WS #12349

The US-Iran conflict continues to escalate, with Iranian attacks on Kuwaiti infrastructure (power/water desalination plants) causing plumes of smoke and fires, and GCC condemnation labeling them war crimes. Iran's supreme leader is expected to release a message shortly. The US has imposed a 25% tariff on Brazilian goods starting July 22, targeting Brazil's Pix payment system, which could impact Visa and Mastercard. Anthropic is in early talks with Samsung to manufacture its first custom AI chip on the 2nm process, a direct challenge to Nvidia's AI compute margins. Iraq and US companies signed ~$60B in agreements, including pipeline plans to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, potentially carrying 2M barrels/day to Turkey and Syria. The overall narrative is one of geopolitical risk escalation, with energy stocks likely to benefit and risk assets under pressure. The US-Iran conflict is ESCALATING, with new attacks on Kuwait and a pending message from Iran's supreme leader.