Investopedia Markets News (all except PF)

• The U.S. economy had 6.9 million job openings in March, the same as in February as the job market stayed in a state of limbo.
• The frozen-over labor market thawed slightly as hiring, quitting and layoffs all edged up.
• The Iran war could affect job creation in the coming months as high gas prices squeeze household budgets and force cutbacks to spending on other things.

The labor market mostly stayed in its low-hiring, low-firing limbo in March, but churned a little more than it has in recent months.

The number of job openings stayed at 6.9 million in March, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Tuesday. That was more than the 6.8 million openings forecasters had expected, according to a survey of economists by Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal, but shows that the market for employment remains sluggish.

The low number of job openings reinforces the picture of the job market as staying afloat, but vulnerable to disruption from economic shocks such as the war-related surge of energy prices.

The data added more detail to the bureau's March payroll report, which showed job creation bouncing back after tanking in February. The Job Opening and Labor Turnover survey report released Tuesday shows how many people were hired, fired or quit, rather than the total number of jobs shown in the more widely watched payroll report that comes out weeks earlier. Tariffs and immigration restrictions have kept the job market on ice since mid-2025, with hiring and job openings far below previous levels and layoffs remaining scarce.

There was a faint glimmer of life in the data for March despite the onset of the Iran war. Layoffs, hiring and quitting all increased though remained at relatively low levels. Hires increased to 5.6 million from 4.8 million in February; quits rose to 3.2 million from 3 million; and layoffs rose to 1.9 million from 1.7 million. Most of the layoffs were in the information sector, which includes technology jobs exposed to disruption from AI software.

"The low-hire, low-fire dynamic that has defined this market for over a year didn’t change much in March, but showed some early potential signs of movement," Sneha Puri, economist at the job site Indeed's hiring lab, wrote in a commentary.

The report may be too early to fully show the effects of the latest shockwave to hit the economy. The Iran war, currently in limbo with an uneasy truce, continues to keep oil prices elevated and gas and diesel fuel along with it, hurting household budgets and potentially setting off a domino effect to consumer spending and the job market.

"It's too soon to see negative spillover effects from the US/Isreal war with Iran in the March JOLTS data," Matthew Martin, senior U.S. economist at Oxford Economics, wrote in a commentary. "Higher oil prices threaten to reduce aggregate demand by crimping real incomes. Coupled with increased uncertainty, businesses are likely to pull back further on hiring intentions. Still, the tenuous ceasefire likely limits the worst-case scenarios to the outcome of the war."

• Senators appear to have clinched a deal on stablecoin rewards after months of negotiations between the banking and crypto industry.
• Sens. Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks in a joint statement said they "respectfully agree to disagree" with some in the banking industry who may not have wanted a compromise.
• Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad said the industry "protected what matters."

The ink may not be dry on the bill yet—but crypto fans are calling the latest legislative news a win.

The Clarity Act, which the Trump administration and the industry has been eager to pass, has taken a step forward after months of delays. Senators Thom Tillis and Angela Alsobrooks, members of the banking committee, finalized a draft that was made public late last week by PunchBowl News that suggested a compromise, which could mean progress toward a signing the delay of which has been viewed as an overhang on crypto by some investors.

Bitcoin has risen since. The development pushed the price of of the cryptocurrency back above $81,000 for the first time in months—it's still down for the year— and it continues to climb amid revived appetites for risk.

Traders also appear to be getting more optimistic about the Clarity Act's passage this year, which some market experts have said would boost crypto prices; Polymarket's perceived odds that it would become law in 2026, which not long ago were below coin-flip levels, recently topped 60%.

After months of delays and negotiations, crypto appears to be happy with a compromise on stablecoin rewards in the Senate's latest draft text.

The rewards that can be offered to stablecoin holders have been a source of disagreement between some in the banking and crypto industries, and that's where progress appears to have been made. Tillis and Alsobrooks yesterday issued a joint statement saying the proposed language would allow crypto companies to offer some forms of customer awards while banning others that resemble interest on bank deposits.

"Some in the banking industry may not want either of these things to happen, and we respectfully agree to disagree," the statement read.

