Markets LIVE: US begins promised strikes on Iran as Trump claims Tehran wants peace “so badly”

The crypto ETF tape split sharply on Wednesday. US spot Bitcoin ETFs saw $85 million leave the funds, cutting off a three-day inflow run that had brought in about $509 million, SoSoValue data showed.

The exits were spread across the biggest Bitcoin products. BlackRock’s IBIT lost about $59 million, Grayscale’s GBTC saw nearly $64 million pulled out, and Fidelity’s FBTC dropped by around $15 million.

Only Grayscale’s mini BTC fund managed to attract money, adding close to $53 million. Total assets across Bitcoin ETFs slipped to about $75 billion.

Ether ETFs moved the other way, took in about $70 million on Wednesday, giving them a fifth straight day of inflows. Most of that came from Fidelity’s FETH, which added about $69 million. VanEck’s ETHV brought in a little over $1 million, while the other Ether funds stayed flat. Total Ether ETF assets stood near $9 billion.

The fund flows matched the weaker crypto market. Bitcoin is worth around $62,944, while Ether hovered near $1,740. Both were down about 3% on the day.

Stock futures in the US pointed to a calmer open after the earlier selloff. S&P 500 futures rose 0.3%, Dow Jones Industrial Average futures gained 81 points, or roughly 0.15%, and Nasdaq 100 futures climbed 0.61%.

Europe also tried to steady itself in early trading. France’s CAC 40 and Germany’s DAX each advanced 0.6%, while London’s FTSE 100 slipped 0.2%. Across the region, technology shares and mining stocks led the rebound. Healthcare and consumer staples were the weaker corners of the market.

Asian trading was stronger in several major markets. South Korea’s Kospi bounced 2.88% after entering a bear market the day before, while the Kosdaq rose 3.67%. Samsung added 0.18%, and SK Hynix jumped more than 5%.

Japanese stocks also moved higher, with the Nikkei 225 up 1.88% and the Topix gaining 0.36%. Tech names helped both indexes, as Tokyo Electron climbed 5.51%, Advantest rose 5.86%, and Rakuten Group added 0.49%.

Elsewhere in Asia, Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.69%. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index edged up 0.16%, while mainland China’s CSI 300 stayed flat.

Oil pulled back slightly after Wednesday’s sharp rally. Brent crude for September delivery traded at $77.73 per barrel, down 0.3% in early European hours, after rising 5.4% in the previous session for its biggest daily jump since May 4.

WTI crude for August delivery slipped 0.2% to $73.40. It had jumped 4.4% on Wednesday, its strongest one-day move since June 1.

U.S. Central Command said Thursday that American forces carried out a new wave of strikes on Iran, with the operation focused on weakening Tehran’s ability to threaten ships moving through the Strait of Hormuz.

The strikes hit around 90 Iranian military targets along the country’s coast. CENTCOM said the list included air defense systems, coastal monitoring equipment, missile and drone storage locations, naval assets, and military logistics infrastructure.

The latest operation came after yesterday’s strikes when the US hit roughly 80 targets. That earlier round included allegedly more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats, after Tehran attacked three commercial vessels traveling through the key energy route.

The IRGC responded by attacking US bases in the region. Its targets included Arifjan and Ali Al Salem in Kuwait, along with Juffair and Sheikh Isa in Bahrain.

Trump’s comments earlier Wednesday added another layer to the conflict. Speaking in Ankara, Turkey, during his trip for the NATO summit, Trump said he was no longer sure he wanted to keep trying for an agreement with Tehran.

“I’m not sure I want to make a deal with them,” Trump said at the press conference.

Trump also said, “We can play games, but I’m not sure I want to make a deal,” before adding, “Let’s just finish the job.”

Those remarks came after Trump said the young US-Iran ceasefire was finished because of the renewed fighting around the strait. He also said more US military action could be ordered.

Trump was asked why his view of Iran’s leaders had shifted so sharply. A month earlier, he had called them “smart,” “very rational,” and “nice to deal with.” More recently, he described them as “scum” and “sick people.”

“I got to know ’em,” Trump said.

Trump added that he still considered them more rational than earlier leaders the US had killed during the war that was started without Congressional approval. But he said their actions over the past week or two showed they were not helping their own people.

Investors became cautious again and markets declined on Wednesday due to new tensions between the US and Iran.

Speaking at the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, US President Donald Trump stated that the ceasefire with Iran is over following fresh clashes in the Middle East region.

Dow Jones, S&P 500, and Nasdaq all declined amid the risk-off sentiment. The DJIA dropped by 488 points or 0.9%, the S&P 500 index fell by 0.6%, while the Nasdaq Composite index decreased by 0.4%.

Oil prices surged dramatically due to the renewed threat of military conflict. The price of Brent increased by 4.6% to $77.56 per barrel, while the price of WTI grew by 4.2% to $73.45.

At a joint press conference with NATO chief Mark Rutte, Trump was asked about the ceasefire and said, “I think it’s over.” He added, “I don’t want to deal with them anymore … as far as I’m concerned, it’s over.” Trump also said Washington had wanted to work toward a peace deal, but he now saw talks with Iran as “a waste of time.”

Later Wednesday, during a meeting with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Trump said the US would “very probably” strike Iran “hard again tonight.” He added, “I’ll give him a little warning. We’re going to hit them hard tonight, but we’ll see how it all works out.”

Bitcoin also came under pressure as the geopolitical shock pulled investors away from risk assets. The token fell more than 5% and dropped below $61,442, even after mostly brushing off Strategy Inc.’s latest Bitcoin sale earlier in the week. Ether and Solana also moved lower.

Chip stocks looked steadier after weakness in the previous session. The VanEck Semiconductor ETF rose more than 1%, although the fund remains 12% below its recent high.

Investors are now waiting for the Federal Open Market Committee’s June meeting minutes, due at 2 p.m. ET.

The release is expected to give more details on Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh’s first policy meeting, where officials kept interest rates unchanged but signaled that more hikes could still come if inflation stays hot.