US Stocks Rise Amid Iran Talks; Rupee Strengthens

U.S. stock index futures edged higher on Friday, May 23, as investors monitored US-Iran peace talks and rising Treasury yields. The Dow closed at an all-time high on Thursday for the first time since February.

The benchmark S&P 500 remains less than 1% below its all-time high and is up more than 8% for the year. Meanwhile, Iran's foreign minister met with Pakistan's interior minister to discuss proposals aimed at ending the Middle East conflict, which has been a supportive factor for investors.

UBS Global Wealth Management raised its 2026 year-end target for the S&P 500 to 7,900 from 7,500. However, inflation concerns continue to flare, with the 10-year Treasury yield hitting its highest level since January 2025.

Thirty-year borrowing costs in the U.S. Treasury market hit their highest since 2007. The benchmark 10-year yield advanced 23 basis points in a week, causing some forced selling due to convexity hedging.

The Indian rupee rose on Thursday, its first day of gains in two weeks, after the central bank shored up the currency through firm intervention. Traders said that intermittent dollar sales from state-run banks persisted throughout the session. The Reserve Bank of India deployed a familiar intervention strategy, conducting heavy dollar sales via state-run banks before market open to halt a persistent slide in the rupee.

Asian currencies were down between 0.1% to 0.4% as Brent crude oil futures hovered north of $100 per barrel, with investors awaiting developments in U.S.-Iran negotiations to end the war, which has lifted global oil prices by over 50%.