Wall Street's main indexes were mixed at the start of trade today as investors assessed comments from the US and Iran for any clues on where the conflict was headed, before President Donald Trump's deadline for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The Dow Jones rose 75 points (0.16%) at the open to stand at 46,745, while S&P 500 fell ten points (0.15%) to trade at 6,602 and the Nasdaq Composite index dropped 69 points (0.31%) to reach 21,927.
European markets also continued to see mixed trade this afternoon ahead of that Iran deadline. London's FTSE index had dropped 42 points (0.4%) to trade at 10,393 by 2.35pm, while the Frankfurt DAX was down 83 points (0.3%) to stand at 23,085 but the Paris CAC managed to edge two points (0.03%) higher to hit 7,964.
Dublin's ISEQ index was also higher this afternoon, adding 68 points (0.5%) to reach 12,216. Shares in PTSB were up 3.2% to stand at €3.02, while Glanbia rose 2.2% to trade at €17.23. Shares in Greencoat Renewables gained 1.5% to reach 74 cent and AIB advanced 1.2% to hit €9.04.
Earlier in Asian trade, Tokyo's Nikkei index inched 16 points (0.03%) higher to close at 53,429 as investors balanced optimism over a potential Middle East ceasefire and unease over US President Donald Trump's threat to escalate strikes on Iran if it fails to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Markets in Hong Kong are closed today for a public holiday.
