From checkout lanes to blockchain?
Walmart, Amazon, and Expedia exploring stablecoins? Major retailers are looking into issuing or using stablecoins to streamline payments, cut fees, and accelerate settlement—especially across borders according to the WSJ. Their next move may hinge on the Genius Act, a bill aiming to create a clear U.S. regulatory framework for stablecoins. Source : wsj
Amazon will be the first company ever to spend more than $100 billion on capital expenditures in a single year.
More than 50% of that CapEx will be spent on tech infrastructure. How much more runway does AWS have to grow? $AMZN Source: finchat
Goldman: Hedge funds net bought US Info Tech stocks for a 3rd straight week and every day this week, driven by risk-on flows with long buys outpacing short sales (1.6 to 1)
It’s worth nothing that (1) the recent streak of buying in US Info Tech came after the sector was net sold in 10 of the previous 12 weeks, and (2) this week’s notional long buying in the sector was the largest in more than 10 years (+1.6 z score), pointing to a positive turn in sentiment. Source: Goldman, Neil Sethi @neilksethi
Absolute explosion for D-Wave Quantum $QBTS this month.
Multiple God Candles and a New All-Time High 📈📈 Source: Barchart
All data centers combined use as mich power as some of the world's largest econnomies
Source: IMF
📢 The return of capital is back in focus
➡️ The Cap return story is more impressive now than ever. Companies managing to invest in growth AND return capital. Some even protecting the margin by lowering OPEX. Best of 2 worlds or even triple positive whammy. 1. Microsoft remained steady at $3.5 billion. 2. Meta ramped up to $13.4 billion (from $0 last quarter). 3. Google executed $15.1 billion in buybacks and raised its program to $70 billion. 4. And the standout: Apple repurchased $25 billion and authorized an additional $100 billion. Source: The Market Ear, Bloomberg
Nasdaq $QQQ has now fully recovered from the losses sustained after Liberation Day
Source: Barchart
🔴 BREAKING >>>
According to Reuters, the Trump administration is working on changes to a Biden-era rule that would limit global access to AI chips, including possibly doing away with its splitting the world into tiers that help determine how many advanced semiconductors a country can obtain, three sources familiar with the matter said. The sources said the plans were still under discussion and warned they could change. But if enacted, removing the tiers could open the door to using U.S. chips as an even more powerful negotiating tool in trade talks.
