls, and enhanced volatility, which might bolster the strength of the dollar and yen while weakening ‘risk’ currencies.

Specifically, there are fears that oil supply from Iran may face disruptions.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict further intensified as Israel launched attacks on Gaza, killing many in retaliation to the earlier attacks by Hamas.

These geopolitical tensions pushed Brent oil prices to $87.72 a barrel and U.S. crude to $86.07 a barrel.

Moreover, the demand for gold escalated, resulting in a 1.1% increase, amounting to $1,852 an ounce.

The currency market saw the yen making notable gains.

The euro dropped slightly against the yen and the dollar, and the overall mood pushed sovereign bonds higher.

Betting on Fed Easing

The consistent increase in oil prices threatens consumers by adding to inflationary pressures.

This weighed on equities, resulting in a 0.8% drop in S&P 500 futures and a 0.7% decline in Nasdaq futures.

Amid these market shifts, there is anticipation about the direction of interest rates based on the strength of the U.S. jobs report.

Upcoming data on September consumer prices will provide more clarity.

This week, the minutes from the last Federal Reserve meeting will be released, offering insights into members’ intentions about maintaining or even increasing rates.

As of early Monday, market sentiments suggest that Middle East events may deter further rate hikes by the Fed, possibly leading to a more lenient policy next year.

Additionally, returning from its holiday, China will reveal a plethora of data ranging from consumer and producer inflation to credit and lending growth.

Corporate Earnings Season Underway

The current tensions might overshadow the corporate earnings season’s beginning.

Prominent S&P 500 companies like JP Morgan, Citi, and Wells Fargo are set to report this week.

Goldman Sachs predicts a 2% growth in sales, an 11.2% margin contraction, and EPS figures similar to last year.

Goldman analysts mentioned, “Despite expectations of modest sales growth and slight margin improvements, the prevailing ‘higher for longer’ interest rate, persistent wage growth, and tech firms’ AI investments hinder the likelihood of considerable margin expansion.”