WS #10654

The dominant signal in this window is the de-escalation of the US-Iran war, with oil prices erasing wartime gains as tankers begin leaving the Strait of Hormuz. CNBC reports Brent crude falling to under $73 and WTI to ~$69, with Citi now expecting Brent to fall to $60-$65. This is a major counter-signal to the prior Iran war escalation narrative. Separately, the Venezuela earthquake continues to be covered (BBC, Bloomberg, USA Today, State Department coordinating aid), but remains a humanitarian crisis with limited direct US equity impact. The White House's $87.6B funding request for Iran war and farm aid (Investing.com) is a new data point but does not change the de-escalation trajectory. In tech, Google AI talent exodus to Anthropic continues (two more Gemini contributors leaving), and Microsoft's $190B AI capex plan is noted. Alibaba shares slide on Anthropic's AI model scraping accusation. Crypto prices are down ~3% across the board. The overall narrative arc is DE-ESCALATING on the Iran war front, with oil prices declining sharply, which is bullish for airlines and consumer stocks but bearish for energy. The Venezuela earthquake is STABLE (no new escalation). Micron's AI-driven momentum from prior windows remains unrefuted and is carried forward.