LIVE: Bitcoin reclaims $65,000 as Iran escalates tension by killing two U.S. troops in Jordan

U.S. stock futures moved higher on Monday. S&P 500 futures gained 0.3%, while contracts tied to the Nasdaq 100 rose 0.6%. Dow futures added 131 points, also up 0.3%.

Markets turned more positive during the London morning after Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei suggested diplomacy had not completely broken down. His comments came after the U.S. carried out its ninth straight day of attacks on Iran overnight.

Esmail said third-party mediators were still passing messages to Tehran during the latest American strikes. He added that discussions with Washington could continue if they served Iran’s national interests.

Oil gave up its earlier gains after the comments. U.S. crude fell 0.6% to $81.99 a barrel, while Brent crude slipped to roughly $88.12.

Semiconductor companies also helped lift the broader market as the sector attempted to bounce back from last week’s selloff. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ: SMH) climbed more than 1%.

Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) jumped over 3%, leading the group. NXP Semiconductors (NASDAQ: NXPI), Teradyne (NASDAQ: TER), and Advanced Micro Devices (NASDAQ: AMD) each gained more than 2%.

All three major U.S. indexes finished lower last week. The S&P 500 lost 1.6%, the Nasdaq Composite dropped 2.9%, and the Dow fell 0.9%. SMH slid almost 9%, marking its third weekly decline in four weeks.

Treasury yields edged higher at the longer end of the market. The 10-year yield rose by more than one basis point to 4.558%, while the 30-year yield reached 5.078% after a similar increase.

The two-year Treasury yield held near 4.181%. That maturity tends to react more closely to expectations for Federal Reserve policy. A basis point equals 0.01 percentage points, and bond yields generally rise when prices fall.

The U.S. military launched another round of attacks on Iran on Sunday, extending its operation to weaken Tehran’s ability to threaten cargo ships moving through the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. Central Command said the mission marked the ninth night in a row of American strikes. The operation lasted three hours and hit Iranian command facilities, air defense systems, coastal monitoring posts, naval assets, and locations used to launch missiles and drones.

The latest fighting has raised fresh concern that the conflict could return to a full-scale war. Washington and Tehran have each accused the other of breaking the memorandum of understanding they reached in June.

The Strait of Hormuz has become the main front in the conflict. Before the war, roughly 20% of global oil shipments passed through the waterway. The fighting began on February 28, when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran.

Oil prices moved higher after the latest escalation. Brent crude gained nearly 3% to around $90.70 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate rose 2.5% to $84.60.

The number of American deaths also increased over the weekend. U.S. forces said a third service member had died in the latest clashes with Iran. They also found unidentified remains in Jordan while searching for a troop who had been declared missing.

That brought the number of U.S. military personnel killed during the nearly five-month war to 17.

Iranian officials said the renewed American attacks this month have left at least 50 people dead and more than 500 injured.

Iran has meanwhile suspended its commitments under the memorandum of understanding agreed with Washington last month, according to a foreign ministry official. The statements were not conclusive on a complete withdrawal, and there is uncertainty regarding the stand that higher-level Iranian officials might adopt.

The initial agreement was intended to help secure a truce and facilitate negotiations on a larger scale. In accordance with the terms of the agreement, the USA withdrew from its blockade, and Iran allowed free passage through the Strait of Hormuz.

As Cryptopolitan previously reported, both sides have since reversed those steps and accused each other of violating the agreement first. Fighting has continued, and Iran attacked three ships in the Strait of Hormuz on July 7 during a funeral.

The U.S. responded by striking additional targets and cancelling a waiver that had allowed Iran to sell oil internationally for U.S. dollars for the first time in years. That exemption had been included in the interim deal.

The United States says two service members were killed and several others were wounded while U.S. Central Command and partner forces defended an air base in Jordan from Iranian ballistic missiles and drones. U.S. warplanes have used the base to carry out operations against Iran.

One service member remains missing. Four others who were taken to hospitals in Jordan have since been discharged. These are the first American deaths caused by direct Iranian fire since the opening days of the war.

The Trump administration said:

“On July 17, two US service members in Jordan were killed in action as US Central Command (CENTCOM) and partner forces defended against Iranian ballistic missile and drone attacks. Additionally, one service member is currently missing. Out of respect for the families, CENTCOM will withhold additional information, including the identities of the fallen warriors, until 24 hours after the next of kin have been notified.”

Bitcoin had reclaimed $65,000 on Coinbase U.S. shortly before the announcement. It was trading at $65,020 on the exchange at press time, while prices across the rest of the global market remained closer to $64,500.

Options traders are still betting that Bitcoin can reach $72,000 before the end of July, around the same time as the Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy meeting.

The positions were placed through Bitcoin call options listed on Deribit, which gain value when the spot price rises beyond a chosen level before expiration.

Traders bought 20,000 July 31 calls with a $70,000 strike and sold another 20,000 calls at $72,000 with the same expiry. The combined 40,000 contracts represent $2.5 billion in notional value, with each contract tied to one Bitcoin.