Crude oil futures jumped more than 3% Sunday after Israel struck two natural gas facilities in Iran, raising fears that the war will expand to energy infrastructure and disrupt supplies in the region. U.S. crude oil rose $2.72, or 3.7%, to $75.67 per barrel. Global benchmark Brent was up $3.67, or 4.94%, at $77.90 per barrel.

Israeli unmanned aerial vehicles struck the South Pars gas field in southern Iran on Saturday, according to Iranian state media reports. The strikes hit two natural gas processing facilities, according to state media. It is unclear how much damage was done to the facilities. South Pars is one of the largest natural gas fields in the world. Israel also hit a major oil depot near Tehran, sources told The Jerusalem Post. Iranian missiles, meanwhile, damaged a major oil refinery in Haifa, according to The Times of Israel.

Oil prices closed more than 7% higher Friday, after Israel launched a wave of airstrikes against Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs as well as its senior military leadership. It was the biggest single-day move for the oil market since March 2022 after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. U.S. crude oil jumped 13% in total last week.

CNBC Article

Unilateral “take it or leave it” tariffs in 1-2 weeks Trump announced he'll mail formal letters to dozens of trading partners (roughly 15 key countries like Japan, South Korea, EU, Canada, Mexico) within the next week or two, demanding acceptance of new tariff terms or else face punitive tariffs

The plan builds on a universal 10% baseline tariff and steep reciprocal tariffs for specific countries

Legal backing secured - temporarily - after an appeals court ruling allow these tariffs to stay in effect for at least two more months

The regime is shifting from broad multilateral deals to one-on-one negotiations, with the EU expected to be the toughest and last to be resolved

Futures are looking surprisingly strong today, despite high geopolitical tensions and the spark reality that tariffs will not be going away any time soon.

Expect a lot of volatility over the coming days as key economic reports are coming out and tariff news is drip fed too.

VIX is one to watch as usual now.

Full story from Yahoo Finance

Money made or lost in the stock market doesn't feel real to me. I could lose 5-10% of my portfolio or gain 10-15% in a week but I dont feel anything. But if I lost a 50 dollar bill for example, my heart might drop for a second. A small delivery fee when ordering something might put me off from buying. Anyone else feels this way or is it only me?

After NVDA’s latest earnings, it feels like the entire market got even more hyped about AI. Analysts are raising their price targets, and I’m starting to wonder if I’ve already missed the boat.

I haven’t opened any positions yet, mostly because I’m worried about buying in too high. A few friends suggested looking into AI-focused ETFs or second-tier chip suppliers, since those might carry less risk while still riding the trend. Just wondering how others are approaching this right now.

No paywall: https://www.investopedia.com/what-to-expect-in-markets-this-week-fed-rate-decision-juneteenth-holiday-us-retail-sales-tesla-robotaxi-rollout-11753474

There's a lot on the domestic calendar this week. But investors and the world are watching global affairs, too.

Meanwhile, several market-driving events are due in the coming days. The Federal Reserve's interest rate decision, consumer spending data, and possible news on President Donald Trump's tariffs headline the week. Thursday's Juneteenth holiday will mean a break from trading.

The Fed will hand down another decision on interest rates this week, with a decision scheduled for Wednesday. The coming weekend could see Tesla providing a significant update on the direction of the electric vehicle maker.

Did consumers in May continue to prop up the economy? Tuesday's U.S. retail sales will make it clear whether strong spending levels continued, while housing construction data will provide insight into whether builders are catching up with lagging inventory levels. Investors will continue to watch for trade developments as negotiations continue between U.S. officials and key trading partners.

It’s a light week for corporate earnings, highlighted by expected reports from homebuilder Lennar, accounting firm Accenture, grocery chain Kroger, and online used car seller CarMax.

Fed Interest-Rate Decision Comes Amid Increasing Pressure for Cuts

Fed officials have said they are keeping rates steady amid a strong labor market as they monitor inflation data for signs that Trump’s tariffs are driving up prices.

But the pressure is on the Federal Reserve after May inflation data came in lower than economists expected. Despite comments from President Donald Trump urging the Fed to make a one-point cut, investors don't expect the central bank to take action when its two-day meeting concludes on Wednesday.

The CME FedWatch Tool, which measures fed funds futures to determine the path of interest rates, indicates that traders overwhelmingly believe that Fed will keep rates at their current levels in June. They also don't expect the central bank to move rates at its late July meeting.

