Author: Timothy St. John

Timothy St John is a seasoned financial analyst and writer, catering to the dynamic landscapes of the US and European markets. Boasting over a decade of extensive freelance writing experience, he has made significant contributions to reputable platforms such as Yahoo!Finance, business.com: Expert Business Advice, Tips, and Resources - Business.com, and numerous others. Timothy's expertise lies in in-depth research and comprehensive coverage of stock and cryptocurrency movements, coupled with a keen understanding of the economic factors influencing currency dynamics. Timothy majored in English at East Tennessee State University, and you can find him on LinkedIn.

Tesla Falls Short of Deliveries Target in Q1 Report

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Timothy St. John

Tesla (TSLA) reported first quarter revenue and sales numbers on Thursday, slipping well below expectations for vehicle deliveries, shipping just 358,023.

Tesla produced far more vehicles than they delivered fro Q1.

For the most recent quarter, Tesla produced 408,386 vehicles but shipped 50,000 less than that. The company expected to ship around 370,000, but they were off from that target by about 12,000. Tesla’s stock reflected that miss Thursday morning, falling by 5.64% and well outside the market average

The stock market had a bearish session Thursday, with all three U.S. indices down from the previous day. The indices fell sharply early in the morning and then started to slowly recover as investors processed developments about the Iran war. However, Tesla stock is not faring as well, still suffering tremendous losses late in the day for the last day of trading for the week.

Tesla Down from Record Quarter

Last quarter broke records for Tesla, but that was due in large part to the EV cashback program closing out and consumers rushing to buy Tesla cars before the government’s incentive ended. Wall Street expectations were relatively high for Tesla this quarter but the company fell short and disappointed shareholders.

The wide gap between sales and production will likely be a major talking point for Tesla investors and analysts for a while, and the gap indicates that Tesla is overconfident in the market demand for their vehicles. Last quarter, the company delivered 418,000 vehicles, and while they knew they would not compete with that level of sales this time around, their estimates were still much higher than the actual sales numbers.

This quarter, Tesla sold primarily Model Y and Model 3 vehicles. Those accounted for 341,893 of their deliveries for the quarter, or 92%. Tesla reported a delivery increase of 6% from the previous year, but 2025 was an exceptionally poor year for the company. They faced a massive shift in customer sentiment over their CEO’s politics and affiliation with Donald Trump. They also dealt with declining global EV sales and eco-friendly cars fell out of favor with the general public.

Tesla earns most of its revenue from its electric vehicle division, but they also reported energy storage deployment for Q1. Last quarter, they reported 14.2 Gigawatt hours, and for the most recent quarter, they reported 8.8 GWh. That is a steep decline for them and could indicate more of a consumer shift away from the company. They may have serious work to do in order to win back their customer base and bring sales numbers up.

How Have US Natural Gas Futures Reacted to Trump’s Iran War Message?

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Timothy St. John

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday night that he would be hitting Iran hard, and oil prices soared in response, but U.S. LNG futures have ticked upward.

Rising gas and oil prices are the result on renewed plans to attack Iran.

Increasing Middle East tensions have caused gas and oil prices to skyrocket, and U.S. natural gas futures are now up to $2.86 per British thermal unit. At the same time, Texas Intermediates crude oil is up 11% for the day and Brent crude oil is up 6.24%. Oil prices are reaching highs not seen during the entire Iran conflict.

Trump warned that severe military activity would take place for the next few weeks, extending the expected end to the conflict by much longer than previously thought. It looked like both sides were prepared to reach a resolution quickly earlier in the week, but now the situation has escalated substantially.

Natural Gas May Wind Down Despite Iran War

Coming off a six-month low, natural gas futures are not as high as they were earlier in the Iran conflict. The local U.S. natural gas market is simply not being affected the way the global market is and certainly not the same way oil is. We anticipate that the Iran conflict will continue to impact LNG futures in the United States marginally in the coming weeks, unless a severe global shortage happens and U.S. supplies are needed elsewhere.

The domestic market is more concerned about rising temperatures and high levels of reserve supplies. Production of natural gas is rising as well, and the numbers there are anticipated to increase throughout the year. Investors expect a mild demand for LNG throughout the spring and summer.

One area where the domestic LNG market is performing very well is in global exports. Those export numbers have hit their highest point since the statistics have been recorded- an all-time high. Shipments to Asia in particular are incredibly high, as that part of the world is served by gas that would typically pass through the now highly contested Strait of Hormuz.

