WS #9432

The dominant signal in this window is a significant escalation in US-Iran military conflict, with multiple independent sources confirming a second wave of US strikes targeting Iranian air defense, radar installations near the Strait of Hormuz, and locations including Qeshm Island, Jask, Bandar Abbas, and Sirik. Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps has threatened decisive retaliation, and Iranian ballistic missiles and drones are reportedly being launched toward US military bases. A US official characterized the strikes as a 'warning shot' that won't derail potential peace negotiations, but the situation is clearly escalating. This development is highly market-moving, with direct implications for oil prices (WTI, Brent), energy stocks, and broader risk sentiment. Gold is extending its fall amid the renewed clashes, per Bloomberg. Separately, SpaceX told investors it plans to launch orbital AI-compute tests by 2027, and ProShares is launching a 2x leveraged SpaceX ETF on the same day as the IPO. Other items (Rocket Companies notes pricing, Super Micro financing commentary, DeFi hack pattern, Ether futures open interest decline) are lower significance or noise.