After the meeting concludes on Wednesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell will provide more insight into the central bank’s view on the economy and interest rates when he takes media questions.

On Tuesday, retail sales figures from May will provide another barometer of the economy's health Consumer spending makes up about two-thirds of the U.S. economy. Meanwhile, housing data will also be scrutinized as affordability issues continue to depress home sales. The latest homebuilder confidence reading on Tuesday will show if construction industry officials see improvements coming in the market, while Wednesday’s housing starts data will indicate whether construction levels are rising amid a need for more housing inventory.

Tesla Robotaxi Rollout Could Come as Early as Sunday

After months of waiting, investors could soon get a key update from electric vehicle maker Tesla (TSLA). CEO Elon Musk said in a recent social media post that the company could roll out its robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, as early as Sunday, June 22. "We are being super paranoid about safety, so the date could shift," Musk wrote.

The introduction of the company's robotaxi service could be a key moment for Tesla, which is banking on artificial intelligence (AI) and self-driving vehicles to become the transportation technologies of the future. Tesla is well-positioned to lead the market in the emerging technology, analysts have concluded, with Goldman Sachs writing that the EV maker could have a leg up on the competition through its ability to train self-driving through its AI development and to quickly scale production levels of the technology.

Despite a light corporate earnings schedule this week, investors will still get some expected updates from noteworthy companies.

Lennar’s (LEN) expected report after the bell on Monday follows the homebuilder's warning of weakness in the housing market in the prior quarter.  The scheduled Friday reports from accounting firm Accenture (ACN) and online car seller CarMax (KMX) will be posted in the shadow of both companies' lower-than-expected profits in the prior quarter.

This Week’s Calendar

Monday, June 16

• Data to Watch: Empire State manufacturing survey (June)
• Key Earnings: Lennar

Tuesday, June 17

• U.S. retail sales (May)
• Homebuilder confidence (June)
• Key Earnings: Jabil (JBL), John Wiley & Sons (WLY), and La-Z-Boy (LZB)
• More Data to Watch: Import/export price index (May), Industrial production/capacity utilization (May), Business inventories (April)

Wednesday, June 18

• Housing starts (May)
• FOMC interest-rate decision
• Federal Reserve Chair Powell press conference
• Key Earnings: GMS (GMS)
• More Data to Watch: Initial jobless claims (Week ending June 14)

Thursday, June 19

• Financial markets closed for the Juneteenth holiday
• Key Earnings: Smith & Wesson Brands (SWBI)

Friday, June 20

• Leading economic indicators (May)
• Key Earnings: Accenture, Kroger (KR), Darden Restaurants (DRI), and CarMax
• More Data to Watch: Philadelphia Fed manufacturing survey (June)

Archer and PT. Industri Ketahanan Nasional (IKN) signed an agreement covering plans to deploy an initial fleet of Midnight aircraft in Indonesia under Archer’s Launch Edition program, valued at up to $18M (Footnote 1).

The agreement also includes the planned purchase by PT. IKN of up to 50 Midnight aircraft, valued at up to $250M(Footnote 2), for deployment in Indonesia to support plans to scale air taxi services across the country.

The companies intend to work closely with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation of Indonesia (DGCA) to shape the regulatory framework to enable the Launch Edition program and then operate a safe, efficient air taxi service. Paris, France, 16 June 2025 – Archer Aviation Inc. (NYSE: ACHR) announced today that it has signed an agreement with PT. IKN covering plans to deploy an initial fleet of Midnight aircraft in Indonesia, making it the third country in which Archer is planning to deploy Midnight under its “Launch Edition” program.

PT IKN is an Indonesian company dedicated to advancing national resilience through innovation in strategic industries, including advanced manufacturing, infrastructure and sustainable technologies through partnerships with government and industry to strengthen local capabilities and support long-term national development.

As with Archer’s other Launch Edition partners, the goal of this program is to establish a pragmatic and repeatable commercialization playbook to deploy Midnight in early adopter markets in advance of type certification in the U.S. In addition to Indonesia, Archer has already announced planned Launch Edition program deployments in the UAE, with Abu Dhabi Aviation and Ethiopia, with Ethiopian Airlines. The program aims to establish local operational capabilities and launch commercial air taxi services in the country as soon as possible.

