The ‘outwaiting’ game hampers Iran peace talks

Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to today’s edition of the Daily Open newsletter.

In some ways, we end the week where we started, with conflicting accounts of how close the U.S. and Iran actually are to reaching a peace agreement.

A slew of corporate news has continued to support major markets, while oil prices have retreated further from their recent highs.

But it remains to be seen who will “outwait” whom to get the perceived upper hand in these peace negotiations.

A peace deal between the U.S. and Iran seems tantalizingly close, but mixed messages from Washington and Tehran, as well as continued missile strikes, mean obstacles remain.

U.S. President Donald Trump has yet to issue final approval for a 60-day memorandum of understanding, which Tehran has reportedly signed off on. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Trump has “several red lines” for any agreement, while the President himself told a cabinet meeting he would not be pressured.

“They thought they were going to outwait me, you know. ‘We’ll outwait him, he’s got the midterms.’ I don’t care about the midterms,” Trump told cabinet colleagues.

Defense Ministers from across the globe are meeting at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth due to make an address to the group early on Saturday.

Asian markets look set to end the week on a positive note, while U.S. and European futures are on course for a more muted open on Friday.

The biggest moves have been in oil markets. Today, crude prices are trading lower, with Brent now down over 17% through May, while WTI has fallen by over 15% on the month.

Energy major Exxon has issued a stark warning that oil inventories will fall to record lows in the coming weeks. Senior Vice President Neil Chapman told an event in New York: “I mean really, really low levels… You can debate whether [it’s] going to hit those really low levels in two weeks or three weeks. Once you get to that point, then you’ll see [the] price shoot up.”

In other corporate news, Dell shares surged almost 40% in extended trading after the technology group blew past Wall Street’s earnings forecasts and raised its guidance. Some analysts are citing the solid performance to Michael Dell’s early moves to establish good relations with the Trump Administration.

Also overnight, Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket has exploded during a ground test in Cape Canaveral, Florida. The space group is led by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who took to X to confirm that all personnel are safe, adding, “Very rough day, but we’ll rebuild whatever needs rebuilding and get back to flying. It’s worth it.”

— Leonie Kidd

I was at the exclusive launch of Ferrari’s new EV that sent the stock tumbling. But there may be light at the end of the tunnel

The launch that turned into a PR crisis for Ferrari began about six weeks ago when an invitation arrived in my inbox to attend the unveiling of the Luce, its first full-electric car.

I was whooshed alongside hundreds of guests in dark vans, escorted by police, to the Vela di Calatrava sports complex on the outskirts of Rome.

The event was so controlled that security blocked our phone cameras to stop unauthorized pictures of the 550,000-euro EV, which so disappointed investors that the company’s stock fell 8% the next day. But the event was a reminder of how big a step the company was taking and how the car’s real test will be when it comes to market.

— Charlotte Reed