Finance

West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude futures experienced highly volatile trading amid ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Prices briefly eased from their highest levels after political commentary suggested military strikes on Iran would be delayed until after the upcoming U.S. midterm elections. Despite this brief reprieve, international benchmark Brent crude remained heavily elevated and settled near $105 a barrel.

Technology and semiconductor shares rebounded from a sharp selloff after initial anxieties surrounding artificial intelligence sector growth began to fade. Investor sentiment was lifted by reports indicating OpenAI expects its annualized revenue to meet or exceed $70 billion by the end of the year. This fresh outlook effectively countered previous market concerns regarding revenue shortfalls within the AI industry.

A preliminary report from the University of Michigan revealed that domestic consumers are increasing their short-term forecasts for inflation to 4.7%. The data reflects a persistent squeeze on household budgets from high borrowing costs and the economic fallout of foreign conflicts. Consequently, consumer sentiment is dropping sharply, particularly among lower-income families who feel the immediate pinch of a rising cost of living.