WS #6080

The dominant narrative remains the Iran conflict and its impact on oil markets, with Brent crude near $108/barrel and Strait of Hormuz tensions escalating. US Secretary of State Rubio stated the US cannot tolerate Iranian control of the Strait, while Iran blamed the US for stalled peace talks. Oil futures extended gains, with US heating oil prices up 5% to a two-week high. A Ukrainian drone attack disabled over 60% of storage facilities at Russia's Tuapse oil refinery, adding supply-side pressure. China blocked Meta's acquisition of AI startup Manus, introducing geopolitical risk to tech M&A and weighing on META. Microsoft shares slipped after OpenAI amended partnership terms, increasing flexibility for OpenAI. TSLA's FSD Supervised received Dutch approval, setting the stage for EU rollout. Shell is reportedly buying ARC Resources in a $22B deal, consolidating North American natural gas. The US Supreme Court reinstated a Texas electoral map favoring Republicans, potentially flipping up to five House seats. Other items are noise: analyst rating changes, earnings previews, and non-market news.