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US consumer sentiment rises from record lows, as gas prices fall
U.S. consumer confidence bounced back from record lows early in June, as lower gasoline prices provided some relief to households. However, concerns about inflation caused by the Middle East conflict still lingered. The University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers reported on Friday that lower-income households were the main drivers of the improvement in consumer sentiment. According to AAA data, gasoline prices dropped over the last 'three weeks' from their four-year highs. Oil prices also remained below $100 per barrel, despite an unstable ceasefire. The increase in sentiment is likely due to the labor market's resilience, which has been marked by three months of job growth above expectations and a stable rate of unemployment. The U.S. war against Iran is still a threat to the economy, even though it has now been going on for four months. Donald Trump denied Friday that the United States made significant concessions to Iran. Trump called off any new attacks on Iran on Thursday, claiming that a deal was reached. Christopher Rupkey is the chief economist of FWDBONDS. He said that gasoline prices usually peak around Memorial Day. "There's still a cost of living crisis, and goods prices won't be going down anytime soon." "The economic risks remain, but the outlook has improved." Consumer Sentiment Index at the University of Michigan increased to 48.9 in June from a record low of 44.8 last May. The economists surveyed by predicted that the index would rise to 46. The index rose across all age groups, educational levels and political affiliations. AAA data shows that the national average retail gas price fell to $4.11 from $4.56 last week, which was its highest level in four years. Higher-income consumers are largely insulated from the pain of high gas prices, as a recent stock market rally has increased their wealth. Joanne Hsu is the director of Surveys of Consumers. She said that lower-income consumers showed a strong increase in sentiment, which was consistent with the fact gasoline represents a greater share of their budgets. The consumer's attention is still focused on the kitchen table. "Consumers are burdened by recent inflation increases and fear that inflation will remain high in the near future, especially in the short term." INFLATION EXPECTATIONS MODERATE A higher cost of living fuels dissatisfaction with Trump's economy and weighs on his approval ratings. The government announced this week that consumer inflation rose above 4% for the first three-year period in May. The Wall Street stock market?traded higher. The dollar fell against a basket currency. The yields on U.S. Treasury bonds rose. The falling gasoline price led to a moderated expectation of inflation by consumers this month. However, the outcome will depend on the current conflict. Jeffrey Roach is the chief economist of LPL Financial. He said, "We expect the inflation pressures will ease once the Iran conflict has simmered and supply chains have improved." If the conflict in Iran continues throughout the summer we can expect "stronger inflation headwinds" to put a 'damper' on the growth trend. Consumer expectations of inflation in the coming year dropped from 4.8% to 4.6%, a still high level. Consumers' expectations of inflation in the next five-year period dropped from 3.9% to 3.4% last month. Financial markets have priced in tightening monetary policies, and the high inflation rate has dashed any hopes of a Federal Reserve interest rate reduction this year. In the absence of widespread increases in energy prices, economists think the bar is high for a rate increase. Next Wednesday, the U.S. Central Bank is expected to maintain its benchmark overnight rate between 3.50% and 3.75% but drop its easing bias. The Fed is likely to ignore the fall in inflation expectations. According to economists, respondents in the University of Michigan Survey expect higher borrowing costs in the coming year. John Ryding is the chief economist at Brean Capital. He said that a reading of 3.4% should not be taken as an indication that the public has no longer been concerned about inflation.
