What’s News in Markets: Middle East Strikes Send Oil Higher, South Korean Chip Stocks Fall, SpaceX Stumbles - WSJ Your Money Briefing

Summary3 min read

WSJ Your Money Briefing – What’s News in Markets: Middle East Strikes Send Oil Higher, South Korean Chip Stocks Fall, SpaceX Stumbles

Date: July 11, 2026
Host: Imani Moiz, The Wall Street Journal

Episode Overview

This week’s special market recap episode, hosted by Imani Moiz, covers the key financial headlines and stock movements shaping global markets. Amid fresh geopolitical turmoil, unexpected developments in tech and energy, and a highly anticipated stock debut, the episode provides a concise yet comprehensive review of what moved money—and why—in a volatile week.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Market Recap: Major Index Movements

[00:30-01:15]

S&P 500: Up 1.2%
Nasdaq: Up 1.7%
Dow: Down 0.5%

“Here we go again. That's how analysts summed up Wall Street's mood this week.”
— Imani Moiz, [01:01]

Markets opened the week with optimism following an earlier peace deal in the Middle East, strong AI chipmaker earnings, and anticipation around SpaceX’s new index inclusion. However, hopes faded as new developments unfolded.

2. Geopolitics and Oil: US-Iran Flare-Up Sends Energy Surging

[01:16-02:07]

Cease-fire in the Middle East collapsed; US and Iran tensions reignited.
Missile exchanges resumed by Tuesday, with President Trump declaring the ceasefire over.
Oil prices jumped:
- Brent crude: Up 5.4% this week, settling just above $76 a barrel.
Energy stocks rebounded:
- Sector up 3.2% in S&P.
- Baker Hughes: +7%
- Phillips 66: +9%

“The next day, oil prices shot higher as investors dusted off their wartime playbook.”
— Imani Moiz, [01:49]

3. AI Stocks Lose Steam: South Korean Selloff

[02:07-03:09]

South Korea’s Kospi Index briefly approached bear market territory due to heavy selling in AI chip leaders.
Samsung:
- Shares fell 8%, even after projecting a 19-fold jump in quarterly profit.
- “Expectations were just higher,” explained analysts.
SK Hynix:
- Ended the week down 10%.
- “Another theory is that investors were simply locking in profits.”
- Despite the selloff, Samsung is up 138% YTD; SK Hynix has tripled.

Key context: Both companies form over half of the Kospi and have fueled South Korea’s equity rally, driven by global AI chip demand.

4. SK Hynix Makes Historic U.S. Debut

[03:10-03:28]

SK Hynix raised $26 billion—largest U.S. share sale ever by a foreign company.
Debut day on the Nasdaq: shares surged 13%.

5. SpaceX Stumbles in Major Index Debut

[03:28-04:17]

SpaceX joined the Nasdaq 100 on Tuesday.
Index funds with ~$800 billion in assets bought SpaceX, expecting a rally.
Result: Shares dropped 10% for the week, below IPO open price.
Wall Street can’t agree on SpaceX’s true value; analyst targets range from $165 to $800 per share.

“Wall street still can't agree on what Elon Musk's company is actually worth.”
— Imani Moiz, [03:50]

Insight from Trivariate Research:
- Stocks with widely split analyst targets historically underperform those with consensus valuation.

Notable Quotes & Moments

“Here we go again. That's how analysts summed up Wall Street's mood this week.” [01:01]
“The next day, oil prices shot higher as investors dusted off their wartime playbook.” [01:49]
“Expectations were just higher.” — On Samsung’s selloff despite strong earnings [02:38]
“Wall street still can't agree on what Elon Musk's company is actually worth.” [03:50]
“Stocks with widely scattered analyst price targets have historically underperformed stocks where Wall street is largely in agreement.” [04:09]

Timestamps: Important Segments

[00:30] Episode begins; market mood and index moves
[01:15] Geopolitical events and oil/energy market impact
[02:07] Korean chipmaker selloff and market analysis
[03:10] SK Hynix’s record-breaking Nasdaq debut
[03:28] SpaceX’s disappointing index addition and valuation uncertainty
[04:15] Conclusion and additional resources

Summary Flow

This episode provided a sharp, focused rundown of the week’s market drivers:

Surprise reignition of US-Iran tensions sent oil and energy stocks soaring.
AI chip leaders in Korea faltered—despite blockbuster profits—amid sky-high expectations and profit-taking.
SK Hynix made history with the largest foreign share sale in U.S. market history, while SpaceX’s much-anticipated Nasdaq 100 debut fizzled against the backdrop of valuation uncertainty.