This is where we may see the most growth for the U.S. natural gas industry. Even though the United States has plenty of gas to meet its own needs, other countries are not so fortunate and are dealing with limited supplies that have been destroyed or cut off by fighting in and around Iran.

3.7% Drop for Bitcoin on Iran Conflict Escalation

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Timothy St. John

The price of Bitcoin plunged to $65,834 (BTC/USD) on Thursday following an announcement from U.S. President Donald Trump that he would be attacking Tehran.

Bitcoin hit a 2026 low after Trump announcement.

Trump promised to hit Iran hard Wednesday night, and cryptocurrency prices fell deeply as a result, with Bitcoin (BTC) losing 3.7% in a few hours. Gains from earlier in the week have been erased by the news, and unless there is a change in the Middle East conflict, we expect Bitcoin to fall further.

[[BTC/USD]]

Sharp drops plagued the crypto market Thursday morning, with Ethereum (ETH) losing 5% and BNB (BNB) falling 6.8%. Most crypto tokens are now in the red for the week and are still falling in Thursday’s early hours.

Bitcoin Unlikely to Recover Quickly

The current downtrend is swift and strong, eliminating much of Bitcoin’s recent progress. In fact, the BTC rate is now down to its lowest point for the year so far and trade volume has fallen 11%.

On the news of escalating war in Iran, oil prices are climbing quickly. Just a few weeks ago, $100 a barrel was seen as high, but now prices are between $106 and $114 a barrel. While oil prices rise, crypto values sink, because consumers have less money to spend on assets like Bitcoin when they are paying more out of pocket for gas.

Traders should consider the risk of escalation now, and Trump’s announcement is likely to spur increased military action from both sides. That could put even more gas and oil supplies at risk and extend fighting further. Bitcoin’s precarious position near $70K this week simply could not hold up to that intense global pressure. The coin has been volatile and fragile for months, facing a severe souring of consumer sentiment.

The downtrend is a strong test of Bitcoin’s resilience in the face of economic pressure. The coin is at a make-or-break point now as the war intensifies to a white hot heat. If Bitcoin can keep from falling too far and perform better than other leading crypto tokens, it may turn market sentiment around and climb back up quickly after the fighting dies down.

There is a strong chance that Bitcoin will crumble under the pressure, though and will slip close to $50K, which we mentioned recently was a possible bottom for the coin in the short-term. Throughout the fighting, however, Bitcoin has proven more resilient than some assets. For March, Bitcoin finished the month close to 2% higher than it started, but gold dropped by 11%. The Nasdaq Composite fell about 5%, and the Dow lost about 3%.

Trump Speech Pushes Stock Market into Selloff

Posted on April 2, 2026 by Timothy St. John

President Donald Trump vowed to send Iran “to the Stone Age” with his next attack, and U.S. stocks reacted with a swift nosedive on fears of rising inflation and economic tightening.

The escalation of conflict in Iran has shot down stock prices.

Fears over war in the Middle East escalated Thursday after Trump addressed the nation with a promise to hit Iran hard. This news came on the heels of previous rumors during the week that predicted a peaceful, quick end to the fighting. Now, the stock market is reeling as a result, and the Dow is down 600 points.

The Nasdaq Composite dropped 2% and the S&P 500 fell 1.5%. Dow futures dropped 1.4% in a slide comparable to Monday’s decline. Unless news on Iran changes soon, the stock market is headed for a bearish trend that will extend weeks of decline.

Rising Oil Prices Sink Stock Futures

After Trump spoke on Wednesday night about ending the war quickly with strikes on Tehran, oil prices shot up. The price of Brent crude oil rose to $109 per barrel, an increase of 7%. West Texas Intermediate, which is a benchmark for crude oil futures, shot up 10% and hit $110 per barrel. Oil was already expensive when it passed $100 a barrel near the start of the Iran conflict, and the current prices reflect weeks of market upheaval as well as worry about the global supply of oil.

Higher oil and gas prices lead to higher inflation and less spending money for consumers. Investors who would usually be trading on the stock market have to pull back and think about where their money is going and if they can afford to put it into risky equities. The average consumer who does not trade on the stock market will be spending less with many of the companies that make up the stock exchange, leading to smaller profits and lost revenue.

Oil prices are not likely to drop until there is some kind of resolution in Iran. Until then, we expect stocks to tumble further, with extra pressure placed on tech stocks with their recent wild swings between highs and lows.

