Breakfast | July 30, 2026

Oil prices surged 8%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell more than 2%, the NASDAQ Composite Index dropped for the sixth consecutive session, the semiconductor index plunged over 5%, and the 30-year Treasury yield reached its highest level since 2007.

The Federal Reserve continued to hold rates steady and emphasized its commitment to fighting inflation, although three voting members supported a rate hike. Waller: The 2% inflation target remains unchanged; maintain independence and focus on the AI transformation.

Trump repeatedly warned of "severe strikes" against Iran and sought to impose additional tariffs on the country. The U.S. escalated sanctions against Iran, targeting the Hormuz "toll network" for the first time, blacklisting oil tankers, shipping companies, and insurers. Joint U.S.-Saudi airstrikes on Iraq further expanded the Middle East conflict zone.

South Korea: Will take more measures to stabilize the stock market, considering restrictions on retail investors purchasing leveraged ETFs and increasing transaction costs.

Moonshot AI completes over $3.5 billion in Series F financing: Valuation exceeds $35 billion, with Series G potentially closing next week.

Microsoft reported strong results last quarter, with cloud revenue growing over 40%, capital expenditures below expectations, new data center leases exceeding $130 billion, and new annual spending guidance nearly 8% lower than previous guidance. Its stock price surged up to 9% in after-hours trading.

Meta's revenue beat could not mask anxiety over AI spending; Q3 guidance was lackluster, and free cash flow hit a four-year low, causing the stock to drop up to 10% in after-hours trading. Zuckerberg: Open-source AI models are not as powerful as frontier models.

Qualcomm's net profit for the third fiscal quarter fell 25% year-over-year, with raised product prices and weak performance guidance.

MLCC prices are rising again! Reports: Samsung Electro-Mechanics will raise prices by 30% starting in August, with Taiyo Yuden expected to follow in September.

Margin calls ring out! The sharp decline in AI stocks led to "epic" losses for hedge funds, with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase leading the margin calls.

Reminder: Zhongji Innolight will list in Hong Kong on Thursday.