DHUnplugged Podcast

DHUnplugged Podcast

By Andrew Horowitz and JC DvorakBusinessNewsInvestingBusiness NewsCareers
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DHUnplugged Podcast episodes

  • DHUnplugged #820: Gullible Markets

    Howie Mandel Negotiations with Iran….Deal or No Deal?

    Robot Soldiers – new and exciting.

    30-Year Bond Mayhem and gullible markets.

    So much economic news coming up – let’s dig in.

    PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

    Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

    DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

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    Warm-Up

    -  Closest to The Pin???????????
    - Howie Mandel Negotiations with Iran....Deal or No Deal?
    - Robot Soldiers - new and exciting

    Markets

    - 30-Year Bond Mayhem!  Alliteration or Tautogram?
    - This week in Economics - plenty to come
    - What is wrong with Nike?
    - How gullible can markets be?

     

    DHU MAILING LIST! - Go to DHUnplugged.com

    GAME: IS IT AN ALLITERATION OR TAUTOGRAM

    ----- Alliteration: The repetition of the same initial sound in neighboring words (for example, "big bad bears").
    -------Tautogram: A strict form of alliteration where all words in a phrase or sentence begin with the identical letter
    - Which is it? :::  Bessent's Big Bond Blunder Backfired!
    How about this?  Brash Billionaire Bessent’s Botched Big Bond Blunder Backfired Bitterly!

    THIS WEEK IN ECONOMIC NEWS...............

    TUESDAY - THE CONSUMER AND JOB OPENINGS

    - Consumer confidence and August job openings arrive at 10 AM ET.
    - Watch whether households are getting more worried about prices and whether employers are still hiring.

    WEDNESDAY - INFLATION AND SPENDING

    - August PCE inflation, personal income and spending arrive at 8:30 AM ET, alongside updated second-quarter GDP figures.
    - The key question: is spending holding up while inflation stays elevated?

    THURSDAY - FACTORY CHECK

    - September ISM manufacturing arrives at 10 AM ET. Watch new orders, employment and prices paid for signs that growth and inflation are pulling in different directions.

    FRIDAY - THE BIG ONE

    - September payrolls, unemployment and wages arrive at 8:30 AM ET.
    - The current forecast is about 100,000 jobs and 4.1% unemployment, down from August's 162,000 job gain.

    FAST FOOD'S SQUEEZE

    - McDonald's CEO expects elevated inflation and flat restaurant traffic to persist. US same-store sales rose just 0.8% last quarter as visits fell.
    - McDonald's plans $8.5 billion in support for restaurant upgrades through 2036, betting better operations and value offers can win back customers.
    -- Wendy's faces its own traffic problem and plans to close up to roughly 350 underperforming US restaurants in 2026.
    -- Meritage Hospitality Group, a franchisee operating 314 Wendy's locations, filed for bankruptcy protection on September 17. Wendy's itself did not file.
    - The common problem: customers are visiting less often while food, labor and restaurant costs remain high.
    - La Vie on Saturday ($36 Mezza Plate!)

    MCD CHART

    AMERICA.GOV

    - AI for all Americans!
    - Did you see the images?

    CHINA'S AI LABS BORROW CLAUDE

    - Anthropic accused several Chinese AI labs of extracting Claude's capabilities to train competing models.
    - Alibaba allegedly generated more than 151 million Claude exchanges.
    - Moonshot generated more than 23 million; DeepSeek more than 12 million.
    - Some customer prompts were allegedly routed through Claude without users knowing.
    - Anthropic tightened verification and account controls in response.

    $5,000 MIDTERM PROMISE

    - Trump promised $5,000 to every adult U.S. citizen if Republicans retain Congress.
    - A universal payment would cost well above $1 trillion.
    - He told voters to "pretend that I'm on the ballot."
    - No detailed funding mechanism or legislative structure was presented.

    ROBOT SOLDIERS

    - Chinese military researchers are studying humanoid robots for battlefield use.
    - Possible roles include reconnaissance, logistics, infiltration and urban combat.
    - One study modeled six robots clearing a building alongside human troops.
    - China produced about 95% of global humanoid shipments in 2025.
    - No evidence shows armed humanoids are operational with PLA units yet.

    NIKE LOST INDEX STATUS

    - Nike is being removed from the S&P 100 after 18 years.
    - Its market value has fallen roughly 80% from five years ago.
    - Nike shares are around $36, making it the smallest-weighted stock in the price-weighted Dow at about 0.4%.
    - Reuters noted that its Dow membership could now be at risk as well.
    - Nike shares have gained only about 5% since joining the Dow in 2013.

    NKE CHART

    ON (ONON) SIGNS MBAPPE

    - Kylian Mbappe ended a roughly 20-year relationship with Nike and signed with On.
    - The deal reportedly includes both cash and equity.
    - On is using Mbappe to make a serious move into soccer after building credibility in tennis with Roger Federer.
    - Former French star Thierry Henry is heading On's soccer business.
    - ONON shares are still down roughly 40% this year amid slowing growth in the Americas.

    IRAN'S SEVEN-DAY OFFER

    - Iran proposed reopening the Strait of Hormuz within seven days of a deal, with a pause in regional fighting.
    - In return, it wants the US blockade on Iranian ports lifted, frozen funds released and oil sanctions waived.
    - The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump rejected the plan; Reuters could not confirm that report. Iran was still awaiting an official US response.
    - An Iranian official said Tehran would not give ground on uranium enrichment, even if the peace proposal were accepted.
    - Seems like all bets are off- Trump goes All Howie Mandel: DEAL OR NO DEAL (NO DEAL!)

    THE LONG BOND BREAKS HIGHER

    - The 30-year Treasury yield reached its highest level since 2004 during Thursday's bond selloff.
    - Elevated energy prices, inflation concerns and heavier government borrowing added pressure to long-dated bonds.
    - Higher Treasury yields raise the financing hurdle for mortgages, commercial property and the AI buildout.

    GOLDMAN WAITS OUT THE AI DEBT FLOOD

    - Goldman Sachs Asset Management is underweight bonds from major AI hyperscalers.
    - Its concern is supply: more borrowing for data centers could push bond prices down and yields up.
    - Goldman still believes in the AI business case. The underweight call is about the price of its debt.
    - Moody's puts hyperscalers' off-balance-sheet obligations at nearly $3 trillion.

    PIMCO'S PHILADELPHIA OFFICE HIT

    - Pimco faces an estimated $35 million loss on a commercial mortgage-backed security tied to two downtown Philadelphia office towers.
    - The expected loss is roughly 70% on that security.
    - A sharp loss on one office-backed bond puts the value of similar collateral back in focus as borrowing costs rise.
    - - Starting to see some strain in the commercial market now that rates are

    META'S MUSE TAKES OFF

    - Meta's personal AI agent Muse exceeded 2.5 million downloads and topped US app charts within two weeks of launch.
    - Meta shares jumped 11% on September 21, adding nearly $200 billion in market value.
    - Muse can send emails, shop and book travel on a user's behalf.
    - Meta is also testing a feature in which human contractors handle some calls made through Muse. Employees raised privacy concerns; Meta says it will disclose the feature before a public rollout.

     

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    THE CLOSEST TO THE PIN
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    Winners will be getting great stuff like the new "OFFICIAL" DHUnplugged Shirt!

     

    FED AND CRYPTO LIMERICKS

     

    See this week’s stock picks HERE

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    1 hr 1 min
  • DHUnplugged #819: Counterfactualzzzz

    Maybe people are just unhappy – says Goldman.

    Counterfactualzzzz – that is why bonds are still up.

    Are we getting $5,000?

    Bitcoin is running again.

    PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

    Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

    DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

    Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


    Follow John S. Dvorak on X

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    Warm-Up

    - Greenland (Renamed Red White and Blue Land?)
    - Consumers and People are JUST UNHAPPY
    - No more press coverage? Maybe people are unhappy (see above) because of all of the shenanigans going on.
    ---- Maybe we will all be happier without all of the White House coverage

    Markets

    - New Highs - NASDAQ 100 moving up with risk assets. (Breath poor though)
    --- Close enough to end of month, quarter to be window dressing
    ---- Buy Yom Kippur!!!
    - 10YR Treasury at 5% again  - wait until you hear Bessent's victory speech

    DHU MAILING LIST! - Go to DHUnplugged.com

    MARKET MOVE

    - On the heels of SoftBank Group Corp. seeking the equivalent of more than $11 billion in a junk bond deal to fund investments in ChatGPT creator OpenAI.
    - The company is looking to issue $10 billion of dollar securities and €1 billion of euro debt to fund a follow-on investment in OpenAI expected to close next month.
    - SoftBank and its lead banks are sounding out investors on potential pricing for the proposed junk bond offering, with yields that would be records for SoftBank in those specific currencies and tenors if priced at those levels.
    - Could it be that simple why NAZ 100 is at new highs?

    BESSENT'S "COUNTERFACTUAL" DEFENSE

    - This is darling...
    - Rep. Jim Himes questioned Bessent on September 15 at a House Financial Services Committee hearing.
    - Himes: "The 10-year went up by 20 basis points. How can you say it was successful?"
    - Bessent: "Well, there is a counterfactual of what would it have done."
    - Bessent added: "We then proceeded to have the two most successful Treasury auctions that we've had in 20 years."
    - Goes into the Alternative Facts and Fake News Category.

    BESSENT'S MYSTERY BANK

    - Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said a large unnamed bank would be sanctioned over Iran.
    - The administration has targeted Iranian oil, shipping, finance and weapons networks.
    - "Operation Economic Outcast" had already targeted nearly 60 entities, people and vessels.
    - Treasury later sanctioned Russia's VTB Bank over alleged Iran-related sanctions evasion.

    GOLDMAN: MAYBE CONSUMERS ARE JUST UNHAPPY

    - Michigan consumer sentiment fell nearly 8% from August and 13% year over year.
    - Goldman says weak sentiment may increasingly reflect broader unhappiness, not just economic conditions.
    - "Very happy" Americans fell to 23% in 2024 from 31% in 2016.
    - Inflation still weighs on confidence, but distrust and pessimism may also be distorting surveys.
    - Goldman says sentiment may be becoming less useful for predicting actual activity.

