US House votes to end the war as Wall Street fidgets over Big Tech’s AI spending

Happy FRIDAY, ladies and gentlemen. If you were counting on a calm slide into the weekend, join us in adjusting expectations. The war gained momentum again overnight, sending the USD jumping on haven flows and pushing oil above the USD 100 / bbl mark as traders reached for cover.

The US House voted (again) to end the war, rebuking the president a second time. “Again” is doing a lot of work in that sentence — it’s not the first time Congress cast its vote to stop the US’ strikes on Iran, but the Republican-led Senate swiftly voted in the opposite direction hours later.

In any case, that’s not the only gun Washington is pointing. US President Donald Trump also made good on his word to roll out a fresh slate of tariffs, slapping levies on some 60 countries over forced-labor concerns. The 10-12.5% duties — which will apply to several of the US’ trading partners, including the EU — come just as Trump's temporary 10% global tariff expires.

Tariffs and war aside, markets have enough on their minds to fidget. Wall Street futures eased as a fresh round of Big Tech results reignited the question that never really goes away: Is anyone actually making money on all this AI spending? Alphabet gave the bulls something — a cloud beat — and the bears something too, with search revenue coming in a touch light. The takeaway of the week: Wall Street is not a fan of tokenmaxxing. –Salma