{"id":60384,"date":"2026-03-31T12:38:31","date_gmt":"2026-03-31T16:38:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/oracle-slashes-30000-jobs-to-fund-ai-pivot-as-iran-issues-direct-threats-to-u-s-tech-giants\/60384\/"},"modified":"2026-03-31T12:38:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-31T16:38:31","slug":"oracle-slashes-30000-jobs-to-fund-ai-pivot-as-iran-issues-direct-threats-to-u-s-tech-giants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/oracle-slashes-30000-jobs-to-fund-ai-pivot-as-iran-issues-direct-threats-to-u-s-tech-giants\/60384\/","title":{"rendered":"Oracle Slashes 30,000 Jobs to Fund AI Pivot as Iran Issues Direct Threats to U.S. Tech Giants"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Oracle (<a href=\"\/stock\/ORCL\">ORCL<\/a>) is terminating 30,000 employees<\/strong>, roughly 18% of its global workforce, to reallocate capital toward a <strong>$156 billion AI infrastructure expansion<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Iran\u2019s Revolutionary Guard (IRGC) has issued a specific threat<\/strong> to target the Middle Eastern operations of U.S. tech giants, including Microsoft (<a href=\"\/stock\/MSFT\">MSFT<\/a>) and Nvidia (<a href=\"\/stock\/NVDA\">NVDA<\/a>), starting <strong>April 1 at 8:00 PM Tehran time<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The EU\u2019s fossil fuel import bill has increased by \u20ac14 billion<\/strong> this year due to the conflict in Iran, prompting the EU Energy Commissioner to propose a &quot;toolbox&quot; of tax cuts and grid fee reductions.<\/li>\n<li><strong>USDA Prospective Plantings for 2026<\/strong> show a shift in American agriculture, with <strong>corn and wheat acreage down 3%<\/strong> while soybean and cotton plantings are projected to rise by 4%.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Apple (<a href=\"\/stock\/AAPL\">AAPL<\/a>) is testing a breakthrough Siri feature<\/strong> that allows the assistant to process multiple commands simultaneously, aiming for a release with iOS 27.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Oracle\u2019s Massive Restructuring for the AI Era<\/h2>\n<p>Oracle (<a href=\"\/stock\/ORCL\">ORCL<\/a>) began sending early-morning layoff emails on Tuesday, signaling the start of a massive reduction affecting <strong>30,000 employees<\/strong>. This move is part of a broader strategy to pivot toward artificial intelligence, with analysts estimating the cuts will free up <strong>$8 billion to $10 billion<\/strong> in cash flow. The company is currently committed to an aggressive <strong>$156 billion capital spending plan<\/strong> for its Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI) to support high-demand AI clients.<\/p>\n<p>The layoffs come despite Oracle (<a href=\"\/stock\/ORCL\">ORCL<\/a>) reporting a <strong>95% jump in net income<\/strong> last quarter. <em>Market analysts suggest the company is facing a &quot;cash crunch&quot; due to the capital-intensive nature of building AI data centers<\/em>, forcing a drastic reduction in headcount to maintain liquidity. Termination emails reportedly arrived at 6:00 a.m., cutting off system access immediately for workers across the U.S., India, Canada, and Mexico.<\/p>\n<h2>Geopolitical Escalation: Iran Targets U.S. Technology<\/h2>\n<p>Tensions in the Middle East reached a critical point as Iran warned it would attack the regional operations of major U.S. companies. The IRGC named <strong>Microsoft (<a href=\"\/stock\/MSFT\">MSFT<\/a>), Google (<a href=\"\/stock\/GOOGL\">GOOGL<\/a>), Apple (<a href=\"\/stock\/AAPL\">AAPL<\/a>), Intel (<a href=\"\/stock\/INTC\">INTC<\/a>), IBM (<a href=\"\/stock\/IBM\">IBM<\/a>), Oracle (<a href=\"\/stock\/ORCL\">ORCL<\/a>), and Nvidia (<a href=\"\/stock\/NVDA\">NVDA<\/a>)<\/strong> as legitimate targets. The threat is scheduled to take effect on <strong>April 1 at 8:00 PM Tehran time<\/strong>, with Iran alleging these firms assist in &quot;terrorist planning&quot; and tracking for assassinations.<\/p>\n<p>In response to the de facto blockade of the <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>, energy markets are seeing significant shifts. Japan\u2019s largest explorer, <strong>INPEX<\/strong>, has announced it will prioritize supplying Japan with fossil fuels from Australia and the Caspian region to bypass the Middle Eastern chokepoint. <em>The blockade has already pushed crude oil prices above $100 per barrel<\/em>, heightening fears of a prolonged global energy shock.<\/p>\n<h2>EU Energy Crisis and Agricultural Shifts<\/h2>\n<p>EU Energy Commissioner Jorgenson confirmed that the war in Iran has added <strong>\u20ac14 billion<\/strong> to the bloc&#39;s energy costs this year. To combat this, the EU is preparing a set of tools to <strong>reduce taxes on electricity and grid fees<\/strong> while simplifying state aid rules for energy-intensive industries. Despite the pressure, the Commissioner affirmed that the <strong>ban on Russian gas remains in place<\/strong>, emphasizing that peace will not bring an immediate return to normalcy.<\/p>\n<p>On the domestic front, the <strong>USDA&#39;s Prospective Plantings report<\/strong> revealed that U.S. farmers intend to plant <strong>95.3 million acres of corn<\/strong>, down 3% from 2025. Conversely, soybean plantings are expected to rise to <strong>84.7 million acres<\/strong>, a 4% increase driven by lower input costs compared to corn. <em>Wheat acreage is projected to hit 43.8 million, which, if realized, would be the lowest planted area on record since 1919.<\/em><\/p>\n<h2>Tech Innovation and Economic Outlook<\/h2>\n<p>Apple (<a href=\"\/stock\/AAPL\">AAPL<\/a>) is moving forward with its AI roadmap, testing a new Siri feature capable of handling <strong>multiple commands at once<\/strong>. This update, part of the &quot;Apple Intelligence&quot; overhaul, would allow users to issue complex requests like &quot;Set a timer and check the weather&quot; without pausing. The feature is expected to be a cornerstone of the <strong>iOS 27 launch<\/strong> at WWDC later this year.<\/p>\n<p>Finally, investors are bracing for the upcoming <strong>Non-Farm Payrolls (NFP)<\/strong> report. <strong>HSBC<\/strong> expects a modest gain of <strong>70,000 jobs for March<\/strong>, following a sharp decline of 92,000 in February. The unemployment rate is forecasted to tick up to <strong>4.5%<\/strong>, while average hourly earnings are projected to grow by <strong>3.7% year-over-year<\/strong>, reflecting a cooling but still resilient labor market.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Oracle (ORCL) is terminating 30,000 employees, roughly 18% of its global workforce, to reallocate capital toward a $156 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":50383,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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