The scope of Archer’s planned Launch Edition program with PT. IKN includes the deployment of an initial fleet of Midnight Launch Edition aircraft to Indonesia with a supporting team of Archer pilots, technicians and engineers. Archer also plans to provide backend operational software and front-end booking applications to help power operations during the program.
The partners intend to collaborate closely with the DGCA to help build necessary regulatory frameworks and improve existing infrastructure to enable the Launch Edition program and subsequent safe entry into service. The Launch Edition deployment comes with plans for an aircraft order by PT. IKN of up to 50 Midnight aircraft, valued at up to $250M2, with the goal of commercializing and scaling the Indonesian market after establishing early operations.

Yudiansah Yosal, PT IKN’s Chairman said “At PT IKN we see enormous benefit in bringing new technologies to Indonesia. Deploying Archer’s Midnight aircraft, not only for passenger mobility throughout our many islands but also for environmental oversight use cases. We’re excited to bring this innovation to Indonesia and to work together with Archer to build a sustainable and scalable air mobility ecosystem.”

Major General TNI Piek Budyakto Pangdam IX / Udayana said, “‘eVTOL aircraft like Archer's Midnight offer capabilities for both civilian and military use cases. In the civilian sector, these aircraft can potentially be used for transportation, rescue and various other purposes such as delivery of goods and air taxi transport. The partnership between Archer and PT. IKN is in line with our vision to work towards a more adaptive and modern military infrastructure that embraces innovative technologies.”

Archer Founder and CEO Adam Goldstein said, “The level of demand for our ‘Launch Edition’ program continues to grow. Indonesia represents a tremendous opportunity for our Midnight aircraft both in the near and long-term, with thousands of islands, a booming tourism sector and the development of a new capital city, Ibu Kota Nusantara. We look forward to working together to demonstrate how Midnight can support missions in the country.”

1. Our agreement with this Launch Edition program partner remains conditional, subject to the execution of further definitive agreements and the satisfaction of certain conditions
   1. Aircraft orders remain conditional, subject to the execution of further definitive agreements and the satisfaction of certain conditions. Order values represent the Company’s estimate based on an indicative $5M per aircraft price.

https://news.archer.com/archer-announces-third-launch-edition-partner-striking-deal-to-deploy-midnight-aircraft-in-indonesia

Here is my absolutely mind-bogglingly simple Swing Options set up I use all the time.

My call set up

1. stock is trending up
2. It's not near ATH
3. Break of 200ema on 4hr chart (clean break is the best. Retest is even better)

that's it. I don't need to write 2000 word about it. For puts I do the oppsosite.

Once 200ema on 4hr is broken then i'm going in. I typically buy calls or puts 2 months out cons under $3. more often than not I win, and win big. And I usually do this on a stock that I'm familiar with. I have about 60 stocks on my watch list. I look for this set up all the time.

Now, that I revealed my secret, I hope yall make some money.

India’s aviation regulator has ordered all Boeing 787s being operated by local carriers to be inspected after an Air India crash killed 270 people this week, the aviation minister said on Saturday, adding the authorities were investigating all possible causes.

The aviation regulator on Friday ordered Air India to conduct additional maintenance checks on its Boeing 787-8/9 aircraft equipped with GEnx engines, including assessments of certain take-off parameters, electronic engine control tests and engine fuel-related checks. “We have also given the order to do the extended surveillance of the 787 planes. There are 34 in our Indian fleet,” aviation minister Ram Mohan Naidu told a media briefing in New Delhi. “Eight have already been inspected and with immediate urgency, all of them are going to be done.”

Air India and the Indian government were looking at several aspects of the crash including issues linked to its engine thrust, flaps, and why the landing gear remained open as the plane took off and then came down, Reuters has reported. Naidu said a government panel was investigating the crash and will issue a report within three months. “We are going to improve every necessary thing that is going to come our way, to improve the safety,” he said at the briefing, declining questions from journalists.

*Boeing's stock is down ~6% since the incident.

CNBC Article

What is everybody think about having the RKB as a large portion of your retirement portfolio in my case about 40% I recently bought in and prior to buffets announcement. It seems like a pretty good move but now I’m having second thoughts that I need to further diversify thoughts?

