CNBC Daily Open: S&P stages a comeback, erasing all Iran war losses

Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to another edition of CNBC's Daily Open.

The S&P erasing all its Iran war-related losses marks an interesting moment where market sentiment meets geopolitical reality.

The talk of the newsroom this morning is why Wall Street rallied and oil prices retreated on what could be considered very tenuous indications that diplomatic progress is being made.

I'll leave it up to reader to decide if investors have moved from panic to pricing in, or if complacency comes with a risk.

Wall Street stocks have staged a comeback, with Monday's gains seeing the S&P 500 wipe out its declines since the onset of the war in Iran. In early Tuesday trading, U.S. futures are holding steady, while oil prices are retreating.

The catalyst for the turnaround in risk sentiment seems to be a hope that a diplomatic solution remains on the table.

Vice President JD Vance, after returning from unsuccessful negotiations with Iran over the weekend, said Monday that it is up to the Islamic Republic to make the next move on peace talks with the U.S.

"Whether we have further conversations, whether we ultimately get to a deal, I really think the ball is in the Iranian court, because we put a lot on the table," Vance said in a Fox News interview.

He stressed that if America's "red lines" on Iran's nuclear ambitions are met, "then this can be a very, very good deal for both countries."

It's an optimistic take, given that diplomatic channels have so far yielded little progress. But the markets could be driven by a broader picture.

CNBC's Jim Cramer said that Wall Street's resilience in the face of escalating geopolitical tensions shows investors are focusing less on the Iran war itself and more on a key driver of stock valuations: interest rates.

"I think I've been negligent in bringing up the power of low rates, because it's the reason the bulls keep winning when it seems like they should be slaughtered," said the "Mad Money" host. "Let's not overthink it. If interest rates were spiking, this market would be very different."

"But history is being disobeyed and ignored," he said.

Outside the U.S., China's export growth slowed in March as manufacturers grappled with surging commodity and energy costs due to the Middle East conflict disrupting supplies, while imports logged the strongest growth in more than four years.

Exports grew at their slowest pace in six months, Chinese customs data showed Wednesday.

In corporate news, luxury conglomerate and industry bellwether LVMH reported quarterly sales that missed expectations on Monday as the sector begins to decipher the fallout from the war in the Middle East and its impact on stocks. 

The conflict had a 1% negative impact on organic growth in the quarter, LVMH said in a statement.

There are more big earnings on the slate today, including JPMorgan, Citigroup and Blackrock to name a few.

— Leonie Kidd

Trump deletes Truth Social image depicting him as Jesus: ‘It was me as a doctor’

President Donald Trump on Monday morning deleted a Truth Social post with an image showing himself appearing like Jesus Christ after it was met with backlash.

"I did post it, and I thought it was me as a doctor, and had to do with Red Cross, as a Red Cross worker there, which we support," Trump told reporters at the White House, denying claims he was meant to appear as Jesus.

"Only the 'fake news' could come up with that one," Trump added.

— Dan Mangan