S&P 500 – 6,445.76 (+1.13%)
Dow Jones – 44,458.61 (+1.39%)
NASDAQ – 21,681.90 (+1.10%)

• Stocks rise on softer inflation: The S&P 500 (+1.13% to 6,445.76) and Nasdaq Composite (+1.39% to 21,681.90) closed at new all-time highs Tuesday, while the Dow added 483 points (+1.10%) to 44,458.61.
• CPI Holds Steady: July CPI came in at 2.7% YoY, signaling resilience in the U.S. economy. Gas prices dropped 2.2% from June and nearly 10% from last year, while grocery prices slipped 0.1%, offsetting tariff-driven increases in shoes, furniture, and coffee.
• Fed Outlook: Following the CPI release, odds of a September Fed rate cut rose to ~90% (from 86%). Short-term Treasury yields dipped, and the dollar softened.
• Trump Policies: President Trump extended China’s tariff deadline by 90 days and is exploring reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug.
• Paramount Skydance Deal: Newly merged Paramount and Skydance secured exclusive U.S. streaming rights to UFC in a $7.7B, seven-year deal starting 2026.
• Nvidia & AMD Licenses: U.S. Commerce approved Nvidia’s H20 AI chip exports to China; AMD’s MI308 chips also approved, with 15% of sales revenue going to the U.S. government. Nvidia hit its 19th record high of the year, up 36% YTD.
• Spirit Aviation Warning: Spirit Aviation Holdings plunged over 40% after warning it may not survive the next 12 months without a turnaround due to weak leisure travel demand, overcapacity, and steep pricing pressure.
• Perplexity AI’s Big Swing: AI startup Perplexity AI made a $34.5B all-cash offer for Google’s Chrome browser—over double its own $14B valuation—to tap into Chrome’s 3B+ user base.
• AST SpaceMobile Surge: Shares jumped after plans to launch 45–60 satellites by 2026, with five launches by Q1 2026.
• Beats: Mercury Systems (Q4: $0.47 EPS vs $0.22 est.), Hillenbrand (Q3: $0.51 EPS vs $0.50 est.), On Holding, AMC (+26% Q2 attendance), Albemarle (China lithium mine shutdown news).
• Upgrades: Palo Alto Networks (Overweight on bookings growth), Chipotle (Overweight on improved risk/reward), Freeport-McMoRan (Overweight on copper tariff upside).
• Insider Buys: Sonos rose after CEO purchased 92,300 shares.
• Strong Growth: Circle Internet Group (+53% quarterly revenue).
• Weakness: BigBear.ai (miss & guidance cut), Monday.com (earnings drop), Wendy’s (weak guidance), Under Armour (guidance cut, tariff headwind), C3.ai (warned of earnings miss).
• Other Movers: Intel rose after “constructive” Trump meeting; CoreWeave gained ahead of earnings; Tesla up on tariff extension; Micron rallied on higher guidance; Apple slipped after Musk threatened legal action over OpenAI integration.
• Bitcoin Rally: Briefly hit $122K before settling near $120K amid strong investor momentum.
• Bullish IPO: Crypto exchange backed by Peter Thiel raised IPO target to ~$5B valuation.
• Gold: Gold prices inched higher Tuesday as U.S. inflation data reinforced expectations for Fed rate cuts. Spot gold rose 0.1% to $3,347.34/oz at 1:50 p.m. EDT.
• Oil: Crude prices slipped ahead of U.S. inventory data and as traders eyed seasonal demand slowdown in September. Brent closed at $66.12 (-0.77%); WTI at $63.17 (-1.24%).
• Crypto: Terraform Labs founder Do Kwon pleaded guilty to U.S. fraud charges tied to a $40B crypto collapse. Trump’s crypto ventures have generated $2.4B since 2022. 
• Apple Potential Lawsuit: The iPhone maker faces a fresh challenge from Elon Musk, who is threatening “immediate legal action” unless Apple removes OpenAI’s ChatGPT from the top spot on its App Store. The dispute flared Monday when Musk sounded off on his social platform, X.
• Looking Ahead. Aug 13: Cisco earnings. Aug 14: July PPI; earnings from Deere, JD.com, Tapestry, Applied Materials. Aug 15: July retail sales, industrial production, preliminary Aug consumer sentiment. Markets watching gold, oil, and Friday’s Trump–Putin meeting on Ukraine.

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“Apple is acting to block any AI firm other than OpenAI from reaching the top spot, violating antitrust laws.”  Tesla CEO Elon Musk 

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Notable Stocks

• Microsoft (MSFT)
• Circle Internet Group (CRCL)
• Tesla (TSLA)
• Apple (AAPL)
• Nvidia (NVDA)

Weekly Notables

Perplexity AI Stuns Tech World With $34.5B All-Cash Play for Google’s Chrome Browser

Perplexity AI has made a surprise $34.5B all-cash bid for Google’s Chrome browser, aiming to tap its 3B+ users to boost AI search ambitions. Backed by Nvidia and SoftBank, the offer comes amid U.S. pressure for a Chrome divestiture, but analysts expect Google to fight any sale in court for years.

Spirit Aviation Plunges 40% as Cash Crisis Threatens Survival

Spirit Aviation Holdings (FLYY), the parent company of struggling Spirit Airlines, saw its shares collapse more than 40% Tuesday after warning it may not survive the next 12 months without a turnaround. The company said weak domestic leisure travel demand, oversupply of seats, and steep pricing pressures in the second quarter have drained liquidity faster than expected.

Earnings Spotlight: Cisco Systems

Networking giant Cisco Systems is scheduled to announce its results for the fourth quarter of Fiscal 2025 after the market closes on Wednesday, August 13. CSCO stock has risen 19% year-to-date, backed by optimism about artificial intelligence-led demand for infrastructure and cybersecurity solutions. Wall Street expects Cisco to report earnings per share (EPS) of $0.98, reflecting a 12.6% year-over-year growth. Revenue is estimated to rise 7.2% to $14.62 billions.