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- 👀 Uber & Ex-CEO Travis Kalanick
👀 Uber & Ex-CEO Travis Kalanick
+ Federal Reserve Proposes Loosening Bank Leverage Rules

Good afternoon! The ocean economy is undefeated: Carnival just reported its fattest margins in nearly two decades and raised its profit forecast like it’s coasting through calm waters. Bookings for 2026 are already matching record highs, customer deposits hit $8.5 billion, and last-minute vacationers are still throwing money at sea-bound buffets and balcony rooms.
Royal Caribbean hit an all-time high on the news, and Regent Seven Seas said “why not” and rolled out a $1.7 million cruise for two—140 days, 40 countries, all vibes. Land-based economy? Struggling. Cruises? Literally selling out for 2027.
MARKETS

Record highs just out of reach: The S&P 500 came within three points of a new record close, ending the day up 0.8%. The Nasdaq gained nearly 1%, and small caps roared back with the Russell 2000 jumping 1.7%.
Rate cut buzz builds: Traders are now pricing in over 65bps of Fed cuts by year-end, up from 50bps just weeks ago. A softer stance on trade deadlines also helped keep the rally alive.
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STOCKS
Winners & Losers

What’s up 📈
Core Scientific exploded 33.01% after the bitcoin miner was reported to be in acquisition talks with AI company CoreWeave. ($CORZ)
Worthington Steel surged 20.49% after the company posted better-than-expected earnings and said it’s gaining market share in key sectors. ($WS)
Enphase Energy popped 12.83%, SunRun gained 6.46%, and SolarEdge Technologies rose 5.11% as solar stocks rallied on hopes the Senate will preserve clean energy tax credits. ($ENPH, $RUN, $SEDG)
MillerKnoll jumped 12.49% after reporting an 8% YoY jump in net sales last quarter. ($MLKN)
AeroVironment gained another 15.93%, extending a two-day rally sparked by strong earnings and guidance. ($AVAV)
Serve Robotics climbed 9.87% after the robot delivery company launched its service in Atlanta. ($SERV)
H.B. Fuller rose 10.78% on better-than-expected earnings and strong full-year guidance. ($FUL)
Southern Copper Corp. jumped 7.79%, Anglo American plc rose 7.15%, and Freeport-McMoRan gained 6.85% as copper prices climbed. ($SCCO, $NGLOD, $FCX)
Penn Entertainment rose 4.94% after an analyst upgrade from Citizens, which called the stock undervalued. ($PENN)
McCormick gained 5.31% after the spice maker beat Q2 earnings expectations. ($MKC)
What’s down 📉
Equinix sank 9.56%, extending losses after disappointing guidance triggered a wave of analyst downgrades. ($EQIX)
Kratos Defense & Security Solutions slid 2.36% after announcing a $500 million stock sale. ($KTOS)
Micron Technology lost 0.98% despite beating both revenue and earnings expectations in Q3. ($MU)
ACQUSITION
Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick in Talks to Acquire Pony.ai’s U.S. Unit

Kalanick’s Backseat Comeback: Travis Kalanick, the controversial cofounder and ex-CEO of Uber, is quietly plotting a return to the self-driving space and Uber might be his wingman. According to The New York Times, Kalanick is trying to acquire the US arm of Chinese autonomous vehicle startup Pony.ai, and Uber is reportedly in early talks to help fund the deal.
Pony.ai, which went public last year with a $4.5 billion market cap, began prepping its US unit for a spinoff back in 2022, going as far as creating a forked version of its codebase. If the deal goes through, Kalanick would run Pony.ai while still heading his ghost kitchen company, CloudKitchens.
A Reboot of the Self-Driving Dream: Kalanick was ousted from Uber in 2017 amid scandals and power struggles, but self-driving tech has always been unfinished business. Uber ditched its in-house AV efforts after a fatal crash and sold the unit to Aurora in 2020. Since then, Uber has taken a platform-first approach, partnering with companies like Waymo and, most recently, Tesla to offer driverless rides.
This move signals Uber’s growing anxiety over a robotaxi future increasingly dominated by Waymo and Tesla. The timing tracks: Waymo just expanded service to Atlanta, and Tesla launched its own robotaxi pilots in Austin. Uber’s stock jumped 3.8% on the report; Pony’s surged over 20%.
Ride-Hail Rivalry Reloaded: Pony.ai isn’t some science project. It holds permits to operate autonomous taxis and trucks in the US and China, with Toyota as its top shareholder. Uber has already partnered with Pony abroad and may now be looking to go deeper. If Kalanick pulls this off, it’ll mark a dramatic return to the driverless arena he once tried to dominate.
And in a poetic twist, he may need the very company that once forced him out to help fund the comeback.
NEWS
Market Movements

