WS #13813

The Strait of Hormuz crisis remains the dominant market driver, with oil prices surging ~4% (WTI ~$81, Brent ~$87) as Iran reiterates that the strait will not reopen until the US meets all conditions (lift blockade, end sanctions, pay reparations). This is corroborated by multiple sources (pro-wire, GDELT, OilPrice, jetstream). European natural gas (TTF) jumped 10% to €61.31/MWh on failed Iran-Oman deal hopes, and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell below 300 million barrels, adding to supply concerns. The narrative is ESCALATING with no counter-signals. Separately, Intel announced a $15 billion share sale to fund its foundry expansion, causing shares to fall ~4%; this is a significant capital raise that dilutes existing shareholders. Apple continues to face headwinds: Jefferies downgraded to Underperform (PT $263.66) on canceled all-glass iPhone, and it is testing CXMT memory chips from China, which is politically sensitive. The AI infrastructure financing deal (Nvidia with Apollo, Blackstone, BlackRock, Brookfield, Goldman, KKR) is confirmed by FT and Reuters, with Nvidia also planning a $3B stake in Lancium. Cybersecurity stocks (CrowdStrike, Palo Alto) hit records after Black Hat conference, signaling strong demand for AI security tools. JPMorgan raised its S&P 500 target to 8000, citing strong earnings and AI capex returns. The Colombia earthquake (7.4) is a humanitarian event with limited direct market impact. Overall, the key themes are oil/energy, AI infrastructure, and tech-specific moves (Intel, Apple).