Daily Market Report – August 1, 2026

Markets

The dominant theme in the financial market heading into the weekend was the spectacular loss that Leopold Aschenbrenner suffered with his artificial intelligence-focused hedge fund Situational Awareness in July. After large and partially leveraged positions in AI and technology stocks had provided the fund with a return of 439 percent year-to-date by the end of June, the portfolio came under massive pressure due to the subsequent decline in prices, particularly in chip and other AI stocks. The fund was then faced with the choice of raising additional capital or significantly reducing large parts of its positions, ultimately selling off the majority of its publicly traded stock portfolio to Citadel. It is still unclear whether formal margin calls from the financing banks had occurred beforehand. Following the investor letter, the value of the portfolio fell by 67 percent in July. This case does not necessarily refute the long-term AI investment thesis, but it vividly demonstrates how quickly high concentration, leverage, and declining market liquidity can turn even a potentially viable investment idea into an existential portfolio crisis.

The acquisition of significant stock positions by Citadel gave semiconductor stocks and other AI titles a new boost. The S&P 500 (SPX) closed 0.70 percent higher at 7,490 points. The Nasdaq 100 (NDX) gained 0.60 percent to 28,274 points. With an increase of 0.07 percent, the DAX (DAX) remained at 25,629 points, while the Nikkei 225 (NI225) rose by 4.03 percent to 64,362 points. The yield on ten-year US Treasury bonds (US10Y) increased to 4.75 percent. In light of the attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz, Brent crude oil (UKOIL) rose by 1.22 percent to $90.12. Gold (GOLD) fell by 1.29 percent to $4,107.

Company The Citadel acquisition provided a boost to technology stocks. SK Hynix (000660) jumped 29.95 percent to 1,718,000 Won in South Korean trading. Samsung Electronics (005930) rose 26.81 percent to 262,500 Won.

Amazon (AMZN) gained 15.32 percent to $271.58. Alphabet (GOOG) rose by 6.88 percent to $356.65. In contrast, Apple (AAPL) lost 7.35 percent to $308.91. As part of the reorganization in semiconductor stocks, Micron Technology (MU) declined by 5.90 percent to $823.03.

Alibaba (BABA) benefited from reports that the Chinese AI provider Moonshot is utilizing computing power with Nvidia chips through the corporate platform. The stock rose in Hong Kong by 5.10 percent to 122.25 Hong Kong dollars. Nvidia (NVDA) thus once again came into focus as a supplier of processors for Chinese AI applications.

Novo Nordisk (NVO) fell by 8.78 percent to 47.08 dollars. Linde (LIN) lost 5.95 percent to 478.38 dollars.

Commerzbank (CBK) is set to enter discussions with UniCredit regarding the further strategic direction of the institution. Uber (UBER) reportedly offered 41.50 euros per share for Delivery Hero, thereby positioning the delivery service as a takeover candidate. Southwest Airlines (LUV) received support from investors for its departure from parts of its previous business model.

Macroeconomics According to the Fed, Chairman Kevin Warsh is considering reducing the number of scheduled monetary policy meetings. This would extend the information intervals of monetary policy.

The White House is reportedly considering new attacks on Iran, while Kuwait intercepted Iranian drones. The escalation increases the risks for energy supply and shipping in the Persian Gulf.

After the yen fell to a multi-decade low of 164 yen per US dollar, the United States supported Japan in measures to stabilize the currency. The coordinated foreign exchange market interventions by both central banks resulted in the yen stabilizing at around 157 yen per US dollar.

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*Created on 08/01/2026 / 08:07 AM (ET)