But there are signs the battle ins't over. Banking groups, including the American Bankers Association and the Bank Policy Institute, on Monday took umbrage with the text, which they said in a statement "falls short of the goal" of a blanket prohibition on stablecoin rewards.

Coinbase Chief Policy Officer Faryar Shirzad was upbeat. "In the end, the banks were able to get more restrictions on rewards," he wrote on social media, "but we protected what matters — the ability for Americans to earn rewards, based on real usage of crypto platforms and networks."

• Intel shares soared to a fresh high Tuesday following a report that Apple held early talks with the chipmaker.
• Securing Apple as a customer would represent a major win for Intel's foundry business.

Intel's stock is soaring to fresh highs amid hopes it could soon strike a deal with Apple.

Shares of Intel (INTC) were up 14% around $109 in recent trading, on track to set a closing record following a Bloomberg report that it's held preliminary talks to bring Apple (AAPL) on board as a customer.

Such a deal could give Apple more options in terms of suppliers, and where parts are made, Bloomberg reported. Currently, the iPhone maker's chip supply chain is largely reliant on one supplier, the report said, with chip manufacturing giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM) producing chips designed by Apple mostly in Taiwan, and some at a facility in Arizona.

Intel and Apple did not respond to Investopedia requests for comment in time for publication.

The report adds fuel to earlier speculation Apple might become an Intel customer.

Bringing on Apple would represent a major win for Intel's foundry business, which has faced challenges in securing new customers, and could boost confidence in the chipmaker's turnaround.

Intel shares have rallied to record highs in recent weeks, after a strong earnings report showed that AI demand is boosting sales of Intel's chips, and a string of high-profile deals.

With Tuesday's gains, Intel shares have nearly tripled in value since the start of the year. Apple shares were up 1% recently and have climbed 3% year-to-date.

• The government is starting hearings this week aimed at rebuilding President Donald Trump's tariff agenda, which took a blow in February when the Supreme Court struck down many of his import taxes.
• The new wave of tariffs could be more predictable than the ones Trump imposed at will last year under emergency authorities he can no longer use.
• New tariffs could push up inflation at a time when the Iran war's energy crunch is already hurting household budgets.

The tariffs that roiled the economy in 2025 are getting a sequel.

The Trump administration is moving forward with a new set of tariffs to replace the sweeping import taxes he imposed last year on nearly every country in the world, which were struck down as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court in February.

The U.S. Trade Representative will begin a series of hearings Tuesday on whether 14 countries and the European Union—including the U.S.'s largest trading partners—have created "excess capacity" by subsidies and other government policies, which would authorize the administration to impose tariffs in retaliation. Last week, the USTR held similar hearings on whether to impose tariffs on 59 countries and the E.U. for failing to ban products made with forced labor.

The hearings are milestones on the path toward imposing import taxes under a different legal authority than the emergency powers that President Donald Trump used last year to set tariffs at will, frequently changing them and threatening new ones. By contrast, the new tariffs authorized under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 can only be put in place after an extensive bureaucratic process involving hearings and investigations. The new process is more predictable and may be more resilient to legal challenges than the ones the Supreme Court struck down, trade experts say.

The additional tariffs could put renewed upward pressure on prices for consumer products at a time when inflation is already heating up due to the Iran war. Economists say the tariffs eased somewhat after the Supreme Court ruling removed some of the heaviest tariffs—on Brazil and China, for example—while leaving other tariffs in place, including Section 232 taxes on specific products like cars and steel. Between the patchwork of remaining tariffs, plus the global 10% tariff Trump imposed immediately after the ruling, the overall average tariff rate paid by U.S. importers fell to 8% from 12%, according to an analysis by Oxford Economics.

Trump and administration officials have said the Section 301 process is intended to push tariffs back up to their previous levels by mid summer, just as Trump's global 10% tariff is set to expire unless extended by Congress. "We will be implementing or conducting Section 301 studies so that the tariffs could be back in place at the previous level at the beginning of July,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said last month at an event hosted by The Wall Street Journal.

If the new tariffs are like the old ones, they may have similar economic effects, including pushing up inflation and slowing job growth.

