General Market News

The Port of Los Angeles processed a record 1,002,734 TEUs in June, up 12% year-over-year, as shippers accelerated imports to avoid higher fuel costs and incoming U.S. tariffs. The surge reflects broader concerns about supply chain disruptions from the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran and Trump administration trade policies. Neighboring Port of Long Beach also reported its third-busiest June on record.

• June imports at Port of Los Angeles jumped 13% to 530,558 TEUs while exports increased only 0.2%, marking the third time the port has exceeded 1 million TEUs in a month
• Overall U.S. container imports rose 8.2% in June amid concerns about marine fuel cost increases and potential scarcity of raw materials due to geopolitical conflicts
• The Trump administration plans to implement new Section 301 tariffs this month to help rebuild emergency tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court in February

President Donald Trump criticized New York Governor Kathy Hochul's executive order banning construction of large-scale data centers using 50+ megawatts of power for up to a year. New York became the first U.S. state to impose such a moratorium, citing concerns over rising utility costs and resource depletion from AI infrastructure growth. Trump called the policy a 'terrible decision' that threatens job creation and urged immediate reversal.

• The moratorium blocks construction of data centers consuming 50 or more megawatts of power for up to one year, making New York the first state to implement such a ban
• Public backlash has grown over data center fresh water and power consumption as utility prices rise amid the artificial intelligence buildout boom
• Trump stated data centers are 'Money Machines' for states and urged they must pay for their own water and power, with excess returning to communities

A severe Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo has disrupted U.S.-backed critical minerals partnership talks aimed at reducing China's dominance in the country's copper and cobalt resources. The outbreak, which has killed over 750 people, has forced postponement of key meetings and investor visits, with the U.S. urging Americans not to travel to Congo for any reason.

• The Ebola outbreak has infected 2,011 people and killed 754 since being declared in mid-May, prompting the U.S. Embassy to warn of mandatory 21-day quarantine for exposed travelers
• A planned Washington meeting to review U.S. companies' interest in Congolese mining projects was postponed, with some discussions shifted to London, Paris, and Brussels
• Congo is the world's top cobalt producer and second-largest copper supplier, making it critical for energy-transition minerals as the U.S. and China compete for access to its resources

Major U.S. banks reported record profits from their prime brokerage businesses in Q2 2024, driven by strong hedge fund activity and market volatility. Goldman Sachs saw financing revenue jump 62% to $4.5 billion, while JPMorgan's equity markets revenue surged 86% to $6 billion. The windfall was fueled by elevated client balances, particularly from multi-strategy hedge funds, and robust growth in Asian markets linked to AI investments.

• Goldman Sachs achieved record prime balances with equity financing revenue up 91% year-over-year, representing 37% of total FICC and equity revenues, with particular strength in Asia driven by AI-related capital formation
• JPMorgan's equity markets unit generated $6 billion (up 86%), benefiting from higher client activity and balances, while Citigroup saw prime balances rise nearly 60% from new and existing customer demand
• Banks are strategically expanding prime brokerage capacity despite strong demand, balancing client service with capital allocation as hedge funds capitalize on market volatility and equity issuance activity

PJM Interconnection, the largest U.S. electric grid operator serving 67 million people, issued multiple warnings on Wednesday as high temperatures drove up electricity demand and transmission congestion caused spot prices to surge. The grid faces reliability concerns as data center load growth outpaces new electricity supply, with a recent capacity auction falling 7 GW short of reserve targets.

• Spot electricity prices surged from around $30 per MWH early Wednesday to over $300 per MWH by noon due to transmission congestion, particularly around northern Virginia's data center hub
• PJM's latest capacity auction would cost more than $16 billion with price caps, but would have reached nearly $30 billion without caps, highlighting stressed grid conditions
• Wednesday's forecast demand of 164.1 GW approached the all-time record of 168.2 GW set on July 2, with temperatures hovering around 90°F in major cities

India has increased windfall taxes on exports of diesel and aviation turbine fuel effective July 16, responding to surging global oil prices amid escalating U.S.-Iran conflict. The tax hikes nearly double previous rates, with diesel export duties rising from 8.5 to 15.5 rupees per liter and aviation fuel duties increasing from 7.5 to 14.5 rupees per liter.

• Diesel export tax raised 82% to 15.5 rupees ($0.16) per liter from 8.5 rupees per liter
• Aviation turbine fuel export duty increased 93% to 14.5 rupees per liter from 7.5 rupees per liter
• Tax adjustment responds to rising global oil prices driven by escalating U.S.-Iran geopolitical tensions

AI startup Thinking Machines, founded by former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati, launched Inkling, an open-weight AI model with 975 billion parameters. The release provides a Western alternative to Chinese open-source models, which have dominated after Meta shifted away from open-source development following its Llama 4 release.

• Inkling has 975 billion parameters, making it one of the largest open-weight models available for users to download, run, and customize
• The model performs competitively against closed models from Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI, particularly excelling at agent-related tasks
• The release addresses a gap in Western open-source offerings, as businesses have increasingly turned to Chinese models like Alibaba's Qwen as alternatives to expensive proprietary systems

Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh confirmed he communicates regularly with the Trump administration, including frequent contact with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent beyond their weekly meetings, but declined to say whether he has spoken directly with President Trump. Warsh defended the Fed's independence amid concerns about political influence, as he navigates a divided Federal Open Market Committee on interest rate policy. The situation is sensitive because Trump appointed Warsh after saying lower rates were a litmus test for his Fed chair selection.

