Oil Prices Held Near $80 Per Barrel

The US stock indices closed Thursday in negative territory, as investor concerns over overvalued semiconductor stocks and rising geopolitical risks outweighed optimism from strong corporate earnings. By the end of the day, the Dow Jones Index (US30) fell by 0.20%. The S&P 500 Index (US500) declined by 0.51%. The tech‑heavy Nasdaq (US100) closed Thursday in the red at 1.47%. A broad sell‑off hit semiconductor manufacturers such as Micron, AMD, and Broadcom, which fell by 5% or more, while SanDisk and SK Hynix plunged 12% and 13% respectively, casting doubt on projections of explosive growth in the artificial‑intelligence industry. The negative wave also affected tech giants, including Alphabet, whose shares fell more than 4% amid news of a delay in the release of the new Gemini 3.5 Pro model, as well as Nvidia, Meta Platforms, and Amazon.

In June 2026, US retail‑sales growth slowed to 0.2%, the weakest reading in five months. This result, fully in line with market expectations, followed a more active May, when the figure was revised upward to 1%. It is important to note that the data do not account for inflation, so modest growth amid easing price pressure in other segments of the economy indicates that consumers continue to support economic turnover despite corrections in certain product categories.
European indices traded without a single dynamic on Thursday. By the end of the day, Germany’s DAX (DE40) fell by 0.34%, France’s CAC 40 (FR40) closed down 0.06%, Spain’s IBEX 35 (ES35) rose by 0.15%, and the UK’s FTSE 100 (UK100) closed up 0.54%.

On Thursday, oil prices held near $80 per barrel, balancing amid critical escalation of the Middle East conflict. Market sentiment remains extremely tense due to the threat of large‑scale disruption of energy routes: reports indicate that Iranian authorities are preparing the Houthis to block the Red Sea as a retaliatory measure for possible US strikes on the country’s infrastructure, which could occur as early as next week. The situation is rapidly entering a hot phase: US forces for the first time attacked a tanker near Iran’s key export terminal, prompting Tehran to retaliate with strikes on US bases in Kuwait and Jordan. Supply disruptions combined with diplomatic uncertainty create persistent pressure on the oil market, preventing prices from retreating significantly from monthly highs.

The US natural‑gas prices (XNG) fell below $2.87 per MMBtu, hitting a two‑month low amid significant oversupply in the domestic market. While global markets are seeing rising prices, the US energy system has been shielded from the effects of the Middle East crisis. The main driver of inventory accumulation has been outages at the Freeport LNG export terminal, which left gas intended for export on the domestic market. Statistics confirm the oversupply trend: storage inventories for the week ending July 10 increased by 41 billion cubic feet, exceeding market expectations.

In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei 225 (JP225) fell by 2.79%, China’s FTSE China A50 (CHA50) closed down 1.84%, Hong Kong’s Hang Seng (HK50) rose by 1.33%, and Australia’s ASX 200 (AU200) closed down 0.01%.

The Australian dollar (AUD) shows cautious dynamics, dipping slightly below $0.70 but remaining close to three‑week highs and preparing to finish its third consecutive week of gains. However, further strengthening of the Australian dollar is constrained by the escalation of the Middle East conflict and the resulting spike in Brent crude prices, which have surged 17% over the past two weeks. Investors fear that disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz could trigger a new wave of global inflation, complicating central‑bank policy decisions.

• S&P 500 (US500) 7,533.77 -38.63 (-0.51%)

• Dow Jones (US30) 52,552.97 -105.67 (-0.20%)

• DAX (DE40) 24,915.49 -84.04 (-0.34%)

• FTSE 100 (UK100) 10,572.24 +56.32 (+0.54%)

• USD Index 100.74 +0.25 (+0.25%)

News feed for: 2026.07.17

• Eurozone Consumer Price Index (m/m) at 12:00 (GMT+3) – EUR (MED)

• US Building Permits (m/m) at 15:30 (GMT+3) – USD (LOW)

• US Michigan Inflation Expectations (m/m) at 17:00 (GMT+3) – USD (MED)