Oil prices climbed Wednesday as escalating tensions between the United States and Iran heightened concerns over potential disruptions to Middle Eastern energy supplies. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate futures for October delivery climbed 1.75% to $94.66 per barrel. The international benchmark, Brent crude, rose 1.55% to $99.44 per barrel.

On Tuesday, U.S. forces destroyed five Iranian crude tankers in response to attempted assaults on an American warship. The American vessel successfully avoided the Iranian strike and no crew members were injured, according to a statement from Centcom.

The ongoing U.S.-Iran confrontation, now entering its seventh month, is increasing the likelihood that oil prices could surge past $120 per barrel as attacks on maritime shipping continue to intensify, noted Daan Struyven, co-head of global commodities research at Goldman Sachs.

“It’s definitely plausible,” Struyven told Verum’s “Squawk Box Asia” when asked whether oil might reach $120 per barrel. Goldman’s baseline forecast still anticipates gradual recovery of Persian Gulf exports as producers adapt to disruptions through alternative shipping routes and eventual additional pipeline capacity. However, the recent escalation has raised the probability of a stronger upward trend, with Struyven stating that the alternative optimistic scenario—where exports stall and Brent exceed $120—appears increasingly likely as shipping attacks broaden.

Military operations between the two nations had been suspended for roughly a month, during which Washington shifted focus to economic pressure on Tehran before resuming strikes toward the end of last month.

U.S. bonds had a whirlwind week, with some strategists seeing opportunities opening up for investors. The 10-year Treasury note yield last week reached 4.818%, a level not seen since November 2023 amid concerns around the impact of the U.S.-Iran war on inflation. The benchmark rate then pulled back following comments from a top Federal Reserve official in support of keeping central bank policy unchanged. On Friday, though, the 10-year crept back higher on a much hotter-than-expected jobs report . Rising yields have rattled equity market investors of late. The S & P 500 was virtually flat last week as yields climbed. Over the past month, the index is down slightly, while the 10-year has advanced roughly 16 basis points in that time. However, that move higher in yields is making certain parts of the yield curve more attractive, Oliver Shale, U.S. investment specialist at firm Ruffer, told CNBC. Specifically, he thinks increasing exposure to medium-term debt such as the 10-year Treasury. “We’re moving to a new regime, [and] to a world that’s characterized by more volatile inflation dynamics, and that the forces that suppressed inflation for decades are reversing … so, on the one hand, over the long term, yields are rising,” Shale said. “That’s not to say that bonds will always be a bad investment, and we are actually becoming increasingly interested or convinced that duration has a role to play at protecting a portfolio, particularly in a growth slowdown.” Bond yields move inversely to prices. So the more yields rise, the cheaper it becomes to buy them. Investors can buy U.S. 10-year notes directly through TreasuryDirect. They can also gain exposure through funds such as the iShares 7-10 Year Treasury Bond ETF (IEF). It has more than $42 billion in assets and charges 0.15% in fees . US10Y YTD mountain US10Y in 2026 5% a key level Gregory Faranello of AmeriVet Securities thinks an even bigger opportunity could present itself if the 10-year yield reaches 5%, or if the Fed raises rates later this month. The 10-year rate last scaled to the key 5% level in October 2023. However, traders are pricing in a 58% chance of a quarter-point rate increase on Sept. 16, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool. “If we move another 25 basis points here [or if] we get…maybe a little north of 5%, we like that as an opportunity,” said Faranello, his firm’s head of U.S. rates strategy. Investors should not scoop up loads of bonds right away, however. Instead, they should take a more measured, cautious approach, he added. “We’ve been advising our clients to not necessarily go in, but [to] scale in here in terms of duration,” Faranello said. He cautioned that some uncertainty exists around bonds as central banks back off from buying U.S. debt. Japan, which is a major buyer of U.S. Treasurys, has slowed its accumulation of the asset, leading its holdings to barely grow in absolute terms between 2011 and 2024, according to public policy think tank Brookings. That has left some investors to ask who will buy an ever-growing amount of U.S. debt. But, Faranello said that domestic buyers could step up to scoop up bonds, even as more are issued. “Over time, we need to find a home for this debt,” Faranello said, noting that the total federal debt in the U.S. topped $40 trillion for the first time this summer. “But, ultimately, we think that …the domestic money managers in general and investors will view any further back up in yields here as an opportunity.” Investors looking to play the rise in yields also have some options. HSBC last month highlighted several stocks that are positively correlated with the 10-year yields. Among them are private equity giant Apollo Global with a 32% correlation; Chevron at 26%; Alphabet at 21%; and Wells Fargo at 11%.

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Mistral secures €3 billion funding round led by Samsung

Mistral announced on Tuesday that it has raised €3 billion ($3.5 billion) in new funding, spearheaded by memory chip giant Samsung, as the French startup aims to position itself as a European alternative to rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic.

The investment also involved the Scaleup Europe Fund, a European Union-backed investment vehicle managed by EQT, along with existing backer PSG Equity. Mistral stated that the funding gives it a post‑money valuation exceeding €21 billion.

A year ago, Mistral was valued at €11.7 billion following a funding round led by Dutch chip equipment maker ASML.

In an interview with CNBC, Mistral CEO Arthur Mensch said the capital will be used to build additional infrastructure, including its own data centers, and to lease computing capacity.

“In the long term, the plan is to fully rely on capacity we’re building ourselves, meaning the amount of compute we own will grow roughly 100% over the next five years,” Mensch explained.

The CEO added that the company will train “bigger and faster models.”

Headquartered in Paris, Mistral develops AI models and is expanding its data‑center footprint. It seeks a different approach from OpenAI and Anthropic by partnering with individual companies to create custom AI tools tailored to their needs and integrate them into their operations.

Mistral has integrated AI into the manufacturing process of Netherlands‑based ASML, and Mensch indicated the company will focus on a similar area with South Korea’s Samsung.

Earlier this year, Mensch projected that Mistral’s annual recurring revenue could surpass $1 billion this year. With the new funding and partnerships, he expects “to beat” that figure “if everything happens as they are trending,” though he declined to provide a revised revenue estimate.

“We’re very confident that the fundraising we’re doing today is also accelerating and enabling further growth down the line in 2027,” Mensch told CNBC.

Chinese open‑source competition

Mistral has positioned itself as a non‑U.S., non‑Chinese alternative in the AI industry, tapping into Europe’s growing desire for “sovereign AI.”

Investors in the Scaleup Europe Fund include the European Commission as well as major corporations such as Novo Holdings and Santander.

Mistral is also focusing on open‑weight AI models rather than proprietary closed systems from OpenAI and Anthropic. However, it faces intense competition from highly capable Chinese players.

Mensch said the models Mistral will release “very soon” will be “very competitive.”

He noted that Chinese AI labs are not actually operating or working with enterprise customers outside of China. In some cases, Chinese AI models can be deployed on Mistral’s infrastructure, but this “does not create a very strong dependency” on Chinese AI labs because the data remains with Mistral.

Mensch said it’s difficult for European companies to rely on long‑term support for Chinese models because it’s unclear whether they will be upgraded over time or face export restrictions.

“At this point in time, we’re seeing that the volatility in this space is actually quite extreme,” Mensch said.

“Now we also need to be a trusted partner for our customers, and they want us to be sure to certify that in one year from now they will get access to better models than they have today, and the only way we can provide that guarantee is by continuing to train our models ourselves,” Mensch added.