Real-time News

On August 13th, SpaceX (SPCX.O) shares surged nearly 12% intraday. This rise was driven by a Morgan Stanley research report, which argued that the public market significantly undervalued SpaceX's artificial intelligence enterprise platform. Investors are increasingly viewing SpaceX not just as an aerospace and satellite hardware company, but as a vertically integrated technology giant with its own data, global network infrastructure, and cutting-edge AI models. Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas stated that SpaceX's recent AI offerings demonstrate a broader software ecosystem, with GrokBot being early evidence of this platform. This platform combines unique real-time data, vertically integrated computing power, connectivity, and intelligence—values not yet fully priced into the market. The report points out that SpaceX possesses two structural advantages: a real-time data pipeline from telemetry data from the X and Starlink satellite networks; and a "real-world" moat combining low-cost computing power with a global communication network. Musk previously stated that Grok 4.7 will surpass all current models, citing SpaceX's unique and powerful training data as giving it an advantage in real-world engineering capabilities.

Market news: Minouch Shafiq, former deputy governor of the Bank of England and director of the International Monetary Fund, has stepped down as chief economic advisor to the British Prime Minister.

U.S. Central Command: As of August 12 local time, the U.S. military has forced 59 merchant ships to change course, rendered 3 ships inoperable, and boarded and inspected 2 ships.

According to CBC News: Canada and the United States are not yet ready to reach a tariff agreement, and Canada is dissatisfied with the latest U.S. proposal.

Iran's Persian Gulf Straits Authority: US officials have claimed and repeatedly announced that the Strait of Hormuz is no longer blocked, but these claims do not change the reality: the Strait of Hormuz remains closed and will not reopen unless Iran's conditions are accepted.

August 13th - As of 2:30 PM closing, the main Shanghai gold futures contract rose 0.36% to 959 yuan/gram, the main Shanghai silver futures contract rose 0.63% to 16,024 yuan/kilogram, and the main SC crude oil futures contract rose 0.63% to 556 yuan/barrel.

August 13th - According to the Globe and Mail, the Canadian government is considering a proposed auto tariff package, hoping to accept some U.S. auto tariffs in exchange for lower U.S. tariffs on vehicles compliant with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The package includes maintaining the exemption policy, meaning the value of U.S.-made parts in Canadian-exported cars will not be included in the tariff calculation. Sources indicate that U.S. and Canadian negotiators have discussed the proposal. Preliminary details suggest that the auto tariffs imposed by Trump under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 could be further reduced from the current 25% tariff on all USMCA-compliant Canadian auto exports. Furthermore, the value of U.S. parts in Canadian-made cars will remain excluded from the tariff calculation. Approximately 50% of the parts in a Canadian-made car come from the U.S., and businesses believe that a 10% to 15% tariff level would be acceptable if U.S. components were excluded. The goal is to reach an agreement by August 19th. Canadian officials believe that a deferral of the next round of tariffs is more likely by August 19th than a comprehensive resolution to the Section 232 tariff issue.

On August 13th, the U.S. Treasury Department reported on Wednesday that the U.S. budget deficit has surged to its highest monthly level in more than five years, driven by soaring Medicare costs and continued pressure from federal debt interest payments. In addition to the significant single-month increase, the cumulative deficit for the first 10 months of fiscal year 2026 has approached $1.8 trillion, exceeding the figure for the same period in fiscal year 2025. The total deficit in July reached $432.3 billion, an increase of approximately 48% compared to the same period last year, marking the largest single-month deficit since March 2021 and setting a new July record. Medicare spending reached $174 billion that month, up from $103 billion in June, bringing the total for the year to $955 billion. This was the largest single expenditure in July, far exceeding Social Security spending of $141 billion and net interest payments on national debt of $104 billion. Furthermore, tariff rebates also impacted the budget by $33 billion. Additionally, U.S. fiscal revenue was negatively affected by a calendar factor of $99 billion, as the first day of the month was a non-working day. For years, Trump has urged the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates to ease debt costs. Since his nominee, Warsh, took over as chairman in May, he has ceased criticizing the Fed.

