Most Important News

1. Trump Says Iran Deal 'Over';
2. Goldman Sachs Highlights New Phase in "HALO Trade";
3. Apple Closes Gap with Nvidia in Market Value Race;
4. HSBC Sets $200 Target for Intel Amid "Terafab" Narrative;

US stock futures tumbled on Wednesday after President Donald Trump declared the Iran ceasefire "over," renewing Middle East tensions.

Brent crude surged 5.3% to $78.07, and West Texas Intermediate gained 5% to $73.97. Energy stocks rose in premarket trading, with ConocoPhillips(COP.US) and Marathon Petroleum Corporation(MPC.US) up nearly 2%. Chip stocks faced pressure, Micron Technology, Inc.(MU.US) dropping 4%.

Markets had grown complacent about geopolitical risks. Attention turns to Federal Open Market Committee minutes from June's meeting. Read in detail>>

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As of 03:44 PM Riyadh Time, top pre-market movements are as follows:

Trump Says Iran Deal 'Over'

On Wednesday, US President Trump announced at the NATO summit in Ankara that the US-Iran temporary ceasefire agreement is "over". This statement followed new US military strikes on Iran and the revocation of Iran's oil export waivers. Three merchant ships were reportedly attacked in the strait, with the US blaming Iran, while Iran accused the US of breaking the agreement through airstrikes and policy changes.

Trump Threatens to Sever All Trade Ties with Spain

At the NATO summit in Ankara, US President Trump criticized Spain as a "bad NATO partner" for failing to contribute financially. He announced plans to cut all trade and halt visits to Spain. The move is seen as pressure on Spain, the only NATO member not committing to raising defense spending to 5% of GDP by 2035, reflecting Trump's strategy to influence military funding.

Goldman Sachs Highlights New Phase in "HALO Trade"

Goldman Sachs' European equity strategy team reports that the first phase of the "HALO trade," focused on valuation repair, is complete. The second phase now begins, driven by profit realization. Heavy asset stocks are expected to see a 15% EPS growth, surpassing the 10% for light assets. This shift is supported by a capital expenditure supercycle, particularly in AI and energy transition sectors, creating a strong moat for physical assets.

Apple Closes Gap with Nvidia in Market Value Race

NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA.US), holding the top spot in US market value for over a year, faces strong competition from Apple Inc.(AAPL.US). As of Wednesday's pre-market data, Nvidia's market value stood at $4.78 trillion, just $200 billion ahead of Apple's $4.56 trillion. This marks a sharp decline from their $1.37 trillion gap in August 2025, reflecting Wall Street's shifting focus from AI infrastructure to platform companies leveraging AI for products and value.

Apple and Broadcom Forge $30 Billion Chip Partnership

Apple Inc.(AAPL.US) announced a multi-year agreement with Broadcom Limited(AVGO.US), planning to spend over $30 billion. Broadcom will custom-design and produce silicon chips and advanced wireless components for Apple, aiming to manufacture over 15 billion chips in the US. As part of the deal, Broadcom will invest $1.5 billion to expand its Colorado facility, focusing on high-performance RF components. Apple highlighted these components as crucial for enhancing product performance and connectivity.

SpaceX and Cursor to Launch Joint AI Model This Week  

SpaceX(SPCX.US)'s AI division and Cursor plan to unveil their first jointly developed AI model as early as Wednesday, challenging Anthropic's Opus 4.8 and OpenAI's GPT-5.5. According to an internal memo obtained by The Information, the release was delayed to enhance efficiency. The launch coincides with SpaceX's $60 billion all-stock acquisition of Cursor, signaling rapid AI consolidation under Musk and intensifying competition in the AI landscape.

Samsung Begins Mass Production of Advanced SSDs for Nvidia Platform

Samsung Electronics announced the mass production of its latest enterprise SSDs, set to be integrated into NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA.US)'s upcoming Vera Rubin platform. This move reinforces Samsung's role in the AI infrastructure supply chain. The PM1763 SSDs feature Samsung's latest V-NAND flash chips and a newly developed 4nm controller, offering double the read/write speed of previous models. They also include a liquid cooling system to support sustained high-speed operations during AI training and inference.

SemiAnalysis: TSMC's True Competitive Edge Lies in EDA/IP Ecosystem

SemiAnalysis highlights that Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., Ltd. Sponsored ADR(TSM.US)'s strength is not just in its manufacturing processes but in its integration of EDA design tools, silicon IP, and production methods. The certified silicon IP library has grown from about 3,000 items in 2010 to 93,000 by 2025, creating a positive feedback loop. With advanced node failures costing over $100 million, minimizing design risk is more crucial than simply enhancing performance, power, and area. This integration significantly increases the cost of switching suppliers, making customers reluctant to change.

HSBC Sets $200 Target for Intel Amid "Terafab" Narrative

HSBC analysts maintain a "buy" rating for Intel Corporation(INTC.US), driven by expected progress in its data center CPU and chip foundry businesses, which they believe are undervalued by the market. While Nvidia dominates the AI GPU infrastructure, CPUs, advanced packaging, and semiconductor manufacturing capacity are becoming increasingly crucial in the AI supply chain. HSBC anticipates Intel will benefit from the growing demand for data center CPUs fueled by AI agents and the global expansion of AI semiconductor capacity led by Musk's "Terafab" super chip factories.

Meta Launches Muse Image AI Model to Compete with OpenAI and Google

Meta Platforms(META.US) has unveiled Muse Image, a new AI image generation model, to enhance its generative AI offerings. This move aims to attract content creators and advertisers, leveraging AI capabilities for monetization in advertising. Initially codenamed Mango, Muse Image is the second major model from Meta's Super Intelligent Lab, led by Alexandr Wang. The lab previously launched the Muse Spark language model in April, succeeding the Llama series. Meta announced that users can access Muse Image for free via the Meta AI app, website, WhatsApp, and Instagram Stories.

Amazon's $25 Billion Bond Sale Spurs Tech Debt Sell-off

Amazon.com, Inc.(AMZN.US)'s $25 billion bond issuance, divided into eight tranches, marks a significant transaction following its $37 billion financing in March. Demand peaked at $62 billion, half of March's level, indicating waning investor enthusiasm for tech giants' financing. As investors sold existing bonds to fund new purchases, bonds of companies like Amazon.com, Inc.(AMZN.US), Alphabet Inc. Class C(GOOG.US), NVIDIA Corporation(NVDA.US), Meta Platforms(META.US), Oracle Corporation(ORCL.US), and SpaceX(SPCX.US) weakened, raising concerns about pressure on AI infrastructure investment.