Thursday is the last day of stock trading for the week, with Good Friday marking the start of the Easter holiday. However, traders should watch for the Friday morning release of the March jobs report, which ADP reported on as a month of increasing jobs. The Iran conflict should not impact those numbers much, but it could definitely affect next month’s jobs report, as the fighting extends to its sixth week.

Gas Futures Drop to $2.85 in the U.S. at Start of April

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Timothy St. John

April signals a psychological start for spring and the first day of the month has left the U.S. natural gas market down 2.85% to hit a four-week low.

Natural gas is down today as the forecasts call for warm weather and April begins.

Natural gas futures fell to $2.85 per British thermal unit on Wednesday as April began, pushed down by warming weather, forecasts of rising temperatures, and increasing production levels. The start of April usually leads to lower LNG rates since investors expect the temperature to heat up during the first full month of spring.

The price of natural gas did increase for the month of March by 0.9%, due mostly to conflict in the Middle East. But that factor affects the U.S. market only marginally due to vast local resources, and there was plenty of pushback against rising prices by warm weather forecasts and increasing reserve levels.

Pricing Factors Keep LNG in Tight Range for Now

Even though global factors are not affecting the price of natural gas in the United States much, the market is not entirely divorced from Middle East unrest and the lack of LNG supplies around the world. The ongoing conflict in Iran has definitely kept the price of natural gas higher than it would be otherwise during a time of rising production levels, higher reserve supplies, and warming weather.

However, those factors are catching up with the price now, especially as the Iran conflict appears to be drawing to a close. With both President Donald Trump and Iran’s government looking for a swift conclusion to the fight, the price of gas is settling down across the globe.

Heating demand is going down domestically, and that lower demand is also affecting U.S. LNG exports, but there are other pricing factors to consider as well. A colder winter is expected at the end of the year than what the States received last year. That information has weighed into the current investment movements and informed them to ensure higher than normal trade volume.

The global market’s LNG crisis may also start to catch up with the United States, and other countries may demand exports from the U.S. if they cannot get it from their normal sources. The news out of the Middle East indicates that the Strait of Hormuz could be locked down for a while longer, and Iran may hold that shipping lane tightly for now.

These factors could push LNG prices higher soon, and investors may want to jump on that low rate quickly before the opportunity disappears. As volatile as the price has been lately, there is little concern that it will stay down to $285 for long.

New Bitcoin Price Prediction after Minor Recovery; Quantum Cracking Fears Persist

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Timothy St. John

Bitcoin (BTC) climbed higher on Wednesday, adding 1.26% to its value and hitting $68,421 (BTC/USD) after sinking the previous day due to a disturbing report from Google’s Quantum AI.

Price predictions look good for Bitcoin right now.

On Tuesday, Bitcoin dipped sharply after a white paper revealed that dormant Bitcoin could be hacked in minutes. But the coin recovered somewhat Wednesday on continued good news from the Iran war front, with both sides apparently looking to end the fighting soon.

[[BTC/USD]]

The price of Bitcoin is now back above $68K, making up for days of losses very quickly. This indicates a level of upward motion that is very promising and that has spurred new Bitcoin price predictions in the wake of frightening realizations about account hacking that could place millions of dollars at risk.

Bitcoin’s Sharp Decline Less Likely Now

The coin made an incredible recovery this week and was not held down for long by worries about hackers using quantum computing to steal bitcoins. The impending Q-Day still worries investors, as that term denotes a time when quantum computers will be able to break some of the strongest and most widely used encryption and will destroy digital security worldwide. As more reports emerge about the risks of quantum computing and their accessibility to determined hackers, investors may become less likely to put their money into digital assets like Bitcoin.

For now, the market is moving upward, with Ethereum (ETH) gaining 1.6% Wednesday after a drop on Tuesday as well. The wider market is seeing broad gains that may not be huge but are an indication of recovery at the same time that the stock market is behaving equally bullish.

Bitcoin’s trade volume is up nearly 6% for the day, and about $41 billion in bitcoins is circulating every 24 hours. Bitcoin ETFs were reported for March and showed gains for the first time in months. The most recent report indicated that there was $1.32 billion in inflows for these ETFs, pointing toward renewed interest and increased confidence in the coin.

Despite steep decline since October and a break-even price for the month of March, Bitcoin is resilient. The pattern emerging shows that the coin is making some progress, and although it may have difficulty holding onto all its gains, the coin is moving steadily closer back to its 2025 highs. This is why many analysts are predicting a strong year for Bitcoin, but a few market hurdles have to be overcome first. The biggest of those is still the low sentiment for cryptocurrency after months of losses.