Some economists say the new tariffs will end up being lower if they are used as negotiating tools, or if the Trump administration balks at potentially stoking inflation at a time when voters are already concerned about the cost of living, according to polls.

"The Trump administration might want to avoid pursuing further unpopular inflationary policies ahead of the midterm elections," economists at Deutsche Bank led by Chief Economist Matthew Luzzetti wrote in a commentary last month.

The new tariffs could also likely face legal challenges, just like the old ones have, potentially extending the ongoing confusion and legal wrangling.

Pete Mento, a director of global trade management services at Baker Tilly, said his firm is helping clients file for around $1 billion in refunds, part of a wave of companies going to federal court to get back the money they paid for the now-illegal import duties. He predicted companies would go to court over whatever tariffs arise from the Section 301 and Section 232 processes, but that they might be harder to overturn.

The new tariffs could even outlast the Trump administration, since it may be politically unpopular to dismantle something that was framed as an anti-forced-labor measure.

"They have a feeling of permanency," Mento told Investopedia in an interview. "They have a feeling of real staying power ... I'm not sure that a new a new executive is really going to radically change the tariff situation."

The new tariffs may have a sense of stability the previous ones lacked.

"At least, we'll know the level of terrible and be able to operate within that environment," Mento said.

The tariffs have contributed to inflation staying stubbornly above the Federal Reserve's goal of a 2% annual rate, as companies have generally passed the costs along to customers, according to many economists as well as Fed officials.

They've also slowed down the economy and the job market by fueling uncertainty among business leaders about what trade policy will be in the future, causing many to delay hiring and expansion plans. More tariffs could amplify those trends.

"We have a year’s worth of economic data since Liberation Day, when President Trump announced much higher tariffs on most imported goods and countries, and the data are definitive; the tariffs have done significant damage to the economy," Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, posted on the X social media platform Monday. "The U.S. economy is resilient, but just how resilient is set to be tested."

• A proposal to cap Social Security benefits at $100,000 annually for couples could save the depleting program billions of dollars.
• There are varying cap options that offer different levels of savings and benefit impacts, like indexing the cap to inflation or maintaining the $100,000 cap for 30 years.

• These proposed caps would primarily impact the top 20% to 30% of earners, who typically have significant assets beyond Social Security.

Some retired couples receive more than $100,000 in Social Security benefits each year. One recent proposal suggests capping these benefits to help extend the program.

More than 1.25 million retirees, or about 2% of all Social Security beneficiaries, receive $50,000 or more in benefits each year. That means some couples receive combined benefits of $100,000 or more a year. This generally occurs when both parties consistently earned more than the Social Security taxable maximum for 35 years and retired at their full retirement age. And the benefit amounts for couples with six-figure benefits will continue to rise through the annual Cost of Living Adjustment.

However, the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that conducts fiscal policy analysis, proposed capping a couple's annual benefits at $100,000. Initially, this proposal could save the program $100 billion to $190 billion over 10 years.

“Social Security is less than seven years from insolvency, and under the law, when it becomes insolvent, everybody's benefits get cut 24%...which for a typical couple retiring in 2033 is like $18,000,” said Marc Goldwein, senior vice president and senior policy director at the Committee for Responsible Federal Budget. “So the question is, what are we going to do to avoid that?"

Most policy analysts say either tax rates need to increase or benefits need to be reduced, Goldwein said. While the "Six-Figure Limit" alone is not enough to delay Social Security's insolvency cliff, combined with other solutions, it would help extend Social Security's lifespan.

The main trust that is funding the Social Security program is set to run out of money by 2032. After that point, the law dictates that all benefits will be reduced, which the majority of beneficiaries say they will not be able to financially survive if their payments are cut.

This proposal would still reward beneficiaries with higher benefits who wait to claim benefits until after their full retirement age. Beyond that, there are three ways this proposal could be implemented:

• An inflation-indexed cap: The first option would cap benefits for couples who retire at their full retirement age to $100,000 in benefits during 2026. From there, the cap would grow with inflation rates.
• 20-year fixed cap: This option would keep a $100,000 cap for 20 years, then boost benefits annually based on the average wage increase for workers. For example, the average wage increase in 2024 was 4.84%, according to the Social Security Administration.
• 30-year fixed cap: The 30-year cap would work very similarly to the 20-year cap, but it would restrict benefits to a maximum of $100,000 until 2056.

