Iran War: Trump Says Deal Getting Closer as Lebanon Truce Starts | The Opening Trade 4/17/2026

Watch on YouTube ↗  |  April 17, 2026 at 12:01  |  1:35:44  |  Bloomberg Markets
Speakers
Tessa Mann — Reporter, The Block
Mandeep Singh — Senior Analyst, Bloomberg Intelligence
Christia Glasman — Chopping Block co-host

Summary

Markets are pausing after a massive risk-on rally driven by optimism over a potential US-Iran ceasefire deal, with President Trump suggesting progress. The discussion shifts to earnings season impacts, with Netflix and Ericsson missing guidance, and the ongoing influence of AI on tech and cybersecurity. Analysts also debate dollar weakness, UK political risk pressuring gilts, and inflation hedging strategies.

  • President Trump's upbeat comments on a potential Iran ceasefire deal fuel market optimism but lack concrete details.
  • Equities have seen a stunning reversal and massive weekly gains, though internal market breadth is weak.
  • Earnings season is in focus, with Netflix and Ericsson missing guidance, highlighting cost pressures and competitive challenges.
  • AI remains a dominant theme, with strong demand for cloud infrastructure and discussions on cybersecurity risks from models like Anthropic's Mythos.
  • Analysts express a medium-term bearish view on the US dollar due to structural reserve diversification trends.
  • UK political instability around PM Keir Starmer creates uncertainty for gilts and fiscal policy.
  • Inflation protection ideas include UK gilts and linkers, given priced-in rate hikes.
  • The program features interviews with strategists from Willis Towers Watson, Bank of America, Goldman Sachs, and Bloomberg Intelligence.
Trade Ideas
Tessa Mann Reporter, The Block 19:55
UK gilts and linkers are good inflation hedges.
She is looking at UK gilts and UK linkers for inflation protection because hikes have been priced in, and questions whether the Bank of England will hike into a slowing growth environment, suggesting they offer value as an inflation hedge.
UKGILT TIP MED
Kamal Sharma 25:50
Bearish on the US dollar medium-term.
He is bearish on the US dollar over the medium term due to structural drivers like falling custodial holdings at the New York Fed and a gradual edging away from dollar reserve holdings in IMF data, indicating a broader portfolio diversification by central banks into other currencies.
USD HIGH
Kamal Sharma 30:34
Favor non-dollar currencies for reserve diversification.
He observes that central banks are diversifying reserves away from the dollar into a broader basket of other currencies, including Scandinavian currencies, liquid Asian currencies (Singapore, Korea), and liquid Latin American currencies (Brazil, Mexico), rather than a straight shift to the euro or yuan.
SGD FXS FXF BRL MXN MED
Mandeep Singh Senior Analyst, Bloomberg Intelligence 66:31
Cloud infrastructure providers benefit from AI demand.
He expects strong growth from cloud infrastructure providers like Alphabet (Google Cloud), Amazon (AWS), and Microsoft (Azure) due to insatiable AI-driven demand, with cloud businesses seeing high growth rates and data center investments delivering strong returns.
GOOG AMZN MSFT HIGH
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This Bloomberg Markets video, published April 17, 2026, features Tessa Mann, Kamal Sharma, Mandeep Singh discussing UKGILT, TIP, USD, SGD, FXS, FXF, BRL, MXN, GOOG, AMZN, MSFT. 4 trade ideas extracted by AI with direction and confidence scoring.

Speakers: Tessa Mann, Kamal Sharma, Mandeep Singh  · Tickers: UKGILT, TIP, USD, SGD, FXS, FXF, BRL, MXN, GOOG, AMZN, MSFT