Middle East Makers of LPG Still Sending Supply to Global Markets
Shipments of liquefied petroleum gas — a fuel used in petrochemicals and cooking — have continued to global markets via the Strait of Hormuz, the maritime chokepoint that's closely watched at times of tension in the Middle East.
The number of LPG carriers traveling to and from Middle East producers via the strait has remained stable since the conflict between Israel and Iran began last week, according to vessel-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Iran relies on the route for its LPG exports, as well as crude oil, particularly to China.
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21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
The 5 arguments against continued dominance for AI stocks
AI stocks have surged since November 2022, with Nvidia up 761% and Palantir more than 600%. But some experts warn of high valuations and potential overestimation of AI's economic impact. Geopolitical risks, like China-Taiwan tensions, could also disrupt the AI supply chain. Since November 2022, artificial intelligence stocks have been the place to be in the market. Nvidia is up 761% over that time. Palantir is up 604%. Taiwan Semiconductor has returned 165%. And Microsoft is up 88%. It's been a gold rush. But how long can the AI trade last? Some experts, like Morgan Stanley's Head of Global Research Katy Huberty, have said that we're still in the early innings of the technology and robust returns still lie ahead. Few seem to refute the idea that AI will transform the US economy to some degree and be an eventual boon for profits. But some have urged caution about investing in the theme after such a huge run of outperformance. Irrational exuberance and greed are running rampant, they worry, potentially setting AI stocks up for a spectacular bust somewhere down the line. While the outlook on the technology's role in the economy is bullish, there are some threats to AI's dominance in the stock market. Five of them are detailed below. Generally speaking, AI stocks are expensive with their prices relative to their earnings over the last 12 months at elevated levels. For example, the iShares Future AI & Tech ETF (ARTY) has an average trailing 12 months PE ratio of 35.2, and the The Technology Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLK) is trading at 36.7 times earnings. Nvidia trades at a 45 PE ratio. By comparison, the S&P 500, which is at historically expensive levels, has a 23.7 PE. While AI stocks may have stronger growth prospects than those in other industries, high valuations mean those prospects are already priced in. If actual earnings performance underwhelms compared to expectation, then the stocks could start to underperform. High valuations tend to weigh on long-term performance. For example, Microsoft traded at 72-times trailing earnings in 2000. While it went on to lead the way in internet technology, it didn't recover its 2000 highs until 2016. AI may make tasks more efficient, but perhaps not to the degree the market thinks, said Jim Covello, head of Global Equity Research at Goldman Sachs, in a June 2024 report. "People generally substantially overestimate what the technology is capable of today. In our experience, even basic summarization tasks often yield illegible and nonsensical results," Covello wrote. "This is not a matter of just some tweaks being required here and there; despite its expensive price tag, the technology is nowhere near where it needs to be in order to be useful for even such basic tasks," he continued. "And I struggle to believe that the technology will ever achieve the cognitive reasoning required to substantially augment or replace human interactions." This could hurt AI firms, which are pumping hundreds of billions into building out AI infrastructure. What if, in the end, the mammoth spending isn't worth it? Another risk is that you end up investing in the wrong stocks altogether. Just because certain stocks are pioneering a technology, doesn't mean that they will continue to do so. The presumption five years ago "would have been that Intel would be the dominant player" in the AI space, Research Affiliates Founder Rob Arnott told BI in November. "Well, Intel is teetering perilously close to irrelevance, and Nvidia wasn't on anyone's radar screen five years ago. So disruptors get disrupted." As foreign investors start to pull back from US Treasury bonds amid an expanding national debt, and as tariffs and Trump's tax cut bill threaten to boost inflation, long-term Treasury yields are trending upward. When long-end yields go too high, it has historically hurt growth stock performance and brought down valuations. Higher-risk free yields start to attract money, and risky and expensive stocks start to lose their luster. One of the key players in AI development is chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor. If China were to invade Taiwan, as it has threatened, the AI supply chain could be severely interrupted. "The moment conflict starts in the Taiwan Strait, you have to assume that TSMC shuts down very, very quickly regardless of what any of the players decide to do — regardless of whether anyone decides to disrupt the supply chain or destroy this or that or not," said Chris Miller, author "Chip War," in an interview with BI last year. "Taiwan imports a big chunk of its energy and chip factories need energy. And there are a bunch of critical chemicals and materials that are imported into Taiwan, and those would stop," he continued. "What's more, you couldn't get the ships out of Taiwan if there was a shooting war going on. And so your incentive to produce a lot also declines very rapidly if you can't actually sell chips or get them off-island." Read the original article on Business Insider Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