These solutions would generally only lower the benefits of the top 20% to 30% of earners, the CRFB said.

"If you're getting $100,000, as a couple, in benefits, you probably have tens of millions of dollars in assets, and your Social Security benefit is not very important to you," Goldwein said. "Over time, as this phases in, it's going to affect more people further down the income ladder, but every version that we model [is always] incredibly progressive.”

The 30-year fixed cap proposal provides the greatest savings, reducing the Social Security budget shortfall over 75 years by 55%, according to CRFB estimates.

"This approach may prove effective in generating upfront savings and 'buying time' for other solvency-enhancing policies to phase in," authors of the CRFP report said.

• Pinterest shares rallied Tuesday following a better-than-expected earnings report and revenue forecast.
• Executives said AI-powered improvements to its advertising platform are helping to offset a pullback in ad spending by some of its clients amid tariff-related headwinds.

Pinterest shares are soaring Tuesday in the wake of some signs its AI improvements are helping drive ad revenue growth.

Shares of Pinterest (PINS) were up 13% around $23 in recent trading, a day after the social media company posted first-quarter results that topped estimates and provided a bullish outlook for the current quarter. Pinterest reported adjusted earnings per share of 27 cents on $1.01 billion in revenue in the first quarter, each above analysts' projections compiled by Visible Alpha, as its monthly active users (MAUs) rose to a record 631 million.

"Our AI investments are also translating into better advertiser performance as Pinterest Performance+, our AI-powered performance ad suite, continues to drive strong results for advertisers," CEO Bill Ready told investors during the company's earnings call.

For the current quarter, Pinterest said it expects revenue to come in between $1.13 billion to $1.15 billion, with the full range coming in above the $1.12 billion analysts called for.

Pinterest's solid revenue growth and record user numbers could help improve investor sentiment around the stock, which has been pressured this year.

JPMorgan analysts lifted their price target for Pinterest to $25 from $20 following the results, applauding the company's "early progress across monetization initiatives." UBS analysts also lifted their price target to $30, writing that Pinterest looks to be transforming from an "experimental" ad platform for large advertisers to a "more attractive destination" to consistently spend ad dollars.

Back in February, Pinterest had said its advertising revenue growth was being hampered by the Trump administration's tariffs, which led some of its clients to pull back on ad spending. CFO Julia Donnelly said in Monday's earnings call that while tariff-related headwinds remained in the quarter, improvements to the AI features of Pinterest's ad sales platform are offsetting some of that negative impact. Pinterest in January said it would lay off up to 15% of its workforce and cut back on its office space capacity, as the company invests in AI.

Even with Tuesday's gains, Pinterest shares have lost about 10% since the start of the year.

News of the day for May 5, 2026

Stock futures are higher this morning as the market rebounds from losses yesterday caused by uncertainty over developments in the Middle East; shares of Palantir are slipping despite a strong earnings report from the software maker; chipmaker AMD is due to release its quarterly numbers after the closing bell; Pinterest shares are rallying after the social media company's results and outlook topped Wall Street expectations; and reports on the labor market and home sales will kick off a busy week of economic data. Here's what you need to know.

Stock futures are pointing to a higher open this morning after major indexed fell to open the week amid renewed uncertainty over the stability of the ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran. Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average and S&P 500 were recently up 0.3% and 0.4%, respectively, while Nasdaq futures rose 0.6%. The major indexes closed lower yesterday following reports that a U.S. naval ship was hit by a pair of missiles in the Strait of Hormuz, while U.S. officials said no ships were attacked and said they had sunk as many as six small boats that were threatening civilian ships. WTI futures, the U.S. crude oil benchmark were down 2% at around $104 per barrel, after popping yesterday as Middle East tensions flared. Bitcoin was at $81,000 recently, up from an overnight low of $79,700 and trading at its highest level since late January. Gold futures were up less than 1% recently at $4,570 an ounce, while the yield on the 10-year Treasury ticked lower to 4.4%.

