The Nasdaq ​ended sharply higher on Thursday, as Micron Technology fueled a rally in chip stocks that eclipsed fears that renewed U.S. and Iranian attacks might prolong the Middle East conflict and fuel inflation.

Tehran said it hit U.S. military targets in Kuwait, ‌Qatar and Bahrain following ⁠U.S. ⁠strikes against Iran on Wednesday. The PHLX chip index surged for a second straight positive session.

Micron Technology jumped after the companylaid out plans ​to invest more than $250 billion in the U.S. through 2035, to benefit from demand for memory chips to supply ​the boom in artificial intelligence.

Applied Materials and Sandisk also surged.

AI-related stocks have been volatile lately as investors worried about the sustainability of a rally that has helped Wall Street reach record levels in 2026.

“This ​is still very much an AI bull market. For a bit, ⁠it was starting ‌to broaden out, but that’s contingent on oil prices and interest rates staying ​anchored, and with ​this flare-up in the Middle East, that calls that part of the bull ⁠market into question,” said Ross Mayfield, investment strategy analyst at Baird in ​Louisville, Kentucky.
Meta Platforms rose after Reuters reported that the company plans to manufacture ​AI chips starting in September.According to preliminary data, the S&P 500 gained 59.12 points, or 0.79%, to end at 7,541.83 points, while the Nasdaq Composite gained 328.11 points, or 1.27%, to 26,198.76. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 133.31 points, or 0.25%, to 52,481.70.

With quarterly reporting season set to get under way, analysts on average expect S&P 500 earnings to increase 24% year-over-year, with technology companies accounting for much ‌of that increase, according to LSEG I/B/E/S.

The S&P 500 is trading at about 20 times expected earnings, down from 21 a month ago.

The number of Americans filing claims ​for unemployment benefits ​fell last week, suggesting the ⁠labor market remained stable despite a slowdown in job growth in June.

The Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged at its June meeting, under new Chair Kevin Warsh, but minutes released on Wednesday showed a few ​policymakers saw a case for raising borrowing costs before ultimately agreeing to hold steady.

Traders are pricing in a likely 25-basis-point rate hike by the Fed’s December meeting, according to CME’s FedWatch tool. PepsiCo fell despite the snacks and soda giant beating second-quarter revenue estimates.

Costco Wholesale’s shares sank to a six-month low after the retailer reported decelerating comparable sales for June.

SHREVEPORT-BOSSIER CITY, La. — Major League Fishing has announced that Caddo Lake and Cross Lake will host a stop on the 2027 Bass Pro Tour, marking the first time the world’s largest tournament-fishing organization has brought its premier professional bass fishing circuit to either lake.

The Shreveport-Bossier region will host Stage 2 of the nine-season 2027 Bass Pro Tour from February 25 through February 28, with the tournament hosted by the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission. The event will bring 50 of the top professional bass anglers in the world to the twin lakes, with competitors vying for Fishing Angler of the Year points, some of the sport’s largest payouts, and qualification into REDCREST 2028, MLF’s most prestigious championship event.

Under the tournament’s structure, the field of 50 anglers will compete in a full Qualifying Round across the event’s first two days, held at Caddo Lake, before the competition narrows for the Knockout and Championship rounds on days three and four, which will take place at Cross Lake. The event will use MLF’s signature catch-weigh-release format, with real-time scoring delivered through the organization’s SCORETRACKER leaderboard system and live coverage available to fans throughout each day of competition.

Sara Nelms, director of sports for the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission, welcomed the announcement as a significant addition to the region’s sports tourism calendar. “We’re excited to welcome the Bass Pro Tour to Shreveport-Bossier and continue our partnership with Major League Fishing,” Nelms said. She added that the region’s natural resources made it a fitting host for the event, saying, “Our region offers world-class fisheries, passionate fans, and a community that embraces outdoor recreation. Events like the Bass Pro Tour not only showcase the incredible natural resources that make North Louisiana a true Sportsman’s Paradise but also create meaningful economic impact for local businesses while introducing anglers and their families to everything our destination has to offer.”

Daniel Fennel, MLF’s senior director of tournament operations for the Bass Pro Tour, described the broader 2027 schedule as reflecting the core identity of the tour. “The 2027 Bass Pro Tour schedule is exactly what this league is built for – great fisheries, passionate host communities and the best anglers in the world competing in a format that showcases every decision they make on the water,” Fennel said. He specifically highlighted the Louisiana stop as part of a broader slate of venues, adding, “From historic venues like the St. Johns River, Toledo Bend and Lake Champlain to exciting stops like the Pasquotank River and our dual-lake event in Louisiana, this schedule will give our anglers a tremendous test and give fans a season full of storylines to follow, from start to finish.”