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SpaceX stock soars to $2 trillion valuation after record IPO
SpaceX jumped more than 20% on its Nasdaq debut, bringing its valuation up to $2 trillion. Investors piled in to the world's biggest IPO on Friday and?betted on Elon Musk’s sprawling empire spanning from rockets to ai. Stocks opened trading at $150 compared to the IPO price per share of $135. It was last trading at $164 and is the sixth-largest U.S. firm by market value. Bankers warned that the IPO market could be affected if SpaceX's shares close below the Thursday pricing level. Market participants are watching the company's debut as a rehearsal for the next generation of mega-listings. They will be looking for signs of investor interest ahead of upcoming IPOs by AI heavyweights Anthropic, and OpenAI. The performance of the stock will test the "Musk Premium," which is the driving force behind Tesla’s $1 trillion valuation, despite being under pressure when Musk was active in President Donald Trump’s administration. Musk is now the first billionaire in history. The listing also propelled SpaceX to the top of the list of most valuable companies, despite the fact that the company posted a loss last year of nearly $5 billion and only generated a fraction the revenue of similar valued tech giants. Musk, in Texas shortly before the opening bell, said: "I gave SpaceX 10% of a chance to succeed at all." SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and Chief Finance Officer Bret Johnson rang the Nasdaq's opening bell at 9:15 a.m. ET (1330 GMT). ET (1330 GMT). WORLD'S LASTEST IPO This record IPO was the culmination of Musk’s long-held space and technology ambitions. It has been a standout for rewriting Wall Street’s IPO playbook, and attracting?legions of individual investors to the market. The deal, which raised $75 billion in proceeds, was more than twice as large as Saudi Aramco’s record-breaking 2019 IPO. Underwriters can increase the valuation if they exercise their right to sell more shares. This decision is usually made within 30 days of the initial offering. SpaceX will have to wait until it is accepted into the S&P 500, but its fast-tracked inclusion in the Nasdaq 100 index means that its shares will be a major investment for passive funds, ETFs, and other ETFs tracking the index. This new demand for SpaceX's shares could create a significant increase. "We need to go back 100-years to find entrepreneurs who are comparable." Joel Shulman is the CEO of ERShares which manages a SpaceX ETF. He said that he was a visionary like no other and he executed extremely well. Under Nasdaq’s new fast entry rules, it will only take a few weeks for the stock to be added to this index. Normally, it can take up to a year. Analysts expect that SpaceX's debut will cause a reshuffle of investor portfolios. This could create selling pressure on the other tech heavyweights. A $28.5 TRILLION MARKET OPPORTUNITY Despite the hype surrounding the IPO and the resulting IPO price, determining the actual value of SpaceX remains a challenging valuation exercise. SpaceX claimed that its market potential is $28.5 trillion. It called this the largest figure in human history. Investors said that SpaceX has a solid foundation to build on, with its leadership in space and its contribution of more than four fifths of all mass launched into orbit over the last three years. John Belton, portfolio director at Gabelli Funds said that Musk's electric car company Tesla is the closest comparable to SpaceX, since both have a well-established business and "a Moonshot opportunity on the?other?side." Tesla is focused on humanoid robots and future applications. "For SpaceX, the AI business is what's important," he said. At its huge valuation, the company faces a number of obstacles. These include rivals like Jeff Bezos Blue Origin's efforts to speed up commercialization in space and to pursue government contracts to open new markets outside Earth. The company's price-to-revenue is 94. With revenue of 18.7 billion dollars in 2025, its market cap places the ratio at a "high" 94. Analysts have given the company positive ratings. Morningstar analysts said earlier this month that it was more accurately valued at $780 billion. "This is not a brand you buy based on its fundamentals. Amazon is my analogy. "This was a company which changed the way people live", said Nancy Tengler. She is CEO and CIO at Laffer Tengler Investments. "If the price of the stock drops below $100, it's not ideal but we won't change our view on long-term." "We want to be involved."
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SpaceX's IPO: The Road to Success
SpaceX's stock market debut was on Friday. Investors backed Elon Musk's vision of an empire spanning from reusable rockets to orbital artificial intelligence at a valuation among the world's largest. Here's a?timeline for SpaceX to its blockbuster IPO. Elon Musk launches SpaceX in March 2002, using the money he earned from selling PayPal. March 2006: SpaceX launches its first rocket, Falcon 1, but it fails. Falcon 1 launched successfully in September 2008 and became the first liquid-fuel rocket developed by private industry to reach Earth orbit. SpaceX signs its first major contract in December 2008 with NASA for the transportation of cargo and supplies to International Space Station. May 2012 - The Falcon 9 rocket launches a Dragon capsule into space, becoming the first private spacecraft docked at the ISS. Falcon 9 exploding in mid-air, June 2015. December 2015 - Falcon 9 makes its first successful vertical landing, marking the first controlled recovery of a large rocket after it has delivered a payload to orbit. In February 