Finance

Energy markets fluctuated wildly following reports that the U.S. administration rejected terms proposed by Iran to reopen the critical Strait of Hormuz. Although an emergency release from the strategic reserves briefly pulled Brent crude prices back down toward $103 a barrel, persistent geopolitical friction in the Middle East kept investors highly cautious about the outlook for global energy costs.

The tech sector experienced mixed trading as a leaked prospectus from AI startup Anthropic revealed an ambitious $2 trillion valuation target alongside explicit warnings regarding existential software risks. Concurrently, competitor OpenAI paused the deployment of its upcoming frontier model over safety concerns, adding further narrative-driven volatility to heavyweights across the technology landscape.

Individual corporate actions majorly dictated equity market movements, headlined by semiconductor leader Nvidia authorizing an unprecedented $150 billion share repurchase plan to bolster investor sentiment. Conversely, aerospace giant Boeing witnessed a sharp share drop of nearly 7% after the Federal Aviation Administration announced certification delays for the 737 MAX 10 due to newly discovered software errors.