Director of the White House National Economic Council: Interest Rates Should Be Lower

April 9 — German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germany is re-engaging in direct dialogue with Tehran-based Iranian leadership, per Xinhua. ### Key adjustments for American English: 1. **Date format**: Used "April 9" (standard US month-day style) with an em dash to separate date from content (common in US news briefs). 2. **Clarity**: Replaced vague "we" with "Germany" to avoid ambiguity (critical for US audience precision). 3. **Conciseness**: Shortened "in the process of re-engaging" to "is re-engaging" (US news prioritizes brevity). 4. **Natural phrasing**: Used "per Xinhua" (casual, widely used in US media for attribution) instead of parenthetical "(Xinhua)". 5. **Compact structure**: Swapped "based in Tehran" for "Tehran-based" (prepositional phrase as adjective, standard US style for brevity). This version aligns with US news brief conventions: clear, concise, and unambiguous.

On April 9, per Bitget market data, the Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 0.14%, the S&P 500 Index slipped 0.05%, and the Nasdaq gained 0.06% at the U.S. stock market open.

April 9 — Asset tokenization platform Securitize announced today (via official sources) that Brett Redfearn has been appointed President and Board Member. Redfearn, previously the company’s Advisory Board Chairman, has been a key driver of Securitize’s growth. Redfearn brings decades of expertise in regulatory affairs and market structure, with leadership stints at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), JPMorgan Chase, and Coinbase. He has been deeply embedded in the core of modern capital markets, collaborating with regulators, exchanges, and institutions to advance the evolution of capital market operations.

On April 9, Adam Glapiński, President of Poland’s Central Bank, stated that the institution is continuing to purchase gold. He reaffirmed the bank’s goal of increasing its gold reserves to 700 tons, noting it currently holds 580 tons of the precious metal. (FX678)

April 9: WTI crude oil futures are up 6% intraday, currently trading at $100.08 per barrel, per Bitget market data.

**Oil Prices Unlikely to Return to Pre-U.S.-Iran Conflict Levels Short-Term: European Firms** CCTV News reported on April 9 that several European financial institutions released reports on April 8 predicting international oil prices won’t rebound to pre-U.S.-Iran conflict levels in the short term. Markets should monitor the Strait of Hormuz situation and Middle Eastern energy infrastructure recovery. ING Group noted a two-week U.S.-Iran ceasefire has eased market fears of long-term supply disruptions, pushing oil prices below $100/bbl. Future price trends hinge on whether negotiations yield a lasting deal and Strait shipping returns to normal. Volatility is expected to persist during talks. UBS Group said it’s unclear when Strait shipping will resume—or to what extent—while some tankers need time to reroute. A fresh blockage could spark a quick price rebound. Even optimistically, infrastructure repairs and production recovery will take weeks, if not months. Thus, energy prices