Dow Down, Tmd Energy Up

The Dow fell today while the NASDAQ and S&P rose.

The NASDAQ rose 80.65 points.

The DOW fell 73.14 points.

The S&P rose 2.74 points.

Today's volatility can be attributed to the recent US-Israel Iran strikes. The strikes which have claimed numerous fatalities also killed long time Iranian Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei. Khamenei was in office as Iran's second Supreme Leader since the 1979 Iranian Revolution for over 40 years. He ascended to the position in 1989 after participating in the revolution and holding numerous offices in the ensuing administrations. As Iran's second and longest serving Supreme Leader, he is notable for consolidating power under Islamic Sharia Law, and delivering brutal and tyrannical military responses to those who opposed his regime. The strikes follow on from recent uprisings in Iran where several hundreds of thousands of Iranian citizens have been killed by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the IRGC. As Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Khamenei was Iran's executive leader and commander-in-chief of the IRGC. A successor has not been named to replace deceased Ayatollah, Khamenei. The international community expects Iran's Assembly of Experts to name a replacement soon with Ayatollah Alireza Arafi as the frontrunner. Also likely to succeed Ayatollah Khamenei is Mojtaba Khamenei, his second eldest son, or Hassan Khomeini, Iran's founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's grandson.

All this as Tmd Energy shares rose 2.14 points to end the day at $3.06 per share. Tmd's shares rose amid a market surge in oil and gas prices because of the developing situation in Iran. The conflict has severely disrupted global energy supply chains and injected a growing wave of uncertainty into the market. The most significant driver of the increased oil prices is the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Following the initial strikes, Iran blocked traffic through the strait, and shipping companies are refusing to risk passage after several vessels were hit. Roughly 20% of the world's crude oil supply passes through this narrow chokepoint. Traders are heavily pricing in the fear factor of a prolonged war that could spill over into neighboring oil-producing nations. Notable increases followed stocks such as Battalion Oil (+$6.28), Sunation Energy (+$0.12), and Trio Petroleum (+$0.70).