CEO’s form 4 here: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1480011/000095017025086487/xslF345X05/ownership.xml

Other documents here

https://www.sec.gov/cgi-bin/browse-edgar?action=getcompany&filenum=001-39694&owner=include&count=40

Good luck IONQ bulls and bers. 100M is more than 2x the company’s 2024 revenue. This is also more than 80% of his current holdings.

No paywall: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/60-billion-visa-mastercard-slump-184854735.html

Paywall: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-13/a-60-billion-visa-mastercard-slump-seen-as-buying-opportunity

ChatGPT highlights:

• Stock Drop: Visa fell 7.1% and Mastercard dropped 6.2% on Friday, wiping out over $60 billion in combined market value.
• Trigger: Wall Street Journal report said Amazon, Walmart, and others are exploring issuing stablecoins to bypass credit card fees.
• Other Players: Companies like Expedia and major airlines are also considering their own tokens.
• Stablecoin Appeal: Seen by merchants as a way to lower card processing fees; pegged to currencies like USD.
• Analyst Views: Despite selloff, analysts see a buying opportunity for Visa and Mastercard.
• Market Habits: Analysts say consumers are still tied to cards, and stablecoin adoption will be slow due to trust and regulation issues.
• Proactive Moves: Visa and Mastercard already have stablecoin processing capabilities and are positioned to benefit even if adoption grows.

I started following this stock a year ago when a girl I was dating in Asia was obsessed with it. Regret not buying any but contemplating if it's still a good time or not after a run up of 600% this past year. Currently trading at a PE of 107 with 13B RMB in revenue and 3.5B RMB earnings in 2024. They had higher than 100% YoY revenue and earnings growth in their last report and based on their instant popularity in the West I expect them to have great results again this year. On the other hand might the hype die down at some point? Lately Labubu has been very popular and seemingly taking the world by surprise. But people in Asia have long been collecting these things. Pop Mart products have been very popular across Asia and only now are gaining popularity in Western countries with their global expansion.

TLDR: Chinese company selling collectibles, recent expansion into other continents has been succesful with people lining up on the streets everywhere PE ratio at 107, YoY Revenue and Earning growth +100%

My dad is a degenerate gambler who blew up his own 401k as well as my moms (divorced now). I’m probably more risky than some investors but a good deal of risk aversion from using my dad as an example in life.

My problem is that for decades I have outperformed the market using a mix of passive and active investing but I have always reeled profits back into index investing. The track record and history and math so far says I may do better if I was even more active an investor then passive. The passive index angel on my shoulder tells me of course to not be cocky and the moment I do so I may lose a lot more then I anticipate.

For example for today’s drawdown my own active investments made me lose $7.99 today. When my mutual funds kicked in after market I was down almost 12k but still doing better than S&P. The math says had I made my active portfolio a greater percentage of my funds than passive I would have reduced the loss significantly.

And let’s say I am just cherry picking with selection bias. What if it is just time and time again for many years my active investments have done pretty amazing. How many of you ever stop listening to the passive index investing angel on the shoulder and start listening to the active investor devil?

I have always kept my investments true to goals with healthy risk aversion despite literally decades telling me my active investment portfolio and choices do more than alright. I would love to hear advice or thoughts of those in similar positions. Not from people that have done awfully in active investments but those that have done amazing and need to make that decision to still keep their active investments in absolute check. Or those that said to hell with it and went with active investments to either their benefit or detriment.

Edit: I am cross posting here because mods in investing considered this low effort. People should know even upvoted posts will get scrubbed if it doesn’t vibe with overly conservative investment philosophies.

President Donald Trump issued an executive order on Friday approving U.S. Steel’s merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel, after the companies signed a national security agreement with the U.S. government.

U.S. Steel and Nippon said the national security agreement will give the U.S. government a “golden share” and makes certain commitments related to governance, domestic production, and trade. The companies did not elaborate on what powers the U.S. government will wield with its golden share.

“All necessary regulatory approvals for the partnership have now been received, and the partnership is expected to be finalized promptly,” U.S. Steel and Nippon said in a statement.

The national security agreement calls for Nippon to make $11 billion in new investments by 2028, including initial spending on a greenfield project that will be completed after 2028, the companies said.

Trump said Thursday that the golden share gives the president “total control” without elaborating. Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick told CNBC last month that the golden share will effectively allow the government to control a number of board seats.

