US stock futures are indicating a weak start to Thursday’s session, April 09, as uncertainty hangs over the two-week ceasefire after Iran warned that some terms of the deal had been breached.

Futures of the three key indices—the Dow Jones Industrial Average, the S&P 500, and the Nasdaq—were down in the range of 0.3%–0.6%.

US stocks are expected to give up some of the strong gains seen in Wednesday’s relief rally, which was driven by optimism around the deal for a two-week pause in fighting. All three key averages closed with gains of over 2.5% in the previous session, marking the biggest intraday jump since April 2025.

The shaky ceasefire has largely held between the US, Israel, and Iran, although Tehran and Washington have offered vastly different explanations of the initial terms.

Iran claimed that Israel violated the terms of the ceasefire by attacking Lebanon and, in response, Tehran once again closed the Strait of Hormuz after briefly reopening it. Both Israel and the US said that Lebanon was not part of the ceasefire agreement.

Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also publicly confirmed the US position that Lebanon is not covered by Washington’s ceasefire with Iran.

On Wednesday morning, following the acceptance of Iran’s conditions by US President Donald Trump and the establishment of a ceasefire, two tankers—having obtained permission from Iran—were able to transit the Strait of Hormuz safely, according to the Fars News Agency.

Trump has warned that US forces will remain deployed around Iran and has threatened overwhelming military action if Tehran fails to meet Washington’s demands. Writing on social media late on Wednesday, Trump told US troops, aircraft, and naval forces would stay in position until what he described as the “REAL AGREEMENT” is fully implemented.

The ongoing conflict has increasingly centred around the Strait of Hormuz—the narrow gateway for global energy shipments. Iran has effectively shut this critical passage, through which nearly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply flows, igniting fears of a global economic slowdown.

Continued control over the Strait of Hormuz was also one of Iran’s 10-point conditions for forging a permanent peace deal, which Trump said is “workable.”

As Iran has effectively closed the key waterway again, it remains to be seen whether Tehran officials will fly to Pakistan for negotiations. Earlier, both the US and Iran had reportedly confirmed participation in peace talks in Islamabad on Friday.

Crude oil prices resume their winning run

Amid renewed tensions in West Asia, crude oil prices returned to their upward trajectory in Thursday’s session.

Brent crude, the international benchmark, rose 4% to hit an intraday high of $97.03 per barrel earlier in the day, recovering some of Wednesday’s losses. US benchmark crude was up 4.2% at $98.42 a barrel on Thursday after closing the previous session with a steep 16.4% decline.

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