21 minutes ago
- Yahoo
The Bombs the US Could Deploy If Trump Strikes Iran
(Bloomberg) -- US President Donald Trump has a wide range of military assets in the Middle East and across the globe to bring to bear in a potential fight against Iran as he weighs one of the most momentous foreign policy decisions of his administration. Security Concerns Hit Some of the World's 'Most Livable Cities' As Part of a $45 Billion Push, ICE Prepares for a Vast Expansion of Detention Space How E-Scooters Conquered (Most of) Europe As American Architects Gather in Boston, Retrofits Are All the Rage Taser-Maker Axon Triggers a NIMBY Backlash in its Hometown That arsenal includes powerfully destructive bombs, long-range stealth bombers, an aircraft carrier strike group, Navy destroyers and US troops — offering Trump multiple options if he decides to intervene more directly in support of Israel. Some resources like the B-2 bomber are in the US while other assets are either in the region or on the way. It's unclear whether Trump will deepen US involvement beyond helping Israel defend against Iranian air attacks as he has done in recent days. On Tuesday afternoon, the president gathered his national security staff for a White House Situation Room meeting. The administration, though, has been surging military resources to US Central Command, which oversees the Pentagon's operations in the region. And forces already in the area include naval and air power that could play a crucial role in any US action against Iran. The Islamic Republic has already suffered its worst assault in decades, with Israel's strikes on the country's nuclear and military infrastructure damaging key facilities and killing senior personnel. One weapon, though, is seen as particularly effective if the situation were to escalate and draw the direct involvement of the US. The Massive Ordnance Penetrator or 'MOP' — better known as the bunker-buster bomb — weighs 30,000 pounds and is the world's largest precision-guided weapon. The GPS-directed bomb, assembled by Boeing Co., has been touted repeatedly as the only weapon capable of delivering a knockout blow to Tehran's atomic ambitions, which would require a successful strike on the heavily protected enrichment site at Fordow. Hidden beneath a mountain and believed to be buried around 60 to 90 meters deep, many experts believe that damaging Fordow can be achieved only by the MOP — a weapon the US alone possesses. Each bunker buster can be independently targeted and released, 'making it possible to deliver a MOP right on top of another MOP,' said Rebecca Grant, a Lexington Institute analyst. Grant said drone surveillance in the area could also help the military 'refine the strike' at the last minute and noted that Iranian nuclear facilities such as Fordow have been studied by the US for years. The decision on whether to use that weapon is poised to be one of the most critical Trump makes. The bomb could alter Iran's decision-making over its nuclear program and because its deployment would involve American planes and pilots it would place the US at the center of an offensive military action. 'If Israel can achieve that result through its operations, that is the best case,' said Daniel Shapiro, a former US ambassador to Israel and onetime deputy assistant defense secretary. 'But if it requires US participation to target the Fordow facility, that has to be on the table for President Trump to consider.' Stealth Bombers Deploying the MOP would involve another crucial military asset, the B-2 stealth bomber, which can carry two of them. The B-2 would fly thousands of miles from Whiteman Air Force Base in Missouri to deliver the bombs deep within Iran. The US demonstrated the power of its B-2 fleet in October, when bombers flew from Whiteman to hammer Iran-backed Houthi weapons facilities buried underground. Earlier this year, as many as six B-2s were spotted on a runway on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean in a deployment that was interpreted by many as a message to both Iran and the Houthis. The Air Force said those aircraft returned to their base in May. US Central Command, which oversees the longstanding US military presence in the Middle East, would play a key role in any operations on Iran, with responsibility for a force spread across multiple countries, including Egypt, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and drawing on troops from different military services and special operations forces. