The Ibex 35 of the Madrid Stock Exchange has concluded the session of this Friday, which ends the stock market week, with an increase of 0.76%, remaining a step away from recovering the 20,000 points it lost on Monday after chaining nine consecutive days above that psychological level.
At the close, the Spanish selective index has stood at 19,961.5 points, in a session again conditioned by the escalation of tensions in the Middle East and by the intention of the President of the United States (USA), Donald Trump, to initiate against Iran "the most devastating economic operation ever undertaken," which has pushed the price of oil up to 94 dollars.
In this line, the Secretary of the Treasury of the United States, Scott Bessent, has demanded this Friday that all of Washington's allies take a position —"either you are with us or you are against us"— in the economic war against Iran announced by Trump, about which he has indicated he will offer more details next Monday at a press conference.
"We are going to crush the economy of this murderous regime, which will limit its ability to project power through its representatives," Bessent has assured, adding that "they will not be able to pay the Army."
Likewise, he has pointed out "a substantial inflation, both of food and general, in Iran," and has rejected the pessimistic forecasts of some analysts regarding the effectiveness of this strategy. Despite this, Bessent has defended that this tactic "does work." "We have a combination. It is a double blow. We have the blockade and we are going to impose the most severe sanctions in history," he has advanced, insisting that "this will work."
The Iranian authorities have repeatedly denied that there is a safe way to cross the Strait of Hormuz via the southern lane, off the coast of Oman, an area that in recent years has been a regular scene of explosions on cargo, merchant, and oil tankers, whether due to mines or the impact of projectiles.
However, the news portal Axios reported the day before that the Armed Forces of the United States have enabled a corridor to the south of the strait through which between 15 and 20 oil tankers enter and exit each night, transporting about 10 million barrels daily —around half of the volume prior to the outbreak of the conflict— according to two U.S. officials.
For his part, the president of Iran, Masud Pezeshkian, has defended the need to end the war as soon as possible, arguing that Tehran is in a position of strength against the United States and Israel, whom he blames for the start of hostilities six months ago.
In parallel, the Israeli Army carried out new bombings this Friday on the towns of Mayfadoun and Al Mansouri, in southern Lebanon. At the same time, the Turkish Ministry of Justice has requested the opening of proceedings for Interpol to issue an international arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, following the attack by Israeli forces on the Gaza-bound flotilla on May 2.
In this scenario, the price of Brent crude — the reference in Europe — rose by 0.2% at the close of the stock exchanges in the Old Continent, to 94 dollars, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI), the reference in the United States, fell by 0.2%, to 86.6 dollars.
Bonds up and inflation in Japan
On the macroeconomic front, the activity of the private sector in the eurozone recorded a slight improvement in August, according to the preliminary data of the composite PMI index, which advanced to 52.1 points from 52 the previous month, its highest level in nine months, which would indicate a GDP increase of 0.3% in the eurozone between July and September.
Before the opening, it was also revealed that Japan's core inflation, which excludes fresh food prices, accelerated in July to 1.8% year-on-year, two-tenths higher than in June and the largest increase since January. This rise reinforces expectations of a new interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan at the meeting to be held on September 17 and 18, after raising the interest rate to 1% in June, its highest level in more than thirty years.
Investors are also closely watching the steps of the U.S. to address its large public debt. The Treasury Secretary has explained that the bond buyback program could exceed 4 billion dollars (3.456 billion euros), double the current limit, in a context of high yields demanded on debt with maturities between 10 and 30 years, which have reached highs in recent days.
In Spain, the National Institute of Statistics (INE) has released at 9:00 AM the data on hotel overnight stays for July, which grew by 0.3% compared to the same month in 2025 and accumulate a 1.5% increase in the first seven months of the year.
European Stock Markets Maintain Historical Highs
Within the Ibex 35, the largest advances have corresponded to Banco Santander (+2.65%), Arcelormittal (+2.29%), Amadeus (+1.49%), BBVA (+1.26%) and Inditex (+1.11%). On the downside, the most significant declines have been those of Sacyr (-1.88%), Ferrovial (-1.65%), Telefónica (-1.23%), Enagas (-0.89%) and Grifols (-0.86%).
The main European indices have also closed positively, maintaining their historical highs. The DAX 30 of Frankfurt has advanced by 0.59%; the FTSE 100 of London, by 0.64%; the CAC 40 of Paris, by 0.037%; while the Italian Mib has closed practically unchanged.
In the foreign exchange market, the euro remained stable against the dollar, trading around 1.1679 "greenbacks." In sovereign debt, the yield on the Spanish ten-year bond rose to 3.704%, which placed the risk premium — the differential with the German bond of the same term — at 45 basis points.
Regarding assets considered safe havens in periods of high uncertainty, the ounce of gold increased by 2%, reaching around 4,600 dollars, while bitcoin extended its upward streak and surpassed 77,500 "greenbacks" after advancing 6% this Friday.