US Markets Set New Records – US Navy Seizes Iranian Ship – Oil Prices Surge After Closure of the Strait of Hormuz – China Keeps Interest Rates Unchanged – QXO Acquires TopBuild for $17 Billion – Google Deepens Collaboration with Marvell – Meta Starts Major Layoff Wave in May – Apple with Major Overhaul of Siri – $12 Billion Arms Deal for the German Navy

On Friday, April 17, 2026, the US stock markets were able to continue their recovery for the third consecutive week. The Dow Jones rose by 1.8% to 49,447 points, the S&P 500 gained 1.2% to 7,126 points, and the Nasdaq Composite increased by 1.5% to 24,468 points. This marked the third consecutive trading day where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq set new record highs at the close. The main driver was the massive decline in oil prices after it was signaled from Iran that the Strait of Hormuz would remain open for commercial shipping traffic...