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has 'directed the deployment of additional capabilities' to the command. The administration is also sending as many as 20 KC-135 and newer KC-46 aerial refueling tankers to undisclosed locations, according to a defense official, helping extend the range of US air power. Those resources would offer Trump additional flexibility in determining his course of action. US personnel in the region, including Army, Air Force, Marine Corps and Navy servicemembers, number 40,000-45,000, according to the most recent Central Command figures. The Navy is also poised to be a critical component, with resources that can both aid any action on Iran and have already been employed to help protect Israel from retaliatory strikes. The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier strike group has been in the region of the Arabian Sea for seven months. The ship carries about 3,000 sailors, according to the Navy, with another 2,000 in its air wing. The air wing boasts an extensive array of military hardware, including F-35 and F-18 fighter jets, EA-18 aircraft that can disrupt enemy radar and communication systems, E-2Ds with advanced radar to help identity threats more quickly, as well as Osprey tiltrotor aircraft and Sea Hawk helicopters. In addition to the centerpiece carrier, the group also includes a guided-missile cruiser, the USS Princeton, and guided-missile destroyers. Another strike group headed by the USS Nimitz is scheduled to relieve the Vinson and is currently in the Indo-Pacific, offering additional forces. The Navy has three Aegis missile defense destroyers in the Eastern Mediterranean — the USS Arleigh Burke, USS The Sullivans and the USS Thomas Hudner, with two more vessels arriving shortly, according to a defense official. Two additional destroyers are in the Red Sea. A US official said the Arleigh Burke and The Sullivans fired numerous SM-3 anti-ballistic missile interceptors over the weekend to help defend Israel. An Army unit in the region also fired THAAD interceptors at Iranian ballistic missiles, according to another official. --With assistance from Natalia Drozdiak. Ken Griffin on Trump, Harvard and Why Novice Investors Won't Beat the Pros How a Tiny Middleman Could Access Two-Factor Login Codes From Tech Giants American Mid: Hampton Inn's Good-Enough Formula for World Domination The Spying Scandal Rocking the World of HR Software US Allies and Adversaries Are Dodging Trump's Tariff Threats ©2025 Bloomberg L.P. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
22 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Stock market today: Dow, S&P 500, Nasdaq slide as Trump calls for 'unconditional surrender' from Iran
US stocks slipped on Tuesday amid dwindling hopes for a quick resolution to Israel-Iran hostilities, as President Trump heightened his rhetoric against Iran and called for an "unconditional surrender." In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the US knows where the country's leader is hiding, adding, "He is an easy target, but is safe there — We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin." Stock losses picked up steam shortly following the post. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) ended the day down around 0.7% or about 300 points. The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped more than 0.8% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) pulled back over 0.9%. Overall, US stocks have so far proved relatively resilient amid the conflict. The major gauges ended higher on Monday after a report that Iran sought a ceasefire and a return to nuclear program negotiations. But new reports on Tuesday indicated that the US is contemplating military strikes against Iran as Trump met with his national security team at the White House, heightening concerns about the possibility of a full-scale regional conflict. Oil prices jumped over 4% as investors weighed the stream of remarks and reports, with Brent futures (BZ=F) settling above $76.50 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) crude hitting nearly $75. At the same time, Wall Street is also grappling with concerns over Trump's trade policy and the direction of US interest rates. As the date for lifting the pause on Trump's sweeping tariffs approaches, US officials have used the G7 summit to pursue trade deals. The first completed deal emerged Monday, when Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed off on the US-UK trade pact agreed in May. So far, other deals have proved elusive. Read more: The latest on Trump's tariffs Meanwhile, in the week's key data release, US retail sales fell 0.9% in May, more than economists expected, as consumers pulled back from a pre-tariff splurge. Wall Street is looking to the Federal Reserve's two-day meeting that starts on Tuesday for clues to whether policymakers still want to cut interest rates twice in 2025, given recent signs of cooling inflation. The Fed is expected to hold rates steady in its decision on Wednesday. US stocks slipped on Tuesday amid dwindling hopes for a quick resolution to Israel-Iran hostilities, as President Trump heightened his rhetoric against Iran and called for an "unconditional surrender." Stock losses picked up steam shortly following the post. