Breakfast News: Middle East Conflict Escalates

Breakfast News: Middle East Conflict Escalates

Source: Image Created by Jester AI.

1. Markets Fret Over Israel-Iran Strikes

S&P 500 futures fell over 1.5% this morning following news Israel has launched a wave of airstrikes against Iran's nuclear program and ballistic missile sites, in what is seen as a major escalation that could spark a wider war in the Middle East. Iran has fired about 100 drones back and has stated it's planning a more decisive response, prompting Israel to declare a state of emergency.

• A "re-intensification of geopolitical risk, just when trade-tensions between the US and China appeared to be thawing": Alex Joiner, chief economist at IFM Investors, explained how the situation puts uncertainty back in the market. Even though the U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed they were not involved in the strikes, Iran has said America will pay a price.
• The cross-asset snapshot: Oil prices surged as much as 13% before trimming gains to around 7%, with gold rallying above $3,400 per oz. Bitcoin (BTC 0.46%) fell 4% to $103k.

2. Apple's Sales Pop as Tariffs Swerved

Third-party data showed iPhone sales for Apple (AAPL -1.62%) grew by 15% year over year during April and May, the best global performance for the company since the pandemic.

• iPhone sales capture top spot in Chinese market for May: The growth was primarily driven by the U.S. and Chinese markets, in part due to some consumers trying to front-run tariff increases. Yet double-digit growth was noted in Japan, India, and the Middle East.
• Foxconn shipped $3.2 billion worth of iPhones from India: Nearly all of the iPhones made by Foxconn from India went to the U.S. in the period between March and May, highlighting the efforts from Apple to bypass the tariffs imposed elsewhere.

3. RH Rockets 20% on Profitable Q1

Stock Advisor recommendation RH (RH 6.93%) surged over 20% after the market closed after the company posted a profit for the quarter, despite a loss being expected by analysts.

• Operating in the "worst housing market in almost 50 years": CEO Gary Friedman acknowledged the difficult environment right now but spoke about how the investments in product and platform expansion were helping to separate RH from the competition.
• Ahead of expectations for both revenue and earnings per share: Adobe (ADBE -5.31%) also reported after the closing bell, with shares falling 1.5% following quarterly results. Fool analyst Loren Horst commented "ADBE looks fairly valued to me at 20 times free cash flow" and he'll "be watching remaining performance obligations, which provide some insight into future sales."

4. Your Take

With it being Friday the 13th, today we're asking: to what extent does luck play a role in investing? Discuss with friends and family, or become a member to hear what your fellow Fools are saying.