u/optimusprime006

$QNCX
Entry above: $.34 🎯 $.37/$.40 🛑 $.32
$BBGI
Entry above: $5.45 🎯 $5.80/$6.30 🛑 $5.25
$CYCU
Entry above: $1.75 🎯 $1.95/$2.15 🛑 $1.65
$GPUS
Entry above: $.1770 🎯 $.195/$0.22 🛑 $.16

Note: These are trade ideas based on break-out levels, once they hit entry & start moving up, consider raising your stops to protect your profits and protect your downside according to your own trading plan :). Mad Maverick personally trades these on either the 2- or 3-minute timeframes, waiting for a candle to close over the entry level.

Although we do extensive research for our watchlist, day trading, especially with low-float stocks, can be risky.

Big development today. According to a statement from President Trump, the U.S. is pausing military action against Iran for two weeks after discussions with Pakistan’s leadership. The pause is tied to Iran agreeing to fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz — a major global shipping and oil route.

A few key points from the announcement:

• Pakistan’s Prime Minister and military leadership asked the U.S. to hold off on further strikes
• Iran agreed to the complete and immediate reopening of the Strait of Hormuz
• Both sides are entering a two‑week ceasefire window
• The U.S. says it has already met its military objectives
• Iran submitted a 10‑point proposal that the administration believes is a workable basis for a long‑term peace agreement
• The statement claims most major points of contention between the U.S. and Iran are close to being resolved

If this holds, it could mark a major shift in the current conflict and potentially reshape the broader Middle East situation.

Curious what everyone thinks — is this a genuine step toward de‑escalation, or just a temporary pause before things heats up again?

https://preview.redd.it/db51ln6joutg1.png?width=694&format=png&auto=webp&s=08a266e5619fab52122536acbfe703fbc37f9407

https://preview.redd.it/rziesofj7stg1.png?width=585&format=png&auto=webp&s=a039cc07b55a48d2d6cf64d6d26cd61a43126c04

If you've seen Trump's latest Truth Social post about "a whole civilization dying tonight" and "Complete and Total Regime Change" in Iran, here's the full backstory because it's a lot more complicated than it sounds.

The backstory

On February 28, 2026, the U.S. and Israel launched a joint bombing campaign against Iran. The strikes killed Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who Trump called "one of the evilest people in history." The war has now been going on for over five weeks.

What Trump means by "regime change"

Trump has been aggressively pushing the narrative that regime change has already occurred. He told reporters aboard Air Force One that "the one regime was decimated, destroyed, they're all dead. The next regime is mostly dead. And the third regime — we're dealing with different people than anybody's dealt with before."

But experts strongly disagree. Most political scientists and analysts say true regime change involves transforming how a country is governed, not merely replacing people at the top of the same system. The people who have replaced senior leaders are known as equally hardline or arguably more militant than their predecessors, according to Western officials and experts on Iran.

Iran's new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei — son of the slain leader — has strong ties to the IRGC, who elevated him to the position, making him more beholden to the Revolutionary Guards than his father. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps appears to remain firmly in control and may actually be in a stronger position than before the conflict.

Where negotiations stand

The U.S. is reportedly in talks with Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammed-Baqer Qalibaf and is eyeing him as a potential U.S.-backed leader, though Qalibaf has denied direct negotiations with the Trump administration, with Pakistan officially serving as the intermediary.

By the Pentagon's accounting, Operation Epic Fury has degraded roughly 90% of Iran's missile capacity, neutralized about 70% of its launchers, and disabled or destroyed more than 150 naval vessels. Yet achieving the broader objectives — permanently blocking Tehran's path to a nuclear weapon and replacing the theocratic hardliners with a friendlier regime — on the compressed timeline the White House embraced remains increasingly unlikely.

What this means for markets

This is where it gets really ugly for your portfolio.

The 2026 Iran war, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, has led to what the International Energy Agency characterized as the "largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market."

Brent crude rose to $112.57 per barrel — its highest level since 2022 — up from around $73 per barrel before the strikes began on February 28. The Dow and S&P 500 are each on track for their worst month since September 2022, with the Dow having dropped 10% from its record high in February, putting it in correction territory.

Rising defense outlays could widen deficits and push long-term Treasury yields higher, raising borrowing costs and weighing on rate-sensitive markets. The key economic risk is the war's duration — sustained higher oil prices can broaden into other costs and raise the odds of higher rates for longer, while weighing on economic activity.

If the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed for weeks, Goldman Sachs predicts oil could cross $100 (already hit), gasoline in the U.S. will remain above $4 per gallon, and inflation could become a persistent problem.

LNG prices have risen almost 60% since the war began. On March 2, Qatar Energy suspended LNG production after an Iranian drone attack — Qatar supplies 20% of the world's LNG.

Winners so far: defense stocks (Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin), U.S. oil majors (Exxon, Chevron), and ironically, Russian energy companies. Losers: basically, everything else, especially Asian markets with massive exposure to Gulf energy.

Bottom line

Trump's post tonight appears to be tied to ongoing negotiations, but analysts say there is no true regime change — the same authoritarian structure remains, possibly more hardline than before. Markets are going to keep reacting violently to every tweet, every ceasefire rumor, and every update on the Strait of Hormuz. Gas prices have already surged past $4 per gallon, stock markets have tumbled to multi-year lows, and millions of Americans are preparing to take to the streets in protest. The endgame remains deeply unclear.

Stay hedged, watch oil, and buckle up.

$SILO
Entry above: $.6150 🎯 $.67/$.72 🛑 $.58
$ADVB
Entry above: $7.50 🎯 $8.00/$8.50 🛑 $7.25
$AIXI
Entry above: $1.08 🎯 $1.20/$1.30 🛑 $1.03
$IPST
Entry above: $.40 🎯 $.46/$.50 🛑 $.37

Note: These are trade ideas based on break-out levels, once they hit entry & start moving up, consider raising your stops to protect your profits and protect your downside according to your own trading plan :). MadMaverick personally trades these on either the 2 or 3 minute timeframes, waiting for a candle to close over the entry level.

Although we do extensive research for our watchlist, day trading, especially with low-float stocks, can be risky.

$PFSA
Entry above: $1.93 🎯 $2.10/$2.30 🛑 $1.85
$AIXI
Entry above: $.3750 🎯 $.40/$.43 🛑 $.35
$MAXN
Entry above: $1.19 🎯 $1.30/$1.40 🛑 $1.10
$SMX
Entry above: $15.30 🎯 $16/$17 🛑 $14.90

Note: These are trade ideas based on break-out levels, once they hit entry & start moving up, consider raising your stops to protect your profits and protect your downside according to your own trading plan :). MadMaverick personally trades these on either the 2 or 3 minute timeframes, waiting for a candle to close over the entry level.

Although we do extensive research for our watchlist, day trading, especially with low-float stocks, can be risky.