Tesla's stock fell 8% due to a delay in unveiling its "robotaxi," while Paramount plans a merger with Skydance Media amid a 20% stock decline and hopes for future film successes. New York City introduces wheeled garbage bins after a $1.6 million contract with McKinsey, aiming to replace traditional sidewalk trash mounts. Etsy shifts focus to "keep commerce human," mandating products to be made, designed, handpicked, or sourced by sellers amid increasing AI influence. Meanwhile, coffee bean prices hit a two-year high due to supply chain issues and rising global demand, signaling potential price hikes into 2025.

Sources:

Tesla stock falls (Axios)

Paramount stock plummets (MB, AP)

New NY trash cans (BI)

Etsy “human made” campaign (CNBC)

Coffee getting more expensive (MB, BT)

Chipotle's CFO Jack Hartung announced his retirement, effective March 2025. Ford reported a 1% sales increase in Q2, driven by a 5% rise in truck sales, contrasting with GM's 0.6% rise. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell addressed inflation and job market progress before Congress. S&P 500 closed at a record high, while Dow Jones futures fell 3%.

Bulletin brief

Chipotle Mexican Grill’s CFO Hartung to retire next year (Reuters)

Ford sales edge 1% higher in the second quarter, led by trucks (CNBC)

Key takeaways from Fed Chair Powell’s testimony on Capitol Hill (CNN)

Stock futures are little changed after S&P 500 notches another record close (CNBC)

Nike's shares plunged 20% after predicting a 10% sales decline due to weak consumer trends and slow China sales. Meanwhile, Nvidia's stock surged 149% amid the AI boom, but Federal Reserve interest-rate cuts are delayed amid market growth. The FTC blocked Tempur Sealy's $4 billion acquisition of Mattress Firm due to competition concerns. The Biden administration proposed heat protection rules for 36 million workers, while Disney and Pixar's "Inside Out 2" became the fastest animated film to reach $1 billion at the global box office, aiding Pixar's recovery post-pandemic.

Nike shares drop (CNBC)

Halftime report (WSJ)

FTC unanimously moves to block $4 billion merger of mattress giants (CNN)

U.S. workplace safety agency proposes protections from extreme heat (Reuters)

“Inside Out 2” tops $1 billion at the global box office (CNBC)

The Supreme Court voted 6-3 to eliminate the SEC's ability to use in-house administrative tribunals for fraud cases, granting defendants the right to a jury trial in federal court instead, which could significantly impact how federal agencies handle such cases. Chipotle announced a 50-for-1 stock split, aiming to make its shares more accessible by dividing the current high share price into smaller units, potentially making them cheaper than a burrito bowl. Shein, known for its fast fashion, has filed for an IPO on the London Stock Exchange after a failed attempt in the US, possibly due to regulatory hurdles involving labor allegations. Denmark has introduced a new law imposing a carbon tax on agriculture, targeting emissions from cow farts with a charge of roughly $17 per metric ton of CO2, showcasing a quirky yet impactful approach to climate policy. Boeing faces scrutiny from the U.S. NTSB for allegedly disclosing confidential investigative details about the Alaska Airlines flight incident, leading to accusations of violating rules and a potential referral to the Department of Justice. 

Bulletin Brief:         S.C. rules against SEC (AP, MB)   Chipotle lowers share prices (Forbes, MB) Shein files for LSE IPO (Reuters, MB) Denmark to tax cow farts (MB) NTSB Sanctions Boeing (Reuters)

This week in the automotive industry, Volkswagen invests $1 billion in Rivian amid slow EV adoption, while Nvidia's stock surge supports S&P 500 amidst economic slowdown. General Motors Cruise names Mark Whitten CEO amidst autonomous vehicle relaunch efforts, as Cox Automotive predicts slowing sales growth and increased incentives amid rising inventory levels and election-year scrutiny. Join us Friday for more business updates on C2 Business!