Bitcoin only gained 1.81% for March, which while disappointing is better than its performance for many months since October. The coin typically does well in April and tends to grow an average of about 12% for the month. If it repeats that feat, we will see Bitcoin end the month at about $76,700.

Big Stock Market Rally Holds on Gains Wednesday Morning

Posted on April 1, 2026 by Timothy St. John

All three major U.S. stock indices looked bullish Wednesday morning after they rallied on Tuesday. Yesterday marked the best day in over a year for the stock market.

Bullish sentiment powers the stock market higher after Tuesday's strong gains. — Bullish sentiment powers the stock market higher after Tuesday’s strong gains.

March ended with a bang for U.S. stock futures, as the Nasdaq Composite jumped nearly 4%. That index and others remained positive as premarket trading began for Wednesday. The quarter and the month ended with losses across much of the market but with a strong upswing at the end spurred by changing conditions in the war in Iran.

President Donald Trump may be looking to resolve the conflict in the Middle East quickly according to reports this week, and he may not wait for the Strait of Hormuz to open for that to happen. The news gave the stock market a much needed boost, causing the Dow and other leading indices to climb sharply.

Bullish Market to Start off April

On Wednesday morning, the market was still holding onto its gains as the Nasdaq added 1.08% and the Dow jumped 0.69%. The S&P 500 index looked bullish as well with an increase of 0.72%. These numbers tell us that the market has some upward momentum and that Tuesday’s jump was not just a fluke to be followed by a quick reversal.

News continued to pour out about the Middle East conflict, with one unconfirmed report stating that Iran’s president was looking to end the war soon as well. Sharp losses for March will plague the market for now, and the indices have a lot of ground to make back to recover from March’s decline.

Microsoft (MSFT) is one of several technology stocks that performed well early this week and made up for losses from the past few days. The tech niche has suffered tremendously throughout the last few months, and Microsoft has weathered storms of scrutiny over their spending even with a strong quarterly performance. Now at $370 per share, the MSFT stock is making upward progress but still has a long way to go to recover from months of decline.

Walmart (WMT) is holding a steady line, neither severely up nor down through the latest developments in the stock market. This is one of the rare notable stocks that has actually improved since January, climbing from $112 per share at the start of the year to its current price of $123. WMT is considered one of the more reliable stocks that tends to perform consistently during stock market upheavals.

One of the biggest stock drops this week came from Nike (NKE), which saw a decline of nearly 14%. The company released their quarterly earnings report this week and beat Wall Street projections for sales. However, they offered a disappointing forecast for the remainder of the year, causing their stock to plummet.

We will likely continue to see wild swings up and down across the stock market this week as investors process new Iran conflict reports. Many of the stocks that struggled last week, however, are showing signs of strong bullish momentum this week.

Broadcom up 4.5% on Major Semiconductor Reversal

Posted on March 31, 2026 by Timothy St. John

Semiconductor stocks turned around on Tuesday after reports said that President Donald Trump is looking for a way to end the Iran war fast, with Broadcom (AVGO) rising 4.53%.

Broadcom stock swung sharply upward as several market factors created a rally.

On Monday, semiconductor stocks plunged sharply, but they recovered on Tuesday amid a stock market rally that saw incredible gains for Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Broadcom, and Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSM). AMD rose 2.85% while TSM gained 5.18%.

These stocks may have been helped by statements from Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell who recently said that long-term inflation is expected to remain stable even with the current energy crisis. His support for stocks allowed falling stocks to regain some lost ground as investor fears settled.

Semiconductor Stocks Return from Slump

Incredible selling pressure has affected semiconductor stocks more than most. Broad technology stocks have also felt the pressure as investors worry that capex spending is out of control for companies invested in artificial intelligence. Broadcom and Advanced Micro Devices have faced scrutiny for their spending in recent months. Rising gas prices have worked against them as well, putting a pinch on the economy, leaving these stocks struggling to maintain growth.

On Monday, semiconductor stocks fell as part of a broad stock market decline. AMD dropped 3%, and AVGO lost 2.4% while the PHLX Semiconductor Sector Index fell 4.2% as the sector experienced a selloff driven by global fears over the ongoing Middle East conflict and worries that supply chains would be disrupted.

The threat of tight margins loomed the largest, though, and even strong quarterly performance from Broadcom and other leading semiconductor companies has not been enough to dispel these worries that capex spending is outpacing profits.