2018, the first Falcon Heavy launch carried Musk's Tesla Roadster into space, along with its mannequin, Starman. April 2019 - Crew Dragon test vehicle explodes on the ground during a ground test. May 2019 - SpaceX launches Starlink satellites. This constellation is capable of beaming high-speed Internet service to customers all over the world. October 2020 - SpaceX completes its 100th successful Falcon rocket flight since Falcon 1 flew into orbit for the first time in 2008. November 2020: SpaceX Crew-1, the first operational mission of NASA's Commercial Crew Program. NASA awards SpaceX a contract to build the first commercial human landing on the Moon as part of the Artemis program in April 2021. SpaceX launches the first civilian crew to orbit Earth from space in September 2021. NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test Mission launched on a SpaceX rocket into an interplanetary transfer space in November 2021, marking the first ever test of a planet defense system to prevent a possible asteroid impact with Earth. April 2023 - First Starship rocket explodes after losing control. November 2023: Starship launches fail minutes after reaching the space. November 2023: A U.S. Judge blocks the U.S. Department of Justice's pursuit of an administrative case accusing SpaceX of refusing to illegally hire refugees and asylum seekers. September 2024: The SpaceX Polaris Dawn launch carries out its first privately-managed spacewalk. SpaceX's Starship rocket crashes in space just minutes after it launches from Texas. Flights over the Gulf of Mexico will have to change course to avoid falling debris. Starship explodes in June 2025 during a?ground?test. SpaceX buys Musk's AI company xAI for $250 billion in a deal that is a world record. This unifies the AI and'space' ambitions of the richest man on earth by combining 'the rocket-and satellite company' with the creator of the Grok Chatbot. Musk claims that SpaceX has shifted its focus away from Mars and towards building an "auto-growing city" (or "smart city") on the Moon in February 2026. NASA official states that the Starship has accumulated two years' worth of delays since NASA selected the rocket to be an astronaut moon-lander in?2021. It is expected that the remaining hurdles will require additional time before landing on the Moon. SpaceX files its U.S. initial IPO confidentially in April 2026, laying the foundation for what could be the largest stock market flotation of all time. May?2026 – SpaceX files its long-awaited U.S. IPO. SpaceX's IPO price is set at $135 per share in June 2026. The company hopes to raise a record $75 billion. SpaceX and Alphabet's Google agree to a multiyear cloud services agreement in June 2026. June 2026 - SpaceX raises record $75 billion in biggest-ever U.S. IPO. SpaceX will begin trading on Nasdaq in June 2026 at a value of approximately $1.96 trillion. (Reporting and editing by Sahal Muhammad and Joyjeet Das in Bengaluru, and Prakhar Srivastava from Bengaluru)
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Investors flee oil market in record numbers due to chaos
Investors are increasingly hesitant to invest in an asset which is dependent on daily posts by U.S. president Donald Trump on social media about the Iran War. The amount of liquidity, or the ratio of buyers to sellers, depends on a variety of factors. These include traded volume and open interests. According to LSEG, open interest (the number of Brent futures contracts owned by investors) has dropped nearly 17% in the past year. This is the highest rate since 2009. Investors are becoming tired of Trump's pattern, which is to escalate his threats against Iran, then declare hours later that an agreement will be reached. This, combined with the difficulty of tracking current oil fundamentals, has caused a certain amount of fatigue, according to traders. This chaos has exhausted the people. This chaos must end. "You cannot trade 'futures' without constantly being burned in an atmosphere where the messaging changes every hour," said a senior executive of a major trading desk. Due to the sensitive nature of the issue, the executive requested that he not be identified. The oil prices dropped nearly 3% on Friday, to the lowest level in almost two months after Trump called off his threatened new strikes against Iran on Thursday. He said a deal was close to ending the war. "TOO VOLATILE TO HELD" Brent futures for the front-month of August registered the lowest level of open interest since July last year, when it was the most actively traded contract at the beginning this month, with 534 227 lots. Open interest peaks in the beginning of the month, and then gradually declines until the expiry of the contracts, when it moves to the next contract. Due to a lack of willing counterparties and a thin liquidity, buyers and seller are often forced to accept higher or lower prices. This creates larger price swings. This can increase the potential rewards but also the risks. Jeffrey Currie, former Goldman Sachs commodities head, said that the reason oil prices have not returned to $100 per barrel in recent weeks is not because of a lack of supply (which has been severely constrained by the close-closure of Strait of Hormuz), but due to what he termed "capital aversion". In a June 10 post on X, he stated that "Policy uncertainty made oil too volatile to hold". The 2026 open interest decline year-to date is the worst ever recorded. In contrast to 2022, no rate shock or sanctions forced the exit. Currie, a senior advisor at alternative asset manager Carlyle and Currie's colleague, described this as capital aversion. (Reporting and editing by Amanda Cooper, Dmitry Zhdannikov and Emelia Sithole Matarise).
