Iran Denies Negotiations with Washington on Ending War, US Stock Futures Decline

Investing.com - Monday evening, U.S. stock index futures declined after Iran denied having negotiations with Washington to potentially ease the war situation. The conflict has entered its fourth consecutive week.

After a gain of over 1% on Wall Street, futures turned lower. Previously, U.S. President Donald Trump delayed a threatening strike on Iran’s power grid, citing productive talks with the country.

However, Iran later denied any negotiations took place, leaving the market uncertain about the Middle East conflict. In recent weeks, this conflict has been a major factor behind market weakness.

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As of 8:19 p.m. Eastern Time (1:19 a.m. Beijing time), the S&P 500 futures fell 0.3% to 6,614.75 points. Nasdaq 100 futures declined 0.3% to 24,335.75 points, and Dow futures dropped 0.3% to 46,378.0 points.

After Trump claims “productive” discussions, Iran denies negotiations with the U.S.

Iranian senior officials stated Monday evening that Tehran had not held any negotiations with the U.S., contradicting Trump’s claim of having had a “very good and productive dialogue” with the Islamic Republic.

The Speaker of Iran’s Parliament said on social media that no such talks had taken place. Additionally, Iranian state media broadcast a speech by senior military officer Mohsen Rezaee Miraghaei, stating that the war would continue.

These comments came shortly after Trump postponed a threatening strike on Iran’s power grid. The president had issued a 48-hour ultimatum to Iran over the weekend, demanding the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, or face a U.S. military attack on its critical energy infrastructure.

Iran largely rejected this ultimatum and threatened severe retaliation.

Wall Street rises over 1% on hopes of easing Iran tensions

Trump’s remarks triggered a rally on Wall Street and broader risk assets, with the S&P 500, Nasdaq Composite, and Dow Jones Industrial Average surging between 1.1% and 1.4%.

Wall Street also benefited from bargain hunting after four weeks of declines due to concerns over inflation impacts from the Iran conflict.

Reports indicate that, although senior Iranian officials deny negotiations with the U.S., some Asian and Gulf countries are passing messages between Tehran and Washington.

However, as the strikes between Iran and neighboring Gulf countries continued into Monday evening, there were little signs of de-escalation.

Following Iran’s denial of negotiations, oil prices rebounded after plunging over 10 earlier Monday.

The inflation impact of the war has remained a key market concern, especially as Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz has caused chaos in energy markets across much of the world.

Markets worry that rising oil-driven inflation will prompt major global central banks to adopt more hawkish stances in the coming months.

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