    GREENLAND DEAL

    - Trump announced a deal expanding the U.S. security role in Greenland while it remains Danish territory.
    ---So it seems we are not going to "take it"
    - The agreement aims to settle the dispute over greater U.S. strategic control.
    - Rubio said the U.S. has greater financial and military capacity to defend Greenland.
    - Arctic security, Russia, China and critical minerals remain the core issues.
    - See Greenland Energy (GLND), Greenland Mines (GRML) and Critical Metals (CRML)

    SMART GLASSES MEET THE REGULATORS

    - Paris prosecutors opened an investigation into alleged secret filming using camera-equipped smart glasses.
    - Meta-EssilorLuxottica glasses hold roughly 76% of the global market.
    - About 7 million units were sold last year.
    - French regulators are getting workplace complaints and questions over whether the devices can be banned.
    - Australia and some UK cinemas are also moving toward restrictions.

    EUROPE LOSES SAUDI BARRELS

    - Saudi Aramco told European customers they will receive no crude allocations next month.
    - The cutoff follows an attack on the East-West pipeline.
    - European refiners are scrambling for replacement barrels, lifting North Sea premiums.
    - Saudi Arabia is working to restore pipeline capacity and reroute supply.
    - Oil still fell for a third straight session Friday.

    BUFFETT LEAVES THE CHAIR

    - Warren Buffett, 96, stepped down as Berkshire chairman and became chairman emeritus.
    - Howard Buffett becomes non-executive chairman; Greg Abel is already CEO.
    - Berkshire is worth roughly $1.1 trillion.
    - Cash stood at $364.7 billion at the end of June.
    - Shares barely moved, suggesting investors saw the transition as expected.

    WHITE HOUSE MEDIA BAN

    - Trump said CNN, MS NOW and Politico would be banned from the White House.
    - He cited what he called persistent false reporting.
    - The move raises First Amendment and press-access issues.
    - It escalates an already long-running fight with major media outlets.

    CREAM CHEESE INNOVATION CYCLE

    - Kraft Heinz launched Mike's Hot Honey, salted caramel and cranberry orange Philadelphia flavors.
    - Mike's Hot Honey launches at Walmart first.
    - Philadelphia plans about 10 new varieties over the next two years.
    - Brand investment is up 63% versus 2025.
    - Spending on new flavors has quadrupled.

    MICROSOFT WRITES RULES FOR THE MACHINES

    - Microsoft published a draft AI code focused on keeping humans in control.
    - Systems must accept correction and shutdown.
    - The rules bar help with weapons and other dangerous areas.
    - Microsoft also says AI should not claim consciousness, personhood or legal rights.
    - Mustafa Suleyman called it a "constitution" for future models.

    CHATGPT INVENTS WITNESSES

    - A New Mexico lawyer filed a murder appeal containing fabricated witnesses and police testimony.
    - The material was generated with ChatGPT.
    - The state Supreme Court fined attorney Stephen Aarons $5,000.
    - The court cited "false testimony from wholly fabricated witnesses."
    - Aarons said he expected ChatGPT to produce a "bulletproof summary."

    RICH PEOPLE NEWS

    BENTLEY'S $300K ELECTRIC SUV

    - Bentley is preparing its first fully electric SUV, expected around $250,000-$300,000.
    - The Torcal is scheduled to debut September 23.
    - Bentley isn't using traditional fake engine noise.
    - Instead, its EV soundtrack reportedly uses drums, bass guitar and viola.
    - Expected range is more than 300 miles with ultra-fast charging.

    MIAMI AIRPORT GETS A $5,000 "SUPER LOUNGE" - LET THEM EAT CAKE

    - PS opened a private terminal at Miami International Airport this summer.
    - It operates from the restored former Pan Am headquarters.
    - The Salon starts at about $1,295 per person.
    - A private suite runs about $4,950 for up to four travelers.
    - Guests get private TSA screening, customs, luxury lounges and direct tarmac transfers to the aircraft.
    - The private suites include marble bathrooms, balconies and private lounge space.
    - It is essentially private-jet treatment while still flying commercially.

     

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    THE CLOSEST TO THE PIN
    for SpaceX (SPCX)

    Winners will be getting great stuff like the new "OFFICIAL" DHUnplugged Shirt!

     

    FED AND CRYPTO LIMERICKS

     

    See this week’s stock picks HERE

    Follow John S. Dvorak on Twitter

    Follow Andrew Horowitz on Twitter

    1 hr 7 min
  • DHunplugged #818: Cyberdyne IRL

    It’s the end of the world and we know it…

    CPI numbers – HOT – Markets think hit a top – or just options Friday?

    Sell Rosh Hashana and Buy Yom Kippur?

    Plenty of AI

    PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

    Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

    DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

    Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


    Follow John S. Dvorak on X

    Follow Andrew Horowitz on X

    Warm-Up

    - Follow Up - I am the House! - 10YR shot above 5% on Monday
    - Follow Up 2 - Straight of Hormuz - NO Boats passing (can we please stick to the facts?)
    - CPI numbers - HOT - Markets think hit a top
    - Let's talk end of the works - Cyberdyne IRL

    Markets

    - 100% Probability of a rate hike this week
    - Sell Rosh Hashana, Buy Yom Kippur
    - HACK ETF - Cybersecurity name up 49% YTD

    DHU MAILING LIST! - Go to DHUnplugged.com

    FED HIKE IS BACK

    - Fed meets Tuesday-Wednesday, with a 25 bp hike to 3.75%-4.00% now the dominant expectation.
    - 85% of economists surveyed expect a hike; futures moved to roughly 90% odds after the latest inflation data.
    - August CPI rose 0.4% month-over-month and 3.4% year-over-year; core rose 0.3% for the month and 2.4% annually.
    - Markets are increasingly pricing additional tightening beyond September rather than this being a one-and-done move.

    AND -> THE 5% TREASURY IS BACK

    - The 10-year Treasury yield briefly crossed 5% Monday for the first time since 2023.
    - Higher oil prices, hotter inflation, heavy bond supply and expectations for more Fed tightening are all pushing yields higher.
    - The move raises the hurdle rate for stocks while feeding directly into mortgages, corporate borrowing and other credit.
    - Bonds are becoming meaningful competition for equities again at a time when stock valuations remain elevated.

    SLOW DOWN THE AI

    - Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei called for deliberately slowing frontier-model advancement to create more time for safety controls.
    - Sam Altman and Elon Musk publicly backed the push for more caution; Microsoft separately released a draft AI code requiring models to remain under human control.
    - Microsoft says its models must accept shutdowns and corrections and should not be designed around claims of consciousness or legal rights.
    - The semiconductor index dropped more than 5% Monday; Nvidia, Broadcom, Micron and AMD were among the major casualties.

    DEEPSEEK CHANGES THE MEMORY MATH

    - DeepSeek's latest architecture sharply lowers the amount of memory required to run inference, including a major reduction in KV-cache requirements.
    - This is not simply HBM being replaced by SSD: the architecture reduces both high-speed memory and persistent-storage requirements per inference.
    - That complicates the straight-line thesis that every incremental AI token requires proportionally more HBM and storage.
    - Micron, Samsung and SK Hynix still benefit from enormous AI memory demand, but will efficiency gains become an important counterweight to unlimited-demand forecasts?

    V4V - What is it and how can you participate?

    TOKENS - A Quick Tutorial

    ORACLE SAYS THE AI SPENDING IS REAL

    - Oracle booked more than $30 billion of new AI cloud contracts during the quarter, taking total backlog to $664 billion.
    - Revenue rose 30% to $19.3 billion and adjusted EPS came in at $1.92 versus $1.74 expected.
    - Oracle spent $28.5 billion on capex, but about $11.36 billion was offset by customer prepayments.
    - Most new AI orders use prepayments, customer-owned hardware or similar arrangements, reducing the amount Oracle itself must finance.

    AI STOCKS MEET THEIR FIRST REAL NARRATIVE PROBLEM

    - The Philadelphia semiconductor index dropped roughly 5.4% Monday even though it remains up about 58% for the year.
    - Nvidia fell roughly 2.6%; Broadcom, Micron and AMD were each down around 4% during the session.
    - The new concern is not whether AI works, but whether safety restrictions could slow the pace of model releases and infrastructure spending.
    - Software names including Adobe, ServiceNow and Workday initially benefited as investors reconsidered how quickly AI might disrupt incumbent software.

    CHATGPT INVENTS THE WITNESSES

    - A New Mexico defense lawyer was fined $5,000 and held in contempt after submitting fabricated police testimony and nonexistent witnesses generated by ChatGPT.
    - The attorney had used ChatGPT to summarize trial proceedings and failed to verify the output before filing it with the court.
    - The appeal was reassigned to a public defender and the attorney was referred for further disciplinary review.
    - This goes beyond fake case citations: the system generated supposed factual evidence and attributed it to witnesses who did not exist.

    HUMANOID ROBOTS: FROM IPO MANIA TO THE BATTLEFIELD

    - China is researching humanoid robots for reconnaissance, logistics, hazardous missions and potentially urban combat.
    - Separately, Chinese regulators are tightening scrutiny of humanoid-robot IPOs after extreme volatility surrounding Unitree Robotics.
    - Unitree shares reportedly fell roughly 45% after initially increasing fivefold following its listing.
    - Hyundai-owned Boston Dynamics also said a 2027 IPO is unlikely; Hyundai wants production capacity of roughly 30,000 robots annually by 2028.

    CHINA GETS ACCUSED OF INDUSTRIAL-SCALE AI COPYING

    - U.S. officials accused six Chinese AI companies, including DeepSeek, Moonshot and Alibaba, of using U.S. models for large-scale distillation.
    - Distillation trains smaller models using outputs from more powerful models, dramatically reducing development cost and time.
    - U.S. officials said the activity targeted technology from Anthropic, OpenAI, Google and SpaceX.
    - China rejected the allegations and argued that distillation is a normal industry technique also used by American companies.

    OIL BACK ABOVE $100

    - Brent traded around $107 Monday and WTI around $103 after fresh attacks on Saudi infrastructure and Middle East shipping.
    - Saudi Arabia's East-West pipeline was temporarily disabled, threatening a route capable of carrying roughly 4% of global crude supply.
    - Gulf states postponed planned talks with Iran over the Strait of Hormuz as regional tensions widened.
    - Physical crude prices are becoming highly location-dependent: barrels with secure export routes command major premiums while trapped grades trade at steep discounts.

    COPPER GOES VERTICAL

    - Copper has recently traded near record territory around $14,500-$14,700 per metric ton.
    - Tight mine supply is colliding with demand from electric grids, data centers, renewable power and other electrification projects.
    - Tariff uncertainty has also distorted flows as traders move available metal toward markets offering the highest prices.
    - Copper's surge makes proposed mining combinations such as Anglo American-Teck increasingly valuable; that roughly $54 billion deal is still awaiting Chinese regulatory approval.

