WS #12520

The dominant market-moving signals in this window are: (1) Trump imposes 50% tariffs on Canadian goods (autos, alcohol, dairy) under Section 338 of the 1930 Tariff Act, effective in 30 days, excluding energy and critical minerals — this escalates US-Canada trade tensions and could boost domestic producers but hurt importers. (2) US-Iran conflict intensifies: US launches 10th consecutive night of strikes, Iran declares 'full-scale war', war insurance rates in Strait of Hormuz hit 10%, and mediators propose a 10-day ceasefire — oil prices remain elevated but a truce could ease supply fears. (3) Paramount-WBD merger temporarily blocked by federal judge for 14 days, creating uncertainty for media stocks. (4) Andy Burnham becomes UK PM, appoints cabinet, and had a 'very good conversation' with Trump — UK political transition is stable. (5) Google developing 'Frozen v2' AI chip for 2028, potentially boosting GOOGL. (6) IREN signed $2.8B AI contracts, lifting bitcoin miner stocks. (7) Hut 8 signs $9.8B AI data center lease, signaling AI infrastructure demand. (8) SK Hynix to raise 43 trillion won in ADR listing — capital raise for memory chip giant. (9) New Zealand Q2 inflation at 4.1% vs expected, slightly above forecast. (10) Colossal Biosciences in talks at $20B-$30B valuation. The US-Iran conflict and Canada tariffs are the highest-significance themes, with a potential ceasefire counter-signal emerging.