Shares of Palantir (PLTR) are losing ground even as the data analytics software maker's latest quarterly results came in above analysts' estimates last night. The company also lifted its full-year outlook, with CEO Alex Karp saying the firm's business in the U.S. is "erupting" because of high demand. The tech stock has been pressured in recent months as investors have grown concerned that the AI rally has left some stocks such as Palantir overvalued, along with worries that the software industry could be disrupted by similar products built with AI. Palantir shares were down 3% in recent premarket trading, after entering the day down about 18% since the start of the year.

Investors will get a fresh look into the AI hardware industry today, with results from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) set to be released after the closing bell. The chipmaker is expected to report revenue and profits that each grew by more than 30% year-over-year, as demand for hardware to power AI services continues to boost sales. AMD shares have rallied in recent weeks alongside a number of other tech stocks, as investors have been betting on the companies making the hardware behind AI products. AMD shares have set several record highs in recent weeks, after a strong report from rival Intel (INTC) last month made investors and analysts more bullish on AMD's outlook. AMD shares, which most recently hit a record high on Friday, were up 2% ahead of the opening bell.

Shares of Pinterest (PINS) are rallying Tuesday after the social media company beat first-quarter estimates and provided a strong outlook for the current quarter. Pinterest said after the bell yesterday that it earned an adjusted 27 cents per share on $1.01 billion in revenue in the first quarter, each above the analyst consensus compiled by Visible Alpha. For the second quarter, Pinterest said it expects revenue to come in between $1.13 billion to $1.15 billion, above the $1.12 billion analyst consensus. The company's monthly active user number of a record 631 million also narrowly topped estimates, in what Pinterest said is the tenth consecutive quarter of double-digit user growth. Pinterest shares were up 18% in recent trading.

Reports on the labor market and housing industry will kick off a busy week of economic data. The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) for March is due out today at 10 a.m. ET, with a median forecast of 6.8 million job openings down from 6.9 million in March, according to a Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires survey of economists. The labor market has been sluggish to start the year, with low hiring and low firing amid economic uncertainty caused by the Iran war. Investors will also get a pair of data points about the real estate industry, with new home sales numbers for February and March both expected to be released today. Economists estimate sales for February and March of 631,000 and 660,000, respectively.

• Palantir posted first-quarter results that topped analysts' estimates and hiked its guidance on surging AI demand.
• CEO Alex Karp said the company's record results "demonstrate a level of strength that dwarfs the performance of essentially every software company in history at this scale."

Palantir's business is booming. Investors don't seem impressed.

The data analytics software firm on Monday hiked its full-year revenue guidance to 71% growth, "driven by our confidence in an accelerating U.S. market,” said CEO Alex Karp in a release after the market closed. The company's U.S. business is now seen growing 120% this year, on strong demand for its flagship Artificial Intelligence Platform.

Palantir posted adjusted earnings of $0.33 on revenue that soared 85% year-over-year to $1.63 billion in the first quarter. Both figures topped analysts' estimates compiled by Visible Alpha, as the company's U.S. business more than doubled. Karp said that business is "erupting."

Despite the better-than-expected results and rosy outlook, Palantir shares were down nearly 3% in recent after-hours trading.

Palantir's better-than-expected results could help improve investor sentiment around the stock, which has taken a hit in recent months amid a broader pullback in software stocks and worries about its valuation after a runup last year.

"We are in a category of our own," Karp said in a letter to shareholders Monday, writing that Palantir's record results "demonstrate a level of strength that dwarfs the performance of essentially every software company in history at this scale."

Through the close of regular trading on Monday, Palantir shares had lost roughly 30% of their value since hitting an all-time high in December. The stock was still up 18% over the past 12 months.

UPDATE: This story was updated after initial publication to reflect recent stock trading activity.

Episode 293 of The Investopedia Express podcast with Caleb Silver (May 4, 2026)

Subscribe Now: Apple Podcasts / Spotify / PlayerFM

What’s next for Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies after prices have crashed and new laws intended to open the market to more retail investors remain in legislative gridlock?