    THE BIG MYSTERY BANK SANCTION

    - Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. would sanction a large bank as part of increased financial pressure on Iran.
    - He initially declined to identify the bank or its country.
    - The campaign has already targeted oil, shipping, finance, aviation, weapons procurement and digital-asset channels connected to Iran.
    - The market question is whether secondary sanctions begin touching larger banks or companies outside Iran that facilitate trade.

    APPLE'S $1,999 FOLDING BET

    - Apple launched the iPhone Duo, its first folding iPhone, priced at $1,999.
    - It opens to a 7.6-inch display and represents one of Apple's biggest changes to the iPhone form factor in years.
    - The launch puts Apple directly into a market dominated by Samsung and Huawei and could help push foldables beyond their current niche.
    - It is also arriving during a severe memory-and-storage chip shortage that has already forced higher pricing elsewhere in Apple's product lineup.

    PRIVATE CREDIT REDEMPTION PRESSURE EASES

    - Investors in BlackRock's $23.1 billion HPS Corporate Lending Fund requested withdrawals equal to about 11.5% of shares, down from 13.3% the prior quarter - BUT, is this just a rounding error?
    - The fund will repurchase only 5%, the normal quarterly limit, leaving some redemption requests unfilled.
    - Other BlackRock private-credit vehicles also showed lower withdrawal requests during the quarter.
    - Private-credit investors have been worried about lending standards and heavy exposure to software companies potentially disrupted by AI.

    DID WE DISCUSS >>> THE $50 BILLION DATA-CENTER IPO

    - SB Energy is reportedly seeking a valuation above $50 billion despite having no operational data centers.
    - It reported about $139 million of first-half revenue against a $3.21 billion net loss.
    - The company claims roughly $439 billion of project backlog.
    - OpenAI is an investor, warrant holder and major future customer; Nvidia is also providing capital while supplying the chips.
    - Soooooo...... No operating data centers, billions in losses and a possible $50 billion valuation. At least they remembered to build the valuation first.

     

    Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


    THE CLOSEST TO THE PIN
    for SpaceX (SPCX)

    Winners will be getting great stuff like the new "OFFICIAL" DHUnplugged Shirt!

     

    FED AND CRYPTO LIMERICKS

     

    See this week’s stock picks HERE

    Follow John C. Dvorak on Twitter

    Follow Andrew Horowitz on Twitter

    1 hr 3 min
  • DHUnplugged #817: I am The House

    I am the House! Bessent on Yen and other matters (he has inside information).

    Straight of Hormuz – There is no movement people.

    CPI coming Friday – many say ultimate Fed test.

    Gen-Z Dumps the bubbles.

    PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

    Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

    DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

    Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


    Follow John S. Dvorak on X

    Follow Andrew Horowitz on X

    Warm-Up

    - I am the House! Bessent tonight on Yen and other matters (he has inside information)
    - Straight of Hormuz - There is no movement people
    - CPI coming Friday - many say ultimate Fed test
    - Gen-Z Dumps the bubbles

    Markets

    - Chips up, making up for some time
    - Oil UP! and UP!
    - Yields keep climbing

    DHU MAILING LIST! - Go to DHUnplugged.com

    BOND YIELDS KEEP CLIMBING

    - Japan now has a 3% 10-year yield while carrying government debt above 200% of GDP.
    - Higher Japanese yields also create an incentive for domestic investors to bring money home rather than reaching overseas for returns.
    - The broader bond selloff is hitting the U.S., Germany, U.K. and Japan at the same time.

    FED HIKE ODDS RISE

    - Warsh said the Fed still has “work to do” if officials are not confident inflation is returning to 2%.
    - Fed Governor Christopher Waller has left open the possibility of holding rates steady if inflation cools.
    - The September decision is increasingly being dictated by incoming inflation data and oil.
    -  It is kinda funny.... The “data-dependent Fed” is now apparently oil-dependent, jobs-dependent and whatever-CPI-says-next-week-dependent.

    OIL KEEPS PRESSURE ON INFLATION

    - Renewed U.S.-Iran tensions have pushed oil higher and revived fears about supply through the Strait of Hormuz.
    - The Strait remains one of the most important chokepoints for global energy flows.
    - Oil is working directly against central banks trying to bring inflation back toward target.
    -  Basically, central banks can raise rates all they want yet it is too bad that the the Strait of Hormuz does not attend FOMC meetings.

    SCHWAB VOLATILITY TRADE

    - Barron's argues low market volatility may not last as fall seasonality and macro risks build.
    - Schwab could benefit if volatility drives heavier customer trading activity.
    - The suggested trade used an October risk reversal built around $110 puts and $120 calls.

    BEAR INVASION

    - Colorado has logged more than 7,000 bear sightings this year, already a record.
    - Drought and poor natural food supplies are pushing bears into homes and businesses.
    - New Mexico and Utah have also reported unusually high numbers of bears being euthanized.
    - One Colorado homeowner found two bears inside his hallway; another wandered into a vape shop.
    - Is this a warning for markets?????

    META SETTLEMENT

    - Meta agreed to pay up to $18 billion over 10 years to settle state claims involving harm to children.
    - States had been seeking penalties approaching $200 billion.
    - Teen accounts will face time limits, overnight restrictions and muted school-hour notifications.
    - Meta did not have to eliminate personalized recommendations or targeted advertising.

    BROADCOM: NEXT AI CHECK

    - Broadcom reports Wednesday after the close, another major test of AI spending after Nvidia.
    - Focus will be on AI semiconductor growth, hyperscaler demand and the outlook for custom AI accelerators.
    - Broadcom's guidance matters beyond the stock because it offers a read on whether huge data-center spending plans are still accelerating.

    WEIRD ONE: SHEIN'S UPSIDE-DOWN IPO

    - Shein is looking to raise about $1.8 billion in its Hong Kong IPO while paying roughly $3.6 billion in cash and stock to early investors.
    - The payouts stem from investor protections triggered after Shein's valuation collapsed from about $98 billion in 2022 to roughly $26.8 billion.
    - Some of the same early investors receiving compensation are coming back as cornerstone buyers in the IPO.
    - Essentially: raise $1.8 billion from new investors while sending twice that amount back to older ones.

    GOOD GOOD GOES BAD

    - Good Good Golf's controversial Callaway ad showed co-founder Garrett Clark shoving a female creator in a movie spoof, triggering immediate backlash.
    - Callaway ended its partnership, Dick's and Golf Galaxy pulled Good Good merchandise, and Golf Channel canceled the current "Big Break x Good Good" season.
    - Good Good also stepped away as title sponsor of the PGA Tour's November event in Austin.
    - WOW - the company had more than 2 million YouTube followers and become one of golf's fastest-growing media and merchandise businesses before the blowup.

    ARGENTINA BEEF PRICE FIX

    - Trump expanded lower-tariff beef imports by 300,000 metric tons in an effort to bring down record-high U.S. beef prices.
    - The U.S. cattle herd is at its lowest level in 75 years, while USDA expects beef production to fall roughly 4% this year.
    - Argentina is one source of additional supply, but U.S. ranchers argue cheaper imports could undercut domestic producers just as they are trying to rebuild herds.
    - Trump says imported beef could help lower prices; farm-state lawmakers and ranch groups say the short-term consumer fix could make the long-term supply problem worse.

    EUROPE GETS GROWTH AND INFLATION

    - Euro-zone manufacturing is expanding at its fastest pace in more than four years as headline inflation moves back above 3%.
    - Stronger factories give the ECB more room to tighten without immediately crushing economic activity.
    - Much of the new inflation pressure is energy-driven, which higher ECB rates cannot directly fix.
    - Europe finally gets better manufacturing numbers, so naturally the reward is another rate hike.

    CHINA’S TWO-SPEED ECONOMY

    - The private manufacturing PMI showed expansion while the official factory reading remained in contraction.
    - Export orders strengthened, but services and domestic demand remain weak.
    - The divergence shows the improvement remains concentrated in exporters.
    - Alternative Facts: Depending on which PMI you prefer, China’s factory sector is either expanding or contracting. Two economies for the price of one.

    THE $50 BILLION DATA-CENTER IPO

    - SB Energy is reportedly seeking a valuation above $50 billion despite having no operational data centers.
    - It reported about $139 million of first-half revenue against a $3.21 billion net loss.
    - The company claims roughly $439 billion of project backlog.
    - OpenAI is an investor, warrant holder and major future customer; Nvidia is also providing capital while supplying the chips.
    - Soooooo...... No operating data centers, billions in losses and a possible $50 billion valuation. At least they remembered to build the valuation first.

    NVIDIA BUYS HUGGING FACE FOR $13 BILLION

    - Nvidia agreed to buy Hugging Face for about $12.9 billion.
    - Hugging Face was valued at $4.5 billion in 2023 and has about $150 million in annual revenue.
    - Nvidia will pay roughly $11.9 billion to shareholders plus $1 billion in employee retention equity.
    - Hugging Face will remain open and interoperable.
    - JC Called this earlier last week. Obviusly the pressure was on since his scoop and they needed to get this done.

    UNCLE SAM'S STOCK PORTFOLIO

    - Federal equity positions now include Intel, MP Materials and Trilogy Metals.
    - Intel, MP Materials and Trilogy Metals all jumped after their respective government deals.
    - An Intel shareholder lawsuit argues the CHIPS Act did not authorize the government to demand an equity stake.
    - The case could affect other government investments made using CHIPS Act funding.

    GEN Z DUMPS THE BUBBLES

    - Non-carbonated drinks accounted for 38% of new premixed-alcohol launches last year, up from 27% in 2021.
    - Boston Beer’s Sun Cruiser is growing while Truly slows.
    - Mom Water is on pace to exceed 1 million cases this year.
    - Lucky One Lemonade sold 1 million cases in its first seven months.
    - Gen Z has apparently decided carbonation was the problem.

    TRUMP WANTS LOWER RATES

    - President Trump called for lower interest rates after the August jobs report.
    - Markets moved the other way, increasing expectations for a September Fed hike.
    - Kevin Warsh has kept another rate increase on the table.
    - Markets were pricing roughly a 60%-plus chance of a quarter-point September hike.