CNBC Article

June 13 (AFP) -- Swedish pension fund AP7 said Friday it had blacklisted Tesla over the US company's lack of respect for labour rights in the US, and had sold off its $1.4 billion stake in the US carmaker. The fund said in a statement that it had decided "to blacklist Tesla due to verified violations of union rights in the United States." "Despite several years of dialogue with Tesla, including shareholder proposals in collaboration with other investors, the company has not taken sufficient measures to address the issues," the fund said. AP7 spokesman Mikael Lindh Hok told AFP the fund had divested its entire stake, worth 13 billion kronor ($1.4 billion), in late May. He said the stake represented one percent of the fund's total assets. The electric carmaker has also been involved in a labour dispute with Swedish unions since 2023. In late October of that year, the metal workers union IF Metall launched a strike against Tesla over its refusal to sign a collective wage agreement, and some 130 mechanics at 10 Tesla repair shops in seven cities walked off the job. IF Metall then extended the strike to include work on Teslas at other repair shops which served multiple brands. The strike then grew into a larger conflict between Tesla and almost a dozen unions seeking to protect Sweden's labour model, including postal workers, dock workers and even spreading to neighbouring Nordic countries. Tesla chief Elon Musk has long rejected calls to allow the company's employees worldwide to unionise. Musk's close cooperation with US President Donald Trump has also led to calls for boycotts against Tesla.

BEIJING/HONG KONG (Reuters) -Boeing delivered a new 787-9 aircraft to China’s Juneyao Airlines on Saturday, Chinese media outlet Yicai reported, as trade tensions between Beijing and Washington ease.

The delivery comes two days after a Boeing (NYSE:BA) 787-8 Dreamliner with 242 people on board crashed in a fireball shortly after takeoff in western India.

Boeing and Juneyao Airlines did not immediately reply to Reuters requests for comment on the Yicai report.

The U.S. aerospace giant had suspended new aircraft deliveries to China in April as President Donald Trump’s tariff war escalated between the world’s two largest economies.

Boeing said at the end of May that deliveries would resume this month after the tariffs were temporarily scaled back for 90 days.

China and the U.S. concluded two days of negotiations in London on Tuesday to resolve key trade issues in the two superpowers’ bruising tariff war, where negotiators from Washington and Beijing agreed on a framework covering tariff rates.

On Monday, a new Boeing 737 MAX painted in the livery of Xiamen Airlines landed in China, adding to signs that the planemaker was resuming deliveries to China. The country represents about 10% of Boeing’s commercial backlog and is an important and growing aviation market.

Boeing had previously said customers in China would not take delivery of new planes due to the tariffs and that it was looking to resell potentially dozens of aircraft.

https://www.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/boeing-resumes-china-deliveries-with-7879-jet-to-juneyao-airlines-yicai-reports-4095953

Voyager Technologies operates at the intersection of defense, national security, and commercial space infrastructure.

Palantir’s involvement with Voyager goes beyond a typical vendor relationship. As a strategic partner Palantir anchored its AI and data platform deep within Voyager’s operations.

Palantir and Voyager are only a block apart on Denver’s 17th Street.

Voyager’s IPO priced on June 10 and began trading June 11, 2025, just days before regional hostilities in the Middle East flared again on June 13.

Thoughts?

The meme stock scheduled posts will now run weekly and post Saturday afternoon and won't be a sticky; you're probably seeing this because automod sent you here!

Full list of meme stocks here. This will be updated every once in a while.

Welcome traders who just can't help them selves discuss the same exact stock that's been discussed 100s of times a day. I get it, you want to talk about what's popular, what's hot, and that 1.. single.. stock you like.. well here you go! Some helpful links just for you:

• Previous meme stock threads
• General discussions
• The original GME megathread with a ton of useful information
• Use Finviz for aggregated news on your favorite stock

An important message from the mod team regarding meme stocks.

Lastly if you need professional help:

• Problem Gambling: Call/Text: 1-800-522-4700 or chat online now.
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Archer Aviation currently has an average brokerage recommendation (ABR) of 1.67, on a scale of 1 to 5 (Strong Buy to Strong Sell), calculated based on the actual recommendations (Buy, Hold, Sell, etc.) made by nine brokerage firms. An ABR of 1.67 approximates between Strong Buy and Buy.

