WS #13482

The dominant theme remains the imminent US-Iran-Oman interim deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which is ESCALATING toward a resolution. Iran confirmed it has agreed with Oman on the geographical coordinates of a shipping route through the Strait, with a joint statement in final drafting, contingent on no third-party (US) obstruction. This corroborates earlier reports and is a counter-signal to the oil-supply-crisis thesis: oil prices are falling (WTI near three-week low, Brent ~$80.43), while gold surges (+3.49% to $4,250.70) and the Dow hits record highs. However, Houthis claim a missile strike on a Saudi oil tanker in the Gulf of Aden (UKMTO reports an incident, no damage), keeping some geopolitical risk premium. Separately, Alphabet shares fell ~4-5% after Jeff Dean, Google's chief AI scientist, departed to launch a startup, and Demis Hassabis stepped down as DeepMind CEO—raising concerns about AI talent retention and competitive positioning against OpenAI/Anthropic. This is a MAG7 carve-out: GOOGL is diverging from the broader tech rally. Also, Microsoft disclosures suggest OpenAI accounts for ~70% of its AI sales ($24.1B in fiscal 2026), a key data point for MSFT. SpaceX stock dropped ~11% on debut earnings despite revenue beat, as AI capex concerns weigh; AMD also fell ~8% despite beating estimates, with inverse ETFs surging. These tech-specific selloffs contrast with the Hormuz-driven rally in Dow and gold.