August 19, 2025: Asian stocks faced pressure following a decline in U.S. tech shares, with traders opting for costly "disaster" puts to hedge their positions. Intel's stock surged due to a significant investment from SoftBank and discussions of a potential U.S. government stake, though analysts caution the rally may falter. In the U.S., last-minute flight bookings create uncertainty for airlines. Meanwhile, small-cap stocks appear to be losing momentum after a recent strong performance. Pritzker Private Capital announced a successful raise of $3.4 billion for its latest fund. Powered by LabCat AI research tools.