Here is a rundown of Cheddar News' top trending market stories of the day.
RECESSION OUTLOOK
After Friday's historic jobs report, which showed the U.S. economy adding half a million new positions despite a slew of recent high-profile tech layoffs, recession blues are waning. Economist Larry Summers, former Treasury secretary under president Bill Clinton, told CNN's Fareed Zakariaha on Sunday that it is now more likely the Federal Reserve will pull off a "soft landing" (i.e. avoid a recession), even as he stressed that the economy is not "out of the woods" yet.
APPLE'S NEW IPHONE
Apple tracker Mark Gurman said the tech giant is currently deciding whether it will release a new, more expensive iPhone called "Ultra" in the near future, which could arrive on shelves as part of the iPhone 16 lineup in 2024. Gurman speculated that this new model would actually be more expensive than the iPhone Pro and Pro Max models, which start at $1,099.
TWITTER COMPETITOR
Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, co-founders of Instagram, last week revealed details about their latest project: a social media app designed to compete with Twitter. Called Artifact, the entrepreneurs described the app as a "personalized news feed using the latest AI tech." Right now, the app is only accessible via invitation only, but those interested in a Twitter alternative can sign up for a wait list to eventually test out if Artifact is a serious contender.
ACTIVISION BLIZZARD SETTLEMENT
Activision Blizzard, the company behind Call of Duty and Overwatch, has settled charges over its handling of workplace harassment and discrimination claims with a $35 million fine. The Securities and Exchange Commission released a statement saying the company was aware that it lacked sufficient procedures to address the problem and needed to be more proactive to collect and assess the complaints.
Apple CEO Tim Cook said Thursday that the majority of iPhones sold in the U.S. in the current fiscal quarter will be sourced from India, while iPads and other devices will come from Vietnam as the company works to avoid the impact of President Trump’s tariffs on its business. Apple’s earnings for the first three months of the year topped Wall Street’s expectations thanks to high demand for its iPhones, and the company said tariffs had a limited effect on the fiscal second quarter’s results. Cook added that for the current quarter, assuming things don’t change, Apple expects to see $900 million added to its costs as a result of the tariffs.
Visa is hoping to hand your credit card to an artificial intelligence “agent” that can find and buy clothes, groceries, airplane tickets and other items on your behalf.
Skift Editor-In-Chief Sarah Kopit discusses how summer travel plans remain uncertain for most as many international travelers are leery to travel abroad. Watch!
Seth Schachner, Managing Director at Strat Americas, on Hollywood's latest blockbusters utilizing content creation. Plus, the future of YouTube and TikTok.
Ashley Gold, Axios' Tech/Policy reporter, discusses what the future of Google and search engines will look like after the tech giant faces an antitrust trial.
A labor rights group has alleged that Starbucks sourced coffee from a major Brazilian cooperative whose member farms were cited for keeping workers in slave-like conditions.