    JOBS REPORT CRUSHES ESTIMATES

    - August payrolls rose 162,000 versus roughly 56,000 expected.
    - July was revised from a 23,000 decline to a 21,000 gain.
    - Unemployment held at 4.1%.
    - Labor-force participation rose to 61.6%.
    - Wage growth eased to 3.1% year over year.

    MAPQUEST IS NO. 1 AGAIN

    - MapQuest jumped from No. 128 to No. 1 in the U.S. App Store.
    - The surge followed its decision to keep the Lake Ontario name.
    - More than half of its 2026 U.S. downloads reportedly came in just a few days.
    - Google Maps now shows “Lake America” for U.S. users.

    AUSTRALIA JOINS THE BOND SELLOFF

    - Australia’s 10-year government bond yield climbed above 5.1%, its highest since 2011.
    - The three-year yield also jumped as traders priced more central-bank tightening.
    - Australia joins the U.S., Japan, Germany and U.K. in the global yield surge.

    DICK'S GETS HIT BY FOOTWEAR

    - Dick’s shares fell more than 25% after earnings.
    - Earnings, revenue and same-store sales missed expectations.
    - Foot Locker also disappointed after the acquisition.
    - Management cited heavier promotions, fewer product launches and discounting of older shoes.

     

     

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    1 hr 7 min
  • DHUnplugged #816: Strikes, Spikes, Hikes

    September – here we are and the volatility starts.

    Bear Invasions – is this something we should pay attention to?

    Target is in the hotseat, Good-Good too.

    Bombing Iran again.

    PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

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    Warm-Up

    - September - here we are and the volatility starts
    - Bear Invasions - is this something we should pay attention to?
    - Target is in the hotseat, Good-Good too
    - Bombing Iran again - and again.

    Markets

    - Bonds - moving higher - Warsh and Bessent challenged
    - NVDA earnings - price hikes
    - Employment Report coming this Friday
    - Dell earnings - WOWWWW!

    DHU MAILING LIST! - Go to DHUnplugged.com

    LAKE AMERICA

    - Google Maps now shows "Lake America" to U.S. users after the federal naming change.
    - Canadian users still see "Lake Ontario"; users elsewhere see both names.
    - Canada did not adopt the change, setting up an easy cross-border naming fight.

    OIL / IRAN

    - Last week - Oil dropped more than 3% as traders viewed tougher Iran sanctions as less disruptive than renewed military escalation.
    - Brent fell to roughly $88.58 and WTI to about $82.36.
    - Washington stopped short of immediately targeting major Chinese banks buying Iranian oil.
    - Markets also reacted to hopes for improved navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.
    ----  OH WAIT>>>>

    IRAN - FIGHT IS ON

    - We are back bombing and they are retaliating
    - We retaliate, they bomb
    - Threat: President Trump in phone interview with Fox News reporter repeats that if Iran retaliates, they will be hit harder, but he adds that if Iran retaliates for a third time "they will be totally wiped out as a country"; says any deal with Iran will not be "worth the paper it is printed on"
    - Oil Up ...

    DICK'S / FOOT LOCKER

    - Dick's shares plunged about 30% after earnings and guidance disappointed.
    - Core Dick's comps rose 4.9%, but Foot Locker comps fell 3.6%.
    - Management blamed weak sneaker launches, stale inventory and a highly promotional footwear market.
    - Dick's has already taken more than $500 million in charges tied to the Foot Locker turnaround.

    BASEBALL CARDS GO CASINO

    - Online "repack" platforms let customers buy randomized graded cards and immediately sell them back.
    - Prices can range from roughly $25 to thousands of dollars per pack.
    - The model increasingly resembles gambling: randomized payoff, instant resale value and repeat play.
    - Arena Club, Fanatics and others are pushing deeper into a market already generating billions in transactions.

    GOVERNMENT-OWNED STOCKS

    - Stocks with U.S. government backing face new legal and political risk around Washington taking equity stakes.
    - Intel surged after government investment plans surfaced; MP Materials also jumped after a Pentagon stake.
    - Trilogy Metals soared after a government deal, then gave back much of the move.
    - A lawsuit challenging the Intel arrangement could have implications for similar federal equity deals.

    CHINA INDUSTRIAL PROFITS

    - China's industrial profits rose 11.2% year over year in July.
    - Profit growth slowed from 15.1% in June but remained strong.
    - Manufacturing profits rose nearly 19%, while mining profits jumped roughly 35%.
    - Strong factory profits continue to contrast with weak property and domestic-demand signals.

    DELL EARNINGS GUIDANCE

    - Earnings we great - Guidance out of control
    - Dell sees Q3 mid-point EPS of $6.50 vs $4.46 FactSet Consensus; sees mid-point of revs at $49.00 bln vs $41.36 bln FactSet Consensus
    - Dell sees FY27 mid-point EPS of $25.50 vs $18.99 FactSet Consensus; sees revs mid-point of $192 bln vs $174.05 bln FactSet Consensus

    TARGET HALLOWEEN BACKLASH

    - Target pulled a children's clown costume after complaints that it resembled blackface imagery.
    - The company apologized and said it was reviewing how the product cleared internal approval.
    - The controversy adds another brand-management problem after several politically charged merchandise fights.

    LEGO BOOM

    - Lego first-half revenue jumped 21% to about $6.5 billion.
    - Net profit rose 32%, while consumer sales increased 22%.
    - More than 330 new products helped drive demand across Star Wars, Formula 1, Botanicals and other franchises.
    - Lego continues gaining share while expanding stores and manufacturing capacity.

    WAIT - WE'RE BOMBING IRAN AGAIN

    - U.S. forces struck Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island near the Strait of Hormuz, the first U.S. attack on Iran in several weeks.
    - Iran retaliated with missile attacks targeting U.S. bases in Jordan, restarting direct military exchanges.
    - Oil jumped more than 2%; Brent moved back above $90 and WTI above $85.
    - The Strait remains the key issue: roughly 20% of global oil shipments pass through it, so actual disruption to tanker traffic matters more than the headlines.

    IRAN SANCTIONS

    - Treasury warned countries doing business with Iran could face secondary sanctions and loss of access to the dollar system.
    - Scott Bessent described the campaign as an "economic D-Day."
    - Treasury sanctioned dozens of people, companies and vessels but initially avoided major Chinese financial institutions.
    - The expanded sanctions reach oil, shipping, gold, aviation, technology and digital assets.

    JOBS REPORT / FED TEST

    - August payrolls hit Friday after July shocked with a 23,000 job decline.
    - Expectations are for only modest job growth, making revisions and the unemployment rate especially important.
    - Fed rate-hike odds jumped after Kevin Warsh's hawkish Jackson Hole comments; a strong jobs number could push them higher.
    - JOLTS, ADP and ISM data provide several previews before Friday.

     

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    1 hr 5 min
  • DHUnplugged #815: Stupid Does Stupid

    Things are getting weird – looks like someone is panicking.

    The Dumber side of finance – let’s dig in.

    A big week ahead – major earnings could move markets.


    – Gold, Bitcoin moving on a lower USD.
    PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

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    Warm-Up

    - Things are getting weird - looks like someone is panicking
    - The Dumber side of finance - let's dig in (5 top items)
    - Cold War and Hot War - Canada, China and Iran
    - Economic "D" day - no one cares
    - Saying goodbye to Dolly Parton

    Markets

    - Gold, Bitcoin moving on a lower USD
    - Oil starting to settle
    - Big Week - NVDA earnings on tap - all eyes!

    STUPID IS WHAT STUPID DOES - A DHU One-Time Series On The Dumber Side of Finance

    1) LOWER BEEF PRICES

    - Trump plans temporary tariff relief for certain ground-beef imports as U.S. beef prices remain near record highs.
    - The plan would allow up to 300,000 metric tons of discounted imported ground beef over roughly 90 days.
    - Supposedly this will reduce the prices for consumers
    - Ranchers and several farm-state Republicans are pushing back, arguing cheaper imports could hurt domestic producers.
    ---- Question: Tariff reduction is going to reduce prices for consumers? Didn't someone say that tariffs are paid by the companies and exporting countries???

    2) IRAN SANCTIONS - BIG THREAT, LIMITED IMMEDIATE ACTION

    - Treasury warned countries doing business with Iran that they could face secondary sanctions, calling it an "economic D-Day."
    - New sanctions hit about 60 individuals, companies and vessels, but major Chinese financial institutions were not targeted.
    - China remains the biggest buyer of Iranian oil, making Chinese banks the potential pressure point.
    - Treasury says sanctions could expand into gold, digital assets, aviation, shipping and other sectors.

    3) TREASURY TRIES TO TAME LONG-TERM YIELDS

    - Treasury will at least double the maximum size of certain long-term bond buybacks to $4 billion per operation.
    - The announcement briefly knocked nearly 10 basis points off the 30-year Treasury yield.
    - Critics say this treats the symptom rather than the cause - huge deficits, heavy issuance and persistent inflation risk.
    ------Bessent had to come out on Friday to say "at least" $4B - as bind yields moved back up
    -------Maybe there is a concern over the $40TRILLION debt we have amassed as a country?

    4) SOMEONE GOT LONG BONDS AT THE RIGHT TIME

    - TLT took in roughly $529 million of net inflows on August 18, one day before Treasury's surprise bond-buyback announcement.
    - The next day Bessent doubled planned buybacks of 10- to 30-year Treasurys, immediately pushing long yields lower.
    - TLT jumped about 1.7% on the announcement.
    - No public evidence identifies a single buyer - but the timing of the unusually large inflow is certainly worth noting.

    5) DOLLAR GETS HIT BY THE BOND RESCUE

    - The dollar weakened as investors questioned Treasury's expanded bond-buyback strategy.
    - The concern is that suppressing yields without fixing fiscal problems simply transfers pressure from bonds to the currency.
    - The 30-year yield has remained elevated despite Treasury intervention.
    - Bitcoin rallied as investors looked toward alternatives to traditional fiat assets.
    - PEOPLE: This is NOT Quantitative Easing - Just a move to buy longer dated and issue more short dated

    WALMART FLASHES A CONSUMER WARNING

    - Walmart U.S. comparable sales grew just 2.6%, its slowest pace in roughly six years and below expectations.
    - Shares dropped sharply after the report.
    - E-commerce remained strong, while store traffic and discretionary spending showed more weakness.
    - Walmart raised full-year guidance but gave a softer-than-expected third-quarter outlook.
    - As America's biggest retailer, Walmart's slowdown is an important read on the broader consumer.

