Daily News 14th July 26
Daily News
Stocks Retreat as Trump Reinstates Iran Blockade and Floats 20% Hormuz Toll; Crude Surges Above $79; Gold Holds $4,000 After 3% Tumble; China Exports Post Fastest Growth Since 2021
14 July 2026
Today in Brief
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Tuesday after giving up earlier gains — Japan's Nikkei 225 rose 0.15% and South Korea's Kospi added 1.24%, while the Kosdaq lost 1.75%, Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.44%, and Hong Kong's Hang Seng declined 0.54% — as Treasury yields rose on fears that higher oil prices could keep inflation elevated. U.S. stocks fell Monday after President Trump announced he was reinstating a blockade on Iranian shipping through the Strait of Hormuz: the S&P 500 lost 0.79% to 7,515.34, the Nasdaq slid 1.55% to 25,873.18, and the Dow shed 138 points to 52,498.64. Crude climbed above $79 per barrel — bringing weekly gains past 10% — after Trump also proposed a 20% toll on all cargo transiting the strait, while gold held around $4,000 an ounce after tumbling nearly 3%, with markets now pricing a roughly 51% chance of a September Fed rate hike ahead of Chair Kevin Warsh's congressional testimony.
In other news: The U.S. completed a third consecutive night of strikes on Iranian military targets as Tehran hit two Emirati oil tankers and triggered missile alerts in Bahrain; China's June exports jumped 27% year-on-year — the fastest pace since October 2021 — on booming AI hardware demand and a tariff front-running rush; tariff refunds pushed the U.S. June budget deficit to $120 billion after the Supreme Court struck down Trump's broadest tariffs; SpaceX shares sank for a second straight day toward their $135 IPO price; options traders turned bullish on Netflix ahead of Thursday's earnings; Nvidia more than halved its list of authorised Asian AI-chip buyers under a new compliance "white list"; and TSMC is expected to post a fifth straight quarter of record profit on AI infrastructure demand.
In Asia, markets mostly turned lower after giving up gains from earlier in the session
Asia-Pacific markets traded mixed on Tuesday. Japan's benchmark Nikkei 225 was up 0.15%, while the Topix added 0.48%. South Korea's Kospi was up 1.24% and the small-cap Kosdaq lost 1.75%. Australia's benchmark S&P/ASX 200 was down 0.44%. Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index declined 0.54%, while China's mainland CSI 300 opened flat. Treasury yields rose as investors feared higher oil prices could keep inflation elevated.
Stocks end lower as oil prices surge on renewed Hormuz tensions; SK Hynix leads chip stock sell-off
Stocks fell on Monday after President Donald Trump announced he was reinstating what he called a blockade on Iranian shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, sending oil prices higher. The S&P 500 lost 0.79% to end the day at 7,515.34, while the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.55% to finish at 25,873.18. The Dow Jones Industrial Average settled down 138.37 points, or 0.26%, at 52,498.64. "We are reinstating THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran's ships or customers from entering or leaving," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
Gold held around $4,000 an ounce on Tuesday after tumbling nearly 3% in the previous session
Gold held around $4,000 an ounce on Tuesday after tumbling nearly 3% in the previous session, as President Donald Trump reinstated a blockade on Iranian vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz and sought reimbursement from countries benefiting from US efforts to secure the vital shipping lane. The move drove oil prices sharply higher, reviving concerns over inflation and the interest rate outlook. The measures followed renewed hostilities between Washington and Tehran, with the US targeting Iran's ability to disrupt maritime shipping while Tehran retaliated against US allies in the region. Investors also awaited key US inflation data and Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh's testimony before the US Congress later today, with markets closely parsing his remarks for further policy guidance. Markets now price in roughly a 51% chance of a Fed rate hike in September, compared with a 23% probability that the central bank will leave rates unchanged.
Crude oil climbed above $79 per barrel on Tuesday, bringing gains for the week to more than 10%
Crude oil climbed above $79 per barrel on Tuesday, bringing gains for the week to more than 10%, after President Donald Trump reinstated a blockade on Iranian vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz and announced that all other cargo passing through the waterway would be subject to payment requirements. The blockade is scheduled to take effect at 4 p.m. Eastern Time today. Trump called for a 20% reimbursement on cargoes, saying the US should be compensated by countries benefiting from its efforts to secure the strait, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait. The measures followed renewed hostilities between Washington and Tehran, with the US seeking to curb Iran's ability to disrupt maritime shipping, while Tehran responded by targeting US allies in the region.
U.S. targets Iranian military assets in latest round of strikes as Tehran hits Gulf states
The U.S. has completed its strikes against Iranian military targets for a third consecutive night, while Tehran hit two Emirati oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and triggered fresh missile alerts in Bahrain. U.S. Central Command said it has completed the latest wave of strikes against Iran. The five-hour mission struck military targets across Iran and further degraded Iran's ability to attack commercial shipping, Centcom said in a statement. The U.S. forces attacked Iranian coastal defense systems, missile and drone sites, and maritime capabilities. The military action came hours after Trump ordered to reinstate a blockade on Iran in the strait Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, and floated a 20% toll charge for ships going through the critical energy waterway.
