Trending Market News

Ford Motor is reporting second-quarter earnings after market close Tuesday, with Wall Street expecting a 2.3% decline in automotive revenue to $45.86 billion compared to the prior year. Investors are focused on cost management, warranty expenses, and updates on F-Series truck production issues caused by aluminum supplier disruptions.

• Analysts expect adjusted earnings per share to decline 2 cents year-over-year, with automotive revenue falling to $45.86 billion from $46.94 billion in Q2 2025
• Ford's F-Series truck production has been disrupted due to issues with aluminum supplier Novelis, which experienced two fires at a New York facility last month that halted operations
• Jefferies upgraded Ford stock to 'buy' from 'hold', viewing Q2 as a low point for volume with production expected to normalize and potential for raised guidance given healthy U.S. market conditions

Fast fashion retailer Shein disclosed in its Hong Kong IPO filing that the Federal Trade Commission is investigating its U.S. business, though the specific nature of the probe remains unclear. The company acknowledged that the investigation's outcome could require significant monetary payments that may materially impact its financial condition. This marks the first public disclosure of the FTC probe as Shein proceeds with its Hong Kong listing after abandoning IPO plans in the U.S. and London.

• Shein stated it is 'actively cooperating' with the FTC and may reach a settlement, but cannot predict the outcome or timing, which could occur in the near term
• The FTC typically investigates deceptive or unfair business practices including hidden fees, dark patterns, data privacy issues, and misleading pricing - areas potentially relevant to Shein's use of countdown timers, gamified discounts, and flash sales
• The company's Hong Kong IPO was recently approved after facing scrutiny over business practices that derailed earlier attempts to go public in the U.S. and London

eBay and three former executives will pay $55.7 million to settle a lawsuit filed by Massachusetts couple David and Ina Steiner, who were victims of a bizarre corporate harassment campaign in 2019. The campaign included sending cockroaches, fly larvae, and surveillance attempts after the couple's newsletter criticized eBay, resulting in seven former employees pleading guilty and receiving prison sentences up to 57 months.

• eBay will pay the couple $46.15 million and fund $6 million in charitable contributions; the company previously paid a $3 million criminal fine
• Former CEO Devin Wenig will pay $2 million to the Steiners and donate $1 million to a First Amendment charity, though he was never criminally charged
• The harassment campaign began after Wenig texted 'time to take her down' about Ina Steiner in August 2019, with employees traveling from California to Massachusetts to surveil the couple

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC) gradually resumed operations at its Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing (JASM) plant in Kumamoto prefecture after a 7.1-magnitude earthquake prompted precautionary worker evacuations on Tuesday. All personnel were confirmed safe, and post-earthquake structural inspections verified the facilities are secure, though detailed assessments continue.

• The 7.1-magnitude earthquake struck Kumamoto prefecture, forcing TSMC to evacuate workers from its JASM plant as a safety precaution
• Structural inspections confirmed the plant is safe and operations are gradually resuming, while construction work remains partially suspended due to potential aftershocks
• JASM's construction site was unaffected by the earthquake, with all personnel accounted for and no reported injuries

Visa plans to cut 7% of its workforce, eliminating approximately 2,600 jobs, according to a Bloomberg report citing a staff memo. The cuts aim to improve efficiency amid challenging conditions in the payments industry and will primarily impact technology and product teams.

• The layoffs represent 7% of Visa's total workforce, affecting roughly 2,600 employees
• Technology and product teams will bear the brunt of the workforce reduction
• The announcement comes as Visa prepares to report quarterly earnings results

GrubMarket, a food supply chain and delivery company, has confidentially filed for a U.S. initial public offering. The South San Francisco-based firm recently raised $50 million at a $4.5 billion pre-money valuation. Confidential filings allow companies to keep financial details private until closer to the listing date.

• GrubMarket raised $50 million in a recent funding round at a $4.5 billion pre-money valuation
• The confidential filing allows the company to prepare for its IPO away from public market scrutiny while keeping finances under wraps
• GrubMarket operates in the food supply chain and delivery sector

OPEC+ is likely to pause its gradual oil output increases after September 2026 for the remainder of the year, according to four sources. The organization needs additional discussions before determining output quotas for 2027. Neither OPEC nor Russian authorities have commented on the reported plans.

• The pause would halt output hikes for the final months of 2026, following September's planned increase
• Further talks are required among OPEC+ members before setting production quotas for 2027
• The decision reflects ongoing coordination challenges within the oil cartel regarding future supply levels

Major tech companies Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft face increased investor skepticism over massive AI infrastructure spending following Alphabet's stock sell-off after announcing higher 2026 capex plans. The three companies report earnings this week amid concerns about rising capital expenditures, declining cash flows, and uncertain returns on AI investments. Alphabet's negative market reaction signals a shift from Wall Street's previous enthusiasm for capex increases.