The Express goes inside Bitcoin 2026 in Las Vegas for a vibe check and to see how financial institutions, credit card companies, and mortgage lenders are trying to bring the blockchain and tokenization to every asset class. Ali Tager of the National Cryptocurrency Association drops in with the roadmap. Plus, the stock market keeps hitting new highs as investors keep betting on bigger profits from semiconductor and AI equipment makers. So far, that’s been the right bet.

GameStop Highlights Opportunity in Collectibles Market

• GameStop on Sunday offered to acquire e-commerce platform eBay for $55.5 billion, a deal GameStop estimates would save eBay $2 billion annually and accelerate the growth of its thriving collectibles business.
• Collectibles—a $100 billion global market, according to Morgan Stanley—were GameStop's only source of revenue growth last year.

How do you turn a shrinking video game retailer into a serious competitor of everything-store Amazon? Be niche, according to GameStop CEO Ryan Cohen. 

GameStop (GME) on Sunday offered to acquire e-commerce site eBay (EBAY) for $125 a share, a 20% premium to the stock’s closing price on Friday. The offer values eBay at about $55.5 billion, five times GameStop’s market value. 

“It could be a legit competitor to Amazon,” Cohen said of eBay in an interview with the Wall Street Journal, which first reported on GameStop’s planned takeover offer on Saturday.  

GameStop's long-shot bid for eBay underscores how behemoths like Amazon and Walmart are reshaping the retail landscape. Smaller specialty retailers, unable to compete on price, are doubling down on their niches, leveraging expertise to build trust and expand into category-specific services like, in this case, collectibles authentication and trading.

Competing with Amazon is a tall order. Last year, eBay booked $11.1 billion of revenue on gross merchandise value (GMV)—or the value of the goods sold on its platform—of $79.6 billion. GameStop’s revenue totaled $3.6 billion last year. Amazon, with its businesses spanning e-commerce, logistics, and cloud computing, took in $716.9 billion of revenue.

“EBay has the second-largest commerce franchise, and there’s a big opportunity to do something much larger,” Cohen told CNBC on Monday. He said the combination could “pull costs out of the system, as well as accelerate revenue growth.”

GameStop estimates the combination would save eBay $2 billion in the first year, and increase its earnings by more than 80%. As for growing revenue, Cohen envisions eBay using GameStop’s 1,600 U.S. stores as “a national network for authentication, intake, fulfillment, and live commerce.” GameStop stores could act as inspection and authentication centers, drop-off and shipping nodes, and broadcasting studios for live auctions focused on trading cards, collectibles and refurbished technology. 

GameStop and eBay became indirect business partners last year when GameStop launched Power Packs with Professional Sports Authenticator, a third-party authenticator of trading cards and other collectibles. Through Power Pack, collectors buy a mystery card that, once revealed, they can sell, store with PSA or have shipped to them. Those who sell have two options: sell the card back to Power Packs at a discount or list it to eBay. 

GameStop’s collectibles revenue grew nearly 50% to more than $1 billion last year, helping to offset double-digit declines in gaming hardware and software sales. Selling collectibles, including apparel, toys and trading cards, is more profitable than selling games or consoles. GameStop attributed last year’s increase in gross profit and margin expansion to “a shift in sales mix towards higher-margin product categories, particularly collectibles.”

EBay is also focused on collectibles, one of its strategic “Focus Categories,” along with car parts and accessories, refurbished goods, and luxury items like apparel and sneakers. The collectibles category was the largest contributor to eBay’s GMV growth in the first quarter of this year, according to an AlphaSense transcript of the company’s most recent earnings call. 

Granted, the collectibles market will need to grow a lot for a combined GameStop-eBay to rival Amazon. Morgan Stanley valued the global collectibles market at $100 billion late last year, and forecast the category will grow about 6% annually through 2027.

Investors have been happy with eBay’s focus on fast-growing niches. With Monday’s 5% gain, shares are up 60% in the past year, and 26% since the start of 2026. GameStop stock, on the other hand, has shed about 13% over the past 12 months, including a 10% decline on Monday.