Chip stocks surged to a record 19.7% of the S&P 500 — almost four times their 2020 weight — as the AI boom concentrated market gains in semiconductor names and related hardware suppliers.
ByteDance opened a $39 billion data‑centre in Brazil, its largest facility outside China, underscoring the company’s global cloud and AI expansion.
Macro relief arrived in Europe: euro‑area consumer prices rose 2.8% year‑on‑year in June, down from 3.0% in May and below the 3.0% market forecast. The surprise, driven in part by lower oil, eased near‑term pressure on the European Central Bank; Governor Joachim Nagel said he will keep options open at upcoming meetings.
European banks extended a strong run after a 21% quarterly gain, marking the 13th positive quarter in 14 and leaving traders bullish on further upside amid stabilising growth and rates expectations.
Asia’s markets showed mixed signals. South Korea’s won slid to its weakest since 2009 as global funds rotated out of regional equities despite a factory boom tied to AI demand. Japan ticked up modestly while mainland Chinese indexes trimmed losses.
Policy and tech flows also moved markets: the U.S. government lifted export restrictions on Anthropic’s Fable 5 model, broadening access to advanced AI tools. Bitcoin fell below $60,000 to a 21‑month low as risk appetite cooled.
Global equities began July cautiously. European markets were largely flat, Japan rose about 0.4% and Chinese indices dipped roughly 0.4%. U.S. futures pointed to modest losses under 0.5% as investors awaited remarks from Fed Chair Kevin Warsh. Brent crude traded down about 1% near $72 a barrel.
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