<p>U.S. Vice President Mike Pence stated in an interview with Fox News on Monday that significant progress has been made in U.S.-Iran negotiations; additionally, according to a reporter from The Atlantic, the next round of &#34;direct negotiations&#34; between the U.S. and Iran may take place on Thursday (16th) in Islamabad. Furthermore, U.S. President Trump also told the media on Monday that Iran called the U.S. that morning, expressing a desire to reach an agreement.</p>
<h2>Optimism for U.S.-Iran Agreement Boosts U.S. Stocks, Oil Prices Drop</h2>
<p>The market is optimistic about a potential agreement between the U.S. and Iran, with all three major U.S. stock indices rising on Wednesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 301 points or 0.63%, closing at 48,218 points; the S&amp;P 500 increased by 69 points or 1.02%, closing at 6,886 points; and the Nasdaq Composite Index rose by 280 points or 1.23%, closing at 23,183 points. The Golden Dragon Index, which reflects the performance of Chinese concept stocks, also rose by 0.72% to 6,855 points. International oil prices fell, with WTI crude oil and Brent crude oil futures dropping by 1.9% and 2.1%, respectively, closing at $97.47 and $97.01.</p>
<h2>Storage Stocks in High Demand, SanDisk Rises Nearly 12%</h2>
<p>In focus sectors, storage-related stocks were notably in demand, with SanDisk (SNDK) set to be included in the Nasdaq 100 Index before the market opens on April 20. Reports indicate that the company is accelerating the development of high-bandwidth flash memory (HBF), leading to a nearly 12% increase in its stock price on Monday, reaching $952.5, a rise of over 300% this year; peer Micron Technology (MU) rose by 1.4%, while Western Digital (WDC) and Seagate Technology (STX) also both rose by nearly 2%.</p>
<p>Related article: SanDisk's Inclusion in Nasdaq 100 Expected to Trigger Significant Institutional Buying</p>
<h2>Japanese and Korean Stocks Rise, Hang Seng Index Opens Up 268 Points</h2>
<p>Asian-Pacific stock markets rose this morning, with Japanese stocks up over 2.5%, reaching 57,931 points; Korean stocks rose over 3.2%, reaching 5,996 points. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index opened up 268 points, reaching 25,929 points. Tech stocks generally rose, with Alibaba (9988) opening up 1.9%; Tencent (700) up 1.5%; Meituan (3690) up 1.1%; Xiaomi (1810) up 1.6%; JD.com (9618) up 0.6%; and Baidu (9888) up 3%.</p>
<p>In individual stock news, CATL (3750) is reportedly exploring a share placement to raise approximately $5 billion (about HKD 39 billion); the stock opened at $680, down 0.4%.</p>
<p>Related article: CATL Reportedly Plans Share Placement to Raise HKD 39 Billion, Stock Price Up 1.6 Times Since Listing in Hong Kong</p>
<h2>LINGBAO GOLD Plans 4.5% Discount Placement to Raise $780 Million</h2>
<p>Additionally, LINGBAO GOLD (3330) plans to issue 29.816 million H-shares through a method of old shares first, raising $780 million, which corresponds to approximately 2.48% of the expanded issued H-shares and about 2.16% of the issued shares, with a placement price of $26.16 per share, a 4.5% discount to the previous closing price of $27.4; the stock opened at $27.96, up 2%.</p>
<p>Regarding the movement of northbound capital, there was a net purchase of HKD 2.249 billion in Hong Kong stocks yesterday, with Xiaomi (1810), CNOOC (883), and SMIC (981) receiving net purchases of HKD 273 million, HKD 218 million, and HKD 107 million, respectively; while Tencent (700), Yangtze Optical Fibre (6869), and Alibaba (9988) saw net sales of HKD 1.689 billion, HKD 207 million, and HKD 117 million, respectively</p>

On May 10, Trump tweeted angrily declaring Iran's latest response "completely unacceptable." Iran, through Pakistan, proposed an immediate ceasefire and the lifting of the naval blockade, while the US insists that Iran suspend uranium enrichment and restore passage through the Strait of Hormuz. The two sides remain fundamentally opposed. Do you think there's any possibility of breaking this deadlock?

<p>On May 10, Trump tweeted angrily declaring Iran's latest response "completely unacceptable." Iran, through Pakistan, proposed an immediate ceasefire and the lifting of the naval blockade, while the US insists that Iran suspend uranium enrichment and restore passage through the Strait of Hormuz. The two sides remain fundamentally opposed. Do you think there's any possibility of breaking this deadlock?</p>

US-Iran deadlock returns — is a ceasefire still possible?

.SPX

<p>U.S. Vice President Vance stated that significant progress has been made in U.S.-Iran negotiations, and Trump mentioned that Iran hopes to reach an agreement. All three major U.S. stock indices rose, and oil prices fell. The Asia-Pacific stock markets generally increased, with the Hang Seng Index opening up 268 points, and tech stocks generally rising. CATL is exploring a placement, while LINGBAO GOLD's placement still rose by 2%</p>

- U.S. Vice President Vance stated significant progress has been made in U.S.-Iran negotiations during a Fox News interview, with direct talks possibly occurring in Islamabad on April 16.  
- U.S. markets rose amid optimism for a potential agreement, with major indexes gaining, while international oil prices dipped.  
- SanDisk's stock surged nearly 12% as it is set to be included in the Nasdaq 100, contributing to a positive trend in storage-related stocks across the market.

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Dow Jones Industrial Average

Nasdaq

NASDAQ-100

NASDAQ Composite Index

LINGBAO GOLD

CATL

VanEck Gold Miners ETF

iShares MSCI Global Gold Miners

Us Gbl GLD & Met

Global X Silver Miner

Fidelity Nasdaq Composite Index ETF

Invesco QQQ Trust

SPDR S&P 500

GLOBAL X Gold Explorers

Abrdn Precious Metals Basket ETF Trust

SPDR Gold Shares

iShares Core S&P 500

Proshares UltraPro QQQ

VanEck Junior Gold Miners ETF

SPDR Djia

Trump claims Iran called to reach an agreement, Hang Seng Index opens up 268 points, CATL declines, LINGBAO GOLD's placement still rises 2% | Hong Kong stock market opens