Stocks are wavering in morning trading on Wall Street, while oil prices hold steady. The S&P 500 rose 0.1% Wednesday, adding slightly to the record it set a day earlier. The Dow Jones

Stocks rose in morning trading on Wall Street Wednesday and added to their records set a day earlier, while oil prices held steady. The S&P 500 climbed 0.5%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 487 points,

Stocks are climbing in the early going on Wall Street, while oil prices ticked higher. The S&P 500 rose 0.6% Wednesday, adding to the record it set a day earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 381 points,

Stocks edged lower on Wall Street as oil prices rose and more company earnings reports rolled in. The S&P 500 fell 0.2% Thursday, and was just below the record it reached on Tuesday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.

China has reported its exports slowed slightly in July from the month before despite strong growth in demand for high-tech electronics and vehicles

Taiwan's exports rose less than expected in July, continuing to ride the wave ​of AI demand while contending with the undercurrents ‌of global inflation and the economic uncertainties of a prolonged war in the Middle East.

Chinas exports posted stronger-than-expected growth in July, supported by booming global demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure and a rush to ship goods before higher U.S. tariffs took effect.

German exports rose more than expected by 0.9% in June compared with the previous month, data from the federal statistics office showed on Friday.

Shares of Sandisk and Western Digital fell hard after investors were left unimpressed by those companies’ earnings reports.

Micron Technology was gaining early on Friday. The memory-chip company was brushing off the investment plans of its South Korean peer SK Hynix. Micron stock was up 1.6% at $895.50 in premarket trading.

Amazon just raised its artificial intelligence (AI) budget to $220 billion, up from a prior estimate of $200 billion.

Micron’s stock was up fractionally in Thursday afternoon trading, at last check, whereas they had been down as much as 5.6% earlier in the trading day. Meanwhile, shares of fellow NAND flash-memory maker Sandisk were off about 5% following the company’s Wednesday evening earnings report.

The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.69 percent, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday, up slightly from 6.66 percent reported last week.

Mortgage rates are up from yesterday and remain under 7%. Today’s national average on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 6.79%, according to Bankrate. If you choose a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, the average rate is 6.

Then, the Iran war and fears about rising inflation came along.

First-time homebuyers are taking the brunt of rising housing costs, including steadily climbing mortgage rates.

Oil prices settled ​up by more than $3 a barrel on Thursday on news an Iranian parliament committee is reviewing a bill ‌that would ban U.S. and Israeli vessels from the Strait of Hormuz and fine violators up to a fifth of the value of their cargo.

Oil prices have dropped as US-Iran tensions show signs of easing with progress reported in talks over the Strait of Hormuz. The developments have raised hopes of avoiding a major disruption to one of the world's most critical oil shipping routes,

Prices are set by supply and demand. That economic law is as fundamental as they come, but not for the first time, President Donald Trump is acting like he’s above the law. Trump ripped into energy giants Chevron and ExxonMobil this week for windfall profits amid the Iran war: Chevron reported a quarterly record of $12.

Trump said, "And they (Iran) called me and said very politely, 'Please, can we talk? Can we talk?'...And I said, yes, we can talk. Let's get it done."

Commerzbank AG unveiled a fresh share buyback as Chief Executive Officer Bettina Orlopp seeks to demonstrate that her strategy delivers strong returns while Italian rival UniCredit SpA is preparing to control.

Bettina Orlopp appealed for constructive dialogue with UniCredit after the Italian bank achieved a near majority stake in its German rival.

Commerzbank UniCredit merger talks opened August 6 as Germany's second-largest bank posted a 94% profit surge, handing CEO Bettina Orlopp a record-quarter negotiating position in Europe's most significant cross-border banking deal since the 2008 financial crisis,

Commerzbank almost doubled its second-quarter net profit on Thursday and said the stronger earnings performance had strengthened its position for further talks with its largest shareholder, Italy's UniCredit,