Goldman Sachs: Semiconductor industry fundamentals remain supported, while leveraged ETFs amplify volatility in tech stocks.

Official Trump Coins has announced the launch of the "United We Stand" commemorative silver bar. The piece features a bold full-color design, paying homage to an iconic moment from Donald J. Trump’s presidency: his signature salute in front of a waving American flag. Framed by the presidential seal and the phrase "UNITED WE STAND", the silver bar honors the timeless spirit of resilience, leadership, and enduring unity. It is available in 1-ounce and 10-ounce versions. Trump has personally promoted commemorative coins from Official Trump Coins on multiple occasions, describing them as "the only official coins designed by me"—including the first and second editions of silver medallions released earlier. U.S. media points out that Official Trump Coins is actually operated by Trump’s sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., who are authorized to use Trump’s image.

US crude oil inventories are experiencing an unprecedented decline: total inventories have fallen for 17 consecutive weeks, the longest such decline period on record. This streak surpasses the previous record of 16 straight weeks of decline set in 2021. Since early April, total crude inventories have dropped by 166 million barrels to 712 million barrels, hitting their lowest level since March 1984. US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) inventories alone have decreased by 111 million barrels since March, currently standing at 305 million barrels, the lowest level since February 1983. Meanwhile, US gasoline inventories have declined for 10 consecutive weeks, matching the 2018 record.

According to monitoring by TheDataNerd, a large whale that shorted $102 million worth of Bitcoin using 40x leverage recently faced partial liquidations, suffering a $1.46 million loss over the past week. The whale has since added margin, cutting its short position to roughly $60 million. The position’s entry price is $64,212.5, and its liquidation price is $65,310.2.

After 25-year-old rising Wall Street AI stock prodigy Leopold’s hedge fund Situational Awareness faced a margin liquidation, Silicon Valley capital has instead launched a wave of pursuit for him. Insiders revealed that a large number of Silicon Valley investors have contacted the fund voluntarily within just a few days, expressing their willingness to add investment. Sequoia Capital partner Pat Grady publicly stated he will remain a key figure in Silicon Valley for the long term; veteran venture capitalist Elad Gil even announced his first application to invest in the fund; Redpoint Ventures managing director Logan Bartlett bluntly said, “There’s a hero archetype here—Leopold got punched, but it sparked everyone’s unity.” Despite the heavy blow, the fund has still posted around 80% positive returns this year, with its remaining portfolio valued at roughly $100 billion. However, Situational Awareness has informed investors it is temporarily not accepting new capital. In a letter to investors, Leopold announced he has unwound all leverage, characterizing the crisis as a costly but invaluable lesson, and will at least temporarily stop using bank prime brokerage services to amplify positions. This incident has laid bare the deep divide between Silicon Valley and Wall Street: Wall Street views it as a classic case of excessive leverage, with S3 Partners’ founder pointing out bluntly, “This is a super-concentrated, super-crowded, and super-high-leverage position”; Barclays even previously refused to take the fund on as a client citing excessive industry concentration; while Silicon Valley sees it as a buying opportunity at a low point. A New York University professor explained that Silicon Valley rewards those who make correct judgments on transformative technology directions, while Wall Street rewards those who generate risk-adjusted returns while preserving principal.

Berkshire Hathaway released its Q2 2026 financial report today, with the market’s most closely watched detail being that its cash reserves dropped to $365.51 billion in the second quarter, down from approximately $397.4 billion in Q1. This marks the end of Berkshire’s 14 consecutive quarters of net selling, its first period of significant net buying since Q4 2022. In Q2, Berkshire’s net stock purchases totaled nearly $20 billion, including a roughly $10 billion private placement in Alphabet, Google’s parent company, to support its AI data center and other investments. It also acquired homebuilder Taylor Morrison for approximately $6.8 billion—a full acquisition, not an open-market stock trade—and repurchased about $4.5 billion of its own shares. After accounting for these major items, there remains roughly $3 billion in "unexplained" net open-market equity purchases, with specific stocks to be disclosed in the 13F filing around August 14. Alphabet has now officially entered Berkshire’s top five holdings, alongside American Express, Apple, Bank of America, and Coca-Cola, with these five core positions making up roughly 66% of its stock portfolio. Buffett previously noted that the prolonged net selling cycle was driven mainly by high market valuations, which made it difficult to find sufficiently attractive opportunities. This shift is viewed as a clear signal of more active capital allocation since Greg Abel took over as CEO, with Berkshire moving from "waiting patiently" to "taking action."

US Vice President Vance stated that some progress has been made in Iran negotiations over the past few days. Key focuses include maximizing oil and gas production in the Strait of Hormuz, and securing Iran’s commitment to refrain from firing on ships.