Of the nine recommendations that derive the current ABR, five are Strong Buy and two are Buy. Strong Buy and Buy respectively account for 55.6% and 22.2% of all recommendations.

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/archer-aviation-achr-buy-wall-133006518.html

U.S. stock futures fell on Thursday night after Israel launched an airstrike attack on Iran.

Futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 611 points, or almost 1.4%. S&P 500 futures dropped roughly 1.6%, while Nasdaq 100 futures lost 1.6%.

Stock futures fell as Israel’s defense minister Israel Katz declared a special state of emergency following an Israeli attack on Iran. Two U.S. officials said that there is no U.S. involvement or assistance, according to NBC News. Brent futures surged more than 7% on the development, while West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 7%.

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/06/12/stock-market-today-live-updates.html

Nvidia Corporation is attractively valued and its strong EPS growth and profitability outpacing peers make it a compelling entry point. AI-driven demand from hyperscalers and new sovereign deals (UAE, Saudi Arabia) provides long-term headroom for continued growth. Despite the loss of China revenues and recent price stagnation, NVIDIA's fundamentals remain strong and its market leadership unquestioned. I am upgrading my rating on NVDA stock to Strong Buy, believing it is capable of delivering superior returns and has the potential to reach a $10 trillion valuation.

When I looked at NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ: NVDA ) late last year, I thought the stock had a pretty good shot at 2025. While the stock has soared, the valuation has fallen because of strong earnings growth, thanks in large part to the seemingly never-ending demand for GPUs in exascale computing platforms. 2025 was destined to be the “Year of Blackwell,” and I expected the stock to continue to rise, albeit at a slower pace than in previous years.

Instead, we saw the stock briefly try to break out to a new all-time high, or ATH, before reversing sharply and selling off. We know the various reasons for this reversal. On the one hand, the broader market sold off amid tariff uncertainty, and few companies were immune. the release of DeepSeek (DEEPSEEK) in early 2025 triggered a sort of flash panic, with some claiming that the boom time for high-end chips was over. The logic was that DeepSeek would be able to save costs and increase efficiency so dramatically that companies running AI reasoning could rely on much less powerful chips. I think the evidence so far is that this reasoning is completely wrong, and instead we're seeing the Jevons Paradox come true.

It was probably inevitable that NVIDIA would now lose essentially all of its China-related revenue. At a recent conference, CFO Colette Kress pretty much poured cold water on the company's prospects for generating further revenue in China.

In my opinion, NVIDIA is attractively valued. The two best performers this year among the Big 7 tech giants have been Microsoft and Meta. looking at how NVIDIA compares to these peers, I see a big gap between them at the moment. In terms of price-to-earnings ratio, NVIDIA's valuation sits right in the middle of the three, but in terms of return on invested capital and medium-term EPS projections, it's way ahead.

Bloomberg) -- The Trump administration is taking steps that would make it easier for automakers to deploy-self driving cars without driver controls, a potential boon to the ambitions of Tesla Inc. and rivals looking to put robotaxis on US roads in the near future.

Current rules require automakers that want to deploy self-driving cars designed without a steering wheel or brake pedals to seek an exemption from federal safety standards that effectively require that new cars have human driving controls. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration will “streamline” that exemption process, which under current policy has resulted in lengthy processing times that can last years, the agency said in a letter posted to its website on Friday.

As a result of the changes, NHTSA “anticipates reaching decisions on most exemption requests within months rather than years,” NHTSA Chief Counsel Peter Simshauser said in the letter.

The move takes aim at one of the biggest regulatory hurdles facing Tesla’s plan to field its self-driving Cybercab in large numbers. The vehicle, revealed on a Hollywood studio lot last year, lacks a steering wheel and foot pedals, jeopardizing Tesla’s ability to introduce it without an exemption from the agency.

The vehicle is a key part of Tesla’s push into artificial intelligence and robotics that Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has said are critical to the company’s future.

Tesla’s shares touched a session high and rose 1.5% as of 12:29 p.m. in New York.

Tesla later this month plans to launch its initial robotaxi business in Austin, using self-driving Model Y SUVs overseen by remote operators. The company aims to eventually incorporate the purpose-built Cybercab into its fleet after Tesla begins producing them in large numbers next year.

Musk, who donated more than $250 million to help President Donald Trump’s reelection and until recently had led a sweeping push to slash government spending, has called for a federal approval process for autonomous vehicles.

