Crude oil futures continue to push higher, but this time, gold and silver are going along for the ride. Stocks are slipping along with the dollar, while Treasuries are mostly flat.
Brent crude oil topped the $100 mark in overnight trading after the US attacked and sank five Iranian oil tankers and Iran launched a large round of missiles at a US base in Jordan. US officials said the missiles were successfully intercepted, avoiding US casualties. But the increasing tempo of strikes and counterstrikes is driving up the war premium attached to oil. In the US, WTI futures were recently changing hands at $96.02, up more than 15% in a month.
Brent Crude Oil Futures
Source: TradingView
Tech investors and Wall Street analysts will be focusing on Cupertino, California today. That’s because new Apple Inc. (AAPL) CEO John Ternus will lead his first annual product reveal event since taking over from Tim Cook Sept. 1. The highlight will reportedly be the first foldable “iPhone Duo,” a device that will come with a $2,000 price tag. Apple stock has outperformed the market this year, rising 16.3%.
Home sellers are starting to throw in the towel, cutting asking prices amid lackluster buyer demand, according to Realtor.com. The firm said median list prices fell 1.8% per square foot in August, the 10th consecutive monthly decline. Some of the largest declines are showing up in markets that enjoyed big, post-pandemic price gains. That includes places like Florida and Texas.
Finally, Big Tech is increasing investments overseas amid rising AI backlash in the US. Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) said it would invest more than $15 billion in Finland for data center construction and related AI infrastructure. That follows more than $60 billion in other European and UK spending commitments from companies like Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) and Microsoft Corp. (MSFT).