• Warsh meets weekly with Treasury Secretary Bessent per tradition but also talks to him 'often' between scheduled meetings, going beyond the limited contact his predecessor Powell had with the previous Treasury Secretary
• The FOMC appears divided on rate policy, with some governors suggesting rate increases may be necessary this year, while Trump continues calling for cuts and inflation has remained above the Fed's 2% target for 63 months
• Warsh has created task forces to review inflation measurement and the Fed's balance sheet policy, and previously advocated for a new Treasury-Fed Accord that would hand some Fed balance sheet powers to the Treasury Secretary

Major U.S. banks reported resilient consumer health in their Q2 earnings, with executives citing steady spending, rising loan balances, and stable credit quality despite elevated borrowing costs and economic uncertainty. Credit card balances grew across JPMorgan, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo, driven by a strong labor market and wage growth, though lower-income households face mounting cost pressures.

• JPMorgan's credit card loans rose 7.3% to $249.9 billion, while Bank of America saw a 4.4% jump in card balances and Wells Fargo reported a 5.6% increase, alongside a 32% surge in auto loans
• Consumer Price Index increased 3.5% year-over-year through June (down from 4.2% in May), while job growth added 57,000 positions in June, below expectations but averaging 111,000 monthly in Q2
• Bank executives emphasized delinquencies came in lower than expected and spending remained robust across income segments, though rising card balances may signal pressure on household budgets from higher living costs

The European Commission accepted X's action plan to comply with transparency obligations under the EU's Digital Services Act. This follows the EU fining Elon Musk's social media platform €120 million ($137.2 million) last year. The measures aim to provide researchers and civil society greater transparency into X's systems and its broader impact on European users.

• X was previously fined €120 million ($137.2 million) by the EU in the prior year for non-compliance issues
• The action plan will enable researchers and civil society to monitor X's systemic risks and assess the platform's broader societal impact
• Compliance focuses on transparency obligations and providing researchers with access to data under the Digital Services Act

MTY Food Group, the Canadian owner of Papa Murphy's pizza chain, plans to close 45 to 50 Papa Murphy's locations due to poor performance in a highly competitive pizza market. The closures are part of a broader portfolio reduction of 68 underperforming stores across MTY's brands that collectively lost over $10 million in the last 12 months.

• Papa Murphy's, known for its take-and-bake pizza model, is 'suffering a little bit more' in the competitive pizza environment according to MTY CEO Eric Lefebvre
• The 68 total store closures across MTY's portfolio lost over $10 million collectively in the past year, with Papa Murphy's representing a significant portion but not the majority of losses
• The closure process will take six to nine months to complete, with the first series of stores scheduled to close within days of the announcement

Sen. Elizabeth Warren accused Federal Reserve Chairman Kevin Warsh of corruption during his Senate Banking Committee testimony, questioning undisclosed financial transactions and his handling of ethical issues at the Fed. Warren pressed Warsh on who provided him $100 million before his swearing-in and criticized his failure to investigate Vice Chair Michelle Bowman's alleged violations of communication blackout rules. Warsh denied receiving $100 million and stated he complied with all ethics requirements.

• Warren demanded Warsh disclose who gave him $100 million before taking office, specifically asking if it came from billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller or others with Fed business interests; Warsh later denied receiving such payment
• Warren criticized Warsh for not investigating Vice Chair Michelle Bowman's alleged appearance at an invite-only Bank of America dinner during a blackout period that bars Fed officials from discussing monetary policy
• Warsh testified that artificial intelligence represents the 'most consequential change' to the economy in his lifetime and may raise prices over the next 12 months, though he does not view this as inflationary

Investment banking revenue at the six largest U.S. banks surged 45% on average in Q2 2026 from a year earlier, marking the industry's biggest fees haul since 2021. The broad-based recovery is driven by a surge in IPOs, with $104.8 billion raised in Q2, and announced global M&A volumes exceeding $3 trillion, up over 40% year-over-year. Major banks including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, and JPMorgan substantially beat profit forecasts on the strength of dealmaking activity.

• U.S. IPOs raised a record $104.8 billion in Q2 2026, reopening exit channels for private equity and venture capital firms that had been holding portfolio companies longer than expected
• Wall Street is preparing for mega IPOs from Anthropic and OpenAI, potentially valued at around $1 trillion each, which could generate hundreds of millions in fees
• Morningstar analysts predict the 'investment banking super-cycle' has room to run and do not expect a material contraction until 2028 or later, driven by strong pipelines across technology, healthcare, utilities, and energy sectors

Meta employees have filed allegations claiming the company's AI-driven layoff processes are discriminatory. The complaints suggest that automated systems used to determine workforce reductions may have disproportionately affected certain protected groups. This raises legal and ethical concerns about using artificial intelligence in employment termination decisions.

