WS #7259

The dominant signal in this window is the U.S. approval of Nvidia H200 chip sales to Chinese firms including Alibaba, ByteDance, Tencent, and JD.com, with distributors Lenovo and Foxconn also authorized. This is a major de-escalation in the tech trade war, directly bullish for NVDA and the Chinese tech names. The Trump-Xi summit continues with positive rhetoric—Xi called for expanded cooperation in trade, agriculture, healthcare, and tourism, and proposed a new 'constructive strategic stable relations' positioning. However, Xi also urged the U.S. to handle the Taiwan issue with 'utmost prudence,' maintaining a latent risk. The Ukraine conflict is escalating: Russia launched over 1,560 drones and 700+ missiles overnight, striking Kyiv (building collapse with trapped residents) and Odesa port/rail infrastructure. This adds to geopolitical risk premiums, supporting energy and defense. In corporate news, Nvidia surpassed silver to become the world's second-largest asset at $5.52 trillion, underscoring AI mania. Cerebras Systems secured $5.55B in the year's largest IPO, confirming strong AI demand. Honda reported its first annual loss but guided for a return to profit in FY27. The ECB signaled it would hike if oil de-anchors inflation expectations, a hawkish counter to the prevailing rate-cut narrative. India asked the U.S. for an extension of its Russian oil waiver, highlighting energy supply stress. The U.S. paused troop rotations to Europe, a potential signal of strategic reprioritization. The UK political scene saw Angela Rayner cleared by HMRC, removing a barrier to a potential Labour leadership challenge. Overall, the dominant theme is the U.S.-China tech détente (ESCALATING in significance) offsetting some geopolitical risks, while Ukraine escalation and ECB hawkishness provide counterweights.