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.87, or about 300 points. The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped more than 0.8% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) pulled back over 0.9%. The Energy (XLE) sector was the lone S&P 500 sector in the green on Tuesday, rising about 1% as oil prices once again picked up. Oil prices jumped over 4% as investors weighed the stream of remarks and reports, with Brent futures (BZ=F) settling above $76.50 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) crude hitting nearly $75. The "FOMO" trade is alive and well in markets once again. Recent IPOs, like stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL) and AI cloud company CoreWeave (CRWV), have both seen their stocks rise more than 100% since going public. Shares of nuclear energy company turned AI play Oklo (OKLO) are up more than 70% in the past month. Quantum Computing (QUBT) shares are up more than 56% in the past month, and others in the space have also ripped higher. "The commonalities are they're speculative," Interactive Brokers chief markets strategist Steve Sosnick said in an interview. "They're momentum-driven, and they almost always have some sort of tech veneer to them." With the S&P 500 (^GSPC) back near record highs, the common pillars of the current three-year bull market have clearly returned in markets. Two of the most popular AI trades, Palantir (PLTR) and Nvidia (NVDA), are back to trading near all-time highs. "It's kind of a freight train," Sosnick said. "Remember one of the great adages, 'the trend is your friend'? Well, people seem to be doing very well by following trends." Read more here. Oil prices jumped over 3% as investors assessed the latest Israel-Iran hostilities and digested a stream of remarks and reports in afternoon trade. According to Axios, the US is contemplating military strikes against Iran, heightening concerns about the possibility of a full-scale regional conflict. Brent futures (BZ=F) settled above $76.50 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) crude hit $75. Stock losses accelerated in mid-afternoon trading on Tuesday as President Trump heightened his rhetoric against Iran and called for an "unconditional surrender." In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the US knows where the country's leader is hiding, adding, "He is an easy target, but is safe there — We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin." The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.4%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped roughly 0.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also pulled back around 0.5%. In the latest in a string of signs that market sentiment has recovered significantly from the heigh of April's tariff turmoil, Bank of America's June Global Fund Manager's Survey showed 66% of investors said they believe the global economy will achieve a "soft landing," in which inflation falls to the Fed's 2% target without an outright downturn in economic activity. The 8-month high among respondents believing a soft landing is in sight, comes as recession probabilities have tumbled over the past month while consumers worst fears about a tariff-driven inflation spike have also subsided. Bank of America Global Research chief investment strategist Michael Hartnett wrote the survey showed, "investor sentiment back to pre-Liberation Day 'Goldilocks bull' levels." Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré reports: Read more here. JetBlue's (JBLU) stock declined more than 3% on Tuesday after the company revealed plans to further reduce costs and scale back flights. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports: Read more here. A prolonged conflict between Israel and Iran may do more than rattle energy markets. One argument on Wall Street is that it could push the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates sooner than expected. "A sustained rise in oil prices could cause the Fed to strike a more dovish tone," Oxford Economics chief US economist Ryan Sweet wrote in a recent note to clients, arguing that an extended oil shock could dent demand and potentially spill over into an otherwise resilient labor market. That's because, historically, sudden spikes in oil prices tend to cause only a temporary rise in inflation that the Fed usually overlooks. But with the economy already softening, a persistent surge could pose a bigger threat to growth and jobs than to inflation itself. "The economy has slowed and is vulnerable to anything else going wrong, including a sudden and persistent increase in oil prices," Sweet said. "If the Fed views the hit to the economy and the labor market as greater than the temporary boost to inflation, the central bank could signal that it's open to cutting interest rates sooner." On Tuesday, oil prices rallied, with international benchmark Brent (BZ=F) rising above $75 a barrel after President Trump called for Tehran residents to evacuate and rebuffed the idea of an Israel-Iran ceasefire. That contrasted with optimism on Monday, when the Wall Street Journal reported that tensions between Iran and Israel had eased, sparking a rally in US equities and stabilizing crude oil prices following last week's biggest price surge in three years. Sweet, whose