This content was published on
July 8, 2026 - 01:11
6 minutes
(Bloomberg) — Oil climbed as the US military launched fresh air strikes in Iran and revoked a waiver that allowed it to sell crude globally. Stocks in Asia were poised to drop for a second day as a selloff in chipmakers rippled across markets.West Texas Intermediate rose 2.9% to above $72 a barrel, extending gains from late Tuesday, as the US military renewed strikes on Iran after recent attacks on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Treasury futures fell and a Bloomberg gauge of the dollar strengthened.Equity-index futures for Japan, South Korea and Australia pointed to declines after US benchmarks fell on Tuesday, with a gauge of chip stocks dropping more than 4%. The Nasdaq 100 slid 1.8%.The latest attacks in the Middle East test the late-June peace deal and add a new layer of concern for equity markets already concerned whether a rally fueled by euphoria over artificial intelligence has run ahead of itself. Warnings of a bubble have been loudest in parts of the market riding the AI wave, with investors increasingly concerned whether the lofty valuations can be backed by strong earnings.“While we remain confident in AI’s growth story and continue to see attractive opportunities in semis and hardware, we have also highlighted that the next leg of equity gains is likely to be marked by a broadening of market leadership,” said Ulrike Hoffmann-Burchardi at UBS Chief Investment Office. “Investors should ensure diversified exposure.”Elsewhere, gold extended its drop to below $4,100 an ounce after the US Treasury Department revoked a waiver allowing the sale of Iranian oil, stoking concern that elevated energy prices will prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates.Taken together with the strikes, the US actions marked the most serious threat yet to the interim agreement signed between the two countries’ leaders on June 17. They also threatened to scuttle negotiations aimed at achieving a permanent peace within 60 days of that deal.The “powerful strikes” were meant to “impose heavy costs for targeting and attacking commercial shipping crewed by innocent civilians in an international waterway,” US Central Command said in a statement on X.Brent oil prices had touched a peak near $125 a barrel in late April, two months after the US and Israel began the military campaign against Iran. Prices returned toward pre-conflict levels this month on growing signs of a recovery.What Bloomberg strategists say…“It’s premature to say whether this is ‘the big one’, i.e. a major structural reversal in the AI trade. It does seem fair, though, to say that the era of the ‘easy’ AI trade — the one with the smooth parabolic rally — is indeed in the rearview mirror.”—Cameron Crise, Macro Strategist, Markets Live. For the full analysis, click here.Big gains and losses have become a hallmark of the Nasdaq 100 lately. The gauge has posted its seventh consecutive session with a move exceeding 1% in either direction, the longest such stretch since August 2024.The weakness in technology stocks comes as SpaceX joined the Nasdaq 100 on Tuesday, a move expected to prompt portfolio rebalancing across passive and active funds. The aerospace and satellite company also received a wave of bullish analyst initiations after the expiration of the post-IPO quiet period.While earnings season kicks off next week with big banks, questions about the tech outlook will be front and center throughout the reporting period. The big risk is that technology firms, especially the hyperscalers, won’t beat analysts’ overly optimistic estimates for the quarter, according to veteran strategist Ed Yardeni.“That could cause a correction among technology stocks,” he said. “The overall stock market might dodge a correction if investors rotate into sectors that have lagged and report better-than-expected earnings. We are in the rotation camp for the stock market’s outlook up ahead.”Corporate Highlights:SK Hynix Inc.’s $28 billion US listing is multiple times oversubscribed ahead of pricing on Thursday, according to people familiar with the matter. When Amazon.com Inc. sold its biggest ever bond earlier this year, it was inundated with investor orders amid hype about the AI boom. This time around, there’s less fanfare. Peak demand for its latest $25 billion offering reached $62 billion, according to people with knowledge of the matter. That’s about half the orders it attracted for its prior $37 billion deal in March. Meta Platforms Inc. debuted a new image-generation AI model, its first such release since the company spent billions to rebuild its AI lab under Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang a year ago. Microsoft Corp., looking to reduce artificial-intelligence costs, is starting to replace OpenAI and Anthropic with its own models in software products like Excel and Outlook. China’s DeepSeek is developing its own chip to help power AI systems, Reuters reported, citing unnamed sources. Some of the main moves in markets:StocksS&P 500 futures were little changed as of 8 a.m. Tokyo time S&P/ASX 200 futures fell 0.4% CurrenciesThe Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed The euro was little changed at $1.1407 The Japanese yen was little changed at 162.18 per dollar The offshore yuan was little changed at 6.8037 per dollar CryptocurrenciesBitcoin fell 0.2% to $63,508.36 Ether fell 0.5% to $1,774.56 CommoditiesWest Texas Intermediate crude rose 2.9% to $72.45 a barrel Spot gold fell 0.2% to $4,097.51 an ounce This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.©2026 Bloomberg L.P.
