President Donald Trump has been granted the benefit of the doubt by the financial markets, which, despite some fluctuations, have remained largely stable. That might be coming to an end, Barron's reported Thursday morning.
Late Wednesday night, Trump delivered a rambling speech that made it clear there is no timeline for withdrawing from Iran, Reuters reported. Instead, Trump said he would bomb them "back to the stone ages, where they belong."
It sent stock futures falling overnight and gas prices soaring.
CNBC reported, "Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 628 points, or 1.3 percent. S&P 500 futures declined 1.4 percent, and Nasdaq 100 futures lost 1.7 percent." Gas prices hit $109 a barrel, the Wall Street Journal said.
On Wednesday afternoon, Trump said he'd be leaving Iran in the next few weeks, which made markets happier, closing at a "winning session." Then the speech made markets panic. Thursday is the last trading day as they're closed for Good Friday.
"Trump’s effort to steady markets by laying out a broad timeline for America’s exit from its war with Iran appears to be having the opposite effect early Thursday as investors braced for a prolonged conflict and greater disruption in global energy supplies," said Barron's.
The main trigger, the report said, came from "the mix of rhetoric set against a lack of a clear exit date with no plans for policing the Strait of Hormuz" after his weeks-long bombing campaign.
According to Barron's, investors weren't ready to believe Trump's claims, "and may rethink the market’s solid three-day rally."
“While there were signals of an imminent U.S. retreat from the Gulf, the president’s aggressive remarks shaped market perceptions,” UBS chief global economist, Paul Donovan, told Barron's.
“U.S. escalation (however short-lived) risks being met with an Iranian response, threatening more infrastructure damage in the Gulf,” he added. “That could extend the economic damage of the war well beyond any reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.”
“After rallying sharply over the previous two sessions, market sentiment has deteriorated overnight after Trump’s much anticipated address last night delivered little to nothing new on potential timelines or conditions for ending hostilities against Iran,” said Deutsche Bank analyst Jim Reid.
The report predicted that investors "aren't likely to take on extra risk," particularly given the long weekend and reports of more troops shipping out.
"Wall Street’s 'fear gauge,' the Cboe Group’s VIX index, also was moving higher, and suggested daily swings of around 110 points for the S&P 500 over the coming month," the report also said.