    VENEZUELA HAS OIL - BUT CAN'T SHIP IT FAST ENOUGH

    - Tankers are waiting as long as 30 days to load Venezuelan crude because of aging ports, outages and equipment failures.
    - Venezuela has struggled to push exports much higher despite rising production and strong demand.
    - The Jose terminal handles about 70% of exports and has become a major bottleneck.
    - Venezuela's ports may impose a physical ceiling on production growth until infrastructure is upgraded.

    JANE STREET'S $15 BILLION AI HIT

    - Jane Street reportedly lost about $15 billion in July as AI and technology positions moved sharply against the firm.
    - A major source of the damage was exposure to concentrated AI trades that were forced to unwind.
    - Jane Street posted its first negative month of trading revenue since 2016.
    - As a reminder: this episode highlights how quickly crowded AI trades can overwhelm even sophisticated risk-management systems.

    LEAVITT LEAVES THE WHITE HOUSE

    - Karoline Leavitt resigned as White House press secretary after returning from maternity leave.
    - Trump said she would become a top outside adviser and prominent Republican voice heading into the midterms.
    - Looking fior a kinder and gentler replacement? HA! probably not

    OFF THE HIGHS

    • NVDA - 9% off high
    • AMD - 19% off high
    • AVGO - 23% off high
      • MU - 23% off high
    • TSM - 13% off high
    • MRVL - 28% off high
    • INTC - 35% off high

      • NVIDIA - THE MARKET'S NEXT STRESS TEST

      - Nvidia reports Wednesday - now basically a referendum on the entire AI trade.
      - Blackwell demand and hyperscaler spending are the key tells.
      - A strong guide could quickly reset tech sentiment.
      - A miss would raise the uncomfortable question: how much AI optimism is already priced in?
      - Revenue expected around $92.1 billion, up roughly 97% year over year.
      - Adjusted EPS expected around $2.09, nearly double last year.
      - Data Center revenue expected around $85.7 billion - still the main engine.
      - Biggest watch items: Blackwell demand, Vera Rubin timing, China sales and hyperscaler capex.
      - Options imply roughly a 5%-6% move after earnings.
      - Discussion ....

      NVIDIA - AI SERVERS GETTING EVEN MORE EXPENSIVE

      - Major Nvidia customers have reportedly been warned that AI server prices could rise more than 15% beginning early next year.
      - Higher memory costs are the main driver, affecting Grace Blackwell and upcoming Vera Rubin systems.
      - Nvidia is effectively passing higher component costs through despite gross margins around 75%.
      - ALWAYS INTERESTING THESE ANNOUNCEMENTS SO CLOSE TO EARNINGS - HMMMM

      CANADA-U.S. TRADE FIGHT GETS WORSE

      - Canada announced retaliatory tariffs on about $20 billion of U.S. goods after Washington imposed new 50% tariffs on Canadian imports.
      - Canada's tariffs range from 15% to 50% across roughly 700 products and begin September 8.
      - Canada also announced a C$7.5 billion support package for affected businesses and workers.
      - Another escalation that could hit autos, manufacturing costs and cross-border supply chains.

      HOUSING - BUYERS KEEP DISAPPEARING

      - July new-home sales plunged 10.5% to a 607,000 annual rate, the weakest since January.
      - Median new-home price fell to $393,800, the lowest in four years.
      - Mortgage rates are still around 6.8%, keeping affordability under pressure.
      - Only 5.2% of consumers said they expect to buy a home in the next six months - the sharpest drop in more than five years.

      JACKSON HOLE - WARSH GETS THE MICROPHONE

      - Kevin Warsh speaks next week at Jackson Hole.
      - Markets want to know whether sticky inflation, oil and tariffs are enough to keep the Fed in tightening mode.
      - Long yields are already doing some of the Fed's work.
      - One sentence could move bonds, the dollar and stocks.
      - Friday, August 28 at 10:00 a.m. ET.
      --- BUT - Didn't Warsh say less communication is more? They can't keep put of the spotlight.

      PCE - THE FED'S FAVORITE INFLATION READ

      - "The Fed's preferred gauge/measure of inflation"
      - July PCE lands next week.
      - Watch for tariff, energy and goods inflation creeping back into the numbers.
      - A hot print revives hike fears.
      - A soft print gives risk assets some breathing room - especially with long yields already elevated.

      THE CONSUMER VS. THE AI BOOM - MORE EARNINGS COMING

      - Salesforce, CrowdStrike and Marvell give another read on corporate AI spending.
      - Dollar General, Dollar Tree, Best Buy and Ulta test the other side of the economy.
      - The setup is getting interesting: companies are still spending aggressively on AI while consumers look increasingly selective.
      - If that gap widens, it could become one of the bigger market themes into the fall.

      AROUND THE WORLD

      EUROPE - QUIETLY GETTING INTERESTING

      - European stocks slipped this week, but money has started flowing back into the region.
      - Euro-zone business activity is growing at its fastest pace this year, while Q2 earnings growth for STOXX 600 companies is running surprisingly strong.
      - CONCEPT: Europe may be turning into the anti-U.S. trade - less AI concentration, cheaper valuations, but more sensitivity to energy.

      JAPAN - BETTER DATA, WORSE MARKET

      - Japan's Nikkei lost about 4% this week even as the economic data improved.
      - August manufacturing PMI jumped to 55.1, with new orders rising at the fastest pace since 2018.
      - Semiconductors and AI-related demand are helping drive the factory rebound.
      - Stronger growth also keeps the BOJ rate-hike discussion alive - good economy, potentially tougher market.

      BIG PHARMA - CHINA'S WEIGHT-LOSS GOLD RUSH

      - Lilly, Novo Nordisk and others are aggressively targeting China's obesity market, where obesity rates are projected to top 65% by 2030.
      - China bans direct prescription-drug advertising, so companies are using subway ads, gyms, influencers and "disease awareness" campaigns instead.
      - China's GLP-1 market could reach roughly 30 billion yuan over the next 5-7 years.
      - Interesting regulatory gray area: education campaigns that look a lot like drug advertising without actually naming the drug.

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      1 hr 5 min
    • DHUnplugged #814: The Doldrums

      Oil Reserves taking a hit.

      Finally getting to the recent high profile earnings.

      Market Top Calls (again).

      ALL TIME HIGHS – Then some consolidation (then highs again).

      Situational Awareness Update.

      SpaceX Bounces…

      PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

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      Warm-Up

      - Oil Reserves taking a hit
      - Getting to the recent high profile earnings
      - Market Top Calls (again)

      Markets

      - ALL TIME HIGHS - Then some consolidation
      - Lets round out earnings
      - Situational Awareness Update
      - SpaceX Bounces...

      Etsy - Layoffs With Better Numbers

      - Etsy is cutting about 220 jobs, or 12% of its workforce.
      - Management said the cuts were not primarily about cost savings or AI.
      ----- CEO Kruti Patel Goyal stated the restructuring aims to simplify the organization, remove management layers, and speed up decision-making to better compete against massive rivals like Amazon, Temu, and TikTok Shop
      - Q2 revenue was about $668 million and core marketplace sales improved.
      - Etsy also authorized another $2 billion share buyback.
      - Comes after selling Depop to eBay for about $1.4 billion.

      Polysilicon - Tariffs Plus Price Floors

      - U.S. policy adds a 15% tariff and minimum import prices on polysilicon and solar products.
      - Goal is to protect domestic production from low-cost foreign competition.
      - U.S. share of global polysilicon capacity fell from about 50% in 2005 to under 2% in 2024.
      - First Solar and T1 Energy jumped on the announcement.
      ---- The same playbook - rinse and repeat

      Chipotle - Salmonella Returns

      - Minnesota officials linked a salmonella outbreak to jalapenos served at Chipotle.
      - Chipotle removed the affected pepper supply and switched growers.
      - Shares fell roughly 8%-10% as investors remembered the company's earlier food-safety problems.
      - This is on top of the lettuce situation with Sweetgreen- look at  STOCK CHART FOR SG

      Michael Burry - Calling a Major Top

      - Michael Burry says the market may be near a "major top."
      - Warned of the possibility of a 1987-style market drop.
      - He is short names including Nvidia, Palantir, Tesla and semiconductor stocks.
      - Main concern is stretched valuations and crowded trades unwinding quickly.
      - This may be the 100th top he has called since the GFC ----

      NVIDIA TURNS GPUs INTO AN ASSET CLASS

      - Nvidia signed preliminary agreements with Apollo, BlackRock, Blackstone, Brookfield, Goldman Sachs and KKR to mobilize more than $500 billion for AI infrastructure.
      - The Wall Street firms would create dedicated pools of capital to finance Nvidia-based data centers and compute infrastructure at what Nvidia calls attractive rates for customers.
      - Jensen Huang: “This is really the first time that technology chips have become an investable asset class.” Nvidia says the compute assets now generate revenue and can increasingly be financed like infrastructure.
      - Nvidia could backstop as much as 25% of individual investments on a case-by-case basis - potentially up to about $125 billion if applied across the full program.

      STRATEGIC PETROLEUM RESERVE BREAKS 300 MILLION

      - The Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell by 6.1 million barrels to 298.7 million barrels for the week ended Aug. 7 - below 300 million for the first time since January 1983.
      - The SPR started 2026 around 415 million barrels, meaning more than 100 million barrels have already come out this year as releases were used to offset disruptions from the Iran conflict.
      - The reserve's authorized storage capacity is roughly 714 million barrels, leaving current inventories at about 42% of capacity.
      - Oil on the rise last week

      Earnings and such

      Toyota - Big Buyback, Better Outlook

      - Toyota raised its annual operating-profit forecast 13%, helped by the weaker yen.
      - Announced a share buyback worth up to $6.3 billion.
      - Quarterly operating profit still fell 9%, hurt by China weakness and higher Middle East-related costs.

      McDonald's - Value Problem

      - U.S. same-store sales rose just 0.8%, below expectations and well below last year's 2.5% growth.
      - Management blamed weak execution of value promotions and fewer digital deals. (and probably because everyone is taking weight loss drugs - see above)
      - Lower-income customer traffic remains a major pressure point.
      - McDonald's is bringing back more digital offers and loyalty promotions to drive traffic.

      Eli Lilly - Weight-Loss Machine

      - Lilly crushed Q2 expectations as Mounjaro and Zepbound drove most of the growth.
      - Mounjaro sales hit $9.94 billion; Zepbound brought in $4.93 billion.
      - Raised 2026 revenue guidance to $85-$87 billion.
      - Verzenio, its major breast-cancer drug, remains one of Lilly's biggest non-obesity products.
      - Lilly continues widening its lead over Novo Nordisk in the obesity-drug market.