☀️ Enphase leads solar rally on tax credit optimism: Enphase Energy jumped over 10% on news Congress may extend rooftop solar tax credits, with gains also seen in Sunrun, SolarEdge, and First Solar ($ENPH, $RUN, $SEDG, $FSLR).
🚗 Avis jumps as hedge fund triples stake: Shares of Avis rose 2% after Pentwater Capital revealed it more than tripled its position in the rental car company, now holding over 19% ($CAR).
🚀 Rocket Lab scores European Space Agency deal: Rocket Lab surged 12% after securing its first launch contract with the European Space Agency, capitalizing on growing skepticism toward SpaceX’s political entanglements ($RKLB).
🔋 Rivian cuts 1% of staff ahead of new SUV launch: Rivian laid off ~140 manufacturing employees to improve efficiency ahead of its lower-priced R2 SUV launch planned for early 2026 ($RIVN).
🤖 Cyngn soars 170% on Nvidia collaboration mention: Tiny robotics firm Cyngn skyrocketed after Nvidia mentioned it in a blog post about robotics partners using Isaac technologies, triggering speculative buying ($CYN, $NVDA).
👟 Nike sales drop 12%, but outlook improves: Nike reported a 12% revenue decline and a sharp drop in net income, but beat earnings expectations and said its turnaround plan has reached peak financial impact ($NKE).
🧑🏭 Tesla fires top manufacturing exec Omead Afshar: Tesla CEO Elon Musk fired VP of manufacturing Omead Afshar following continued sales declines and internal tensions, marking another leadership shakeup at the EV company ($TSLA).
💥 Core Scientific surges on CoreWeave buyout report: Core Scientific shares jumped 35% after reports of advanced acquisition talks with CoreWeave, potentially deepening their $10.2B AI infrastructure partnership ($CORZ).
🤖 AI does up to 50% of Salesforce’s work: Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff said AI handles 30%–50% of company tasks with 93% accuracy, framing the shift as part of a broader “digital labor revolution” ($CRM).
📦 FedEx to close 30% of U.S. distribution facilities: FedEx plans to shutter 30% of its domestic package stations under Network 2.0, aiming to cut $2B in annual costs and route 40% of volume through optimized facilities by fiscal year-end ($FDX).
☕ Starbucks sets flat fee for add-ons: Starbucks will now charge a flat $0.80 fee for any syrup or sauce modification to simplify pricing and improve customer experience ($SBUX).
📊 BlackRock to launch private market 401(k): BlackRock will offer a new 401(k) fund in 2026 with up to 20% allocated to private equity and credit, expanding retail access to alternatives ($BLK).
🛫 Southwest considers premium upgrades: Southwest Airlines is exploring lounges, first-class seating, and long-haul routes to attract premium flyers amid pricing pressure ($LUV).
BANKS
Federal Reserve Proposes Loosening Bank Leverage Rules

