Global markets ended last week with mixed signals. On Friday, August 15, US stocks closed lower, but the S&P 500 managed to secure a third consecutive weekly gain.
Among the top 20 traded stocks on August 15, SanDisk surged 7.39%, pushing its weekly gain to over 35%, as the storage sector showed strength against the broader market trend. Most Chinese stocks listed in the US rose, with Alibaba up 1.35% and Silicon Motion Technology gaining 7.94%.
Commodity prices saw a broad uptick, with oil, copper, and gold all moving higher. European stocks retreated slightly but remained near record highs, while inflows into European equity funds hit a six-month peak.
On the macro front, Nasdaq futures and crude oil prices inched up together. Oil prices stabilized as the market focused on tensions in Lebanon and risks around the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump stated he has instructed the Defense Department to "significantly reduce" the scale of joint military exercises with South Korea, expressing dissatisfaction that the US had previously agreed to participate. Iran declared that US forces have been expelled and are prohibited from entering the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump welcomed the signing of a joint defense agreement among Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Bahrain. South Korea will resume the recovery of assets from pro-Japanese and anti-national figures. Egypt's president met with Kushner, urging all parties to implement the Gaza ceasefire.
In corporate news, legendary investor Stanley Druckenmiller has purchased shares of US-listed Chinese companies. The US investigation into Mark Walter is focusing on four intermediary agencies. JPMorgan CEO warned the UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer not to raise taxes on the banking sector. Goldman Sachs is backing Nvidia with a $500 billion plan to address the biggest funding bottleneck in AI infrastructure. SanDisk's stock has surged as Wall Street supports its long-term growth ambitions in AI flash memory.
Waymo received approval to significantly expand its California operations, with robotaxi services set to cover 18 counties.
In commentary, Iran's parliament speaker claimed that the US and Israel failed to achieve any of their stated goals, and that Iran has won the war. Blanche refused to promise that the Justice Department would operate independently of Trump. Kushner met with Hamas leadership in Cairo, stressing disarmament as a precondition. The US denied changing its stance on the Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute. Logistics costs have surged sharply, leading to two rounds of price hikes for two-thirds of Iran's pharmaceutical products. Kushner met with Hamas leaders, urging them to advance the demilitarization of Gaza. Iran's parliament passed a new bill criminalizing interviews with "hostile media."