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Snap (SNAP.N) narrowed its pre-market losses to 9.4%.

On August 17th, according to Fox News, Trump, when discussing Iran, stated that he was "not in a hurry" and revealed the existence of secret communication channels with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. He said Iran should raise the white flag and surrender. "They are excellent poker players, but they are heading towards destruction." At the same time, he threatened to bomb Oman if it hindered the United States. Furthermore, he indicated he might endorse a candidate in the Israeli election.

Rikers Financial: Raises its price target for Reddit (RDDT.N) from $200 to $205.

According to Fox News, Trump said he was "not in a hurry" when discussing Iran.

A Reuters poll of 104 economists showed that 94 expect the Federal Reserve to keep the federal funds rate unchanged at 3.50%-3.75% in September (compared to 95 in the July poll). Another 80 economists expect the Fed to keep the federal funds rate unchanged at 3.50%-3.75% until 2026 (compared to 78 in the July poll).

Sources say Saudi Aramco is supplying some Asian refiners with Arab medium and Arab heavy crude oil located outside the Strait of Hormuz.

The U.S. Geological Survey reports a 5.2-magnitude earthquake 81 kilometers north of Ruten, Indonesia.

Snap (SNAP.N) shares fell as much as 15% in pre-market trading.

On August 17th, Guoquan (02517.HK) released its interim report, showing that in the first half of 2026, it achieved revenue of RMB 3.947 billion, a year-on-year increase of 21.8%; core operating profit was RMB 225 million, a year-on-year increase of 18.3%. As of the end of June, the company had 12,198 stores, an increase of 1,798 stores compared to the same period last year.

Israeli Prime Minister's Spokesperson: Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu met with US special envoys Kushner, Maldenov, and Blair.

Barclays lowered its price target for ExxonMobil (XOM.N) from $182 to $177.

Velayati, advisor to Iran's Supreme Leader: The American people are now paying the price for their leader's adventures in the Middle East.

Barclays lowered its price target for Murphy Oil (MUR.N) from $38 to $34. It lowered its price target for Chevron (CVX.N) from $216 to $208. It lowered its price target for ConocoPhillips (COP.N) from $155 to $150. It lowered its price target for Occidental Petroleum (OXY.N) from $75 to $71.

OmniAb (OABI.O) shares surged more than 36% in pre-market trading after the company announced a $370 million drug development agreement with Eli Lilly.

TD Cowen: Raises target price for CrowdStrike (CRWD.O) from $175 to $235.

On August 17th, Alibaba's WeChat official account announced the launch of Happy Shrimp 1.0, an artificial intelligence (AI) music model. According to the announcement, the model can accurately understand natural language and transform emotions, stories, or memories into a complete piece of music. Happy Shrimp was designed from the outset to lower the barrier to entry for music creation. Beyond music theory and arrangement terminology, it accurately understands natural language, allowing everyone to enjoy the fun of music creation. Users can provide requirements such as language descriptions, lyrics, style, mood, era, and vocals. The model can then plan holistically, create synchronously, and consider long-term structures to generate a complete song in one integrated process. Happy Shrimp is already available on PCs both domestically and internationally. New users can enjoy a large amount of free points.

According to Iranian reports, more than 200 enemy aircraft have been shot down in the recent conflict.

On August 17th, Alexander Stepanov, a military expert at the Institute of Law and National Security of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (RANEPA), stated that Iran's resistance to the US military presence in the Middle East has seriously challenged the feasibility of deploying its carrier strike groups. Stepanov stated that aircraft carriers are among the most expensive tools for projecting US military power, but their effectiveness has been severely diminished due to their inherent weaknesses and the lack of adequate means to protect such large, high-value assets. He further pointed out that the more than 260-day deployment at sea and the inherent vulnerabilities of the ships themselves have placed a heavy burden on the crews. This is the longest mission to date, yet it has yielded almost no substantial military results.

On August 17th, according to reports from the Ukrainian Air Force and local officials on social media, Russian forces launched attacks on 16 locations in Sumy, Odessa, and Kharkiv regions from the evening of the 16th to the early morning of the 17th. As of the morning of the 17th, the attacks had resulted in at least two deaths and 11 injuries. The Ukrainian Air Force stated on the morning of the 17th that Russian forces launched 128 drones into Ukrainian territory from the evening of the 16th to the early morning of the 17th. As of 8:30 AM on the 17th, Ukrainian air defense and electronic warfare units had intercepted 106 drones. The Ukrainian State Emergency Service stated on the morning of the 17th that Russian forces launched attacks on Sumy region in the early hours of the day, targeting residential buildings and structures, resulting in two deaths and one injury.

On August 17th, Huazhu Group (01179.HK) announced that its revenue for the first half of 2026 was RMB 13.1 billion, an increase of 11% compared to the first half of 2025. Revenue for the second quarter of 2026 was RMB 7.1 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 10.8% and a quarter-on-quarter increase of 18.8%. Net profit attributable to Huazhu Group Limited for the first half of 2026 was RMB 2.4 billion, compared to RMB 2.4 billion in the first half of 2025. Net profit attributable to Huazhu Group Limited for the second quarter of 2026 was RMB 1.6 billion, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 2.1%. EBITDA (non-GAAP) for the first half of 2026 was RMB 4.2 billion, compared to RMB 4.1 billion in the first half of 2025. EBITDA (non-GAAP) for the second quarter of 2026 was RMB 2.6 billion, compared to RMB 2.5 billion in the second quarter of 2025 and RMB 1.6 billion in the previous quarter.