MSFT beat on both their top and bottom lines due to AI integration driving software and cloud revenue growth, per Reuters. GOOG announced its maiden dividend, with AI driving cloud services growth, per Reuters. Axios is cheering them on and providing hope that AI will deliver. Intel delivered a bummer revenue guidance which is making folks worried that their turnaround isn’t going to plan, per BBG
ByteDance is playing chicken with the US gov. They’re saying they’ll shut down US TikTok operations if their legal case fails, per Reuters. Can you imagine all the influencers descending on the White House to complain? You have to admit it would be very entertaining
Anglo American rejected BHP’s $39B takeover advance, saying it’s worth more, per BBG. Elliot built a stake
Traders are readying for the 10-yr UST yield to move past the 16-year high of 5% due to increased US inflation worries, per Reuters
Walmart’s CEO wants to hire more workers without college degrees for high-paying corporate jobs, per ABC. Get this—managers at Supercenters can earn more than $400k per year, including stock grants. It’s called skills-based hiring.
Snap shares jumped almost 30% in afterhours trading post 1Q24 revenue beat, per CNBC
US’ top auto-safety regulator (NHTSA) is at it again, investigating Tesla’s Autopilot and whether the co did enough to fix noted problems. In particular, they’re looking at the Dec recall because crashes keep happening. More than 2mm cars are being reviewed.
Southwest exited four airports via a cost-cutting plan due to fewer Boeing plane deliveries and uncertain growth plans, per the NYT.
Economists upgraded global growth expectations while cautioning that inflation and interest rates may remain higher for longer, per Reuters.
German unemployment is rising to its highest level in roughly a decade because of a weak economy, per Reuters
China’s stock markets were up a lot last night. Hang Seng +2.12%, Shanghai +1.17%, Shenzhen +2.15%, ChiNext +3.34%. Xi gave Blinken an earful, warning him against “vicious competition” between the 2 countries. Blinken asked him to stop supporting Russia. Nothing is going to progress here, folks. They are just meeting in hopes that things don’t escalate further.
The BOJ left rates unchanged as expected, driving the yen to a fresh 34-year low, per the FT. At the same time, Japan’s Finance Minister is worried about the yen’s negative effects and says he’s ready to act. OK….when?
BofA provided these nifty charts.
Have you heard about the new fad on soon-to-be-banned TikTok? Oatzempic. The fad promises you can lose 40 pounds in less than 2 mo if you eat 1 cup water + ½ cup oats + lime.