Finance

In his first meeting as Chair, Kevin Warsh signaled a potential rate hike before the end of 2026, marking a significant departure from previous guidance. The Fed's updated projections now show nine out of eighteen officials favoring at least one increase this year to maintain price stability.

A landmark agreement between the United States and Iran to end their conflict and reopen the Strait of Hormuz led to a 13% weekly drop in oil prices. Brent crude settled near $80 per barrel, providing a potential relief to global inflation pressures despite ongoing skepticism from some market participants.

The Nasdaq surged 2.4% over the week, fueled by massive rallies in chipmaker stocks like Intel and Nvidia. Strength in the technology sector helped major indexes notch weekly gains, even as newly public SpaceX faced a sharp pullback following its massive IPO debut.