• Alphabet raised its 2026 capex forecast to $205 billion, triggering a stock sell-off that also pulled down Amazon, Meta, and Microsoft shares, with analysts expecting similar capex increases from the three companies reporting this week
• Amazon's long-term debt surged 81% to $119 billion from Dec. 31 to March 31, while Alphabet's debt rose 111% to $98 billion and turned cash flow negative in Q2 2026 for the first time
• Microsoft's free cash flow is expected to turn negative in Q4 for the first time since 2001, while Amazon remains in negative free cash flow territory after flipping red in Q1 2026

Pentair reported a 17% decline in second-quarter sales to $933 million, primarily due to approximately $170 million in inventory destocking in its pool segment driven by weak U.S. housing demand. Despite the disappointing results, the water technology firm announced it will acquire Taco Group Holdings for $1.4 billion, with the deal expected to close in Q4 2024.

• The pool segment, Pentair's most profitable vertical, suffered from larger-than-expected inventory corrections as retailers reduced stock amid weak housing market conditions
• Pentair reported adjusted earnings of $1.14 per share for Q2 but maintained its full-year guidance of $4.60 to $4.80 per share
• The $1.4 billion Taco Group acquisition will be integrated into Pentair's Water Solutions segment and continue operating under the Taco brand name

Airbus completed a 24-hour, 24-minute test flight covering 23,075 km from Melbourne to France, marking a key milestone for Qantas' Project Sunrise. The specially adapted A350-1000ULR aircraft is designed to enable nonstop flights between Australia and Europe starting in 2027, eliminating traditional stopovers on ultra-long-haul routes.

• The flight was the second-most-tracked ever on Flightradar24 with over 3.6 million followers, surpassing Boeing's 2005 distance record of 21,601.7 km
• Qantas has ordered 12 modified A350-1000ULR aircraft capable of connecting Sydney to London in 19-21 hours, with the first delivery scheduled for April 2027
• The aircraft features a specially designed extra fuel tank holding 20,000 liters and seats 238 passengers, with nonstop Sydney-London flights planned to launch in October 2027

Boeing reported a larger-than-expected second-quarter loss, driven by a $280 million charge on its delayed Air Force One program. Despite the loss, the company showed progress with revenue rising 8% to $24.56 billion and positive free cash flow of $631 million, beating expectations as it ramps up 737 Max production.

• Boeing posted a net loss of $428 million (67 cents per share), missing analyst estimates, primarily due to the Air Force One program charge with first delivery still expected in 2028
• Commercial aircraft deliveries increased 14% year-over-year to 171 planes, with 737 Max production ramping to 47 per month and further increases planned
• Free cash flow of $631 million significantly exceeded the $177 million cash burn analysts expected, marking improvement from the $200 million cash burn in the prior year quarter

Core Scientific signed an agreement with AMD to provide up to 2.5 gigawatts of data center capacity for the chip maker's AI system deployments. The deal expands AMD's infrastructure capabilities to support its customers' artificial intelligence operations.

• AMD will secure up to 2.5 gigawatts of data center capacity from Core Scientific
• The infrastructure will be used to support customer deployments of AMD's AI systems
• The partnership strengthens AMD's position in the competitive AI chip and infrastructure market

British drugmaker GSK announced a £400 million ($531 million) investment in the UK over three years, including a new R&D center in Cambridge. The move, led by new CEO Luke Miels, aims to accelerate drug development and follows similar commitments by rival AstraZeneca earlier this year.

• The new 300,000 square foot Cambridge facility will accommodate over 1,000 scientists focused on cancer and respiratory drug research
• GSK will close its Stevenage R&D site by 2029 and upgrade its Ware facility as part of the restructuring
• The investment follows April's finalization of policies allowing UK medicine prices to align with U.S. pricing under Trump administration policies

PayPal raised its 2026 profit forecast and outlined cost-saving measures through 2029 as it works to convince investors of its value following a reported $53 billion takeover offer that the board rejected as too low. The turnaround efforts come as the company struggles to regain momentum after its valuation plummeted from $360 billion in 2021, pressured by fading pandemic-driven growth and intensifying competition from Apple and Google.

