📈 ESG backlash

JPMorgan Chase, BlackRock drop out of UN climate alliance, Rubio urges SEC to block Shein IPO on conditions, House won’t pass stopgap to avoid shutdown, Bezos sells more than $2B in Amazon stock for third time this month, and younger generations gained more wealth than older groups since 2019


Author

Smart Owl
February 16, 2024

Good morning.

The Fast Five → JPMorgan Chase, BlackRock drop out of UN climate alliance, Rubio urges SEC to block Shein IPO on conditions, House won’t pass stopgap to avoid shutdown, Bezos sells more than $2B in Amazon stock for third time this month, and younger generations gained more wealth than older groups since 2019


Calendar:

  • Today: Producer Price Index (PPI), 8:30a ET

  • Monday, 2/19: President’s Day (market closed)

Your 5-minute briefing for Friday, February 16:

BEFORE THE OPEN

As of market close 2/15/2024.

PRE-MARKET

MARKETS

  • US stocks rose, with the S&P closing at a new record high, as investors overlooked a higher-than-expected decline in January retail sales

  • The Dow led indices with a 0.91% gain

  • Asian stocks rose despite Japan’s economy contracting for a second straight quarter due to weak domestic demand; Germany has overtaken Japan’s position as the third-largest economy

EARNINGS

  • Coinbase shares jumped ~11% after beating Q4 earnings and revenue estimates thanks to soaring crypto prices; Coinbase reported its first profit in two years (link)

  • Applied Materials shares rose 11% after beating Q1 earnings expectations and forecasting Q2 sales that show a chip rebound (link)

  • John Deere shares fell 5% after cutting its annual earnings forecast; the farming equipment seller beat Q1 analyst earnings and revenue expectations (link)

  • What we're watching this week:

    • Today: Cinemark

  • Full calendar here

NEWS BRIEFING

JPMorgan Chase says its in-house sustainability efforts are sufficient to fight global warming

In a letter sent Thursday to SEC Chair Gary Gensler, Rubio wrote that Shein’s recent decision to request approval from Beijing for a prospective US IPO “raises serious doubts” about the accuracy of the company’s filings.

  • OpenAI develops tool to create realistic AI videos (link)

  • SVB is in hiring mode to defend its turf a year after collapse (link)

  • Ford CEO tells Wall Street to forget Tesla, says ‘Pro’ business is the future of the auto industry (link)

  • House won’t pass stopgap to avoid shutdown, key Republican says (link)

  • Jeff Bezos sells more than $2 billion in Amazon stock for third time this month (link)

  • Younger generations gained more wealth than older groups since 2019, study says (link)

  • Nvidia holdings disclosure pumps up shares of small AI companies (link)

  • Nike plans to cut about 2% of jobs (link)

  • Meta encourages advertisers to ditch iPhone in latest spat with Apple (link)

  • Google opens Paris research hub as France seeks bigger AI role (link)

  • Red Sea attack-fueled ocean freight inflation is starting to ease on key global trade routes (link)

  • US shoppers cut back in January (link)

  • TikTok moves ahead as the place for campaign chatter (link)

  • Wells Fargo resolves regulatory complaint at heart of 2016 fake-account scandal (link)

CRYPTO

  • Banks are pushing US regulators to change crypto guidance (link)

  • MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin bet crossed $4B in profit (link)

You Can Sponsor this Newsletter details here.​

BULLISH BITES

đŸ”„ The ‘it’ list: Y Combinator lists 20 new startup ideas it will fund.

đŸŽ„ Game-changer: OpenAI’s new software lets you create realistic video by simply typing a descriptive sentence.

🌉 Comeback: Don't believe the haters—San Francisco is back.

đŸ˜« 'Like a torture session': Apple Vision Pro users are returning their $3.5K headsets.

DAILY SHARES

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