WS #8884
The Iran-US conflict narrative remains dominant but no new military exchanges or diplomatic moves were reported in the last 30 minutes. The St. Petersburg oil terminal fire and Bitcoin fear gauge surge are unchanged. No counter-signals or de-escalation developments surfaced. The only new item is a routine update on DeepSeek's funding round, which is not market-moving. Overall, the situation is STABLE with no material changes.
Key developments
- Iran confirms retaliatory strikes against US targets; Kuwait airport hit by Iranian drones, injuries reported
- Ukrainian drones strike St. Petersburg oil terminal on opening day of Russian economic forum
- Bitcoin fear gauge surges 20% (biggest since Feb 5 crash); BTC dips below $66k on ETF outflows and geopolitical fears
- SpaceX plans to set IPO terms Wednesday; aims to sell 555.6M shares at $135, valuing up to $75B
- Japan's Nikkei hits record high above 68,000 on AI boom; Asian tech shares rally past Middle East tensions
- US proposes new tariffs of at least 10% on imports from 60 trading partners over forced labor
- Hezbollah claims 13 attacks on Israeli military in Southern Lebanon
- Dan Ives says market 'mispricing' Microsoft's AI opportunity; supports Alphabet's $80B fundraising