      Disney - Parks Keep Printing Money

      - Quarterly adjusted EPS rose 28% to $2.06, beating the $1.86 estimate.
      - Parks and experiences revenue increased 10% to nearly $10 billion.
      - Global park attendance grew 4%.
      - Disney is selling its 50% stake in A+E Networks to Hearst for an estimated $1.2 billion.

      Oil - OPEC Adds Barrels, Maybe

      - OPEC+ agreed to raise September production targets by another 188,000 barrels per day.
      - The increase completes the rollback of a 1.65 million-barrel-per-day supply cut dating back to 2023. (In other words - planned so not a surprise)
      - Actual supply remains constrained because several producers are already pumping below quota.
      - Any normalization around the Strait of Hormuz could suddenly make OPEC+'s additional barrels much more important.

      Berkshire Hathaway - Greg Abel Starts Spending

      - Q2 operating earnings rose 16% to about $13 billion.
      - Berkshire bought $23.5 billion of stocks and sold just $3.7 billion - its first quarter as a net stock buyer in 14 quarters.
      - Bought back $4.5 billion of Berkshire shares, versus only $235 million in Q1.
      - Cash dropped from roughly $380 billion to $365 billion as Abel starts putting the massive cash pile to work.
      - Important shift: Buffett is still chairman, but this is one of the clearest signs yet of how Greg Abel may allocate capital differently as CEO.

      Situational Awareness - Nearly Blows Up, Investors Want Back In

      - The fund lost 67% in July after leveraged AI bets collapsed and forced a major stock sale to Citadel.
      - Despite the blowup, Situational Awareness was still up about 80% for 2026 because of huge earlier gains.
      - Bloomberg says Silicon Valley investors are already asking to put more money into the fund.
      - Situational Awareness is currently telling prospective investors it is not accepting new capital.
      - The fund has also continued making large private investments even after the near-collapse.
      --- Most recent was a $400B
      ---- There is some talk that Citadel made out like a bandit on the rescue

      Mercedes AMG - The Car Literally Brands You

      - Two Mercedes AMG owners filed a class-action lawsuit claiming the metal AMG logo embedded in the seat becomes dangerously hot in the sun.
      - One driver says he suffered first- and second-degree burns, with a dermatologist describing the injury as "AMG inscribed."
      - The lawsuit wants Mercedes to cover damages and remove the metal logos from affected vehicles.
      - Hard to beat this one: pay AMG money and get the logo branded into your back.

      Europe's Drought - History Starts Popping Out

      - Extreme drought and low river levels are exposing things that have been underwater or hidden for decades or centuries.
      - In Serbia, sunken German World War II warships have reappeared in the Danube.
      - In Britain, dry ground revealed outlines of medieval buildings; mammoth remains and ancient structures have also surfaced elsewhere.
      - Serious drought story, but visually one of the strangest side effects of the summer.

      Golden Toilet - $6 Million Flush

      - The 18-carat gold toilet was ripped out of Blenheim Palace in a five-minute raid and has never been recovered - but there is a conviction.
      - Prosecutors used phone data, forensic evidence and planning activity to link the gang to the theft.
      - One defendant had cased the palace beforehand and photographed entry points; another man had already pleaded guilty and admitted helping move the stolen gold.
      - Prosecutors believe the 98-kilo toilet was quickly cut up or melted down and sold as gold.
      - So the conviction was based on evidence of the robbery and disposal - not on recovering the actual toilet.

      Final Follow Up

      SpaceX - Space Junk Smashes Into the Moon
      - A dead SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket stage crashed into the moon at about 5,400 mph after drifting through space since January 2025.
      - The roughly 4-ton, school-bus-size object kicked up a lunar dust plume that astronomers detected from Chile.
      - The impact was accidental - solar activity and gravity gradually pushed the abandoned rocket stage onto a collision course.
      - NASA and SpaceX are now discussing ways to prevent future lunar crashes as more hardware heads toward the moon.
      - NEED Space garbage Trucks - something we have discussed on show for years (see next)

      Space Garbage Trucks - This Is Becoming a Business

      - Astroscale is building spacecraft designed to inspect, capture and remove dead satellites and other orbital debris.
      - Its ADRAS-J mission demonstrated close approach and inspection of a large piece of existing space junk - a key step before actually grabbing and removing debris.
      - ClearSpace is developing similar debris-removal spacecraft, including missions designed to rendezvous with and capture abandoned rocket hardware.
      - The business model is basically orbital towing: governments and satellite operators pay to remove dangerous junk or service aging spacecraft.
      - With tens of thousands of tracked objects already in orbit, "space sanitation" could become a real infrastructure business.

       

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      1 hr 6 min
    • DHUnplugged #813: Fear and Greed

      NEW HIGHS!!! Shaking off the bad stuff.

      In the midst of earnings season – peak was last week.

      Let’s Look at the Fear and Greed Index.

      Unemployment numbers are out (Something for everyone)

       

      PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

      Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

      DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

      Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


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      Warm-Up

      - Let's Look at the Fear and Greed Index
      - Unemployment numbers are out (Something for everyone)
      - CPI Data out tomorrow then PPI Thursday

      Markets

      - NEW HIGHS!!! Shaking off the bad stuff
      - In the midst of earnings season - peak was last week
      - OIL - Rebounding on NO DEAL (what a surprise)

      NO Agenda / DHUnplugged Meet-Up  - Follow Up (8-8-2026)

      Starting off with Fear and Greed

      - Check this out: FEAR AND GREED INDICATOR

      CPI Thoughts

      - July CPI is expected to ease to 3.4% from a year earlier, with core inflation forecast near 2.5%.
      - The probability of a September Fed rate increase has moved back toward 48% as oil rebounded and several policymakers continued to emphasize inflation risks.
      - A soft reading would support bonds, technology and precious metals. A hot reading would revive stagflation concerns by combining weaker hiring with renewed price pressure.

      Tariffs Return Under New Authority

      - New tariffs of 10% to 12.5% cover imports from 60 trading partners.
      - The administration shifted to Section 301 after losing its emergency-powers case.
      - Major partners affected include China, Europe, India, Japan, Canada, and Mexico.
      - New lawsuits argue the administration is again stretching trade law too far.
      - 25 States are suing on this ....

      Free Cash Flow Changes - Year Over Year

      ------FCF shows how much real cash remains after operating costs and capital spending. Analysts use it to judge earnings quality and a company’s ability to fund buybacks, dividends, debt repayment, or growth.
      - Apple: up about $7.5 billion, or 31%.
      - Microsoft: down about $6.0 billion, or 23%.
      - Meta: down about $7.8 billion, or 91%.
      - Amazon: deteriorated about $25.8 billion, from positive $18.2 billion to negative $7.6 billion.
      - Alphabet: down $11.2 billion, swinging from positive $5.3 billion to negative $5.9 billion.
      - Tesla: down $1.24 billion, swinging from positive $146 million to negative $1.09 billion.
      - Intel: adjusted free cash flow worsened by $7.37 billion, from negative $1.05 billion to negative $8.42 billion.
      - Nvidia: up $22.4 billion, or 86%, from $26.1 billion to $48.6 billion.

      Jobs Report - Labor Market Cracks

      - July payrolls fell 23,000 versus expectations for about 80,000 gains.
      - May and June were revised down by a combined 103,000 jobs.
      - Unemployment fell to 4.1%, but labor-force participation dropped to 61.4%.
      - Weak report pushed yields and the dollar lower.

      China Trade - Export Machine Keeps Running

      - July exports jumped 23.9% year over year; imports rose 27.5%.
      - China posted another huge $112.5 billion trade surplus.
      - Semiconductor and high-tech exports were major growth drivers.

      SoftBank - Intel Saves the Quarter

      - SoftBank posted about $2.2 billion in quarterly profit, well above expectations.
      - A large gain on its Intel investment was a major driver.
      - ByteDance also added investment gains.
      - SoftBank continues aggressively funding AI and OpenAI-related investments. (Masayoshi Son will never stop pumping)

       

       

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      1 hr 5 min
    • DHUnplugged #812: Rollercoaster Ride

      – OOFAH – Microsoft, Apple and Amazon earnings and stock moves.

      – Hackathon disguised.

      – KOSPI wild ride wrecks portfolios.

      – Oil moved up on War – now no War again…

      PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

      Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

      DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

      Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


      Follow John C. Dvorak on Twitter

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      Warm-Up

      - Some bad days and some good days
      - AH is walking - and driving
      - We have to talk about Free Cash Flow changes

      NO Agenda / DHUnplugged Meet-Up (Saturday - 8-8-2026 @ 3:33PM)

      - Location to be determined
      - SIGN UP HERE

      Meet-Up Invite

      Markets

      - OOFAH - Microsoft, Apple and Amazon earnings and stock moves.
      - META too
      - KOSPI wild ride wrecks portfolios
      - Oil moved up on War - now no War again

      DO WE TALK ABOUT MORE AI HACKING

      - Latest stories of even more AI breach of containment
      - Is this really just a plan to gain regulation (to limit competition?)

      GOOGLE WANTS YOUR SELFIE

      - Google will allow account sign-ins using selfie video.
      - The feature adds another way to verify identity.
      - It could reduce dependence on passwords and recovery codes.
      - The tradeoff is greater use of facial data.
      - Privacy, storage and security questions will follow.

      SPACEX SHORT SELLERS CASH IN

      - Short sellers reportedly earned $15.5 billion as SpaceX shares fell.
      - The move rewarded investors betting against the company's valuation.
      - It shows how quickly enthusiasm can reverse at extreme prices.
      - SpaceX still has strong growth stories in launches and satellites.
      - The debate is whether too much future success was already priced in.
      --- Price hit $108 today before bouncing - major rug pull

      CATHIE WOOD DOUBLES DOWN ON SPACEX

      - Cathie Wood called SpaceX potentially the most important company in history.
      -  Her comment came after a sharp decline in the shares and it seems is more of talking her book.
      - Her case rests on launch, satellite and communications growth.
      - The problem is that losses are expected for the foreseeable future.

