WS #12130

The dominant narrative remains the US-Iran conflict, which is ESCALATING with renewed U.S. strikes on Iranian targets and Iran's rejection of negotiations. However, a potential de-escalation signal emerged: Trump said Iran reached out requesting nuclear negotiations. The White House is weighing additional Jones Act waivers to ease oil supply fears. Oil prices remain elevated with Brent above $85, supported by EIA inventory draw and Fujairah port shutdown. Apple Intelligence was approved for launch in China with Alibaba's Qwen AI, boosting AAPL and BABA. Anthropic plans IPO investor meetings, a significant tech IPO signal. ASML plans price increases for chipmaking equipment despite TSMC resistance, bullish for semis but bearish for TSMC. Fed Chair Warsh continues hawkish comments: not happy with inflation measures, sees no limit to economic growth, but will consider both mandates. Stripe and Advent reportedly offered to buy PayPal for ~$53.4B, which could move PYPL. NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang denied Vera Rubin delay rumors. The narrative arc is: US-Iran conflict is ESCALATING but with a potential DE-ESCALATION signal; tech is mixed with Apple strength but AI chip stocks falling; macro data (PPI, Warsh comments) is supportive but with inflation concerns.