Wall Street climbs as SpaceX shares launch; oil slides on Middle East deal hopes

Wall Street experienced gains on Friday, largely driven by the successful market debut of SpaceX. The company's shares soared 19 percent in their Nasdaq trading debut, pushing its valuation above an impressive US$2 trillion. This strong performance followed SpaceX's historic initial public offering, which raised over US$75 billion. Analysts at Briefing.com described the start as "impressive" but cautioned that sustained gains would depend on how the initial scarcity premium and market enthusiasm settle. Major US stock indices, including the S&P 500, finished the session with a 0.5 percent increase. Meanwhile, oil prices continued their downward trend, with both Brent and West Texas Intermediate closing below US$90 a barrel. This slide in oil prices is attributed to renewed hopes for a peace deal in the Middle East. Iran's foreign minister indicated that an agreement was within reach, referencing the "Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding." Despite earlier mixed signals from US President Donald Trump, the market is holding onto optimism for a potential ceasefire. The positive sentiment extended to European markets, which gained over one percent, and Asian markets, with Japan's Nikkei closing up almost three percent and Seoul's Kospi ending more than four percent higher.

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The focus now shifts to whether SpaceX can hang onto these opening gains once the initial scarcity premium, institutional allocation scramble, and retail enthusiasm begin to settle. The caution is valuation and execution risk.