While the Bass Pro Tour has visited other Louisiana fisheries in previous seasons, including Caney Creek, Lake D’Arbonne and Bussey Brake, the February 2027 event will represent the circuit’s debut at both Caddo Lake and Cross Lake specifically. The tournament will launch from Earl G. Williamson Park on Caddo Lake for the opening qualifying rounds, before shifting to the American Legion Landing on Cross Lake for the tournament’s concluding knockout and championship rounds.

The Louisiana stop is part of a broader nine-season 2027 Bass Pro Tour schedule that MLF unveiled this week, marking the ninth season of the circuit overall. The season is set to open January 14 through 17 at the St. Johns River in Palatka, Florida, before moving through a series of stops across Louisiana, Tennessee, Texas, New York, Kentucky and North Carolina. Following the Shreveport-Bossier stop, the tour is scheduled to visit Norris Lake in Campbell County, Tennessee, from March 11 through 14, marking that fishery’s own first-ever appearance on the Bass Pro Tour schedule. The circuit will then head to Toledo Bend Reservoir in Hemphill, Texas, from April 1 through 4, before REDCREST 2027, the tour’s championship event, is held April 16 through 18 at Logan Martin Lake near Birmingham, Alabama.

The remainder of the 2027 regular season includes stops at Lake Champlain in Plattsburgh, New York, from April 29 through May 2; the Kubota Heavy Hitters all-star event on Kentucky and Barkley lakes in Calvert City, Kentucky, from May 22 through 27; Pickwick Lake in Counce, Tennessee, from June 24 through 27; and the Pasquotank River in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, from August 5 through 8, closing out the regular-season schedule.

Major League Fishing has been an active presence in the broader northwest Louisiana region in recent years beyond the newly announced 2027 stop. The organization held its Fishing Clash Series Summit Cup in the area in November 2025, featuring two-angler teams competing across Caddo Lake, Cypress Lake and Cross Lake. That event included participation from regional anglers such as Nick LeBrun of Benton, Louisiana, and Todd Faircloth of Jasper, Texas, both of whom are expected to be part of the broader pool of touring professionals eligible to compete in the 2027 Bass Pro Tour stop as well. Other regional anglers with ties to the area, including Justin Cooper of Zwolle, Louisiana, and Marshall Hughes of Hemphill, Texas, have also competed in past MLF events held throughout the Arklatex region.

Headquartered in Benton, Kentucky, Major League Fishing produces more than 250 tournaments annually across some of the country’s most prestigious fisheries and broadcasts its events across multiple television and digital platforms, including CBS, Discovery, the Outdoor Channel and its own MLFNOW! streaming service, available through the MLF app, MyOutdoorTV, Rumble and MajorLeagueFishing.com. The organization’s Bass Pro Tour is supported by a broad roster of sponsors, including Bass Pro Shops, Berkley, Mercury, Toyota, Ranger Boats and Rapala, among others.

With the February 2027 tournament still more than a year and a half away, local officials in Shreveport and Bossier City have pointed to the event as a significant opportunity to showcase the region’s fishing infrastructure to a national audience, while giving local anglers and fishing enthusiasts a rare chance to see the sport’s top competitors testing two of the area’s signature lakes for the first time on professional fishing’s biggest stage.

Kia is issuing a new recall of more than 460,000 vehicles over a fire risk after an earlier recall affecting the same vehicles failed to resolve the problem, according to federal regulators.

The recall affects 462,869 Kia Telluride vehicles from the model years 2020-2024, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced Thursday.

Owners are instructed to park outside and away from other cars and buildings due to a risk of fire while driving or parked.

HONDA RECALLING MORE THAN 325,000 VEHICLES OVER POTENTIAL CRASH RISK

The same vehicles were previously recalled in 2024 for the same issue.

If the front power seat slide cover or knob is hit or accidentally struck, the switch can be dislodged, misaligned or damaged, making the seat motor continue to run and causing overheating.

An improper repair under the previous recall also may lead to the motor overheating and catching fire.

Seven seat fires and 11 cases of seat motors melting have been reported.

FORD RECALLS MORE THAN 110,000 MUSTANG VEHICLES OVER WINDSHIELD WIPER, DRIVETRAIN DEFECTS

CLICK HERE TO GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO

Owner notification letters will be sent out Aug. 13.

Owners can then take their vehicles to a Kia dealer, where an electronic fuse assembly will be installed to prevent continuous operation of the seat motor if the seat switch becomes dislodged, internally misaligned or otherwise damaged.

IPO-bound SBI Funds Management on Thursday exuded confidence in the largest asset manager’s Rs 11,600-crore maiden public equity offering sailing through despite prevailing market volatilities.

The entity, which declared a price band of Rs 545-574 per share for the initial public offering, is looking to double the international book to USD 5 billion in three years from the present USD 2.5 billion as part of a revenue augmentation plan, a top official told PTI.