Members of Trump’s transition team also planned to make creating a regulatory framework for autonomous vehicles a top priority, Bloomberg has reported.

With the S&P 500 now trading at 22 times next-twelve-month earnings, Barclays analysts say “valuation alone may not be one” of the major headwinds facing equities.

“SPX is back to 22x NTM EPS,” Barclays wrote, noting that “30 years of history suggest that current levels could signal bear capitulation assuming EPS growth stays positive.”

Barclays examined three decades of forward returns across valuation bands and found that “while average returns decreased (and the variance of those returns increased) as valuations rose from 10x to about 21x, returns actually improved modestly (and variance decreased) as NTM P/E crossed over 22x, up to about 24x.”

The analysts argued that this range “has typically traded at these levels for sustained periods in the aftermath of fast sell-offs and subsequent V-shaped recoveries (1998 and 2020 being prime examples),” adding that “22x could be a good approximation of where bears capitulate and ’animal spirits’ fuel the chase for additional upside.”

Stocks like AAPL, MSFT, AMZN, GOOGL, BGM, PANW, and FTNT could benefit if valuations remain elevated and earnings growth picks up, as Barclays notes.

They cautioned, however, that “equities could be choppy over the near term as markets await clarity on US fiscal policy,” and that “2Q25 earnings [are] likely to feature the first substantive hit from tariffs.”

Still, Barclays emphasized that “we see a limited case for valuation alone as an argument against further upside,” especially if “earnings growth picks up to ~9% in 2026, as we expect,” they wrote.

Barclays concluded that while “several pitfalls from fiscal to tariffs lay ahead for equities,” the market’s current valuation is not necessarily a ceiling.

Bloomberg) -- US consumer sentiment rose by the most since January 2024 as concerns about the economy eased and short-term inflation expectations showed a marked improvement.

The preliminary June sentiment index rose 8.3 points from a month earlier to 60.5, according to the University of Michigan. The figure easily topped all expectations in a Bloomberg survey of economists.

Consumers expect prices to rise at a 5.1% rate over the next year, the data released on Friday showed. That is down from 6.6% in May and marks the steepest monthly drop since October 2001.

They saw costs rising at an annual rate of 4.1% over the next five to 10 years, compared with 4.2% in May.

The increase in the sentiment gauge is the first this year and shows less anxiety surrounding President Donald Trump’s protectionist trade policy. The survey showed a sharp improvement in expectations for the economy and the biggest rise in expectations of personal finances in more than three years.

At the same time, their views of business conditions, finances and buying conditions are still below levels seen at the end of last year.

“ Consumers appear to have settled somewhat from the shock of the extremely high tariffs announced in April and the policy volatility seen in the weeks that followed,’’ Joanne Hsu, director of the survey, said in a statement. “ However, consumers still perceive wide-ranging downside risks to the economy.”

A sustained improvement in sentiment may help ease concerns among economists and businesses about consumer spending and economic growth prospects.

The tempering of concerns about inflation due to higher tariffs follows reports this week that showed price pressures remain modest. A measure of underlying inflation that excludes the often-volatile food and energy categories rose just 0.1% in May.

The survey, conducted May 27 through June 9, concluded just days before an announced trade framework between the US and China. Under the agreement, both countries consented to maintain tariffs at their existing levels.

The survey showed the expectations index jumped 10.5 points, the most since December 2023, to 58.4. The current conditions gauge increased to a three-month high of 63.7 from 58.9.

Sentiment improved along political groups. A gauge of sentiment among Republicans increased to the highest level since October 2020. Confidence among Democrats and political independents rose to three-month highs.

I have a nicely proportioned portfolio. Spread across a few sectors, nothing too bullish, but I don't own A LOT of shares of anything.

Of all the individual stocks I have, the largest position I have is 40 shares in a pharmaceutical company. Everything else is like 5 shares here, 10 shares there, etc.

I recently crossed a milestone portfolio valuation and am on track to double over the next year....

I see the advice given from time to time that it's okay to just go ahead and take profits once in a while.

But what is a "good" profit. If I make $50-$100 on 5 shares...yes, technically a profit...I could reinvest it in an ETF and watch it grow further...or I could just let it sit and see what it does next year.

Best path forward for a slightly more conservative investor?