• Employees allege Meta's AI systems used for layoff decisions resulted in discriminatory outcomes against specific worker groups
• The case highlights growing concerns about algorithmic bias in HR decisions and potential violations of employment discrimination laws
• This could set precedent for how companies are held accountable when using AI tools to make workforce reduction decisions

Energy Transfer (ET) receives a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and a Value grade of A, indicating it may be an attractive option for value investors. The stock trades at valuation multiples below its industry averages across multiple metrics, suggesting it is undervalued relative to peers.

• ET's Forward P/E ratio of 11.58 is below the industry average of 13.94, and its PEG ratio of 0.95 compares favorably to the industry's 1.48
• The stock's P/B ratio of 1.41 is significantly lower than the industry average of 2.26, while its P/CF ratio of 6.02 is well below the industry's 9.75
• Multiple valuation metrics including P/S ratio of 0.75 (versus industry 1.34) suggest the stock is trading at a discount despite strong earnings outlook

The U.S. economy continues to show resilience heading into summer 2025, with corporate earnings exceeding expectations, stable labor markets at 4.3% unemployment, and consumer spending remaining healthy despite weak sentiment surveys. Kevin Warsh became the new Federal Reserve Chair in May, replacing Jerome Powell, as inflation remains above the Fed's 2% target amid energy price pressures.

• Labor market remains in a 'low-hire, low-fire' environment with unemployment at 4.3%, job openings and layoffs at historically low levels
• Consumer spending diverges from sentiment, with retail sales ex-auto rising 0.7% month-over-month despite University of Michigan confidence surveys showing weakness due to inflation concerns
• Kevin Warsh sworn in as new Fed Chair in May, focusing on alternative inflation measures like Dallas Fed's Trimmed Mean PCE as inflation persists above 2% target

The U.S. Producer Price Index fell 0.4% in June 2026, marking the largest monthly decline since the pandemic and significantly missing economist expectations of a 0.2% increase. Year-over-year wholesale inflation slowed to 1.8% from 2.5%, driven primarily by a 4.1% drop in energy prices and a 0.9% decline in food costs. This data strengthens the case for the Federal Reserve to pause rate hikes, though rebounding crude oil prices near $80 per barrel following renewed Iran tensions could threaten future inflation progress.

• Producer prices unexpectedly fell 0.4% month-over-month versus economist forecasts of a 0.2% increase, with year-over-year wholesale inflation decelerating from 2.5% to 1.8%
• Energy prices declined 4.1% and food costs fell 0.9%, providing the primary drivers of deflation, while core PPI remained unchanged for the month
• West Texas Intermediate crude has rebounded to around $80 per barrel and Brent near $85 following Iran hostilities, creating risk that energy could reverse recent inflation gains in the second half of 2026

US stocks rose on Wednesday, with the Dow gaining 140 points, driven by softer-than-expected Producer Price Index data that eased Federal Reserve rate hike concerns. BlackRock rallied on strong earnings results, while PayPal surged 15% on a $60.50 per share takeover offer from Stripe and Advent International. The positive inflation data reduced expectations of a July Fed rate hike to 16-17% from over 40% earlier.

• PPI data came in below expectations, reinforcing Tuesday's softer CPI report and lowering probability of a July Fed rate hike to 16-17% from over 40%
• BlackRock beat quarterly earnings estimates supported by higher client assets during the market rally, while Morgan Stanley topped profit expectations on stronger M&A activity
• PayPal stock jumped on a joint $60.50 per share acquisition offer from Stripe and Advent International, while oil prices remained elevated above $79 per barrel due to US military strikes against Iran

US stock indices are showing limited momentum on Wednesday, with the NASDAQ, Dow Jones, and S&P 500 stalling near key levels as earnings season begins. Market participants are uncertain amid mixed signals from inflation data and geopolitical concerns, causing indices to consolidate rather than break out despite being near all-time highs.

• NASDAQ 100 pulled back from 30,000 after breaking out of a symmetrical triangle, now testing support at its previous downtrend line
• Dow Jones 30 remains range-bound between 52,000 support and 53,000 resistance, showing no momentum despite maintaining a broader 45-degree uptrend
• S&P 500 consolidates near record highs with no clear direction, as traders remain cautious about Middle East tensions and recent lower-than-expected CPI data

U.S. stock futures pointed higher Wednesday morning as investors digested a wave of corporate earnings reports while monitoring escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran in the Middle East. S&P 500 and Nasdaq futures rose 0.1% and 0.4% respectively, while oil prices climbed nearly 1% to $80 per barrel amid threats from Iran to halt regional energy exports.

• ASML stock gained after beating earnings estimates with 7.58 euros per share and raising its full-year sales outlook to 43-45 billion euros (up from 36-40 billion) citing AI-driven demand for chip manufacturing equipment
• PayPal shares soared on reports of a potential $53 billion takeover offer, while financial firms BlackRock and Morgan Stanley both rose after topping quarterly estimates
• U.S.-Iran conflict intensified with Iran's Revolutionary Guard threatening to halt Middle East energy exports as the U.S. imposed a new blockade of Iranian ports and threatened strikes on civilian infrastructure