Stock and bond traders eye another volatile open

With the conflict now in its second week, energy disruptions remained the presiding worry after the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait joined Iraq in reducing oil production as storage filled up and tankers continued to avoid the critical Strait of Hormuz. “Markets had held up better than you might expect through the initial shock, but damage to oil infrastructure changes the equation,” said Dave Mazza, chief executive officer at Roundhill Financial. “This is no longer just about Hormuz being effectively shut, it is about supply disruption spreading deeper into the region, and that is the kind of shift that can push already-nervous investors to take more risk off the table.”