Citing the valuation sought by the fund house as seen from the pricing of the issue and conversations with larger investors, the company’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Debasish Mishra said the buzz has been good around the issue and the possibility of making good returns will attract investors.

“The market could be volatile, uncertain but a trust is always certain. So, that trust of the confidence of customers who are in the market (will help the IPO),” Mishra told PTI.

It can be noted that after a very strong FY25 which witnessed record issuances, IPO fundraisings have been lackluster since the beginning of the US-Israel campaign against Iran in late February.

SBI MF’s issue is one of the largest in recent times, and is set to be succeeded by mega issuances from largest stock bourse NSE and telco Jio Platforms.
Asked about the revenues being lower than the second largest fund house, the management explained that this is because of managing EPFO (Employee Provident Fund Office) money, where it makes a thinner revenue, but added that newer revenue streams are being chased along with reducing the share of EPFO money in the overall AUM.Mishra said the overall assets under management (AUM) of the company is over Rs 13 lakh crore, of which over Rs 3 lakh crore is EPFO money. Deputy MD and Joint CEO D P Singh said the fund house used to manage 75 per cent of EPFO’s money earlier, which has come down to 26 per cent.

Regulatory restrictions on forms of business had restricted it from launching a portfolio management scheme for long but now the company has entered after a clarification from the RBI, he said, adding that international business is also very important.

SBI MF has an international book of USD 2.5 billion at present and is aiming to double the same to USD 5 billion in the next three years as part of the strategy, Singh said, adding that it will carry this along with its joint venture partner Amundi, which has good presence globally and also by deploying staff in financial centres like New York, London, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

Apart from this, it is also looking at the alternates business very seriously, and may also be open for growing in the line through an acquisition, Singh said.

Mishra chipped-in that the focus of the company generally is to grow organically but it will not hesitate if an opportunity comes. He made it clear that at present, there is no proposal on acquisition.

Singh said more than a fifth of the overall sales for the company come from parent SBI, and stressed that there are no concerns on misspelling as the largest lender in the country sells the safer hybrid schemes the most.

As for the IPO issue, the management exuded confidence that in the next 3-4 days, it will come out with multiple large names who will be investing in the company through the IPO.

Groww has said direct mutual funds will remain central to its platform and will continue to be free for do-it-yourself investors, responding to confusion around its mutual fund offering after Zerodha founder Nithin Kamath’s recent post on direct plans.

The company said direct mutual funds are “the heart of Groww” and that its existing mutual fund investors will see no change in plans, pricing or experience. Groww said more than 1 crore investors have built over Rs 1.9 lakh crore of mutual fund investments on its platform, making it the largest mutual fund platform in the country.

“For every DIY investor, Groww stays exactly what it has always been: direct, zero-commission, and free. Forever,” the company said. It added that it will continue to launch new features for direct mutual fund investors.

Also Read: Zerodha will keep direct mutual fund plans for free, says Nithin Kamath

The response came after Kamath said Zerodha would continue to offer direct mutual funds for free through Coin. He had said that when Zerodha started the discount broking model in India in 2010, it decided to charge the same fee regardless of trade size because the effort to execute a trade was the same. He said the same logic was applied to mutual funds, and Zerodha did not launch mutual funds until it could offer only direct plans.

Kamath had also said that most direct mutual fund platforms that started around the time Zerodha launched Coin had either disappeared, changed direction or were rethinking their choice of offering direct plans. He added that Zerodha would continue to offer direct mutual funds for free.
Groww, without naming Zerodha or Kamath, said there had been “confusion” and “misinformation” about its mutual fund offering. It clarified that MF Prime is not a shift away from direct mutual funds, but an additional product for a different set of investors.”MF Prime is not a shift. It is an addition — a fully opt-in product for a different cohort: investors who want research-backed guidance on what to buy, hold, exit, and rebalance,” Groww said.

The company said many investors wanted to invest through Groww but held back because they needed help. MF Prime is meant for such users, it said.

“If you are a DIY customer on Groww today, nothing changes for you. Not the plans, not the pricing, not the experience,” Groww said. “Any commentary claiming Groww has changed its approach to mutual fund investing is simply incorrect.”

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Analyst’s Disclosure: I/we have a beneficial long position in the shares of DUOL either through stock ownership, options, or other derivatives. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

Seeking Alpha’s Disclosure: Past performance is no guarantee of future results. No recommendation or advice is being given as to whether any investment is suitable for a particular investor. Any views or opinions expressed above may not reflect those of Seeking Alpha as a whole. Seeking Alpha is not a licensed securities dealer, broker or US investment adviser or investment bank. Our analysts are third party authors that include both professional investors and individual investors who may not be licensed or certified by any institute or regulatory body.