WS #13396

The dominant theme is the US-Iran de-escalation narrative, which is ESCALATING in credibility. Multiple high-signal sources (BBC, FT, Reuters, Bloomberg, GDELT) corroborate that Treasury Secretary Bessent and Secretary of State Rubio both signaled a potential deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz as soon as today or tomorrow, with Qatar confirming a proposal is circulating. This drove Brent crude down ~4-5% to under $80 and WTI to ~$76, a three-week low, while US equities (Dow, S&P 500) hit record highs. The oil price drop is a direct counter-signal to the prevailing war-driven oil spike thesis, and it is feeding through to Treasuries (falling rate-hike wagers) and the yen (post-intervention strength). However, a Reuters report that the US has used 'virtually all' of its long-range precision missiles (ATACMS/PrSM) and ~65% of Patriot interceptors introduces a new geopolitical risk layer that could reignite oil volatility if talks fail. Separately, Palantir (PLTR) surged ~25% on 'otherworldly' Q2 results (revenue +93% to $1.94B), reinforcing the AI demand narrative and lifting the Nasdaq; this is a MAG7-adjacent positive that contradicts any lingering AI-bubble bearishness. Amazon (AMZN) crossed $3 trillion market cap on AWS demand, but faces a new antitrust lawsuit from New Jersey over delivery driver pay. SpaceX reports first earnings tonight with a lockup expiry Thursday, a high-volatility event for SPCX and related names.