Trump proposes 20% toll on cargo through Strait of Hormuz; restarts Iran blockade
President Donald Trump on Monday said the U.S. will impose fees in the Strait of Hormuz "at the rate of 20% on all cargo shipped," after declaring America the "guardian" of the major oil shipping route. Trump, in a Truth Social post, also said the U.S. will reimpose its blockade of Iranian ports near the strait, the epicentre of the U.S.' rapidly re-escalating war with Tehran. The blockade will resume Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET, U.S. Central Command said. "We're attacking them tonight, and we're taking out all of their capability for anything having to do with the strait," Trump told reporters at the White House later Monday afternoon. "And I think in the end, we will end up controlling the whole thing."
China exports in June rise at fastest pace since 2021 as AI boom, tariff rush lift trade
China's trade growth accelerated far more than expected in June, as booming global demand for AI hardware and a rush by U.S. retailers to beat anticipated tariff hikes turbocharged shipments. Overall exports rose 27% from a year earlier in U.S. dollar terms, the strongest since October 2021, customs data showed Tuesday, quickening from the 19.4% gain in May and sharply beating economists' estimates for 18.2% growth. Imports grew 36% in June, the largest jump since June 2021, gaining pace from the 27.4% growth in May and sharply beating economists' forecast for 24% growth. The trade surplus stood at $125.6 billion in June. China's exports to the U.S. jumped around 14% last month while imports grew 26%, according to CNBC calculation of the official data.
Tariff refunds push US June budget deficit to $120 billion
Growing refunds from President Donald Trump's tariffs, after they were ruled illegal, pushed the June federal budget deficit to $120 billion, the U.S. Treasury Department said on Monday, a sharp reversal from the $27 billion surplus in June 2025 that the administration touted as evidence of tariff success. The Treasury reported gross customs duty collections of $23.6 billion but refunds of $49.2 billion, resulting in a net outflow of $25.6 billion for the month. The refunds began flowing in May after the U.S. Supreme Court in February struck down Trump's broadest and deepest global tariffs as illegal under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. June refunds were more than double the $22 billion returned in May, which resulted in a slight outflow of $42 million.
SpaceX stock sinks for a second-straight day, nearing $135 IPO price
Shares of SpaceX hit a new all-time low on Monday, bringing Elon Musk's company closer to its $135 initial public offering price just days after making its entrance into the Nasdaq-100. The stock sank 4.51% Friday and lost another 4.24% Monday. Through its first month as a public company, the stock has been volatile since its June 12 debut. The stock is down about 7% from its first trade of $150. The blockbuster debut, which saw Musk briefly become the world's first trillionaire, was expected to be the first of other highly-anticipated IPOs in the artificial intelligence space, including OpenAI and Anthropic. Both companies said they confidentially filed IPO prospectuses with the Securities and Exchange Commission this summer, but haven't disclosed any official timelines or plans for their debuts.
Traders are betting on a comeback quarter for Netflix
After a year-long bear market, an almost 20% decline year-to-date, and sell-offs after four of its past four earnings reports, options traders are striking a decidedly bullish tone heading into Netflix's earnings on Thursday. Call volumes doubled puts in back-to-back sessions Friday and Monday, with almost three times as many calls bought versus puts by midday Monday, according to data. At the same time, one of the most popular trades was selling at-the-money puts. The technical picture may be helping. At around $75, Netflix is trading about on par with where the stock was when it ended its pursuit of Warner Brothers Discovery in February. It was around this level in late 2021 that Netflix began a sharp, 80% selloff before a multi-year recovery that peaked at $134 in June last year.
Nvidia halves Asia buyer list in China chip crackdown
Nvidia has more than halved the number of Asian customers authorised to buy its AI chips after creating a new "white list" of companies that have passed tougher compliance checks aimed at preventing the products from reaching China, the Financial Times reported on Monday. The chipmaker has over the past few months intensified due diligence in Singapore, Malaysia and Japan, the report added, citing three people familiar with the matter.
TSMC seen riding AI boom to fifth straight quarter of record profit
TSMC, the world's largest manufacturer of advanced AI chips, will likely notch a fifth consecutive quarter of record earnings, driven by booming AI infrastructure spending. Analysts say demand for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co's (TSMC) 3-nanometre and 2-nanometre process technologies for AI chips, as well as for its advanced chip packaging technology, CoWoS, remains strong. That has catapulted Asia's most valuable company, a key supplier to Nvidia and Apple, to new heights. Its market capitalisation is now nearly double that of South Korean rival Samsung Electronics at around $1.97 trillion. On Thursday, TSMC is expected to report a 59% surge in net profit to T$632.6 billion ($19.65 billion) for the second quarter, according to an LSEG SmartEstimate compiled from 18 analysts. SmartEstimates place greater weight on forecasts from analysts who are more consistently accurate.
