WS #12628

The dominant signal in this window is an escalation in the US-Iran conflict, with President Trump threatening to destroy Iranian bridges or power plants in retaliation for any attack on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has responded with a warning to strike regional infrastructure linked to US interests. This marks a significant escalation from the previous stable narrative. Separately, AMD announced a $5 billion investment in Anthropic for AI infrastructure, a bullish signal for AMD and AI-related names. Reddit is reportedly reconsidering its Google AI content deal, sending RDDT lower. USTR Greer made multiple statements on trade, including accelerating domestic critical minerals production to reduce reliance on China, and strengthening USMCA rules of origin. The US-Iran escalation is the highest-significance development, with direct implications for oil prices, energy stocks, and broader market risk sentiment.