• PayPal expects to save $400 million in costs by year-end and raised full-year adjusted profit forecast to $5.38 per share, above analyst expectations
• Second-quarter results showed total payment volume increased 9% to $486.4 billion, but operating margin contracted 248 basis points to 17.4% from 19.8% a year ago
• The company forecasts low single-digit decline in third-quarter adjusted profit as it pursues organizational restructuring under new CEO Enrique Lores, who replaced the previous chief after the board cited insufficient pace of change

Coca-Cola raised its annual revenue and profit forecasts on July 28, driven by strong demand for zero sugar beverages and its fairlife milk brand. Increased consumption during the FIFA World Cup and strategic pricing adjustments helped second-quarter comparable revenue rise 6% to $13.37 billion, beating analyst estimates of $13.16 billion.

• The company increased its 2026 organic revenue growth forecast to about 5%, up from a prior target of 4% to 5% growth
• Zero sugar sodas and trademark Coca-Cola beverages showed resilient demand despite broader softening in spending from lower-income U.S. consumers
• Strategic initiatives including price increases, smaller pack sizes for cost-conscious consumers, and investments in ready-to-drink teas and fairlife milk contributed to sales growth

Amazon is overhauling its AI strategy by phasing out most of its flagship Nova AI models, including Premier, Omni, Reel, and Canvas, according to a Business Insider report. The company is redirecting resources toward developing a new frontier model led by researcher Pieter Abbeel, expected to debut at Amazon's re:Invent conference later this year. This shift follows Amazon's struggle to generate buzz around Nova models compared to rivals like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google.

• Amazon is deprecating its high-end Premier and Omni models, along with Reel video-generation and Canvas image-generation models, while maintaining some Nova models like Nova 2 Lite and Nova 2 Sonic
• The strategy shift comes days after job cuts in Amazon's artificial general intelligence (AGI) group as the company focuses on 'initiatives that matter most for customers'
• Amazon's AGI efforts have experienced significant turnover, with several top executives departing over the past year since the division was consolidated under cloud executive Peter DeSantis in December

Coca-Cola is set to report second-quarter earnings on Tuesday before the market opens, with analysts expecting earnings per share and revenue of $13.16 billion. The beverage giant's stock has outperformed the S&P 500 this year, rising 19%, driven by strong demand from high-income consumers willing to pay premium prices.

• Coca-Cola has a market cap of nearly $360 billion and has benefited from premium product demand, unlike rival PepsiCo which saw North American beverage volume fall 4% in Q2
• The company disclosed a ransomware attack on July 17 targeting its Fairlife dairy brand, temporarily suspending production, though operations have mostly resumed and no material financial impact is expected
• Wall Street expects revenue of $13.16 billion for the quarter as the company continues to show resilience amid economic uncertainty

UPS reported second-quarter earnings that exceeded Wall Street expectations and raised its full-year 2026 guidance. The company posted revenue of $22.8 billion versus the expected $21.81 billion, with net income of $604 million. This marks a significant performance shift as UPS executes its turnaround strategy focused on automation and long-term growth.

• UPS raised full-year 2026 guidance to consolidated revenue of $91.2 billion and adjusted diluted EPS of approximately $7.22 per share
• Second-quarter net income reached $604 million, or 71 cents per share, beating analyst expectations
• The company is implementing a turnaround strategy centered on enhancing network automation and expanding into growing markets

Taiwan prosecutors detained an Nvidia employee as part of an ongoing investigation into illegal exports of Super Micro AI servers equipped with U.S. export-controlled Nvidia chips to China. The detention follows earlier rounds of searches in this probe, which has already resulted in multiple arrests since May. The case highlights enforcement of U.S. export controls imposed since 2022 that prohibit sale of advanced semiconductors to mainland China.

• The suspect, surnamed Chang, was detained on July 24 after prosecutors determined he posed a flight risk and could destroy evidence or collude with accomplices
• This is the third round of searches in the Super Micro investigation; previous rounds in May and June resulted in five detentions of other suspects including Super Micro Taiwan workers
• The U.S. Justice Department charged three people in March, including a Super Micro co-founder, with smuggling at least $2.5 billion worth of U.S. AI technology to China in violation of export controls

Barclays reported a 17% increase in first-half profit to £6.1 billion, exceeding analyst expectations of £5.94 billion. The British bank's strong performance was driven by robust equities trading revenues and deal fees, mirroring trends seen at Wall Street peers.

• Profit before tax for January-June reached £6.1 billion, beating the analyst consensus of approximately £5.94 billion
• Strong equities trading revenues and deal fees were the primary drivers of the profit increase, following similar performance patterns at major Wall Street banks
• The bank announced a fresh share buyback program alongside the earnings results