baseline forecast is that the Fed will deliver its first rate cut in December, noted it may take weeks before markets gain a clearer sense of the direction of oil prices. Read more here. Solar stocks were pummeled in early afternoon trading after the Senate's version of President Trump's tax and spending bill showed that Republicans are united in eliminating tax credits for clean energy. The Senate's changes to the bill, released on Monday, called for a total phaseout of solar and wind credits by 2028, prompting the sell-off in solar names. Meanwhile, the revisions extended tax incentives for hydropower, nuclear, and geothermal energy until 2036, boosting shares of Sam Altman-backed nuclear energy startup Oklo (OKLO) and other energy names that are seen as winners. Read more about what the Senate's budget blueprint means for business. Yahoo Finance's Dan Howley and Alexis Keenan report: Read more here. US stocks slid on Tuesday as President Trump played down the prospect of a truce between Israel and Iran and retail sales came in below expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.4%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped roughly 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also pulled back 0.3%. Kraft Heinz (KHC) stock edged higher after the maker of Kool-Aid and Jell-O said it's eliminating synthetic dyes across the remaining 10% of its US portfolio that contains them. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports that Kraft Heinz will replace artificial dyes with natural colors or reinvent items with new colors. The company will also refrain from launching new products that contain food additives. This announcement comes amid growing scrutiny of food additives. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said he wants to remove artificial coloring from the food supply by the time he leaves office. Read more here. The US Department of Defense announced Monday that it awarded OpenAI ( a $200 million contract to "develop prototype frontier AI capabilities to address critical national security challenges in both warfighting and enterprise domains." "This contract is one of the largest Department of Defense contracts given to a software provider when measured by annual contract value," William Blair analyst Louie DiPalma wrote in a note to clients Monday. DiPalma said that the "contract announcement could signal increased competition from OpenAI going forward" for Palantir (PLTR) "if OpenAI moves into Palantir's ontology territory." Ontology refers to an operational layer in Palantir's platform. DiPalma noted that Palantir paved the way for OpenAI and others. "Palantir has pioneered software providers serving as prime contractors for Department of Defense programs," DiPalma wrote. "Traditionally, software providers served as subcontractors to systems integrators. Under the new administration, the Department of Defense is looking to contract directly with commercial software providers when possible." Palantir rose less than 1% on Tuesday. In December, Palantir shares dropped as much as 5% when defense tech firm Anduril ( announced a partnership with OpenAI to "develop and responsibly deploy advanced artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for national security missions." Retail sales fell in May, dragged down by declines in gas and auto purchases during the second month that a wide array of President Trump's tariffs were in effect. Headline retail sales declined 0.9% in May, surpassing economists' expectations for a 0.6% decline month on month. By comparison, sales decreased 0.1% in April, according to revised Census Bureau data. A 2% decline in gasoline sales, a 3.5% slide in auto purchases, and a 2.7% decline in building materials drove the May headline number lower. There was some positive news in the release: The control group in Thursday's release, which excludes several volatile categories and factors into the gross domestic product (GDP) reading for the quarter, rose 0.4%. That compares with a 0.1% decrease seen in April. Economists expected a 0.3% increase. May sales, excluding auto and gas, declined 0.1%. Economists had expected a 0.3% rise. In April, sales excluding auto and gas rose 0.1%. Reddit stock (RDDT) rose roughly 5% in premarket trading on Tuesday following the social media platform's release of new AI ad tools at the Cannes Lions festival for marketers on its platform. Meanwhile, broader S&P 500 futures (ES=F) fell by 0.3%. The gain follows Reddit's 6.8% jump Monday, after media reports spotlighted a recent analysis from data analytics firm Semrush, showing that Reddit is the second most cited website in Google AI overviews. 'Reddit may also perform well because Google has a partnership with Reddit and uses Reddit data to train its systems,' Semrush analyst Rachel Handley wrote in the June 9 analysis. Google announced its $60 million deal with Reddit last February. Despite Reddit stock's climb this week, shares are far below their high of above $230 in February. The stock traded at around $131 before the market open Tuesday. Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban writes in today's Morning Brief newsletter: Read more here. A standout record-setting rally in gold (GC=F) is about to peter out, Citigroup strategists said as they forecast a slide back below $3,000 an ounce for the precious metal in coming quarters. Bloomberg reports: Read more here. Economic data: Retail sales (May); Industrial production (May); NAHB housing market index (June); Import price index (May) Earnings: La-Z-Boy Incorporated (LZB) Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning: Investor optimism has squashed another downbeat catalyst Trump: EU not offering fair trade deal, Japan being 'tough' too Trump says he wants 'real end' to conflict, not just ceasefire Anne Wojcicki's 23andMe bid may not end DNA data lawsuit How a prolonged Israel-Iran conflict could speed up Fed rate cuts US solar stocks slammed after Senate changes to tax bill Trump says he will probably extend TikTok deadline again SoftBank sells T-Mobile stake for $4.8 billion to fund AI push Here are some top stocks trending on Yahoo Finance in premarket trading: T-Mobile US, Inc. (TMUS) stock fell 4% in premarket trading on Tuesday, after SoftBank Group Corp. (SFTBF, SFTBY) managed to raise $4.8B via the sale of T-Mobile US Inc. shares. The move is set to help fund Softbank's plans for artificial intelligence. Microsoft (MSFT) stock fell over 1% before the bell today following reports that the Big Tech's relationship with OpenAI has become "strained." Per The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI executives are weighing the option of whether to accuse Microsoft of anticompetitive behavior, according to people familiar with the matter. Solar stocks dropped in premarket trading Tuesday after Senate Republicans released a bill that would end tax credits for wind and solar earlier that other sources. The news caused SunRun Inc. (RUN) stock to drop by 28% and SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (SEDG) by 21%. US solar stocks have tumbled after a Senate panel released proposals for an early and full phase-out of solar and wind energy tax credits on Monday. The plan to remove credits by 2028 are among the several changes put forward by a Republican-controlled panel to President Trump's "big beautiful" tax and spending bill. Shares of Enphase Energy (ENPH), which makes solar inverters, dropped 17% before the bell. Meanwhile, solar panel seller Sunrun (RUN) tumbled 26%, while its peer SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG) sank more than 20%. First Solar (FSLR) pulled back 11%. US stocks slipped on Tuesday amid dwindling hopes for a quick resolution to Israel-Iran hostilities, as President Trump heightened his rhetoric against Iran and called for an "unconditional surrender." Stock losses picked up steam shortly following the post. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.87, or about 300 points. The benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped more than 0.8% while the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) pulled back over 0.9%. The Energy (XLE) sector was the lone S&P 500 sector in the green on Tuesday, rising about 1% as oil prices once again picked up. Oil prices jumped over 4% as investors weighed the stream of remarks and reports, with Brent futures (BZ=F) settling above $76.50 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) crude hitting nearly $75. The "FOMO" trade is alive and well in markets once again. Recent IPOs, like stablecoin issuer Circle (CRCL) and AI cloud company CoreWeave (CRWV), have both seen their stocks rise more than 100% since going public. Shares of nuclear energy company turned AI play Oklo (OKLO) are up more than 70% in the past month. Quantum Computing (QUBT) shares are up more than 56% in the past month, and others in the space have also ripped higher. "The commonalities are they're speculative," Interactive Brokers chief markets strategist Steve Sosnick said in an interview. "They're momentum-driven, and they almost always have some sort of tech veneer to them." With the S&P 500 (^GSPC) back near record highs, the common pillars of the current three-year bull market have clearly returned in markets. Two of the most popular AI trades, Palantir (PLTR) and Nvidia (NVDA), are back to trading near all-time highs. "It's kind of a freight train," Sosnick said. "Remember one of the great adages, 'the trend is your friend'? Well, people seem to be doing very well by following trends." Read more here. Oil prices jumped over 3% as investors assessed the latest Israel-Iran hostilities and digested a stream of remarks and reports in afternoon trade. According to Axios, the US is contemplating military strikes against Iran, heightening concerns about the possibility of a full-scale regional conflict. Brent futures (BZ=F) settled above $76.50 a barrel and West Texas Intermediate (CL=F) crude hit $75. Stock losses accelerated in mid-afternoon trading on Tuesday as President Trump heightened his rhetoric against Iran and called for an "unconditional surrender." In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the US knows where the country's leader is hiding, adding, "He is an easy target, but is safe there — We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don't want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin." The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.4%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped