UK Politics and Iran Peace Deal Dominate Investor Focus

Ian Vogler | WPA Pool | Getty Images

Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to today's edition of the Daily Open newsletter.

Monday is barely underway in London, and already there is a lot for investors to digest.

The pressure on British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to map out his departure is growing, from within his own party — and from U.S. President Donald Trump.

Meanwhile, negotiators have agreed to a 60-day roadmap for an Iran peace deal, a remarkable feat after a weekend of threats from both sides.

What you need to know today

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer is expected to announce today that he will resign as leader of the Labour Party.

His key rival Andy Burham will return to parliament after a decisive victory in a local by-election last week, with dozens of lawmakers and ministers now calling on Starmer to map out his departure timeline.

Starmer has been struggling to retain confidence in his leadership since his party's heavy losses in broader local elections last May.

Adding to the pressure on Starmer, U.S. President Donald Trump predicted on his Truth Social platform that "Keir Starmer will resign as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom."

Sterling is weaker against the dollar in early trade, while investors will keep an eye on the U.K. government bond — or gilt — market later this morning.

Lake Lucerne in Switzerland hosted the latest round of negotiations between the U.S. and Iran this weekend, leading to the agreement of a 60-day roadmap to a final peace deal.

"The Lake Lucerne Summit was conducted in a positive and constructive atmosphere. Encouraging progress has been made, including the creation of a mechanism for further technical talks," according to a joint statement by mediating parties Qatar and Pakistan.

It's a remarkable outcome after the weekend saw an escalation in tensions. On Saturday, Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz and boycott talks, while U.S. President Donald Trump warned he would "hit Iran very hard again," if Tehran did not "stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble."

Crude prices are lower on the news that peace talks are progressing, while tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz continues to rise. But futures for major U.S. stock markets are also in the red, as Wall Street returns from a long weekend trading break.

It's a mixed picture across Asia Pacific stocks, while European futures are lacking direction.

— Leonie Kidd

And finally...

Pixar’s ‘Toy Story 5’ lassos biggest opening weekend in franchise history with $160 million haul

Disney's Toy Story franchise still has some buzz.

The fifth installment in the Pixar film series tallied $160 million during its opening weekend, the highest in franchise history. Internationally, "Toy Story 5" snared $152 million, bringing its estimated global haul for the three-day period to $312 million.

"Toy Story 4" was the previous record holder for the franchise, generating $120.9 million at its opening in 2019, according to Rentrak data. In total, the film series has collected more than $3 billion at the global box office since the first film debuted in 1995, with two of its installments surpassing $1 billion each worldwide.

— Sarah Whitten