Oil prices climbed after Iran said it would not hold direct talks with U.S. envoys, weighing on prospects for an interim ceasefire in the Middle East and prompting a fresh repricing of geopolitical risk. Brent futures rose 0.69% to $73.45 a barrel and WTI gained 0.91% to $70.13. U.S. inventory figures from the API showed crude stocks fell 6.1 million barrels last week and gasoline inventories also declined, adding support to prices. Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has also recovered to prewar levels, easing fears of supply disruption.

Cotton futures ended June higher, with contracts up 22 to 43 points even after the USDA put spring cotton plantings at 9.85 million acres, above trade ideas of 9.6 million and the March figure of 9.64 million. The July contract settled at 72.22 cents per pound. Crop Progress data showed 9% of fields setting bolls and conditions at 48% good/excellent, down 5 percentage points on the week, with Texas ratings falling 14 points. Crude oil slipped $0.82/bbl to $69.83 and the U.S. dollar index rose $0.118 to $100.995.

President Donald Trump warned gasoline retailers they could face “big problems” if they do not quickly lower pump prices, arguing crude oil has fallen to $68 a barrel. He urged stations to aim for around $2.50 a gallon and accused some operators of price gouging. The national average price for regular gasoline is $3.91 per gallon, down for a fifth straight week. Forecasts for 2026 average oil prices were lowered to $84.50 a barrel for Brent and $79.49 for WTI after a U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.

The article says the Strait of Hormuz has been closed, disrupting flows that include 20% of global oil and natural gas, 30% of seaborne fertilizer trade, 30% of helium supply and transport linked to 10% of aluminum production. It says gasoline has risen more than 50% to around $4.50 a gallon and diesel is up more than 60%, while fertilizer and helium shortages could lift food prices and disrupt semiconductor production. The piece adds that U.S. CPI has climbed to 3.8% and wholesale prices are up 6%, with markets expecting the Federal Reserve may raise rates by year’s end.

Women are more likely than men to rely on Social Security for retirement income, but they receive about $4,800 less per year on average, according to research from the AARP Public Policy Institute. The report points to lower earnings and more time spent out of the workforce for caregiving as key drivers of the gap. Financial advisors say the disparity makes the timing and coordination of benefit-claiming decisions especially consequential for women.

A Ripple executive said a proposed XRP Ledger credit facility has moved into the network voting process, aiming to enable on-chain lending for digital asset holders and businesses seeking faster financing. The feature would only be deployed if nodes approve it through a vote. RLUSD is also expanding via new settlement support across eight chains and additional integrations and listings, while XRP network activity has risen over the past two weeks even as large holders continue moving tokens to exchanges. Separately, technical analysis cited a TD Sequential daily buy signal and flagged $1.06 as a key support level.

Empery Digital (NASDAQ: EMPD) said it will acquire AI data center assets for $65 million, marking a full exit from its Bitcoin treasury strategy. The company had previously been forced to sell BTC multiple times amid shareholder pressure, effectively abandoning its original crypto plan. The shift follows ongoing governance disputes and financial strain, as detailed in SEC filings and the company’s press release. The move does not involve any new tokens, protocols or infrastructure changes, and reflects only a single public company’s asset-allocation pivot.

In June 2026, the “Magnificent Seven” erased a combined $2.3 trillion in market value as investors fretted over massive AI-related capital spending. Microsoft fell 20% over the month, Nvidia slid about 13%, and Apple and Amazon each declined around 8%. Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet and Meta have pledged hundreds of billions of dollars for AI chip purchases and data-center construction, with some of the spending financed through borrowing. Industrywide AI-linked capital expenditures are projected to reach $700 billion in 2026, up roughly 70% year over year, pushing the group’s 12-month forward free-cash-flow outlook well below 2024 levels.