WS #10957

The dominant narrative remains the US-Iran military confrontation, which is ESCALATING. Multiple sources (Bloomberg, Reuters, MarketWatch, CNBC) confirm renewed US strikes on Iranian targets over the weekend, with oil prices rising more than $1/bbl. Brent crude climbed 0.9% to $72.70, WTI advanced 1.3% to $70.09. A shipping giant warns Strait of Hormuz chaos is the 'new normal' as Tehran shifts 4M barrels. Negotiations are on hold, though representatives remain in Switzerland. This escalation is driving a modest risk-off tone in equity futures: S&P 500 futures +0.1%, Nasdaq futures -0.1%, reflecting tech underperformance. The prior week saw a sharp tech rotation with Nvidia and Alphabet losing >8% each, and SpaceX tumbling 17%. Meanwhile, Ukraine continues its long-range strike campaign against Russian oil infrastructure, with a major fire at the Slavyansk oil refinery. Putin acknowledged fuel shortages but called them 'not critical.' The UK announced it will build hybrid warships instead of replacing ageing destroyers, a defense spending shift. Three firefighters died battling wildfires on the Colorado-Utah border. No counter-signals to the prevailing bearish geopolitical thesis were detected in this window.