The latest Market Talks covering the Auto and Transport sector. Published exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
0723 GMT - European airlines fall in opening trade Thursday, amid doubts over the stability of the U.S.-Iran cease-fire meant to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway for jet fuel. easyJet loses 2.8%, while Wizz Air falls 2.5% and Ryanair is down 1.8%. Deutsche Lufthansa is down 3.45%, while Air France-KLM and IAG--owner of Iberia and British Airways among other airlines--fall 1.6% and 1.1%, respectively. German travel operator TUI is down 3.3%. (cristina.gallardo@wsj.com)
0714 GMT - Yields on U.K. government bonds climb as market sentiment deteriorates amid concerns that the Middle East cease-fire agreement is not holding as expected. Continuing strikes in the Middle East have caused oil prices to rise and revived concerns about energy-driven inflation, leading investors to price in possible interest rate rises by major central banks. Ten-year gilt yields climb 3 basis points to last trade at 4.750%, Tradeweb data show. (miriam.mukuru@wsj.com)
0643 GMT - The dollar trades steady against a basket of currencies as uncertainty over the Iran war remains elevated after U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week cease-fire. Despite this, Iran continued to fire missiles and drones at Arab countries in the Persian Gulf and Israel launched strikes against Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. Iran also told mediators it would limit the number of ships crossing the Strait of Hormuz and charge tolls. "I am assuming for the time being that this is a fragile pause in the conflict; after all, a ceasefire essentially means further negotiations," Commerzbank's Antje Praefcke says in a note. The DXY dollar index trades flat at 99.109 after reaching a one-month low of 98.525 Wednesday. (renae.dyer@wsj.com)
0626 GMT - Oil prices rise after Wednesday's plunge as shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remains largely constrained and Israeli attacks on Lebanon threaten an already fragile truce. In early European trading, Brent crude for June delivery is up 2.2% to $96.86 a barrel, while WTI futures for May gain 3.3% to $97.51 a barrel after posting the biggest one-day drop since 2020. "The conditional two-week ceasefire is already showing signs of faltering," analysts at Kpler say. "The deep supply challenges in the crude oil market are far from resolved, even if there is a brief logistical window to ease pressure."(giulia.petroni@wsj.com)
0554 GMT - Only a partial recovery in oil supply is likely in the near term following the Iran war, increasing the risk of prolonged elevated prices, ANZ Research's Daniel Hynes and Soni Kumari say in a note. They expect an uneven recovery, citing operational frictions, damage to Middle Eastern energy infrastructure and export bottlenecks. Some disrupted supply may be lost permanently due to constrained export capacity and producers' financing challenges, implying a higher long-term clearing price and increased volatility. If recovery stalls at current levels, crude will likely remain above $100 a barrel, leading to demand rationing and inventory drawdowns. Over time, reduced production capacity could tighten supply beyond 2026, making sharp price declines less likely while increasing the risk of spikes, the strategists add. (jason.chau@wsj.com)
0424 GMT - Grab's products and artificial-intelligence-driven strategy will help maintain the company's competitiveness, Citi Research analysts say in a note. Grab's product event in Indonesia marked an evolution in its vision from a "Super App" focused on transactions, to an intuitive "Everyday Guide" for users, with new features like indoor navigation of shopping malls and hotel bookings, they write. Grab's core AI infrastructure, fueled by real-time data that it collects, allows it to offer loans and optimize delivery routes, Citi notes. This now extends to physical hardware like self-driving vehicles and AI-powered CCTV cameras. Grab emphasized the need to help partners adopt AI. Citi reiterates its buy rating on the stock with a target price of $7.20 and views the current valuation as attractive. Shares last closed at $3.63. (kimberley.kao@wsj.com)
0403 GMT - Hankook Tire & Technology's shipments could grow 2%-4% annually in 2026-2027, driven by capacity ramp-ups at its plants in Hungary and Tennessee, Daiwa Capital's Yoonki Bae and Henny Jung say. Despite challenges from higher oil prices and rising raw-material costs amid the Middle East conflict, the analysts raise their earnings-per-share forecasts for the South Korean tire maker by 4%-8% over the two-year period. They expect revenue to grow 11% in Europe in 2026 and 7% in the U.S. in 2027. Hankook could also benefit from spillover demand in South Korea after a recent fire at rival Kumho Tire's domestic plant, they add. (kwanwoo.jun@wsj.com)
0159 GMT - Crude oil prices are expected to remain in the $90-a-barrel range through the April-June quarter before returning to preconflict levels, Mizuho Securities economists say. "There is higher-than-usual uncertainty about how crude-oil volatility will be passed through to downstream consumer prices, particularly in the current environment where corporate price-setting behavior is changing," they write. The BOJ has said careful attention is warranted to upside risks to prices, given that Japanese companies now feel more comfortable passing on higher costs to consumers. (megumi.fujikawa@wsj.com)
0107 GMT - Westports Holdings could mitigate rising fuel costs amid Middle East-driven crude supply disruptions, with Maybank IB's channel checks indicating partial cost pass-through, analyst Loh Yan Jin says in a note. Fuel costs account for about 17% of Westports's 2025 operating expenses, she notes. The rollout of electric trucks from 2H should also help moderate fuel consumption, she says. Recent tariff hikes are expected to provide an additional earnings buffer, she adds. Loh cuts Westports's 2026 and 2027 earnings forecasts by 11% and 3%, respectively, to factor in higher fuel cost assumptions. Maybank cuts its target price to 6.48 ringgit from 6.74 ringgit given elevated risk premium amid geopolitical disruptions, while maintaining a buy rating on the stock. Shares are 0.5% lower at 5.62 ringgit. (yingxian.wong@wsj.com)
1458 GMT - Delta Air Lines is well positioned to recapture higher fuel costs, Chief Commercial Officer Joe Esposito says on a call with analysts Wednesday, citing the carrier's strong brand preference, premium-product focus and actions on capacity. Delta has a loyal, resilient and financially healthy customer base that continues to prioritize experience and travel despite ongoing macroeconomic and geopolitical uncertainty, executives say. At the same time, Delta will meaningfully reduce capacity in the current quarter, and the airline has room to increase fares and fees, executives say. Delta on Tuesday joined JetBlue Airways and United Airlines in boosting fees on checked bags for domestic travel and other routes, with some exceptions. (connor.hart@wsj.com)
1449 GMT - Delta Air Lines has been paying on average about $4.30 a gallon for jet fuel, or roughly double the price from a year ago. Higher jet fuel prices, which have surged as conflicts in the Middle East have tightened supplies of crude oil, are projected to add more than $2 billion of additional fuel expense in the current quarter, Oper Chief Dan Janki says on a call with analysts Wednesday. That figure includes a $300 million benefit from Delta's oil refinery in Pennsylvania, which the carrier bought in 2012. The facility boosted the company's bottom line by about $60 million in the first quarter. Shares rise 7% on higher-than-expected adjusted earnings and revenue. (connor.hart@wsj.com)
1416 GMT - A key question about the Middle East war has been whether it will cause a temporary inflation shock affecting prices or a permanent growth scare with effect on valuation, and "it seems like it is going to just be a price shock," Morgan Stanley Investment Management's CIO Jim Caron says. A price shock means that the market is going to look through it and is going to start to think about the coming months, he says in a webinar. That said, activity data in March is going to be softer "for sure," he says. If the war and the closing of the Strait of Hormuz existed for a long period of time, it could destroy demand and growth expectations significantly, he says. That would reduce earnings and valuations, he adds. (emese.bartha@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 09, 2026 04:20 ET (08:20 GMT)
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