Hello Capitalists,

Here is everything you should be following today:

• Trump to turn on the oil taps

• Venezuela oil to boost US refiners, up to 1M barrels per day

• “AI Fatigue” comes to Wall Street

• AMD slides despite “Boom”

• San Disk soars on Nvidia news

• Rhode Island seeks to undo Trump tax cuts with its own tax raises

Today’s markets + assets:

• 🔴 DOW: 49269.26 (⬇️ 0.39%)

• ✅ S&P: 6955.37 (⬆️ 0.15%)

• ✅ NASDAQ: 23698.89 (⬆️ 0.64%)

• ⚠️✅CBOE VIX Volatility Index: 15.01 (⬆️ 1.76%)

• 🔴 Gold: $4465.60 (⬇️ 0.70%)

• 🔴 Silver: $77.79 (⬇️ 4.00%)

• 🔴 Bitcoin: $91,118.46 (⬇️ 1.50%)

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Trump moves to secure Venezuela oil exports

President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that the United States will take control of up to 50 million barrels of Venezuelan oil initially, with shipments to continue indefinitely following a U.S. military action that ousted Nicolás Maduro last weekend, as sanctions are selectively eased to reroute flows from China.

• Maduro ousted militarily: U.S. forces removed Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in a raid last Saturday, paving the way for American oversight of the country’s vast oil resources.

• Sanctions selectively reduced: U.S. will roll back targeted sanctions to allow global sales and transportation of Venezuelan crude, previously blocked under prior restrictions.

• Proceeds U.S.-controlled: Oil sale revenues will flow into accounts managed by the United States, with funds released back to Venezuela only at Washington’s discretion to benefit both nations.

• Oil rerouted from China: Previously destined mostly for Chinese buyers, Venezuela’s heavy crude will now ship directly to U.S. docks, boosting American access to OPEC founder’s reserves.

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Venezuelan oil surge boosts US refiners

Analysts predict a full resumption of Venezuelan heavy crude exports could slash fuel production costs for American refiners on the Gulf Coast, who are poised to absorb up to 1 million barrels per day if sanctions are fully lifted.

• Gulf refineries gear up: Gulf oil refineries were originally built to handle Venezuelan heavy sour crude oil, historically processing 800,000 barrels per day before 2019 sanctions, with current capacity for 3-4 million barrels per day of similar grades.

• Chevron leads operations: As the only U.S. major with a sanctions-exempt license, Chevron is currently importing 150,000 barrels per day while Valero, PBF Energy, and Phillips 66 stand ready to increase volumes.

• Canadian producers hit: Canada stands to be hit hardest by the competition, as cheaper Venezuelan barrels displace their heavy oil exports to U.S. markets, alongside higher costs for small Chinese refiners.

• Rebuilding takes years: Despite quick export redirection potential, it will require billions in investment to repair dilapidated infrastructure and ramp up production well beyond current levels.

“AI Fatigue” hits Wall Street hard

Investors are showing signs of “AI fatigue” after three years of hype-driven gains, shifting focus from the dominant Magnificent Seven tech giants to the S&P 500’s other 493 stocks amid doubts over AI’s promised economic payoff.

• Magnificent Seven Underperforms Recently: Since late October, the group fell 2% while the rest of the S&P 500 rose 1.8%.

• Ex-Mag Seven ETF Surges: Defiance’s XMAG saw inflows quadruple in December and gained 15% in 2025.

• S&P 493 Margins Stay Strong: Profit margins held elevated despite tariffs, efficiency drives, and labor weakness.

• Cyclical Stocks Poised for Gains: Improved economy could boost lenders like JPMorgan and consumer names like Nike.

AMD shares slide despite AI boom claims

Advanced Micro Devices shares dropped as much as 4.4% Tuesday, erasing earlier gains, even as CEO Lisa Su touted soaring AI-driven demand for computing power and insisted the technology’s widespread adoption in 2026 will prove it’s far from hype.

• CEO Highlights Massive Growth: Su predicted computing power must increase 100-fold in the next four to five years, declaring “we are still in the early innings of unlocking the power of AI.”

• New Chip Targets Data Centers: At CES, Su unveiled a new processor designed for corporate data centers while showcasing the top-tier MI455X AI accelerator.

• Investor Skepticism Fuels Decline: Shares slid amid concerns over a potential AI spending bubble after a 77% surge last year raised lofty expectations.

• AMD Challenges Nvidia Dominance: Positioned as Nvidia’s top rival in AI chips, AMD outperformed its competitor in 2025 gains but saw shares fall while Nvidia’s rose slightly.

SanDisk surges on Nvidia AI boost

SanDisk Corp. shares soared 28% Tuesday, the biggest gain since February, after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang touted massive untapped demand for storage as the “working memory” for global AI systems during his CES keynote.

• Huang highlights unserved market: Nvidia’s leader called storage a completely underserved sector poised to become the world’s largest, holding AI’s working memory.

• Peers ride the wave: Western Digital and Seagate posted double-digit gains, topping S&P 500 performers amid sector-wide momentum.

• Memory prices climbing fast: Reports indicate Samsung and SK Hynix seeking 60-70% hikes in server DRAM prices for Q1.

• AI inferencing drives future Analysts see storage firms as key beneficiaries of 2026 shift to AI at the edge in drones, vehicles and surveillance.

Rhode Island targets wealthy amid Trump cuts

Rhode Island’s Democratic governor is warming to a proposed 3% income surtax on the state’s top 1% of earners — those making over $640,000 annually — to plug a looming budget deficit worsened by anticipated federal cuts under President Trump to Medicaid and food assistance programs.

Governor Shifts Stance: Dan McKee now supports the surtax if paired with tax relief for businesses, seniors and others, reversing his earlier opposition from last spring.

Budget Pressures Mount: The state faces at least a $101 million deficit for the upcoming fiscal year, potentially growing by another $70 million due to reduced federal funding and ongoing economic struggles.

Massachusetts Model Inspires: Lawmakers eye neighboring Massachusetts’ 4% millionaire’s tax, which has generated $6.2 billion in revenue since 2022, as a successful blueprint for addressing inequality.

Additional Wealth Measures: A separate “Taylor Swift tax” surtax on second homes valued over $1 million takes effect this summer, building on recent increases to gas, hotel and parking fees.

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