BREAKING: President Trump officially announces that he has rejected Iran's proposal for a 7-day ceasefire to restart negotiations. This proposal would have reopened the Strait of Hormuz, with both the US and Iran lifting their blockade. "I reject their proposal," Trump said.

BREAKING: The US and China have reached a trade deal to lower tariffs on $30 billion worth of "non-sensitive goods" after President Trump and President Xi met this week. This deal will likely lower prices on a variety of consumer goods, including small appliances, toys, holiday decorations, and kids' car seats. In return, China will cut tariffs on agricultural goods and seafood, wood products, cosmetics, and medical devices. China has also agreed to import 10 million metric tons of US coal in 2027 and 2028. Rare earths are still being discussed, the White House said.

BREAKING: Global debt jumped by more than +$10 trillion in H1 2026, to a record $365 trillion. Emerging-market debt drove the increase, rising +$6.5 trillion, to a record $110 trillion, with most of the surge coming from governments and non-financial companies. Excluding China, emerging-market and developing-economy debt soared to a record $38 trillion. Global debt now stands at ~310% of global GDP, although the ratio has fallen -25 percentage points from its early-2021 peak, largely because inflation has boosted nominal GDP rather than because of deleveraging. Meanwhile, developed economies paid more than $3.3 trillion in interest on marketable government debt over the last year, exceeding estimated global spending on AI at $2.6 trillion, defense at $3.1 trillion, and clean energy at $2.3 trillion. This comes as annual government interest payments across the G7 alone surged +85% YoY. The global debt crisis is in uncharted territory.

Big tech has never been bigger. The 2 largest S&P 500 companies, Nvidia, $NVDA, and Apple, $AAPL, now account for 15% of the index’s market cap, an all-time high. This comes as $NVDA represents a record 8%, while $AAPL accounts for 7%. By comparison, the combined weight of Exxon Mobil, $XOM, and Apple, $AAPL, peaked at ~8% in 2011. During the 2000 Dot-Com Bubble, Microsoft, $MSFT, and General Electric, $GE, topped at ~9% in 1999. Before 2020, the 2 largest stocks never accounted for more than 10% of the index’s market cap. The US equity market has never been this concentrated.

BREAKING: 331 S&P 500 companies mentioned AI during their Q2 2026 earnings calls, the 3rd-largest reading on record. This figure has more than quadrupled since Q3 2022. This also marks the 4th consecutive quarter in which more than 300 companies have mentioned AI. Not surprisingly, 97% of Information Technology firms mentioned AI during their Q2 earnings calls. Financials and Communication Services followed, at 91% and 90%, respectively. Only Utilities, Materials, and Consumer Staples had fewer than half of companies mentioning "AI." AI is dominating corporate conversations.