🚀 Markets rallying

Market Overview
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Year To Date Performances:

1. U.S. stocks mounted a relief rally on Friday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 333 points (0.7%) alongside a 0.6% rise in the S&P 500, propelled by a 3% boost in Apple and a 4% drop in crude oil prices following reports that Pakistan, backed by China, is exploring diplomatic avenues to broker U.S.-Iran peace talks. The retreat in oil—with Brent falling to around $95 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate to $88—offered investors temporary respite from escalating geopolitical tensions after U.S. President Donald Trump signalled potential massive strikes following 13 consecutive nights of military action. Despite broad market gains across most S&P 500 sectors, semiconductor equities faced headwinds as Intel slipped 3% despite beating Q2 expectations, dragging down peers like Broadcom, Advanced Micro Devices, and Micron Technology. While the diplomatic developments provided short-term optimism, persistent energy market volatility keeps inflationary risks elevated and expectations firm that Federal Reserve leadership will maintain a cautious monetary stance.

2. A coalition of 25 prominent tech organizations—including Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta, IBM, and Palantir—issued a joint letter warning U.S. policymakers against placing "premature restrictions" on open-weight AI models. The plea follows growing debates in Washington over foreign competition, particularly after Chinese startup Moonshot AI released its open-weight Kimi K3 model, leading U.S. officials to raise concerns about intellectual property theft and covert model distillation. Signatories—amplified by Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang in his first-ever post on X—argue that downloadable, modifiable models democratize innovation, strengthen cybersecurity through open inspection, and prevent market concentration in a few closed systems, contending that IP concerns should be addressed through targeted legal frameworks rather than sweeping bans. Prominent closed-model developers OpenAI and Anthropic notably refrained from signing, underscoring an accelerating division within Silicon Valley over whether American technological leadership is better served by tightly guarded proprietary systems or an open, decentralized ecosystem.

3. Intel reported strong second-quarter financial results driven by the ongoing AI infrastructure boom, posting its fastest revenue growth in nearly 15 years with a 25% year-over-year surge to $16.1 billion and adjusted earnings per share of 42 cents—handily topping Wall Street expectations. The performance was led by its data center business, where revenue jumped 59% to $6.3 billion amid supply constraints for server processors, alongside a 31% rise in foundry sales to $5.8 billion and a gross margin recovery to 42%. Although the chipmaker issued third-quarter guidance that exceeded consensus and announced 10 long-term agreements with customers to lock in pricing and volume, Intel's stock fell in Friday trading—reversing initial post-earnings gains—as investors weighed planned increases in capital expenditures for tooling its 14A manufacturing process against the ongoing lack of a major external customer for its contract foundry business.

   Headlines

   1. Honda has confirmed it will launch a new version of the Ridgeline truck after pausing production last year.

   2. Wealth accumulated by AI’s gains is causing a rise in the price of collectibles, including watches, art and historical artifacts.