General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Ooohhh... I think he's onto something! [View all]Ol Janx Spirit
(925 posts)...when the knee-jerk reaction would have been to sell off and hoard cash for the impending WWIII.
But Iran is not really very strong at all. By Monday morning it will likely be clear that the bluster of Iran doesn't match their capabilities having been kept in a box for decades now through sanctions and periodic strikes. Even other states in the region really do not support them--forcing them to turn mainly to Russia for support. With Russia in a weak position this is probably one of the better opportunities to strike against them--not to justify this action at all; just to try to guess what the repercussions will be.
Other than oil commodities, why would there really be a selloff on Wall Street? Iran has been largely unable to trade with the West for decades. Trade with Iran accounts for only about 0.1% of total EU extra-bloc trade as of 2024, and it accounts for only a few million dollars in annual trade with the U.S. ( https://policy.trade.ec.europa.eu/eu-trade-relationships-country-and-region/countries-and-regions/iran_en )
There may well be a market reaction on Monday--especially factoring after-hours trades--but that is unlikely to be long-lived considering the target here unless some unanticipated escalation from Iran comes to pass. At the moment, Iran's Gulf neighbors look more likely to strike them for firing missiles and drones into their territories than they are to coalesce around any retaliation against the U.S. which would certainly invite a huge reaction in financial markets.
If you have cash this is probably a very good time to add to your portfolio rather than run for the hills IMHO.