roughly 0.5%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also pulled back around 0.5%. In the latest in a string of signs that market sentiment has recovered significantly from the heigh of April's tariff turmoil, Bank of America's June Global Fund Manager's Survey showed 66% of investors said they believe the global economy will achieve a "soft landing," in which inflation falls to the Fed's 2% target without an outright downturn in economic activity. The 8-month high among respondents believing a soft landing is in sight, comes as recession probabilities have tumbled over the past month while consumers worst fears about a tariff-driven inflation spike have also subsided. Bank of America Global Research chief investment strategist Michael Hartnett wrote the survey showed, "investor sentiment back to pre-Liberation Day 'Goldilocks bull' levels." Yahoo Finance's Ines Ferré reports: Read more here. JetBlue's (JBLU) stock declined more than 3% on Tuesday after the company revealed plans to further reduce costs and scale back flights. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports: Read more here. A prolonged conflict between Israel and Iran may do more than rattle energy markets. One argument on Wall Street is that it could push the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates sooner than expected. "A sustained rise in oil prices could cause the Fed to strike a more dovish tone," Oxford Economics chief US economist Ryan Sweet wrote in a recent note to clients, arguing that an extended oil shock could dent demand and potentially spill over into an otherwise resilient labor market. That's because, historically, sudden spikes in oil prices tend to cause only a temporary rise in inflation that the Fed usually overlooks. But with the economy already softening, a persistent surge could pose a bigger threat to growth and jobs than to inflation itself. "The economy has slowed and is vulnerable to anything else going wrong, including a sudden and persistent increase in oil prices," Sweet said. "If the Fed views the hit to the economy and the labor market as greater than the temporary boost to inflation, the central bank could signal that it's open to cutting interest rates sooner." On Tuesday, oil prices rallied, with international benchmark Brent (BZ=F) rising above $75 a barrel after President Trump called for Tehran residents to evacuate and rebuffed the idea of an Israel-Iran ceasefire. That contrasted with optimism on Monday, when the Wall Street Journal reported that tensions between Iran and Israel had eased, sparking a rally in US equities and stabilizing crude oil prices following last week's biggest price surge in three years. Sweet, whose baseline forecast is that the Fed will deliver its first rate cut in December, noted it may take weeks before markets gain a clearer sense of the direction of oil prices. Read more here. Solar stocks were pummeled in early afternoon trading after the Senate's version of President Trump's tax and spending bill showed that Republicans are united in eliminating tax credits for clean energy. The Senate's changes to the bill, released on Monday, called for a total phaseout of solar and wind credits by 2028, prompting the sell-off in solar names. Meanwhile, the revisions extended tax incentives for hydropower, nuclear, and geothermal energy until 2036, boosting shares of Sam Altman-backed nuclear energy startup Oklo (OKLO) and other energy names that are seen as winners. Read more about what the Senate's budget blueprint means for business. Yahoo Finance's Dan Howley and Alexis Keenan report: Read more here. US stocks slid on Tuesday as President Trump played down the prospect of a truce between Israel and Iran and retail sales came in below expectations. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI) fell around 0.4%, while the benchmark S&P 500 (^GSPC) dipped roughly 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC) also pulled back 0.3%. Kraft Heinz (KHC) stock edged higher after the maker of Kool-Aid and Jell-O said it's eliminating synthetic dyes across the remaining 10% of its US portfolio that contains them. Yahoo Finance's Brooke DiPalma reports that Kraft Heinz will replace artificial dyes with natural colors or reinvent items with new colors. The company will also refrain from launching new products that contain food additives. This announcement comes amid growing scrutiny of food additives. