Wednesday Watch

Around X:

• @Business  

• Another tanker carrying liquefied natural gas from Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. has exited the Strait of Hormuz, adding to a recent uptick in energy flows through the vital waterway.
• SK Hynix has surged past a $1 trillion market valuation after its shares soared more than 900% in the past year, reflecting investor confidence in its position as the leading supplier of advanced memory chips powering AI. 
• SQM reported a sharp increase in first-quarter profit and raised its lithium sales forecast, betting that robust demand from battery storage systems will keep the market tightly supplied.
• Former President Joe Biden is suing the US Justice Department to block officials from sharing audio recordings and transcripts of interviews he gave for a memoir project with a conservative advocacy group and Republicans in Congress.
• Fireworks AI in Talks for Funding at $15 Billion Valuation.
• President Donald Trump backed the CFTC as the sole regulator of prediction markets, siding with the agency amid a growing legal fight with states over the multibillion-dollar industry.
• Get up to speed on what's moving global markets.
• Here’s what you need to know to start your day.      

• @ZeroHedge

• Texas U.S. Senate Republican Primary Tarrant County Early Vote: Ken Paxton – 36,977 (58.9%). John Cornyn (Inc.) – 25,808 (41.1%). This vote was Cornyn +10 in the first round, so this is a 28 point shift toward Paxton. 
• As of a couple of weeks ago, no US Senator had lost reelection in a primary since 2012. Now GOP voters have ousted two senators over 10 days: Cassidy in Louisiana, and Cornyn in Texas. 
• Goldman raises year end S&P price target from 7600 to 8000 driven entirely by AI capex. 
• "Semis are now up +14% over 5-days; this equates to 16.5% of performance above NVDA over these 5 days, matching the largest SOX v NVDA 5-day spread since 2018" - Goldman. 
• Second Chinese 'Combat' Patrol Buzzes Taiwan Within Days, On Heels Of Xi-Trump Summit. 
• Oklo Lands DOE Plutonium Deal To Turn Surplus Material Into Bridge Fuel. 
• Al Green known for interrupting Trump’s state of the union speech has lost his primary in Texas 18th district. 
• 'Giant Turd': Progressive Dems Continue To Rage At DNC 2024 Autopsy.
• Condo Prices Already Dropped By Up To 33% In 24 Bigger Markets.
• NEW: A top homeland security official has directed ICE attorneys to aggressively pursue administrative fraud cases against immigration lawyers accused of filing false asylum claims. @CBSNews exclusively obtained the DHS memo directing the new ramp up.
• Homeowners Face Eminent Domain Bulldozers As Data Centers Demand Ever More Power.
• Showcase Of Socialism: New York, Europe, And The Rise Of The New Left.  
• Hasan Piker Says Quiet Part Out Loud, Maps Radical Left NGO Network To China-Based Marxist Financier.
• Iraq's Oil Collapse Sparks Race For New Export Routes.
• *TRUMP: WILL BE POSTPONING THE CABINET TRIP TO CAMP DAVID. *TRUMP: WE WILL BE HAVING OUR CABINET MEETING IN THE WHITE HOUSE.
• U.S. RACES TO SET UP QUARANTINE FACILITY IN KENYA FOR AMERICANS EXPOSED TO EBOLA: WSJ.
• Defending The Fourth Amendment To Protect Gun Owners.
• Tech sector ETFs have taken in $23b while every other sector has basically gotten nothing since Feb, nice chart from @Todd_Sohn. 
• "Something's Got To Give": Goldman Warns As Hormuz Hopes & Soaring Semis Lifts Bonds & Stocks (Again).      

• @CNBC

• Asia markets set for mixed open as investors continue to weigh fragile U.S.-Iran ceasefire.
• Wednesday's big stock stories: What’s likely to move the market in the next trading session.
• Stock futures are little changed after the S&P 500 closes at another record: Live updates.
• Stocks making the biggest moves after hours: Zscaler, Insulet, Box and more.   

• @TheTranscript  

• Zscaler double beat but disappoints on guide. CEO: "We delivered strong Q3 fiscal 2026 results with record profitability. ARR grew 25%, or 21%..." $ZS: -17% AH.

Night Trading 

• Asian equity indices are +.25% to +1.25% on average. 
• Asia Ex-Japan Investment Grade CDS Index 72.25 -.75 basis point. 
• China Sovereign CDS 39.5 +.25 basis point.
• China Iron Ore Spot 104.9 USD/Metric Tonne -.2%. 
• Crude Oil 92.90/bbl. -1.1% 
• Gold 4,530.4 USD/t oz. +.1%. 
• Swiss Franc/Offshore Chinese Renminbi Cross 8.64 -.02%.
• Bloomberg Emerging Markets Currency Index 35.28 -.03%.
• Bloomberg Global Risk-On/Risk Off Index 124.9 +.3%.
• US 10-Year Yield 4.48% -1.0 basis point.
• Japan 30-Year Yield 3.95% unch. 
• Volatility Index(VIX) futures 18.8 -.5%.
• Euro Stoxx 50 futures +.18%. 
• S&P 500 futures +.09%.
• NASDAQ 100 futures +.18%.

Morning Preview Links

BOTTOM LINE: Asian indices are mostly higher, boosted by technology and financial shares in the region. I expect US stocks to open mixed and to rally into the afternoon, finishing modestly higher.  The Portfolio is 100% net long heading into the day.