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Wright: US military helps move 7 million barrels per day of oil out of Persian Gulf
The U.S. is helping to export 7 million barrels of oil a day from the Persian Gulf. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, speaking at a Houston event on Friday, said that the U.S. military is helping to move oil out of the Persian Gulf. Wright stated that the oil flow in the Strait of Hormuz has been about half of what it was before the U.S. - Israel war began with Iran. Wright stated that "we have a recent military effort which began to remove cargoes" Wright, speaking at Bloomberg Energy's event, said that no?Iranian oil is leaving the Strait. He also added that he expected to see a free flow of?all products through the Persian Gulf, if an agreement is reached. Wright said that if a deal is not reached, the U.S. Military will restore the flow. Dan Pickering is chief investment officer of Pickering Energy Partners. He said that the flow was higher than what industry expected. Rebecca Babin said that the current oil prices of $88 indicate that investors assumed only 3?million -?4million barrels were moving through the Strait. Wright said that some sanctions against Iran could be lifted in part if an agreement is made. Wright suggested that a U.S. gas tax holiday over the summer could be a way to reduce gasoline prices. Reporting by Sheila Dang in Houston and Arathy Sommesekhar; editing by Nathan Crooks and Paul Simao.
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Gold's record rally falters when bulls are confronted with Fed rate expectations and a stronger dollar
The expectation of U.S. tightening of monetary policy and the strength in the dollar has taken some wind out?of a "perfect storm" that was driving an upswing?in gold prices since 2023. Prices are now vulnerable?around $4,000/ounce, as interest rates unfold. Gold's reversal raised questions about the durability of its record-breaking rally, even though geopolitical risks, fiscal deficits, and central bank purchases continue to support bullion in the long-term. The spot gold price has dropped 25% after hitting a record of $5,595 back in January. This is because the Iran War sparked a rally in oil prices and increased bets for rate hikes. This has reduced the appeal of gold as a safe haven -- similar to past extreme shocks. Prices fell to a 6-month low on Friday. Aakash Doshi is the head of metals and gold strategy at State Street Investment Management. Doshi believes that gold could bounce back if the Middle East conflict eases, and oil drops to $80 per barrel. Gold could become a safe haven in the long term as fiscal deficits increase and geopolitics fragments due to the Iran conflict. KEY TECHNICAL BREAK Gold was at $4.188 per troy-ounce on Friday, after reaching its lowest level in November at $4.022 on Thursday. The strong U.S. job data released last week boosted rate-hike betting and sent gold below the 200-day moving median for the first two-and-a-half-year period. One precious metals trader believes that the dynamics of the market have changed. This closely watched technical level, which is now acting as a resistance at $4.446, suggests a change in the market's dynamic. In 2025, gold surged by 64%. This was the highest in 46 years. Investors sought to reduce risks associated with U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs and Federal Reserve independence, as well as the war in Ukraine and Russia. Adrian Ash, BullionVault's head of research, said that analysts had been focusing on Trump's world disorder but it seems now that the huge gains last year were driven in part by expectations for rate cuts. According to Ash, managed short positions on COMEX Gold were at their lowest level since January 2025 during the week ending June 2. This leaves plenty of room for bearish bets. Standard Chartered's analyst?Suki cooper estimates that 270 tons or more of gold held in exchange traded funds is in a loss-making situation at prices under $4,250. At $4,000 that number will increase to 298 tonnes. Outflows from ETFs that are gold-backed totaled 16 tons in May and 7 tons during the first week in June. In India, the physical demand for gold is sluggish due to seasonal factors. Bullion trades at a significant discount. Nicky Shiels is the head of metals strategies at MKS PAMP. He expects that gold prices will be rangebound in the coming months, "until more strategic tailwinds or catalysts emerge".
