U.S. President Donald Trump signs an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on Wednesday, June 3, 2026 in Washington, DC.
Sean Hsu | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Hello, my name is Katie Foley from London. Welcome to today’s Daily Open Newsletter.
I really feel that we may be on the cusp of a big change.
That is now confirmed. Next week will see SpaceX’s largest IPO in history.
A cease-fire between Israel and Lebanon announced overnight has loosened oil supplies, and in a move we’ve heard before, US President Donald Trump said a deal with Iran could happen “over the weekend.”
Investors are hopeful that some of this year’s biggest outstanding issues are closer to being resolved.
What you need to know today
Global stocks are falling, with Asia-Pacific markets tracking Wall Street’s losses overnight. Futures in Europe and the US are signaling continued pressure in today’s trading.
However, oil prices fell slightly after Israel and Lebanon agreed to implement a ceasefire following US-brokered talks, raising hopes for a broader deal to end the war between the US, Israel and Iran.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a wide-ranging interview with CNBC’s Sara Eisen in Jerusalem on Wednesday that President Trump had warned Iran of a “full return to military action” if necessary, stressing that ultimately it would be the US president’s decision. However, Prime Minister Netanyahu pointed out that while the United States and Israel were largely on the same page regarding Middle East strategy, there were differences of opinion on tactics.
Meanwhile, the US House of Representatives delivered an almost symbolic rebuke to President Trump’s authority over Iran, with four Republicans joining Democrats in voting in favor of a resolution that would prevent the US president from continuing the war without Congressional approval.
In corporate news, SpaceX has finally made it official, setting a fixed price for next Friday’s IPO at $135 per share and a valuation of $1.77 trillion. The move is expected to make CEO Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire. But don’t expect everything to be smooth sailing. A CNBC study of 30 major initial public offerings (IPOs) over the past 15 years shows that stocks tend to suffer significant drawdowns, with declining stock prices in the first year.
Elsewhere, the EU announced a long-delayed “technology sovereignty” package. This is aimed at weaning off dependence on big technology companies in the US and China. The measure has understandably faced criticism that it has not gone far enough. Nick Clegg, a former British deputy prime minister and Meta’s former head of international affairs, told CNBC that Europe’s AI law is “a dog’s dinner.”
On the diplomatic front, President Trump confirmed in a post on Truth Social that he plans to visit Evian, France, later this month to attend the G7, where he may encounter OpenAI head Sam Altman, who was personally invited by President Emmanuel Macron, CNBC exclusively reported.
— Katie Foley
And finally…
SoftBank’s OpenAI bet and rising debt raise concerns about liquidity crunch
SoftBank’s rise to become Japan’s most valuable company has put the conglomerate in the spotlight, raising questions about whether it is taking too much risk with its highly leveraged bets on artificial intelligence.
Shares in the Japanese technology investment giant, led by founder Masayoshi Son, have soared about 70% this year on investor enthusiasm for AI, driven by the soaring valuation of chip design company Arm Holdings and hopes that OpenAI could make a major initial public offering this year.
The rise helped SoftBank unseat Toyota in the market capitalization rankings earlier this week, cementing a dramatic turnaround for the company, which just a few years ago was plagued by losses related to its WeWork debacle. SoftBank’s cumulative investment losses in WeWork exceeded $14 billion.
Analysts interviewed by CNBC warned that the market’s renewed optimism about SoftBank also masks increased balance sheet risk.
— Li Yingshan
