Skip to Content Skip to Menu Skip to Footer

Daily Update — July 14, 2026

Ethanol's Future in the US; Examining AI Stock Volatility; and Video Game Industry Trends

Today is Tuesday, July 14, 2026, and here’s your curated selection of Essential Intelligence on global markets from S&P Global. Subscribe to be notified of each new Daily Update.

Subscribe

Energy Expansion

Listen: Corn, Carbon And Competition: Ethanol's Next Chapter in the US

 

Ethanol has been a foundational element of the US biofuels industry for decades, but it is becoming increasingly scrutinized as electrification progresses, low-carbon alternatives become more popular and regulatory frameworks change.

 

In this episode of the "EnergyCents" podcast, S&P Global Energy biofuels expert Kevin Lindemer joined hosts Hill Vaden and Samantha Humphreys to discuss the state of the biofuels market, exploring why ethanol remains central to US transportation fuels and how policy, technology and market dynamics could shape the sector's trajectory. The conversation ranged from blending mandates and feedstock economics to emerging opportunities in sustainable fuels, offering insights into where ethanol fits in the next phase of the energy transition.

Artificial Intelligence

Regimes, Reversals and Risk

 

The S&P 500 surged 15% in the second quarter of 2026 — its strongest quarter since 2020 — fueled by robust AI enthusiasm and despite headwinds such as geopolitical tensions, inflation and Fed rate hike concerns. However, the third quarter began with volatility, including a sharp sell-off and rebound among chipmakers, raising questions about whether these swings indicate fleeting uncertainty or a lasting shift in market dynamics.

 

Investors have looked beyond mega-cap companies toward rapidly growing memory chip suppliers such as Sandisk, Micron Technology and Intel. Over the past year, the performance of mega-cap companies and chipmakers diverged, with the S&P Semiconductors Select Industry Index up 144%, outpacing the 20% gain of the S&P 500 Top 10 Index. The rally has broadened to include smaller caps: The S&P MidCap 400 rose 14% and the S&P SmallCap 600 rose 20% in the second quarter.

 

Despite moderate index volatility, dispersion — which measures how stocks perform relative to each other — has reached record levels, highlighting opportunities for skilled stock pickers. The global impact of the AI boom is evident, especially in emerging markets, but performance remains uneven across regions.

Technology & Innovation

Listen: From Fortnite to Smart Frames: Gaming Growth, Hardware Inflation and AR Innovation

 

In this episode of the "MediaTalk" podcast, S&P Global Market Intelligence Kagan analyst Neil Barbour joined host Mike Reynolds to unpack the video gaming sector's most significant developments. Chinese publishers such as Tencent and NetEase are benefiting from smart live-service strategies. In contrast, Microsoft's Xbox faces headwinds due to rising costs and shrinking margins. Meanwhile, Nintendo's Switch 2 is setting the pace in hardware sales — even in the absence of a headline-grabbing Mario or Zelda release.

 

Barbour and Reynolds also explored the implications of PC gaming's growth, examined how Roblox's new safety measures could temper the platform's meteoric growth and discussed the latest smart glasses showcased at the Augmented World Expo.

In case you missed it

  • Brazil's domestic soybean crush is projected to rise 2.4% from the current season to a record 62.5 million metric tons in the 2026–27 marketing year, driven by higher biodiesel blending and despite the delay in the planned B16 blending requirement, the US Agriculture Department said.
  • Despite the continued expansion of global goods and services output in June, which was driven by accelerated growth in new orders, global employment declined slightly for the second consecutive month, according to the latest Purchasing Managers’ Index survey data produced by S&P Global and J.PMorgan.
  • Mosaic will temporarily reduce phosphate production at its Brazil operations due to tightening global sulfur supply, renewed shipping risks in the Strait of Hormuz and rising input costs.

Upcoming events