RT Rex (@0xRexnftcrypto)ICYMI: @OKX has relaunched X-Perp Stocks, and the timing couldn’t be better with earnings season underway.80+ markets are available, including the Magnificent 7, SPY, and QQQ.• Tesla & Alphabet report today• Microsoft on July 29• Amazon on July 30Up to 10x leverage with 24/7 trading. Definitely one of the more interesting product updates from OKX lately. ...

Let's look ahead to the weekend and to next week. Bloomberg this weekend. Lisa Mateo joins us now in studio.What do you have your eye on. Yeah, we're looking at Comic-Con. Okay.This is this is the nation's. Emily Blunt will be there. Emily Blunt, you.No, I think she'll be there. But some of your favorite may be a Chris Hemsworth, may be a whoever. But you have all these folks.Okay, so we're not just talking comics, right. We're talking TV. We're talking gaming.Gaming is huge for these. You have all these pe ...

Market Trends & Geopolitical Risks - S&P 500 showed little change following late declines driven by renewed fears of conflict with Iran and mounting losses in semiconductor stocks [1][2] - Treasury yields slid in tandem with falling oil prices amid market caution regarding US-Iran peace talks and Middle East instability [2][5] - National average price for gasoline in the United States jumped 15 cents in the past week to $49 per gallon, driven by rising crude oil prices [7] Corporate Earnings & Financial Performance - Alphabet reported its largest profit ever, though two-thirds of those gains were unrealized, free cash flow turned negative for the first time, and its share price dropped 7% [3] - American Express shares dropped 6% to 12% after reporting earnings that missed analyst expectations, raising questions about consumer spending strength [6] - Micron Technology shares surged 16% over the past 5 days, buoyed by record results and new AI-driven demand signals from China [6] Industry Regulatory & Credit Developments - Moody's issued a warning regarding unprecedented artificial intelligence infrastructure spending by Amazon, Meta Platforms, Alphabet, and others, threatening credit quality and increasing hidden debt burdens [4] - US President Donald Trump announced an investigation into European Union trade practices and consideration of substantial tariffs in response to unfair fines imposed on American tech companies including Google and Apple [3] - Microsoft and Nvidia urged US policymakers to avoid broad restrictions on open-source AI models to maintain American leadership and innovation [4] - Luxury auction houses reported record first half sales in 2026, fueled by surging technology and AI wealth driving high-value lots in art, watches, and collectibles [8][9]

Market Trends & Macro Economics - S&P 500 increased by 0.4%, the Dow fell by 0.5%, and Brent crude fell below $100 per barrel, up about 30 for the month [2][3] - The U.S. extended a 10 percent tariff baseline and announced new Section 301 tariffs targeting 60 economies with 10% to 12.5% levies [3][7][10][11] - The Bloomberg Intelligence projected the generative AI and agentic market to grow to $2.3 trillion by 2030 [45] Industry Dynamics & Corporate Performance - Intel shares dropped by 4.4% following its earnings report, and the Philadelphia Stock Exchange Semiconductor Index fell by 3.1% [5] - Alphabet reported cloud growth of 82% with a $100 billion run rate and a backlog exceeding $500 billion, while raising its full-year capex by 4% [29][31][33] - Qualcomm announced plans to increase its prices by double digits, which is expected to ripple through the tech industry [38] - Oracle's stock fell 3% amid a 10-year software deal with the Pentagon valued at over $3 billion for the first five years and over seven if options are exercised [95][96] - Canada Goose shares dropped about 4% following a downgrade from Williams Trading over risks related to President Trump's 50% tariffs on Canadian goods, with over 25% of its revenue coming from the U.S. [98][99]

Market Trends and Stock Performance - Major stock averages experienced mixed performance on Friday and closed down for the week, with major averages extending losses to at least two consecutive weeks [1][2] - The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose by 235 points, driven by gains in Salesforce up 4% and IBM up 3.5%, while the S&P 500 index gained 3 points [1] - The Nasdaq index dropped 161 points, and the "Magnificent 7" big tech stocks suffered significant declines, with Nvidia being the only stock in the group to record a winning week [2][3] - Companies hitting fresh all-time highs include financial institutions Travelers, Allstate, JPMorgan, and Bank of America, alongside defense firms Raytheon, RTX, Hmet Aerospace, and General Dynamics [2] - Paramount agreed to delay its acquisition of Warner Brothers Discovery pending a court ruling on its legality, potentially avoiding substantial fees if the deal fails to close by the end of September [4] Macroeconomic Risks and Industry Impacts - Ongoing conflict in the Middle East entered its sixth month, creating widespread market volatility affecting stocks, bond yields, and oil prices [1][5] - Analysts warn that a protracted conflict extending into 2027 poses a severe risk-off event for already squeezed consumers, who account for 60% to 70% of the United States economy [6][7] - Inflation pressures and rising energy costs are impacting consumer budgets, particularly in lower-income demographics, compounded by the 30-year home loan mortgage rate approaching 7%, hitting 6.81% on Friday [7] - Homebuilders experienced softening demand as mortgage rates rose to a one-year high, while facing rising costs with lumber prices returning to their highest levels in a year [8][9] Corporate Earnings and Upcoming Events - Institutional investors are preparing for the busiest week of the earnings season, featuring reports from major tech companies including Apple, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta (Facebook), alongside Coca-Cola and Ford [4][10] - Key market focus areas include capital expenditure increases by major tech firms like Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft, alongside upcoming Federal Reserve meetings on interest rates and economic growth data releases [5][10]