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BlackRock has a new chance to retain NYC pension assets despite climate worries
BlackRock has a chance to continue managing New York's pension money as City Comptroller Mark Levine launched a rebidding process on Friday, despite the call from his predecessor for the city not to use the manager due to its climate record. Brad Lander, Levine's former predecessor in office recommended in November that major city pension funds stop using BlackRock and rebid their public equities mandates. Lander's move was in response to his perception of BlackRock retreating on climate issues, and the asset manager placing less pressure on its portfolio companies as appointees from the U.S. president Donald Trump took over the oversight of the financial industry. Levine, however, has not been rushing to implement Lander's wishes in overseeing the pension fund investments that include $127 billion in public equity investment products. Of this amount $80 billion is passive index products. BlackRock and State Street manage a large portion of these funds. BlackRock is responsible for $62 billion in public equity investments across the city. Pension boards have renewed the contracts for public equity index services for two consecutive three-year periods since 2017. Levine's rebidding is a potential turning point for these assets. A spokesperson for Levine responded that "all managers are welcome" to bid, when asked whether Levine thought BlackRock would continue to work on the project. We cannot let these relationships run on autopilot. "I look forward to working together with my fellow trustees in order to select managers who meet our highest performance standards," Levine stated in a press release. Pension funds are increasingly putting pressure on large asset managers to reflect their views about climate change and social issues through proxy voting and other financial processes. Dutch pension fund PFZW announced in September that it had stopped investing into stock funds managed BlackRock due to concerns about the New York-based company's voting record in sustainability issues. ?A number of U.S. Republican officials, some from fossil-fuel-producing states, have taken similar steps for opposite reasons, accusing ?BlackRock and others of over-emphasizing ?the same concerns. BlackRock, and its rivals, have developed programs to allow investors to directly influence proxy voting, thereby shifting the responsibility away from asset managers. New York City Mayor Zohran Mdani hasn't spoken out about BlackRock, despite having some influence over city pension funds. He was once a Lander supporter and campaigned on his behalf. Mamdani’s office hasn't responded to any questions regarding his opinions on pension assets. BlackRock's spokesperson stated in an email that they were "proud" that New York City was a client for a long time. State Street declined to comment immediately. The State Street pension fund did not immediately comment.
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Shares of Copasa Brazil priced at 49.03 Reais
In a Friday filing, the company revealed that its share offer for a 'privatization of Brazilian sanitation company Copasa was?priced?at 49.03 reais ( $9.61) per share, totaling almost 8.4 billion reais. The price represents a 16% discount compared to yesterday's closing price of 58.50 Reais. However, it is still above the Minas Gerais government's minimum price of 47.23 Reais. The pricing was first reported by the local newspaper Valor Economico on Thursday. Copasa stated that 'power firm Equatorial in its role as strategic investor was exclusively allocated the shares in priority tranche. This totaled nearly 114.1 millions, or 66.67% shares originally offered and 30% total share capital. In May, the government of Minas Gerais in Brazil's southeast region launched a share offer of over $1 billion to relinquish control of Copasa. Copasa is a utility that provides sanitation services to 12 million Brazilians. Equatorial was awarded the role of strategic investor this month after filing a bid for 49.03 reais per share. The company was not competing, since a consortium that included Aegea's?shareholders and sanitation firm Aegea decided to withdraw from the process.
Venezuela: Oil spillage from Trinidad and Tobago may harm fishing and environment
Venezuela's government announced on Friday that an?oil?spill from Trinidad & Tobago puts?fishing? and the environment in danger.
The government released a statement in which it stated that the spill was "much larger than the one in May" and confirmed the drift of pollutants towards Venezuelan waters. It did not provide any further details on the extent of this spill, but said satellite imagery had confirmed its existence.
Venezuelan Foreign minister Yvan Gil requested compensation from Trinidad and Tobago for an oil spill in the country's far east in?May. Trinidad and Tobago said that it was using its Air Guard, Coast Guard and Drones to locate the purported oil leak and had requested the coordinates of the spill from Venezuela. Trinidad Energy Minister Roodal moonilal said that the Air Guard and Coast Guard had been sent out to conduct reconnaissance on the sea and use drones to determine the truth. Moonilal stated that the island's Foreign Ministry had also contacted Venezuela's Embassy in Port of Spain to get more information.
Venezuela's Foreign Ministry asked Trinidad and Tobago for measures to "prevent future incidents" and added that it "reserves the right to take appropriate actions before?the competent International bodies to determine responsibility."
The relationship between the two countries has been tense for a period of?14 months since Trinidad's newest government stated that it supported U.S. action which led to Nicolas Maduro, former Venezuelan president being arrested. Reporting by Aida Peaez-Fernandez, Curtis Williams and Emelia Sithole Matarise; Editing by Chizu nomiyama and Mark Porter
(source: Reuters)