WS #13709

The dominant theme remains the Strait of Hormuz crisis, which is STABLE but with a new escalation risk: Iran's Supreme National Security Council issued a hardline statement demanding the US 'correct its behavior,' including permanent end to the war, lifting the naval blockade, withdrawing military, full compensation for war damage, lifting sanctions, and releasing frozen assets before the strait reopens. This comes as Iran and Oman are 'very close' to a shipping management deal, but Iran explicitly stated that an Oman deal alone will not reopen the strait. The UAE reported an Iranian missile targeted one of its oil tankers (ADNOC), adding to tensions. Oil prices rebounded slightly (+0.7% to $84.39 Brent) after a 7% plunge, reflecting unresolved supply fears. Counter-signal: US VP Vance said Iran told the US they will allow maximum oil flow through the strait, but the US 'doesn't trust, verifies' — this is a potential de-escalation signal that could dampen bearish oil sentiment if credible. Also, OPEC+ production increases (Kuwait, Saudi, Iraq) are pressuring oil prices down, with WTI at $78.18 and Brent at $83.55, down 7.67% and 4.98% on the week respectively. This counters the bullish oil thesis from the Hormuz crisis. Corporate news: Berkshire Hathaway disclosed buying $10 billion of Alphabet stock and repurchasing $4.5 billion of its own shares, with cash down to $365.5 billion — a high-significance positive for GOOGL and BRK. Alphabet is also seeking $20-25 billion in a bond offering to fund AI infrastructure, its first-ever negative free cash flow in Q2. Amazon's planned Texas data center gas plant could become the largest US climate polluter (33M tons CO2/year), drawing political and regulatory scrutiny. Apple filed a lawsuit accusing OpenAI of stealing trade secrets and poaching 400+ employees, escalating legal tensions. Verizon experienced a major service outage affecting thousands of customers, a minor negative for VZ. Canada is racing to avoid Trump's 50% tariffs on $20B of goods by Aug 19, with talks ongoing. Trump warned Texas against data center pushback, saying the industry could be bigger than oil, which is supportive for data center and tech infrastructure names.