Market Dynamics - Microsoft, Meta, and Amazon face renewed investor anxiety over debt-fueled artificial intelligence spending [1] Industry Trends - Alphabet boosted its capital expenditure forecast by up to $15 billion [1]

Market Trends and Investor Sentiment - Investors are growing increasingly uncomfortable with the massive capital expenditures (capex) required for artificial intelligence (AI) development, leading to widening credit spreads for major tech companies like Google, Amazon, and Meta [3] - Fixed income investors are demanding higher returns and requiring a **7.5%** interest rate to finance Meta's **1 gigawatt** data center in Texas [4] - Major tech companies are projected to collectively spend more on capex than they generate in free cash flow by next year [4] - Oracle's **5-year** credit default swap (CDS) is increasingly viewed by Barclays as a liquid hedge against rising capex risks and heavy reliance on OpenAI rather than just company fundamentals [5] Industry Dynamics and Corporate Strategy - Mega-cap tech companies are collectively on pace to spend **$800 billion** on infrastructure this year and another **$1.2 trillion** next year [11] - Apple's "anti-capex" AI strategy and virtually non-existent infrastructure spending are gaining fresh validation as Chinese open-source models demonstrate that frontier-level models are unnecessary to succeed in generative AI [10] - Apple is tracking toward **$14 billion** in capex for the entirety of **2026**, with its capital expenditure falling below **$2 billion** last quarter—representing just **4%** of Alphabet's spending in Q2 [11] - Apple has returned more than **$1 trillion** to shareholders since its capital return program began and its shares are up more than **30%** since March due to its capital-light model [11][12] - Apple relies on Alphabet for models and heavier cloud workloads while distributing technology across more than **2.5 billion** devices to monetize through hardware and services [12]

Industry Strategy - Technology companies advocate for the development of open-weight artificial intelligence models [1] - Nvidia and Microsoft lead the coalition urging policymakers to support open-weight AI development [1] Market Dynamics - Open-weight artificial intelligence models are positioned as crucial for maintaining technological leadership in the United States [1]

Industry Dynamics - Open-weight models are considered essential to maintaining a healthy artificial intelligence ecosystem [1] - Technology industry leaders are outlining strategic paths to strengthen national competitiveness through open-weight models [1] Strategic Opportunities & Risks - Open-weight models expand economic opportunity while simultaneously addressing national security protection [1]

Artificial Intelligence & Technology Sector - Technology companies, CEOs, and venture firms formed a coalition urging Washington to embrace open-weight AI models to support American competitiveness, innovation, and national security[2][3] - Chinese open-weight models like Moonshot and Kimi K3 raised concerns in Washington due to competitive pricing and potential unauthorized distillation of U.S. models, affecting return on investment for billions poured into AI infrastructure[4][5][9][10][49][63] - Blackrock began marketing **12.3 billion** dollars in high-grade bonds to fund a Meta data center project, testing investor appetite amid concerns over excessive AI infrastructure spending[37] - Cerebras Systems and AMD partnered on a new server design combining Helios and Cerebras servers to accelerate inference processing, targeting rapid response times and high throughput[64][66] Semiconductor & Hardware Industry - Intel reported stronger-than-expected forecasts driven by AI data center demand for CPUs, while its stock fell **3%** after initial after-hours gains, with foundry margins heading toward breakeven and targeting **15 billion** dollars in revenue by 2030[11][13][17] - Intel's capital expenditures are projected at more than **20 billion** dollars, growing over the next couple of years with a focus on tool capacity and yield improvements[18][19] - SpaceX is reportedly fully booked through **2028** and is turning away potential Falcon 9 customers as it shifts resources toward its next-generation Starship rocket for space data centers and deep space missions[42][43][46] Biotechnology & Investment Markets - Scribe Therapeutics, co-founded by Nobel Prize winner Jennifer Doudna, completed an IPO priced at **15** dollars a share and indicated to open at approximately **29** dollars a share, focusing on non-permanent epigenetic editing to treat cardiovascular diseases[23][25][35] - Viking Global Investors managed **56 billion** dollars in assets while reporting a conservative first-half return of **2.6%**, trailing peers due to cautious positioning and concerns over high AI stock valuations[83][84]