The tone balanced factual reporting with wry observations about market mood, and recurring uncertainty in both tech and geopolitics.

For more on this week’s market movers, visit WSJ’s live markets coverage at WSJ.com.

Loading summary

Transcript4 lines

[00:00]
A
This podcast is brought to you by relioQuest. Cybercriminals are constantly attacking. They want your data. They want your identity. They want your innovation. RelioQuest fortifies your business with agentic defense AI that detects, contains and eliminates cyber threats in minutes. It helps your security team move faster at the work that matters most to protect the business now, and delivers insights to help them predict what's next. ReliaQuest agentic defense for the enterprise. Learn more at reliaquest.com that's R E L I A Q U E-T.com hey
[00:31]
B
listeners, your money briefing is still on a break, but we'll be back with more personal finance information for you in the future. Until then, here's the news Moving the Markets this Week hey listeners, it's Saturday, July 11th. I'm Imani Moiz for the Wall Street Journal, and this is what's News in Markets. Our look at the biggest stock moves of the week and the news that drove them. Let's dive in. When traders shut down their terminals last week for the long holiday weekend, they were hoping the peace deal in the Middle east would hold, that chipmaker earnings would fuel another AI rally, and that SpaceX's addition to a major stock index would give its shares another boost. But none of that happened, so markets spent the week recalibrating. Overall, The S&P 500 rose 1.2% this week, while the Nasdaq gained 1.7%. The Dow slipped about half a percent lower. Here we go again. That's how analysts summed up Wall Street's mood this week. Investors had spent the past two weeks betting that the worst of the conflict between the US And Iran was in the rearview mirror. Oil prices had fallen back to pre war levels and stocks climbed to fresh records. But but by Tuesday, missiles were flying again and President Trump officially declared the ceasefire was over. The next day, oil prices shot higher as investors dusted off their wartime playbook. Brench crude surged 5.4% this week to settle just above $76 a barrel. The rallies spilled over into energy stocks, which were beaten down during the peace trade. Energy was one of the top performing sectors in the S and P this week, rising 3.2%. Baker Hughes and Phillips 66 led the gains, with stocks climbing about 7 and 9%, respectively. One place investors have looked for shelter from the geopolitical whiplash has been AI, but even that trade has started to get a little shaky. South Korea's Kospi has been one of the world's best performing stock markets this year thanks to AI chip heavyweights like Samsung and SK Hynix, which make up more than half of the market. But it briefly flirted with bear market territory this week after investors dumped those stocks. Samsung shares fell 8% despite projecting a 19 fold jump in quarterly profit on Tuesday. Analysts say the results weren't disappointing. Expectations were just higher the sell off spread to rival SK Hynix, which ended the week 10% lower in South Korea. Another theory is that investors were simply locking in profits. Samsung shares are still up 138% this year, while SK Hynix has more than tripled as demand for AI memory chips has exploded. But by Friday, Wall street was all in. SK Hynix made its Nasdaq debut after raising more than $26 billion in the largest share sale ever by a foreign company. The company rallied 13% on its first day of trading in the US and SpaceX stock didn't take off the way investors expected in its first week as a member of the NASDAQ 100. The company officially joined the tech heavy index on Tuesday, forcing index funds with roughly $800 billion in assets to buy the stock. Many investors hoped that a wave of automatic demand would give shares another boost. Instead, SpaceX shares fell 10% this week, slipping below the opening price from last month's ipo. Part of the problem is that Wall street still can't agree on what Elon Musk's company is actually worth. Analysts kicked off coverage this week with price targets ranging from $165 a share to as high as $800 a share. That kind of disagreement can be a warning sign, according to Trivariate Research. Stocks with widely scattered analyst price targets have historically underperformed stocks where Wall street is largely in agreement. And now you know what's news in markets this week. You could read about more stocks that moved on the week's news in our live markets coverage on WSJ.com today's show was produced by Anthony Bansi with supervising producer Melanie Roy. I'm Imani Moiz. Have a great weekend and catch you next Saturday.
[05:02]
C
Isn't home where we all want to be? Reba here for realtor.com, the Pro's number one most trusted app, Finding a home is like dating. You're searching for the one with over 500,000 new listings every month. You can find the one today. Download the realtor.com app cause you're nearly home. Make it real with realtor.com Pro's number
[05:24]
D
one most trusted app based on August 2025 proprietary survey over 500,000 new listings every month based on average new for sale and rental list July 2024 to June 2025.