Broadcom stock is back to $307 per share and has regained its pre-weekend position. At the beginning of the month, the company posted their first quarterly earnings. They beat earnings expectations with a year-over-year earnings increase of 29% and posted strong guidance for the remainder of the year. Their earnings per share rose from $1.14 to $1.50, and their net income jumped from $5.50 billion to $7.35 billion.

Powell on $39 Trillion National Debt: “Not Unsustainable”

Posted on March 31, 2026 by Timothy St. John

Jerome Powell, the Federal Reserve chairman who has repeatedly clashed with President Donald Trump, spoke Monday about the $39 trillion in national debt, calling it “not unsustainable.”

Powell spoke this week about the sustainability of the national debt level.

Powell said that even though the current U.S. debt level can be sustained, it is on a trajectory that according to him will not end well. These comments were made at Harvard University while speaking to an economics class. He said that the current debt is not going to be dangerous right away but will in time require action from the government to deal with it.

He warned that something needs to be done soon to curb spending and reduce the national debt. Powell has pushed back against efforts to cut interest rates, concerned that such cuts will lead to higher inflation. This stance has brought him into conflict with Trump multiple times, and the Trump administration has launched an investigation into Powell’s affairs in an effort to (according to Powell) discredit him or replace him.

The Rising Cost of War Takes Its Toll

The conflict in the Middle East has caused gas prices in the United States to soar around $4 per gallon. The price of oil has climbed to over $100 a barrel, making this precious commodity less and less affordable over the past few weeks. Any time the United States is involved in a conflict like this, the national debt climbs higher. That is because an international war involves extensive resources to deploy troops and supplies over long distances. The United States spares little expense in extending its supply lines to the fighting area.

Those costs tend to trickle down to consumers, resulting in higher prices as the government works to make back its costs. That all adds up over time, but even the mounting pile of national debt is not enough to cripple the U.S. economy. Because the country is a major lender to other nations, it can sustain high levels of debt for longer than other countries might be able to.

Powell shared his specific concerns about the national debt to students, saying that the debt is growing faster than it has previously. The incredible spending required to do all of the things President Trump has tried to do is tremendous and is building up the debt level faster than it can be paid off. Powell says that will lead to conditions that are not sustainable at some point. Interest payments for the national debt are now calculated to be around $1 trillion per year.

U.S. Natural Gas Dropped to 4-Week Low as Temperatures Warm

Posted on March 31, 2026 by Timothy St. John

Rising temperatures brought the price of LNG futures down in the United States to a four-week low of $2.82 per million British thermal units.

LNG rates swung upward on Tuesday before the afternoon as large withdrawals were reported.

U.S. natural gas fell on Tuesday as warm weather forecasts rolled out and the temperature across the States warmed further. The price hit a low for the month but did not stay down for long. A 2.8% increase swept through the market and brought the price back up to $2.96.

Now, the natural gas price remains very close to its $3 level that it has maintained for much of the past month. This quick uptick may be due to changing factors in the Iran war which have mildly influenced the U.S. LNG market.

The United States As a Gas Island

The war in Iran has pushed gas and oil prices much higher around the world for weeks now. The price of oil has climbed to over $100 per barrel and stayed above that level for most of the four weeks the war has been going on. As prices rise sharply in the Middle East, Europe, and Asia, LNG rates have stayed close to $3 in the United States. That is because the country has its own ample supply of LNG and is not reliant on outside sources for this resource.

The United States has operated as a gas island for much of the war, providing its own LNG and not needing supplies from the Middle East. As the world wrestles with limited gas and oil while Iran, Israel, and the United states attack each others’ shipping vessels and oil plants, the U.S. gas market has moved along almost as normal.

The biggest factor affecting the price of LNG in the U.S. for now is the weather. With springtime comes warmer temperatures, and with winter now over, the market is expected to dry up and see lower prices. Decreasing demand is driving LNG futures lower and should continue to do so for the coming months. Weather forecasts call for more warm weather, and production levels are high across the United States.

Temperatures are above average at the moment and should stay that way until the middle of next month, according to forecasts. Heating needs will be severely limited, and reserve levels are expected to rise rapidly. The EIA reported that last week’s withdrawal was larger than expected, but it may be the last such large withdrawal for a while, since last week closed off winter.

The U.S. LNG market is only marginally affected by the war in Iran, but that conflict could be ending soon. A new report say that Trump is discussing plans to bring the fighting to a close, even without the Strait of Hormuz and its crucial shipping lanes back up and open.