Key headlines from global financial media overnight and this morning include:
1. Trump States Handling of Iran Issue Enters Final Phase; Tehran Threatens to Expand Retaliation if Attacked 2. Fed Minutes Indicate More Policymakers Open to Rate Hikes 3. NVIDIA's Q1 Revenue Hits $81.6 Billion, Up 85% YoY, Led by $75.2 Billion Data Center Segment; Announces $80 Billion New Buyback 4. SpaceX IPO Prospectus Revealed for First Time: Starlink Earns $11.3 Billion Annually, Space Business in Loss, Valuation Aims for $1.8 Trillion 5. New Chair Seeks Consensus First; J.P. Morgan Asset Management Expects Warsh's First Rate Vote to Prioritize Stability 6. Wood Mackenzie: If Iran Conflict Persists, Oil Prices Could Surge to $200
Trump States Handling of Iran Issue Enters Final Phase; Tehran Threatens to Expand Retaliation if Attacked The United States and Iran exchanged threats of escalating conflict on Wednesday, with the weeks-long Middle East stalemate remaining unresolved. Trump told reporters the U.S. has entered the "final phase" in handling the Iran issue, sparking investor hopes for an imminent deal. U.S. Treasury bonds surged, while oil prices plunged. However, Trump also reiterated that he could restart strikes in the coming days if he deems it necessary. "Either we make a deal, or we have to go the not-so-friendly route," he said, "but hopefully that won't happen."
Fed Minutes Indicate More Policymakers Open to Rate Hikes Federal Reserve officials' concerns about inflation being pushed higher by last month's war in Iran have intensified, with a growing number of policymakers open to the potential need for interest rate hikes. This suggests incoming new Chair Kevin Warsh will inherit a core Fed team that is increasingly hawkish. Minutes released Wednesday showed that most Fed policymakers at the April 28-29 meeting believed "a modest tightening of policy could be appropriate" if inflation persists above the central bank's 2% target. The minutes stated: "In response to that possibility, many participants indicated they would prefer to remove from the post-meeting statement language suggesting the Committee's future policy decisions were biased toward easing."
NVIDIA's Q1 Revenue Hits $81.6 Billion, Up 85% YoY, Led by $75.2 Billion Data Center Segment; Announces $80 Billion New Buyback NVIDIA (NVDA) reported its fiscal 2027 first-quarter results after the market close on Wednesday, with both revenue and profit exceeding analyst expectations. Its second-quarter outlook also surpassed market forecasts. Following the announcement, NVIDIA's stock initially fell more than 3% before turning positive. For the second-quarter outlook, NVIDIA expects revenue to be between $89.1 billion and $92.8 billion, compared to Wall Street's prior expectation of $87.3 billion. For the first quarter, NVIDIA reported earnings per share (EPS) of $1.87 and revenue of $81.62 billion, beating analyst estimates of $1.77 EPS and $79.18 billion in revenue. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.25 per share. NVIDIA's Data Center business contributed the majority of revenue at $75.2 billion, exceeding Wall Street analysts' expectation of $73.47 billion and significantly higher than the $39.11 billion from the same period last year.
SpaceX IPO Prospectus Revealed for First Time: Starlink Earns $11.3 Billion Annually, Space Business in Loss, Valuation Aims for $1.8 Trillion SpaceX has finally disclosed its internal financials to investors. The rocket company has filed an S-1 IPO prospectus with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in preparation for its investor roadshow. The roadshow is reportedly scheduled to begin on June 5. For the three months ended March 31, 2026, SpaceX reported consolidated revenue of $4.694 billion, an operating loss of $1.943 billion, and adjusted EBITDA of $1.127 billion. For the full year 2025, SpaceX reported consolidated revenue of $18.674 billion, an operating loss of $2.589 billion, and adjusted EBITDA of $6.584 billion. SpaceX stated that its two main business segments, Space and Connectivity, "contributed substantially all of the consolidated revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2026, and the year ended December 31, 2025."
New Chair Seeks Consensus First; J.P. Morgan Asset Management Expects Warsh's First Rate Vote to Prioritize Stability David Kelly, Chief Global Strategist at J.P. Morgan Asset Management, stated that Kevin Warsh is likely to vote to keep interest rates unchanged when he chairs his first Federal Reserve meeting next month. Despite repeated calls from U.S. President Trump for rate cuts, Warsh is expected to seek consensus with his new colleagues. Kelly said on Wednesday, "We still have to see how Kevin Warsh handles this, because he clearly gave the president the impression that he might be willing to cut rates." He added, "But I actually don't think he will, it's just the impression he gave Trump. So the question is, how does he balance that now."
Wood Mackenzie: If Iran Conflict Persists, Oil Prices Could Surge to $200 Wood Mackenzie stated that in a worst-case scenario of a prolonged shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, Brent crude faces the risk of surging to $200 per barrel. The firm noted that over 11 million barrels per day of crude and condensate supply from the Persian Gulf region is currently disrupted. The company shared three oil price scenario forecasts: A swift peace deal resolving the Iran conflict: If a peace deal is reached soon and the strait reopens before June, prompt Brent crude prices would fall back to $80 per barrel by year-end and drop to $65 in 2027 as the market returns to a supply glut. Global economic growth would slow from 3% in 2025 to 2.3% this year, with recession limited to the Middle East region. Economies would largely be back on track by late 2026.
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