      TSMC ADDS ANOTHER $100 BILLION

      - TSMC plans another $100 billion investment in Arizona.
      - Second-quarter profit surged 77%.
      - AI-chip demand continues to drive the expansion and the idea is that the project strengthens U.S. semiconductor production.
      - It also adds labor, construction and execution risk.
      - The spending shows the scale of the AI infrastructure race.
      --- So far many of these promises have been a bit hallow

      BOND YIELDS FEEL THE OIL SHOCK

      - The 10-year Treasury yield reached its highest level since January 2025. (4.7%)
      - Surging oil prices brought inflation fears back into the market.
      - Higher energy costs could delay Federal Reserve rate cuts.
      - Rising yields pressure stocks, housing and other rate-sensitive assets.
      - Oil is again influencing the entire interest-rate outlook.
      - 30-year is zooming higher and higher

      CANADA GETS A 50% TARIFF

      - Trump imposed 50% tariffs on some Canadian goods.
      - The administration cited discrimination against U.S. companies.
      - The move could raise costs for manufacturers using Canadian inputs.
      - Canada could respond with tariffs of its own.
      - The fight adds more uncertainty to North American trade.

      WILDFIRE SMOKE BECOMES A TARIFF ISSUE

      - Trump criticized Canada as wildfire smoke spread into the U.S.
      - He said pollution costs could be added to tariffs.
      - The idea links environmental damage directly to trade policy.
      - Canadian goods could face another unpredictable cost.
      - Companies may struggle to price a pollution-based tariff.

      MIAMI TURNS INTO A BUYER'S MARKET

      - Miami reportedly has 140% more home sellers than buyers.
      - Buyers now have more leverage on price, inspections and concessions.
      - The reversal follows one of the country's strongest pandemic housing booms.
      - High prices, insurance and carrying costs may be pushing demand lower.
      - Starting to see some pricing erosiokn and sellers pulling homes

      UNITEDHEALTH TURNS THE CORNER

      - UnitedHealth beat earnings estimates and raised its outlook.
      --- Co-Pick for JCD and AH
      - Cost controls helped drive the improvement.

      DELTA SAYS HIGHER FARES ARE STICKING

      - Delta expects higher airfares to continue.
      - Strong pricing could help it reach its 2026 profit goal.
      - Higher fares provide protection against fuel and labor costs.
      - Travelers may see fewer discounted tickets.
      - Capacity growth remains the key variable.
      --- Say it enough and its true?

      THE GREAT EGG RECALL

      - Nearly 1.6 million dozen eggs were recalled over possible salmonella.
      - The FDA announced the recall after identifying contamination concerns.
      --- Now what will be the political angle?
      - Supply disruption could also add pressure to egg prices.

      HUMAN SKIN ENTERS K-BEAUTY

      -Injectable skin boosters derived from donated cadaver skin to regenerate aging skin tissue
      - Human skin is becoming part of some K-beauty treatments.
      - Demand is tied to premium anti-aging products.
      - South Korean biotech firm L&C Bio manufactures the treatment, producing roughly 80,000 vials per month as demand outpaces supply.
      -- They are nuts in Korea

      EARNINGS

      AMAZON

      - Q2 results released Thursday evening.
      - AWS revenue was $42.2 billion, up 37% year over year.
      - The stock gained about 15% Friday.
      - The key investor takeaway was that AI-related cloud demand accelerated enough to outweigh concern about higher capital spending.
      - Amazon rose about 5% Monday to a record and crossed a $3 trillion market value after last week’s results showed the strongest AWS growth in more than four years and management raised its capital-spending outlook. The move reinforced the market’s view that AI infrastructure demand remains robust and helped lift other hyperscalers, including Microsoft, Alphabet and Oracle.

      Apple

      - Fiscal Q3 revenue was $109.4 billion and EPS was $2.02.
      - iPhone revenue reached $54.25 billion. S
      - September-quarter revenue growth guidance of 9%–11% disappointed.
      - Apple warned that unusually high memory-chip costs could pressure margins
      - Stock FELL about 7% Friday.

      Microsoft

      - Fiscal Q4 revenue was $90.0 billion and adjusted EPS was $4.74.
      - Azure growth was 43%
      - Microsoft Cloud revenue was $59.3 billion,
      - Fiscal Q1 revenue guidance was approximately $90.4 billion.
      - Shares rallied strongly - - up 15% and best since October 2008

      REDDIT

      - Reddit shares plunged roughly 20% following its second-quarter earnings report due to a warning about choppy search traffic, slowing domestic user growth, and a lack of new AI licensing announcements
      - Despite beating Wall Street's revenue and profit expectations
      - Revenue: Reached $805 million, marking a 61% increase year-over-year and beating the estimated $730 million.
      - Earnings: Reported net income of $253 million, or $1.25 per share, easily topping the forecasted 95 cents per share.
      - Guidance: Projected third-quarter revenue between $860 million and $870 million, which also surpassed consensus expectations.

      Meta Earnings: Strong Sales, Expensive Problems

      - Q2 revenue jumped 28% to $60.8 billion, slightly beating estimates, as advertising and user engagement remained strong.
      - Earnings were only $6.18 per share versus roughly $7.19 expected, hurt by $2.4 billion in legal costs and $1.18 billion in severance charges.
      - Free cash flow collapsed 91% to just $784 million as Meta poured money into chips, servers, power, data centers and AI hiring.
      - Meta raised 2026 capital-spending guidance to $130-$145 billion; it began the year expecting only $115-$135 billion.
      - Reality Labs lost another $4.6 billion, while management gave investors limited detail on when its AI and metaverse spending will generate meaningful returns.
      - The stock fell roughly 9%-10% because strong ad growth was overwhelmed by the earnings miss, shrinking margins, weak cash flow and another increase in AI spending.DHUnplugged Story Build - August 2, 2026

      Korea's Market Meltdown

      - The KOSPI fell about 40% in one month, wiping out roughly $2 trillion in market value.
      - Leveraged retail investors were hit hardest as margin calls accelerated the selloff.
      - Anger turned toward President Lee after officials had encouraged broader stock ownership.
      - Regulators are now restricting leveraged products, but only after the damage was done.

      The AI Agents Got Out

      - OpenAI found more cases of autonomous AI agents escaping intended containment.
      - One agent reportedly operated for days and compromised Hugging Face infrastructure.
      - Anthropic also disclosed model breaches during cybersecurity testing.
      - The incidents raise serious questions about monitoring and shutdown controls.

      Amazon's $600 Million Refund

      - Amazon received about $600 million in tariff refunds after courts invalidated the duties.
      - The company had reduced exposure by buying and importing inventory early.
      - Only customers tied to a traceable tariff charge will receive automatic refunds.
      - Most of the money will remain with Amazon and support lower prices.

      Microsoft's $450 Billion Day

      - Microsoft gained nearly $450 billion in market value in one session.
      - Shares jumped more than 15%, pushing its valuation near $3.35 trillion.
      - Azure growth guidance of 45% easily topped expectations.
      - Microsoft still plans about $175 billion in 2026 capital spending.

      Meta's Metaverse Money Pit

      - Reality Labs lost more than $4.6 billion in the quarter.
      - The division remains tiny compared with Meta's advertising business.
      - Meta is funding heavy spending on both AI and metaverse products.
      - Management continues to warn that Reality Labs losses will remain large.

      Dow Drops 1,100 Points

      - The Dow fell about 1,100 points, its worst day since April 2025.
      - The 30-year Treasury yield climbed near 5.24%, a 19-year high.
      - Investors feared the Fed was falling behind persistent inflation.
      - Higher yields hit technology stocks and other expensive assets.

      Tariffs Return Under New Authority

      - New tariffs of 10% to 12.5% cover imports from 60 trading partners.
      - The administration shifted to Section 301 after losing its emergency-powers case.
      - Major partners affected include China, Europe, India, Japan, Canada, and Mexico.
      - New lawsuits argue the administration is again stretching trade law too far.
      - 25 States are suing on this ....

      Warsh Lets the Bond Market Do the Talking

      - The Fed held rates at 3.50%-3.75%, but three officials dissented and wanted an increase.
      - Warsh gave little guidance, saying markets should follow the data rather than Fed speeches.
      - He suggested rising market rates could tighten conditions without an immediate Fed hike.
      - The 30-year Treasury yield jumped above 5.20%, its highest level since 2007.
      - Warsh said he welcomed markets moving independently; investors read the move as doubt about the Fed's inflation commitment.

      Inflation Cools - But Not Enough

      - Headline PCE inflation eased to 3.7% in June from 4.1% in May.
      - Core PCE slipped to 3.3% from 3.4%, still well above the Fed's 2% target.
      - Consumer spending rose 0.3%, while personal income increased 0.2%.
      - The softer report reduced immediate pressure, but did not eliminate the possibility of a September hike.

      Oil's Wild Week

      - On Monday, July 27, oil plunged nearly 9% after Trump paused U.S. strikes against Iran.
      - On Tuesday, July 28, Brent fell another 4.8% to $84.09 as traders hoped the pause could lead to peace talks.
      - On Wednesday, July 29, oil reversed and jumped about 7% as airstrikes escalated and supply fears returned.
      - Trump's repeated pauses, threats, and renewed attacks produced violent daily reversals in crude.
      - Brent still finished July up nearly 24% as the Strait of Hormuz remained a major supply risk
      - Large oil companies benefited from stronger crude, fuel and trading margins during the quarter.

      The Long-Bond Warning

      - The 10-year Treasury yield ended July near 4.74%, up about 32 basis points for the month.
      - The 30-year yield climbed roughly 37 basis points to about 5.27%, a 19-year high.
      - The move raises financing costs for mortgages, corporations and the federal government even without a Fed hike.

      AI Earnings Expectations Get Extreme

      - Analysts expect second-quarter S&P 500 earnings to rise about 48% from a year earlier.
      - AI-related companies account for much of the expected growth.
      - Microsoft and Amazon delivered record market-value gains after strong cloud results.
      - Apple, Meta Reality Labs and weaker chip stocks showed the market is becoming less forgiving of disappointing AI returns.

      Free Cash Flow Changes - Year Over Year

      ------FCF shows how much real cash remains after operating costs and capital spending. Analysts use it to judge earnings quality and a company’s ability to fund buybacks, dividends, debt repayment, or growth.
      - Apple: up about $7.5 billion, or 31%.
      - Microsoft: down about $6.0 billion, or 23%.
      - Meta: down about $7.8 billion, or 91%.
      - Amazon: deteriorated about $25.8 billion, from positive $18.2 billion to negative $7.6 billion.
      - Alphabet: down $11.2 billion, swinging from positive $5.3 billion to negative $5.9 billion.
      - Tesla: down $1.24 billion, swinging from positive $146 million to negative $1.09 billion.
      - Intel: adjusted free cash flow worsened by $7.37 billion, from negative $1.05 billion to negative $8.42 billion.
      - Nvidia: up $22.4 billion, or 86%, from $26.1 billion to $48.6 billion.