The Federal Reserve just moved to loosen a major rule that’s kept big banks in check since the 2008 financial crisis. The central bank proposed easing the enhanced supplementary leverage ratio, or eSLR, which limits how much banks can borrow relative to their capital. Translation: banks may soon be allowed to take on more risk in the name of bigger profits.
The eSLR was introduced to ensure megabanks like JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs held more of their own money as a safety cushion. Under the new proposal, the minimum capital requirement could drop from 5 to 6 percent down to a range of 3.5 to 4.5 percent. That would free up over $200 billion across large banks, though much of that can’t go straight into shareholder pockets.
Why it matters: The Fed argues this change will help banks act more freely in the $29 trillion Treasury market, especially during times of stress when liquidity can dry up. Chair Jerome Powell and Vice Chair Michelle Bowman support the move, claiming it reduces the chance the Fed will need to step in and backstop the market during chaos.
But not everyone is on board. Two Fed governors voted against the proposal, warning that weakening capital requirements could increase the chance of another banking crisis. Senator Elizabeth Warren called the leverage rule a critical safeguard and blasted the rollback as reckless, especially amid ongoing global uncertainty.
Markets were into it: Bank stocks have been on a tear. JPMorgan Chase ( $JPM) is up 47 percent in the past year. Morgan Stanley ( $MS), Goldman Sachs ( $GS), and Wells Fargo ( $WFC) aren’t far behind. Financials have been the best-performing sector in the S&P 500, rising nearly 25 percent over the last year.
Even the financial sector as a whole is on a heater, up almost 25% in the past year, outperforming every other sector in the S&P 500. Coinbase ( $COIN), boosted by new crypto legislation, has been the top performer, jumping over 65% in that stretch.
The bottom line? Wall Street is back in Washington’s good graces and the new rules could turn the banks into even bigger players in the bond market.
Calendar
On The Horizon

Tomorrow
The week ends with the Fed’s favorite number: Markets are bracing for Friday’s PCE report, the inflation gauge the Fed watches closest. April’s numbers showed cooling momentum, with core PCE dipping to 2.5%—its lowest in over a year.
Eyes on the print: Economists expect May’s core PCE to tick up slightly to 2.6%. A softer reading could fuel hopes for rate cuts and give markets a boost. And if it comes in below forecasts, don’t be surprised if Trump takes credit and takes it straight to social media.
NEWS
The Daily Rundown

💰 Republic offers tokenized access to private shares: Republic launched blockchain-based tokens linked to private firms like SpaceX and OpenAI. Priced from $50, the tokens offer performance exposure—without ownership rights.
🧃 Prime drink sales plunge in UK and U.S.: The viral hydration drink co-founded by Logan Paul and KSI saw U.K. sales drop 70% and U.S. sales fall 40%, prompting a strategic review after explosive early growth.
⛽ Middle East conflict unlikely to spike gas prices: Despite U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran, gas prices remain lower than a year ago thanks to U.S. oil output and steady Persian Gulf exports. Experts warn that a disruption at the Strait of Hormuz could still send prices soaring ($XLE).
💼 Monster and CareerBuilder file for bankruptcy: The once-dominant job platforms filed for Chapter 11 and plan to sell off assets. Unable to compete with LinkedIn and Indeed, the brands failed to adapt to a changing hiring landscape ($MSFT, $RHT).
🏃 UK to lose record number of millionaires: A British advisory firm predicts 16,500 millionaires will leave the UK in 2025, citing tax changes. Most are expected to relocate to the U.S. or UAE, with many not originally born in the UK ($GBPUSD).
👟 NBA’s top draft pick signs with New Balance: No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg signed with New Balance, giving the "dad shoe" brand a shot at sports relevance as it competes with Nike and Adidas for athlete endorsements.
💸 Only 1% of Americans pay for news: A Pew study shows that when readers hit a paywall, 53% look elsewhere, 32% give up, and only 1% pay. Most cite the abundance of free news as the reason—not price.
🎬 California approves $750M in film tax credits: Gov. Newsom’s plan more than doubles state incentives to keep movie and TV productions in California, amid competition from New York, Texas, and Canada.
📹 Ring adds AI-powered video alerts: Amazon’s Ring is rolling out “Video Descriptions,” which use AI to describe specific actions in alerts, such as “dog tearing paper towels,” improving accuracy over standard motion notices.
🥍 ESPN takes equity stake in Premier Lacrosse League: ESPN extended its broadcast deal through 2030 and acquired a 3% stake in the PLL, betting on growing viewership and Olympic buzz around the sport.
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