WS #6088

The dominant narrative remains the Iran conflict, with oil prices elevated and geopolitical tensions high. However, a potential de-escalation signal emerges: Iran offers to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. lifts its blockade and the war ends, while postponing nuclear talks. This is corroborated by multiple sources (Axios, AP, CNBC). However, Secretary of State Rubio pours cold water on the offer, stating the U.S. will not accept Iranian control over the strait. Separately, Israel is repositioning air defense systems, signaling preparation for an imminent strike on Iran, indicating escalation risk. The conflict continues to disrupt fertilizer flows, threatening global food inflation. In corporate news, Domino's Pizza reported disappointing U.S. same-store sales and lowered its full-year forecast, citing winter weather and weak consumer sentiment due to spiking fuel prices from the Iran war. CEO expects more fast-food chains to report similar headwinds. Italy's Angelini is said to explore acquisition of Catalyst Pharmaceuticals, a positive for CPRX. Salesforce sues Microsoft in the UK over Teams bundling, a negative for MSFT and positive for CRM. Google faces internal revolt over supplying AI to the U.S. military, a negative for GOOGL. Samsung's first smart glasses leaked, potentially competing with Meta's Ray-Ban, neutral for META. Bitcoin rally shows signs of strain with low volume and negative funding rates.