       

      Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


      THE CLOSEST TO THE PIN
      for SpaceX (SPCX)

      Winners will be getting great stuff like the new "OFFICIAL" DHUnplugged Shirt!

       

      FED AND CRYPTO LIMERICKS

       

      See this week’s stock picks HERE

      Follow John C. Dvorak on Twitter

      Follow Andrew Horowitz on Twitter

      1 hr 4 min
    • DHUnplugged #811: Remembering JCD

      Saying goodbye to JCD.

      Andrew’s Tribute.

      Growing up Dvorak with JC.

      Plenty of financial news to discuss.

      PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts!

      Click HERE for Show Notes and Links

      DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar.

      Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


      Follow John C. Dvorak on Twitter

      Follow Andrew Horowitz on Twitter

      Warm-Up

      - JCD - Through Our Eyes
      - Andrew's Tribute
      - No Agenda/DHU Meet Up - 8-8 at 3:33 PM in Ft Lauderdale...
      - The winner of the SpaceX CTP - and you do not want to miss this one - stay tuned for freaky coincidences on this ....

      NO Agenda / DHUnplugged Meet-Up (Saturday - 8-8-2026 @ 3:33PM)

      - Location to be determined
      - SIGN UP HERE

      Meet-Up Invite

      Markets

      -Back to SpaceX - What a rug pull! (down $1.2T from high)
      - Semiconductor enter a bear market - down 25% from high
      - NASDAQ 100 in correction

      JC Dvorak - A look back on growing up Dvorak

      Listener thoughts

      NVDA - De-crowned

      - Apple is now (once again) the largest stock by market cap
      - This is probably due the concern around spend and Capex
      - BUT, is this just a safety trade / rotation?

      NVIDIA MAY BECOME OPENAI'S BANK

      - Nvidia may guarantee up to $250 billion in financing for OpenAI.
      - The proposed Ohio data-center project could cost more than $500 billion.
      - Nvidia would be helping finance a major customer buying its infrastructure.
      - The structure raises concerns about circular AI demand.
      - Nvidia shares fell about 5% as investors weighed the risks.

      OR - Is this now becoming known as an issue:

      Circular Financing

      BIG TECH GETS THE CAPEX FLU

      - Alphabet beat earnings estimates, but shares fell about 7%.
      - Management raised 2026 capital spending guidance to as much as $205 billion.
      - Google Cloud revenue rose more than 80% to about $25 billion.
      - Alphabet posted negative quarterly free cash flow for the first time since its IPO.
      - Tesla fell more than 14% as investors focused on weaker profit and heavy spending.

      CHINA'S CHIP IPO GOES FULL CASINO

      - Chinese chipmaker CXMT jumped about 500% in its market debut.
      - The company raised about $8.6 billion.
      - It was Asia's largest IPO of the year.
      - A small public float helped amplify the move.
      - U.S. semiconductor stocks fell as investors weighed stronger Chinese competition.

      THE FED MEETING WITH NO EASY ANSWER

      - The Federal Reserve meets Wednesday.
      - Markets are split between no change and a possible rate increase.
      - Higher oil prices have raised inflation concerns.
      - Treasury yields are near their highest levels since early 2025.
      - The decision arrives with big-tech earnings and GDP data.

      AI MONEY GOES IN CIRCLES

      - Microsoft, OpenAI and Nvidia are linked through funding, chips and cloud deals.
      - The same capital can appear as investment, demand and revenue.
      - Suppliers are helping finance customers that buy their own products.
      - The risk is a chain reaction if AI funding or demand slows.

      OPENAI'S MODEL GOES ROGUE

      - OpenAI said a model acted outside expected controls during testing.
      - The incident reportedly caused a breach at a startup.
      - The case goes beyond a bad answer or chatbot hallucination.
      - It raises questions about giving AI agents access to real systems.
      - Regulators may push for stronger testing and disclosure rules.

      GOOGLE WANTS YOUR SELFIE

      - Google will allow account sign-ins using selfie video.
      - The feature adds another way to verify identity.
      - It could reduce dependence on passwords and recovery codes.
      - The tradeoff is greater use of facial data.
      - Privacy, storage and security questions will follow.

      TESLA AND ALPHABET GET HAMMERED

      - Tesla fell 13% and Alphabet dropped 7%.
      - Investors focused on rising costs and heavy AI spending.
      - Strong revenue was not enough to calm return-on-investment concerns.
      - The market wants clearer proof that spending will produce cash flow.
      - Expensive growth stories are getting less patience.

      TESLA PROFIT MISSES

      - Tesla's second-quarter profit fell well short of estimates.
      - Rising costs weighed on the results.
      - Spending remains high across vehicles, AI and robotaxis.
      - Investors are questioning when those projects will improve margins.
      - Softer robotaxi language added to the pressure- and of course when is the real question - promising for years.

      TESLA COOLS THE ROBOTAXI TALK

      - Tesla has become more cautious about robotaxi timing and expansion.
      - Earlier comments suggested a much faster rollout.
      - Safety, regulation and reliability remain major obstacles.
      - Robotaxis are still central to Tesla's long-term valuation.
      - More delays would weaken one of the company's biggest growth claims.

      SPACEX SHORT SELLERS CASH IN

      - Short sellers reportedly earned $15.5 billion as SpaceX shares fell.
      - The move rewarded investors betting against the company's valuation.
      - It shows how quickly enthusiasm can reverse at extreme prices.
      - SpaceX still has strong growth stories in launches and satellites.
      - The debate is whether too much future success was already priced in.
      --- Price hit $108 today before bouncing - major rug pull

      CATHIE WOOD DOUBLES DOWN ON SPACEX

      - Cathie Wood called SpaceX potentially the most important company in history.
      -  Her comment came after a sharp decline in the shares and it seems is more of talking her book.
      - Her case rests on launch, satellite and communications growth.
      - The problem is that losses are expected for the foreseeable future.

      INTEL FINALLY GETS AN AI LIFT

      - Intel shares jumped 11% after earnings.
      - Revenue grew at the fastest pace in almost 15 years.
      - AI-related demand helped drive the improvement.
      - The report gave investors fresh evidence of a turnaround.
      - Intel still trails key rivals in advanced chips and manufacturing.
      - However, it turned lower in the morning and now is 35% off its high

      TSMC ADDS ANOTHER $100 BILLION

      - TSMC plans another $100 billion investment in Arizona.
      - Second-quarter profit surged 77%.
      - AI-chip demand continues to drive the expansion and the idea is that the project strengthens U.S. semiconductor production.
      - It also adds labor, construction and execution risk.
      - The spending shows the scale of the AI infrastructure race.
      --- So far many of these promises have been a bit hallow

      BOND YIELDS FEEL THE OIL SHOCK

      - The 10-year Treasury yield reached its highest level since January 2025.
      - Surging oil prices brought inflation fears back into the market.
      - Higher energy costs could delay Federal Reserve rate cuts.
      - Rising yields pressure stocks, housing and other rate-sensitive assets.
      - Oil is again influencing the entire interest-rate outlook.

      CANADA GETS A 50% TARIFF

      - Trump imposed 50% tariffs on some Canadian goods.
      - The administration cited discrimination against U.S. companies.
      - The move could raise costs for manufacturers using Canadian inputs.
      - Canada could respond with tariffs of its own.
      - The fight adds more uncertainty to North American trade.

      WILDFIRE SMOKE BECOMES A TARIFF ISSUE

      - Trump criticized Canada as wildfire smoke spread into the U.S.
      - He said pollution costs could be added to tariffs.
      - The idea links environmental damage directly to trade policy.
      - Canadian goods could face another unpredictable cost.
      - Companies may struggle to price a pollution-based tariff.

      MIAMI TURNS INTO A BUYER'S MARKET

      - Miami reportedly has 140% more home sellers than buyers.
      - Buyers now have more leverage on price, inspections and concessions.
      - The reversal follows one of the country's strongest pandemic housing booms.
      - High prices, insurance and carrying costs may be pushing demand lower.
      - Starting to see some pricing erosiokn and sellers pulling homes

      UNITEDHEALTH TURNS THE CORNER

      - UnitedHealth beat earnings estimates and raised its outlook.
      --- Co-Pick for JCD and AH
      - Cost controls helped drive the improvement.

      DELTA SAYS HIGHER FARES ARE STICKING

      - Delta expects higher airfares to continue.
      - Strong pricing could help it reach its 2026 profit goal.
      - Higher fares provide protection against fuel and labor costs.
      - Travelers may see fewer discounted tickets.
      - Capacity growth remains the key variable.
      --- Say it enough and its true?

      THE GREAT EGG RECALL

      - Nearly 1.6 million dozen eggs were recalled over possible salmonella.
      - The FDA announced the recall after identifying contamination concerns.
      --- Now what will be the political angle?
      - Supply disruption could also add pressure to egg prices.

      HUMAN SKIN ENTERS K-BEAUTY

      -Injectable skin boosters derived from donated cadaver skin to regenerate aging skin tissue
      - Human skin is becoming part of some K-beauty treatments.
      - Demand is tied to premium anti-aging products.
      - South Korean biotech firm L&C Bio manufactures the treatment, producing roughly 80,000 vials per month as demand outpaces supply.
      -- They are nuts in Korea

      NETWORKS SKIP TRUMP SPEECH

      - ABC, NBC and CNN declined live primary-channel coverage.
      - The speech focused on0 'election security'.
      - Networks weighed news value against misinformation concerns.
      - The decision could affect ratings and political advertising during mid-terms which JCD was the biggest income for any news outlet (Political elections)

       

      Love the Show? Then how about a Donation?


      THE CLOSEST TO THE PIN
      for SpaceX (SPCX)

      Winners will be getting great stuff like the new "OFFICIAL" DHUnplugged Shirt!

       

       

      FED AND CRYPTO LIMERICKS

       

      See this week’s stock picks HERE

      Follow John C. Dvorak on Twitter

      Follow Andrew Horowitz on Twitter

      1 hr 6 min

    About DHUnplugged Podcast

    From the publisher's feed

    DHUnplugged Podcast – A Weekly Update of the More Interesting Side of Finance and Investing

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