Bloomberg — 2026-07-08#

Lead Story#

The US military struck more than 80 targets in Iran for a second consecutive day, prompting President Donald Trump to declare a tentative ceasefire “over” while threatening to resume a blockade on the country’s ports. Trump also revoked a 60-day waiver that had allowed Tehran to sell oil globally, leaving tens of millions of barrels of crude currently at sea in limbo. The sudden geopolitical escalation sent Brent crude jumping as much as 3% to top $76 a barrel, while global equities tumbled, bonds retreated, and the US dollar attracted safe-haven flows.

Markets & Economics#

• Fed Minutes Show ‘a Few’ Officials Saw Case for June Hike: Minutes from the Federal Reserve’s most recent policy meeting revealed that a few officials saw a case for raising interest rates, though they ultimately supported the broader committee’s decision to leave rates on hold.
• Big Market Rotation Sends Korean Stocks Tumbling, China Surging: Investors are aggressively rotating out of crowded artificial intelligence trades, causing South Korean chipmakers to slump while triggering a massive rally in Chinese technology stocks.
• US Consumer Borrowing Unexpectedly Drops by Most Since 2024: US consumer borrowing unexpectedly declined for the first time since 2024, driven heavily by a sharp drop in revolving credit balances.
• New Zealand Raises Key Rate to Head Off Inflation Pressures: The Reserve Bank of New Zealand increased its key interest rate for the first time in three years, moving away from stimulatory monetary settings to counter mounting inflationary pressures.
• Big Tech’s $25 Billion Mega Bond Sales Are Pushing Market Limits: Technology giants are increasingly utilizing jumbo bond offerings of $25 billion or more—historically an instrument reserved only for historic mega-acquisitions—to fund their massive AI infrastructure buildouts.

Business & Industries#

• SK Hynix US Offering Is More Than Seven Times Oversubscribed: The South Korean memory chipmaker’s upcoming US listing is seeing massive demand from investors, setting the stage for strong pricing on Thursday despite a broader semiconductor rotation.
• Paramount’s Deal for Warner Bros. Should Be Delayed, Oregon Says: Oregon’s attorney general is seeking a court order to halt Paramount Skydance Corp.’s $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. for 60 days to facilitate an ongoing state antitrust probe.
• Toyota’s Shift to US Stokes Fears for Mexican Auto Industry: Mexico’s auto industry is bracing for widespread supply chain fallout after Toyota Motor Corp. announced it will relocate production of its highly popular Tacoma truck to Texas.
• Top India Asset Manager Sets Price Range for $1.22 Billion IPO: SBI Funds Management Ltd. is aiming to raise up to $1.22 billion from investors, setting up what is expected to be India’s first billion-dollar initial public offering of the year.

Policy & World#

• Trump Says He Will Let Ukraine Make Patriot Missiles: During the NATO summit in Ankara, President Trump announced the US will grant Ukraine a license to manufacture its own Patriot missile interceptors, a critical defense tool against Russian aerial assaults.
• Trump Says US to Remove Syria From Terrorism Sanctions List: Following a bilateral meeting with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, Trump stated he will remove Syria from the US terrorism sanctions list, publicly praising the leader’s post-civil-war efforts.
• US Defense Agency Seeks to Buy Up to $300 Million of Lithium: The US Department of Defense is purchasing massive reserves of lithium for its strategic stockpiles in a bid to mitigate supply chain vulnerabilities for critical minerals.
• Farage’s Ploy Diverts Attention From UK Leadership Transition: Reform UK leader Nigel Farage shocked Parliament by resigning his seat to seek reelection amid intense financial scrutiny, dominating headlines just as Andy Burnham prepares to succeed Keir Starmer as Prime Minister on July 20.

Opinion & Analysis#

• Trump’s Iran Ceasefire Was Built to Fail: Bloomberg Opinion columnist Marc Champion argues that the unravelling of the US-Iran ceasefire was inevitable, as Trump’s earlier claims of total military victory and unconditional surrender were built entirely on falsehoods.
• The Supreme Court’s Originalism Is Dead, Dead, Dead: An analysis details how Chief Justice John Roberts has effectively dismantled conservative originalism, bypassing the core theory in favor of “history and tradition” to justify preserving the independence of the Federal Reserve .
• China Can Ban AI Boyfriends. It Can’t Make Men Listen: While Western AI platforms primarily cater to men with virtual companions, China’s booming artificial intelligence romance industry has found a massive, distinct audience: women seeking consistent emotional support and empathy .