Bulletin brief

Rivian shares soar 30% after Volkswagen takes $1 billion stake (CNBC)

Nvidia rebounds, and it’s back to masking losses for the rest of Wall Street (AP)

GM’s Cruise names former Amazon, Microsoft Xbox executive as new CEO (CNBC)

U.S. auto sales are expected to slow during the second half of 2024 (CNBC)

Election uncertainty may impact U.S. auto industry, report says (Reuters)

This Friday marks triple-witching day, where stock options, stock index futures, and stock index options contracts all expire simultaneously. Nvidia is particularly noteworthy today, with speculation swirling that a significant portion of their outstanding options may expire by day's end. Recent heat waves in the United States might affect your stock portfolio. Research from the University of Calgary suggests that companies in sectors like utilities and healthcare tend to experience decreased earnings during periods of extreme heat. Warren Buffett has been actively investing, acquiring shares of Occidental Petroleum for nine consecutive days, increasing his stake to 28.8% with over 255 million shares. Buffett also sold 1.3 million shares of the Chinese EV maker BYD on June 11th. Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun faced intense scrutiny on Capitol Hill this week, apologizing for the company's recent mishaps but enduring tough questions from lawmakers. Despite being in the hot seat, Calhoun plans to step down as Boeing's CEO by year-end, leaving uncertainty about his successor. Golden Goose, known for its unique and trendy shoe designs, has decided to postpone its IPO. Despite this setback, the Italian sneaker company reported a promising 12% increase in revenue for the first quarter of this year.

Bulletin Brief: 

Triple-witching day and Nvidia (MB, MarketWatch)

Extreme heat hurting stocks (MB)

Warren Buffet’s moves  (MB, CNBC)

Boeing CEO testifies before Senate (MB)

Golden Goose postpones IPO (MB)  

Today on C2 Business, Nvidia becomes the most valuable public company, surging 3.5% past Microsoft. Steve Cohen plans a $1 billion AI-focused hedge fund launch. La-Z-Boy stocks soar 19%, Six Flags-Cedar Fair merger finalized. Surgeon General urges social media warning labels for mental health. Adobe faces lawsuit over subscription termination practices. McDonald’s ends AI drive-thru partnership with IBM.

Bulletin Brief

S&P 500 climbs to another record close Tuesday as Nvidia’s market cap tops Microsoft (NBC)

Why I’m calling for a warning label on social media platforms (NYT)

US sues Photoshop maker Adobe for hiding fees, making it difficult to cancel (Reuters)

McDonald’s is ending its test run of AI-powered drive-thrus with IBM (AP)

Q1 earnings for the S&P 500 are in, and 61% of companies beat expected earnings for the quarter and some analysts expect this quarter’s index growth rate to hit almost 6%. Roaring Kitty, aka Keith Gill, is back in the news again after revealing earlier this month that he held up to $160.4 million worth of Gamestop stock. However, with a disappointing shareholder meeting and Q1 report, the Kitty’s abilities have been rendered inert. Three AI crypto platforms are merging under one token dubbed “ASI” in order to take on big tech’s monopoly over AI. One analyst estimated that AI and crypto could add $20 trillion to global GDP by 2030. The EU announced tariffs on Chinese EVs ranging from 17.4–38.1% , which could signal the beginning of a trade war between China. Elon Musk is getting a second chance to receive a multi-billion pay package, now $45 billion instead of $56 billion. Several key investors are backing Musk, as they want to hold onto him as CEO of Tesla. 

Bulletin Brief:

Q1 S&P 500 (MB) 

Roaring Kitty back again (CBNC)

AI and Crypto take on big tech (CD, MB)

EU tariffs Chinese EVs (BBC, MB)

Elon Musk pay package (MB)

Wall Street drifts to a mixed close but still notches some records (AP)

Stock futures are little changed ahead of Fed’s rate decision (CNBC)

More states join US monopoly against Apple (Reuters)

Peso gets crushed as investors worry Sheinbaum’s win was too big (Bloomberg)

Judges appeal Elizabeth Holmes’ appeal of fraud conviction (AP)