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Last updated: July 24, 2026, 11:30 AM ET

Market Movers and AI Concerns

The S&P 500 Index steadied Friday after a significant one-day drop, as Brent crude prices and the selloff in Big Tech shares eased. Despite corporate earnings, investors remain unenthused, fretting about AI spending and economic growth. Meta Platforms Inc. is tapping investors through a bond sale led by BlackRock to finance a data center, testing appetite amid concerns over AI infrastructure spending FT Companies. Verizon, meanwhile, is as its turnaround continues, though profit slid due to costs from a BT Group joint venture.

Geopolitical Tensions and Trade Dynamics

The dollar and may stay strong until a U.S.-Iran ceasefire is agreed upon, as geopolitical volatility weighs on international markets. Europe faces a deadline to end liquefied natural gas imports from Russia, with concerns over rising dependence on American energy even as the ban on Russian gas tankers looms. China, despite threats from former President Trump's trade war, has, with its overall average weighted tariff on goods lower than that of countries like Brazil and Canada. The Trump administration, however of around 10% on over 80 nations, tied to imports of goods made with forced labor, and has unveiled a complicated system for further trade war measures after the Supreme Court struck down original levies. China is also wielding its leverage over Europe with new export controls on critical supplies to