Nvidia Results on Deck, Bessent Bounce Begins to Emerge | Opening Trade 8/26/2026

Semiconductor and Artificial Intelligence Sector - Nvidia expects second-quarter revenue to nearly double to 92 billion USD, with gross margins targeted around 75% [15][36] - OpenAI's new Jalapeno chip achieves a performance-to-watt efficiency 1.8x to 4x better than existing chips [242] - Huawei has offered to build data centers and supply its Ascend chips to Egypt, marking its first push into the African market [101] Energy and Geopolitical Dynamics - Brent crude oil prices dropped 1.8% to just shy of 87 dollars a barrel amid discussions between Iran and Oman over a temporary maritime corridor [3][7] - European natural gas prices declined by 4.4% during the trading session after dropping as much as 6% earlier [6] - Russia is considering extending its diesel export ban until October 1st due to ongoing refinery attacks and tight global supplies [65] Macroeconomic and Trade Developments - Core Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) inflation in the US is expected to remain sticky above the 3% level [29] - The US is preparing potential higher tariff rates and a wider range of goods against Canada following retaliatory measures [21] - Bitcoin surged about 25% over the past week, briefly pushing above 80,000 USD amid renewed dollar debasement talks [181]