WTI crude surged +11.52% to $105.48 as US-Iran ceasefire talks collapsed — “garbage” per Trump Tuesday — while CPI 3.8% and PPI 6.0% pushed rate-hike odds from under 3% to over 50% in 72 hours and the 10Y to a one-year high of 4.601%. Kevin Warsh was sworn in as Fed Chair inheriting this stagflation stack. The Trump-Xi summit briefly drove records (S&P 7,500, Dow 50,000 Thursday) before crashing Friday on zero binding deals — tariffs, chips, and Taiwan all unresolved.
MIB Weekly: Stagflation Confirmed, AI Capex Accelerating, Summit Resolved Nothing — Own Energy & AI Infrastructure, Sell Rate-Sensitive Duration Through the Fall Diplomatic Window
MIB: Cisco AI Orders Surge, Trump-Xi Summit Ignites Rally, Import Prices Double Estimates
Cisco’s AI quarter — orders raised to $9B, hyperscaler demand +217% YoY — ignited the AI complex; all major indices hit records, Dow retook 50,000. Trump-Xi’s 9-point summit (200 Boeing jets, Hormuz pact, trade board) broadened the rally; transports led at +1.40%. April import prices nearly doubled estimates (+1.9% vs +1.0%), compounding 6.0% PPI; December rate-hike odds now 39%. Warsh assumes Fed Chair tomorrow with the hottest trade inflation since 2022. Cerebras (CBRS) IPO +68% — largest tech debut of 2026.
MIB: Hormuz Collapse + Chip Rally + Goldman’s Hawkish Pivot — Three Forces Reshaping the 2026 Portfolio
WTI surged 3.1% to $98.40 as Trump declared the US-Iran ceasefire ‘on life support’ — Aramco warns Hormuz disruption could extend to year-end. A 90-day US-China tariff pause sent QCOM +8.4% to an ATH ahead of the Trump-Xi Beijing summit May 13–15. Goldman pushed its first Fed cut to December 2026, assigning 44% odds to a hike by April 2027. CPI tomorrow (+3.7% exp.) is the week’s pivot. Lower-income consumers are in discretionary contraction; UMich sentiment is at a 74-year low.
