President Donald Trump addressed the nation Wednesday evening via television, announcing that American military forces have nearly achieved their established objectives in the ongoing conflict with Iran and indicating the war will conclude in the near future.
Trump stated that U.S. forces will continue striking targets within Iran for an additional two to three weeks. Following the president’s remarks, financial markets showed immediate reactions with stock prices declining, the dollar strengthening, and oil prices climbing.
Financial experts and market analysts shared their assessments of the president’s announcement:
Jon Withaar, who serves as Senior Portfolio Manager at Pictet Asset Management in Singapore, expressed disappointment with the lack of specific details. “We have no additional certainty or clarity around timeline from this address and this is what the market was looking for. The fact that we can expect 2-3 more weeks of action, boots on the ground were not ruled out and that threats to hit infrastructure were reiterated will put the market back on the defensive, particularly as we come into the long weekend,” Withaar stated.
Tony Sycamore, a Market Analyst with IG in Sydney, noted that investors had anticipated continued de-escalation trends. “There was a base case here that you were going to see continued de-escalation, which we had seen over the past couple of days. By and large, we did see that, but I think the market wanted a little bit more,” Sycamore explained.
“There wasn’t a lot new for me,” he continued. “(The Strait of Hormuz) remains the variable in everybody’s playbook. When you look at the stock markets we’re seeing a bit of a buy-the-rumour, sell-the-fact type reaction, and for crude oil the opposite. But now there’s another two to three weeks of uncertainty hanging overhead for markets.”
Kazunori Tatebe, Chief Strategist at Daiwa Asset Management in Tokyo, highlighted the absence of crucial timeline information. “There was no mention in Trump’s speech about the details on when the war ends or when the passage of the Strait of Hormuz will become possible. There are still uncertainties. So the domestic equities are not going to head for a further rise. We need another step forward, like the possibility for the opening of the strait. The positive side is that the war is not going to escalate,” Tatebe said.
