July 24, 2026: Market Highlights and Outlook

Key Market Themes

This week featured three principal themes: escalating tensions in the Iran conflict, new tariff measures, and heightened AI investment spending.

1. Iran conflict – U.S. oil prices climbed to a seven‑week high as a fresh blockade emerged and hopes for a cease‑fire waned, driven by escalating U.S.–Iran attacks, Houthi strikes on Saudi oil tankers, and Iran’s rejection of the latest cease‑fire proposal.
2. The newly announced tariffs are expected to exert only a modest effect: U.S. trade officials introduced 10%–12.5% duties on more than 80 nations, while President Trump added 50% duties on a limited set of Canadian products; together, these measures are projected to have a modest impact.
3. Concerns over AI‑driven capital expenditures weighed on Google (GOOG) and Tesla (TSLA) shares, as both firms disclosed substantial increases in AI‑related spending, prompting market sell‑offs.

Inflation worries pushed 10‑year Treasury yields up more than 10 basis points to roughly 4.7%, a level not seen in 18 months, while AI spending concerns helped drive a 2% decline in the Nasdaq‑100®.

Upcoming Events

The following events are slated for next week:

• Tuesday: Conference Board Consumer Confidence report for July
• Wednesday: Federal Reserve rate decision and Q2 earnings from Meta and Microsoft
• Thursday: Q2 real GDP growth, June PCE inflation and spending, and Q2 earnings from Apple and Amazon
• Friday: Q2 Employment Cost Index

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