On August 13th, Reuters, citing sources, reported that Alphabet, the parent company of Google (GOOG.O), is undergoing a major leadership reshuffle at Google DeepMind, with some teams moving from DeepMind to the Google corporate system, further weakening DeepMind's autonomy. Sources said that Google co-founder Sergey Brin has been urging core AI employees in recent months to "fully commit" to the Gemini model and push for AI research in areas such as "recursive self-improvement." Following this reshuffle, DeepMind head Demis Hassabis will become chairman, with his deputy Kolai Kavukuoğlu taking over leadership responsibilities. Google stated that Kavukuoğlu will have final say on major decisions at DeepMind. Sources said that Google has postponed the release of the new flagship Gemini model by two months because internal testing showed it still lags behind competitors in areas such as programming. Analysts believe that Alphabet's restructuring aims to accelerate AI commercialization and regain a competitive edge in model development, but some employees worry that DeepMind's long-term research autonomy may further decline.

On August 13, according to a statement from the Iraqi Prime Minister's Media Office, Iraqi Prime Minister Mullah Zaidi met with visiting U.S. Central Command Commander General Robert Cooper on August 12. During the meeting, Zaidi reiterated Iraq's commitment to the established timetable, namely, September 30th is the final date for the international coalition forces to end their military mission in Iraq and complete their withdrawal. Zaidi stated that October 1st will be a new day in Iraqi history, when Iraq will completely rid itself of all foreign military presence, realize its territorial sovereignty, continuously enhance its national security and military capabilities, and safeguard its own security and stability.

The U.S. Treasury Department reports that the budget deficit for fiscal year 2026 is $1.799 trillion year-to-date, compared to $1.629 trillion in the same period of fiscal year 2025.

The U.S. Treasury Department reported that the July budget deficit was the largest since March 2021 and set a new record for the largest monthly budget deficit in July.

The U.S. Treasury Department reported a budget deficit of $432 billion in July (compared to market expectations of $346 billion), compared to a deficit of $291 billion in July of last year.

U.S. Treasury Department: Government spending in July reached $766 billion, a record high for July and higher than the $630 billion in July last year. Government revenue in July was $334 billion, lower than the $338 billion in July last year.

U.S. Treasury Department: July Customs net revenue was -$8.55 billion, total revenue was $24.84 billion, and tax refunds were $33.38 billion.

The US government budget for July was -$432 billion, compared to an expected -$346 billion and a previous -$120 billion.

According to Saudi media Alhadath: Yemeni government armed forces launched drone attacks on Houthi gathering points in Yemen's Jawf province.

Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Alimi: The Houthi movement in Yemen will not go unchallenged. There is no contradiction between the government's continued deterrence operations and its pursuit of peace.

On August 13th, satellite imagery showed that for the first time in weeks, a very large crude carrier (VLCC) docked at the Al-Juama port near Rastanura, Saudi Arabia's main export port in the Persian Gulf, indicating that Saudi Arabia is striving to maintain crude oil exports. However, shipping activity at Saudi ports remains affected by the war with Iran, the situation in the Strait of Hormuz, and the Houthi threat. As the world's largest oil exporter, Saudi Arabia has recently shifted some of its crude oil shipments to the Red Sea port of Yanbu and exports to the Mediterranean via the Sumed pipeline. Meanwhile, activity at Yanbu port has decreased compared to before, with only three tankers currently observed docked, carrying approximately 3.4 million barrels of crude oil. Analysts believe that Saudi Arabia's export routes are shifting from the traditional Bab el-Mandeb Strait to Asian markets to an alternative route via the Red Sea and connecting to the Suez Canal, in order to reduce regional security risks. Due to the disabling of automatic positioning systems on some tankers and the intervals in satellite observations, the actual scale of Saudi crude oil shipments is still difficult to fully confirm.

Sources say that Google (GOOG.O) executives held an all-hands meeting last week to discuss restructuring of the artificial intelligence division in response to employee concerns.