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said he wants to remove artificial coloring from the food supply by the time he leaves office. Read more here. The US Department of Defense announced Monday that it awarded OpenAI ( a $200 million contract to "develop prototype frontier AI capabilities to address critical national security challenges in both warfighting and enterprise domains." "This contract is one of the largest Department of Defense contracts given to a software provider when measured by annual contract value," William Blair analyst Louie DiPalma wrote in a note to clients Monday. DiPalma said that the "contract announcement could signal increased competition from OpenAI going forward" for Palantir (PLTR) "if OpenAI moves into Palantir's ontology territory." Ontology refers to an operational layer in Palantir's platform. DiPalma noted that Palantir paved the way for OpenAI and others. "Palantir has pioneered software providers serving as prime contractors for Department of Defense programs," DiPalma wrote. "Traditionally, software providers served as subcontractors to systems integrators. Under the new administration, the Department of Defense is looking to contract directly with commercial software providers when possible." Palantir rose less than 1% on Tuesday. In December, Palantir shares dropped as much as 5% when defense tech firm Anduril ( announced a partnership with OpenAI to "develop and responsibly deploy advanced artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for national security missions." Retail sales fell in May, dragged down by declines in gas and auto purchases during the second month that a wide array of President Trump's tariffs were in effect. Headline retail sales declined 0.9% in May, surpassing economists' expectations for a 0.6% decline month on month. By comparison, sales decreased 0.1% in April, according to revised Census Bureau data. A 2% decline in gasoline sales, a 3.5% slide in auto purchases, and a 2.7% decline in building materials drove the May headline number lower. There was some positive news in the release: The control group in Thursday's release, which excludes several volatile categories and factors into the gross domestic product (GDP) reading for the quarter, rose 0.4%. That compares with a 0.1% decrease seen in April. Economists expected a 0.3% increase. May sales, excluding auto and gas, declined 0.1%. Economists had expected a 0.3% rise. In April, sales excluding auto and gas rose 0.1%. Reddit stock (RDDT) rose roughly 5% in premarket trading on Tuesday following the social media platform's release of new AI ad tools at the Cannes Lions festival for marketers on its platform. Meanwhile, broader S&P 500 futures (ES=F) fell by 0.3%. The gain follows Reddit's 6.8% jump Monday, after media reports spotlighted a recent analysis from data analytics firm Semrush, showing that Reddit is the second most cited website in Google AI overviews. 'Reddit may also perform well because Google has a partnership with Reddit and uses Reddit data to train its systems,' Semrush analyst Rachel Handley wrote in the June 9 analysis. Google announced its $60 million deal with Reddit last February. Despite Reddit stock's climb this week, shares are far below their high of above $230 in February. The stock traded at around $131 before the market open Tuesday. Yahoo Finance's Hamza Shaban writes in today's Morning Brief newsletter: Read more here. A standout record-setting rally in gold (GC=F) is about to peter out, Citigroup strategists said as they forecast a slide back below $3,000 an ounce for the precious metal in coming quarters. Bloomberg reports: Read more here. Economic data: Retail sales (May); Industrial production (May); NAHB housing market index (June); Import price index (May) Earnings: La-Z-Boy Incorporated (LZB) Here are some of the biggest stories you may have missed overnight and early this morning: Investor optimism has squashed another downbeat catalyst Trump: EU not offering fair trade deal, Japan being 'tough' too Trump says he wants 'real end' to conflict, not just ceasefire Anne Wojcicki's 23andMe bid may not end DNA data lawsuit How a prolonged Israel-Iran conflict could speed up Fed rate cuts US solar stocks slammed after Senate changes to tax bill Trump says he will probably extend TikTok deadline again SoftBank sells T-Mobile stake for $4.8 billion to fund AI push Here are some top stocks trending on Yahoo Finance in premarket trading: T-Mobile US, Inc. (TMUS) stock fell 4% in premarket trading on Tuesday, after SoftBank Group Corp. (SFTBF, SFTBY) managed to raise $4.8B via the sale of T-Mobile US Inc. shares. The move is set to help fund Softbank's plans for artificial intelligence. Microsoft (MSFT) stock fell over 1% before the bell today following reports that the Big Tech's relationship with OpenAI has become "strained." Per The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI executives are weighing the option of whether to accuse Microsoft of anticompetitive behavior, according to people familiar with the matter. Solar stocks dropped in premarket trading Tuesday after Senate Republicans released a bill that would end tax credits for wind and solar earlier that other sources. The news caused SunRun Inc. (RUN) stock to drop by 28% and SolarEdge Technologies Inc. (SEDG) by 21%. US solar stocks have tumbled after a Senate panel released proposals for an early and full phase-out of solar and wind energy tax credits on Monday. The plan to remove credits by 2028 are among the several changes put forward by a Republican-controlled panel to President Trump's "big beautiful" tax and spending bill. Shares of Enphase Energy (ENPH), which makes solar inverters, dropped 17% before the bell. Meanwhile, solar panel seller Sunrun (RUN) tumbled 26%, while its peer SolarEdge Technologies (SEDG) sank more than 20%. First Solar (FSLR) pulled back 11%. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
