Today’s Market Recap: Brent Crude Nears $100, Gold and Bitcoin Under Pressure as US-Iran Conflict Escalates

TradingKey - On September 7 ET, U.S. financial markets were closed for Labor Day, leaving global market trading relatively quiet. However, the escalating U.S.-Iran conflict pushed international oil prices to a six-week high and renewed market concerns about energy inflation and global central bank monetary tightening. Meanwhile, last week's robust U.S. August nonfarm payrolls data continued to affect markets, keeping expectations for a September Fed rate hike at an elevated level as investors await this week's PPI and CPI inflation data for new policy clues.

In commodities, crude oil continued to move higher. Brent crude (UKOIL) rose 1.52% to close at $97.30, hitting an intraday high of $98.06; WTI crude (USOIL) closed at $91.23, reaching an intraday high of $92.17. The U.S.-Iran military conflict continued to spread to energy facilities and tanker transit, dropping vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz to its lowest level since May and driving markets to price in higher supply disruption risks.

In precious metals, gold (XAUUSD) remained under pressure. Spot gold fell 0.56% to $4,406.05. Friday's U.S. August nonfarm payrolls report was significantly stronger than expected, prompting markets to re-bet on a September Fed rate hike, with current pricing reflecting roughly a 60% probability of a rate increase. Meanwhile, persistent gains in oil prices further exacerbated inflation fears, placing pressure on non-yielding gold.