π° Hourly Briefing | 2026-08-11 22:00 CST
US July existing home sales annualized at 4.06M, slightly beating expectations but still declining for the fifth consecutive month; NVIDIA launches Nemotron 4 open-source AI model with expected 1T+ parameters; Intel drops 1.1% after expanding share offering; Rocket Lab falls 3.9% on Neutron rocket delay; Russian crude exports drop to 3.71M bpd; EU electricity coordination group warns of tense supply situation this week.
π° Hourly Briefing | 2026-08-11 22:00 CST
π Market Snapshot
| Instrument | Last | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Gold (XAUUSD) | 4388.13 | -0.05% β |
| WTI Crude (USOIL) | 80.667 | -0.96% β |
Gold trading narrowly around 4388, with intraday range of $78 (4356-4435) now compressed; WTI fell below $81, Brent below $86, down over 1.3% on the day.
π₯ Key News This Hour
1. US July Existing Home Sales: 4.06M Annualized, Slightly Better Than Expected but Still Declining July existing home sales annualized at 4.06M units vs. 4.05M expected, prior 4.09M; monthly rate -1.7% vs. -1% expected, prior -2.4%. Downward trend continues but pace of decline is narrowing.
2. NVIDIA Launches Nemotron 4 Open-Source AI Model, Parameters Expected to Exceed 1 Trillion NVIDIA released Nemotron 3.5 Lightning open model, runnable locally on RTX PCs, DGX Spark, GB10 OEM systems, and Jetson platforms, partnering with vLLM, Ollama, llama.cpp, and others. According to The Information, engineers involved expect the largest Nemotron 4 model to have at least 1 trillion parameters. NVIDIA stock up 1.8% at open.
3. Intel Expands Share Offering and Prices, Stock Down 1.1% Intel announced an expanded share offering with pricing confirmed, stock fell 1.1% in early trading.
4. Rocket Lab Neutron Rocket First Flight Likely Delayed, Stock Down 3.9% Rocket Lab indicated diminishing likelihood of Neutron rocket’s first flight this year, alongside Q2 earnings release. Stock dropped 3.9% at open.
5. Abbott Partners with Google on AI-Powered Glucose Health Management Abbott and Google launched their first collaborative project, combining Lingo bios wearable glucose monitoring with Google health technology, including large-scale AI training research.
6. Russian Crude Exports Drop to 3.71M Barrels/Day In the four weeks ending August 9, Russian crude exports fell to 3.71M bpd, the lowest since late May. The export surge from Ukrainian strikes on Russian refineries is fading. Meanwhile, SIBUR’s ZapSibNeftekhim petrochemical plant suspended operations after a drone attack.
7. EU Electricity Coordination Group: Supply Situation to Remain Tense This Week The EU electricity coordination group discussed supply security, stating no short-term adequacy risk but the situation will remain tense throughout the week.
8. JPMorgan Downgrades Brazil to Neutral, Upgrades Peru to Overweight JPMorgan cut Brazilian equities from “overweight” to “neutral” while upgrading Peruvian equities to “overweight.”
9. IIF: EM Portfolio Flows Turn Positive in July, But Equity Outflows Reach $86B YTD IIF data shows non-resident investors injected $18.8B net into emerging markets in July, ending two consecutive months of outflows. However, YTD EM equity outflows reached $86B vs. $9B in the same period last year.
10. South China Sea Live-Fire Navigation Warning Shantou Maritime Bureau issued a navigation warning: live-fire exercises in designated South China Sea areas on August 12 and 14, 08:00-18:00 daily, entry prohibited.
π§ Situation Assessment
US existing home sales declined for the fifth consecutive month; while the pace of decline narrowed and slightly beat expectations, the weak trend in the housing market remains intact, with high-interest-rate lag effects continuing to suppress demand.
NVIDIA’s launch of a trillion-parameter-class open-source AI model marks a new phase in the AI arms race, with the open-source route increasing competitive pressure on closed models.
Crude oil prices reflect two opposing forces: US-Iran negotiation expectations (signals from Pakistan) pressuring geopolitical risk premium down, while declining Russian exports and fragile ship-to-ship transfer at the Strait of Hormuz providing floor support.
The EU electricity supply tension warning deserves attention; extreme weather or supply shocks this week could push European natural gas and electricity prices higher, affecting energy stocks and the euro.
Emerging market portfolio flows turning positive in July is a marginal positive, but the $86B YTD equity outflow vs. $9B last year highlights that global allocation to EM equities remains structurally underweight.
β° Upcoming Important Data
- Tomorrow β US CPI data (core market focus, determines Fed September rate cut path expectations)
- Ongoing β US-Iran maritime blockade dynamics and Pakistan mediation progress
- Ongoing β EU electricity supply situation throughout this week