The NYSE welcomed Secretary of State Marco Rubio to ring today’s Opening Bell and kick off what is likely to be a geopolitically-focused week. Leading into that, the S&P ended last week with a modest gain on Friday. A big Quad Witching and index rebalancing pushed volumes in the closing auction to over 3.5 billion shares, the 3rd largest on record. After falling below the 50d ma earlier in the week and testing support at the 100d, the S&P managed to close the week above the 50d and get back into the 7600-7800 range. Tech was a leader as the NYSE 100 rallied 0.7% finished the week strong as the ICE Semis Index rose 2.7%.

Over the weekend Middle East hostilities were looking like they would pressure equities today. The Houthis escalated attacks on Saudi Arabia and Ukraine launched a massive drone strike against Russia. However, President Trump called off attacks on the Houthis at the last minute according to the NYT, and the group said it was only targeting Saudi assets. Trump added he’s open to meeting Iranian President Pezeshkian at the UN this week, but also he could “blow the entire nation up.” Always keep ‘em guessing. Saudi oil loadings have increased according to reports and the US said Hormuz oil and gas shipments are at a six month high. The overall news flow pushed oil lower and provide a tailwind for equities this morning. The NYT reported that the US proposed extending the China trade truce by 6 months, adding more support for equities. After Secretary Rubio rang the Opening Bell the S&P opened higher and extended those gains, currently up over 1%. Mega cap tech is very strong, making the equal-weight a laggard as it gains "only" 0.7%, with small caps around there as well. Breadth is solid with 10/11 sectors higher.

Brent crude has weakened throughout the day and is at its lows, The November ICE Brent contract has fallen four straight days and fell below $100, down from $110 last week. Crypto is a standout with BTC and ETH ripping higher. Bitcoin blew through resistance at $82.5K and is above $85K for the first time since late January, with a big short squeeze triggering the rally.