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#23603873 at 2025-09-15 13:40:47 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #28753: Belated Soonday™ Edition

zerohedge @zerohedge

Top Overnight News

Trump said the Fed chair is incompetent and is hurting the housing market, while Trump added that he has three people he likes a lot for Fed Chair.

Trump's administration on Sunday renewed its request to an appeals court to fire Fed Governor Cook.

Trump said on Monday he would call a national emergency and federalize Washington, D.C. after Mayor Muriel Bowser said its police would not cooperate with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. CNBC

Treasury Secretary Bessent was reported on Friday to have interviewed 4 of the 11 Fed Chair candidates, and had interviewed BlackRock's Rieder, who was said to have climbed the ranks of contenders for the Fed Chair role, according to Bloomberg.

OpenAI plans to share 8% of its revenue with Microsoft (MSFT), while it is expected to gain USD 50bln from cutting the revenue share with Microsoft and partners, according to The Information. In relevant news, xAI is cutting staff by about 500 workers with the Co. laying off about a third of its data annotation team.

Vaccine advisers for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are expected this week to consider softening or eliminating recommendations for some routine childhood immunizations - which doctors say could significantly depress vaccination rates and trigger more infectious disease outbreaks. Politico

US companies reportedly put the brakes on hiring after Trump's tariffs hit, with industries most exposed to the increased costs due to trade wars launching a wave of job cuts, according to FT.

China's economic growth falls short of expectations in Aug, including retail sales at +3.4% (vs. the Street +3.8% and down from +3.7% in Jul) and industrial production at +5.2% (vs. the Street +5.6% and down from +5.7% in Jul), sparking speculation that the gov't could expand stimulus going forward. RTRS

China said Nvidia violated anti-monopoly laws with its 2020 acquisition of networking gear maker Mellanox. Nvidia shares fell premarket (NVDA -2% premkt). BBG

Axios reported on Friday that many of the claims were fake regarding the massive spike in jobless claims on Thursday that heightened labor market fears and was "a result of attempted fraudulent unemployment filings in Texas."

South Korea's top trade envoy, Yeo Han-koo, is heading to the United States on Monday for follow-up tariff negotiations, the trade ministry said, as the countries struggle to overcome obstacles to finalise a trade deal agreed in July. BBG

Indian trade negotiators are scheduled to visit the U.S. this week as the two countries try to get their relationship back on track after weeks of heated rhetoric and 50% tariffs on India. WSJ

A Russian drone entered Romania's airspace and was tracked by its air force for nearly an hour before leaving, the country's defense minister said on Sunday, condemning Moscow's second breach of Nato territory within a week. FT

Gold held near a record and MLIV expects it'll remain attractive amid potential Fed easing, a weaker dollar, ETF inflows and central bank buying. BBG

TSLA +6% in pre… Elon Musk has purchased about $1 billion worth of Tesla shares on Sept. 12, according to a filing with the US Securities & Exchange Commission. The purchases coincided with Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm speaking with Bloomberg News about the merits of a pay package for Musk that could be worth upwards of $1 trillion if the company achieves a series of ambitious milestones linked to market value and performance. BBG

https://twitter.com/zerohedge/status/19 … 7839607190

#23554619 at 2025-09-06 03:53:17 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #28692: Military Law v. Criminal Law. Think EO. Edition

Google leads monster week for tech, pushing megacaps to combined $21 trillion in market cap
-Alphabet and Apple shares rallied following a favorable decision for Google in the remedies portion of the antitrust case.
-Broadcom got a big boost from a new $10 billion customer.
-Add it up and tech's eight billion-dollar companies added more than $400 billion in combined value and now make up over 36% of the S&P 500.

From the courtroom to the boardroom, it was a big week for tech investors.

The resolution of Google's antitrust case led to sharp rallies for Alphabet
and Apple. Broadcom shareholders cheered a new $10 billion customer. And Tesla's stock was buoyed by a freshly proposed pay package for CEO Elon Musk.

Add it up, and the U.S. tech industry's eight trillion-dollar companies gained a combined $420 billion in market cap this week, lifting their total value to $21 trillion, despite a slide in Nvidia shares.

Those companies now account for roughly 36% of the S&P 500, a proportion so great by historical standards that Howard Silverblatt, senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices, told CNBC by email, "there are no comparisons."

There was a certain irony to this week's gains.

Alphabet's 9% jump on Wednesday was directly tied to the U.S. government effort to diminish the search giant's market control, which was part of a years-long campaign to break up Big Tech. Since 2020, Google, Apple, Amazon and Meta have all been hit with antitrust allegations by the Department of Justice or Federal Trade Commission.

A year ago, Google lost to the DOJ, a result viewed by many as the most-significant antitrust decision for the tech industry since the case against Microsoft more than two decades earlier. But in the remedies ruling this week, U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta said Google won't be forced to sell its Chrome browser despite its loss in court and instead handed down a more limited punishment, including a requirement to share search data with competitors.

The decision lifted Apple along with Alphabet, because the companies can stick with an arrangement that involves Google paying Apple billions of dollars per year to be the default search engine on iPhones. Alphabet rose more than 10% for the week and Apple added 3.2%, helping boost the Nasdaq 1.1%.

Analysts at Wedbush Securities wrote in a note after the decision that the ruling "removed a huge overhang" on Google's stock and a "black cloud worry" that hung over Apple. Further, they said it clears the path for the companies to pursue a bigger artificial intelligence deal involving Gemini, Google's AI models.

"This now lays the groundwork for Apple to continue its deal and ultimately likely double down on more AI related partnerships with Google Gemini down the road," the analysts wrote.

Mehta explained that a major factor in his decision was the emergence of generative AI, which has become a much more competitive market than traditional search and has dramatically changed the market dynamics.

New players like OpenAI, Anthropic and Perplexity have altered Google's dominance, Mehta said, noting that generative AI technologies "may yet prove to be game changers."

On Friday, Alphabet investors shrugged off a separate antitrust matter out of Europe. The company was hit with a 2.95-billion-euro ($3.45 billion) fine from European Union regulators for anti-competitive practices in its advertising technology business.

While OpenAI was an indirect catalyst for Google and Apple this week, it was more directly tied to the huge rally in Broadcom's stock.

Following Broadcom's better-than-expected earnings report on Thursday, CEO Hock Tan told analysts that his chipmaker had secured a $10 billion contract with a new customer, which would be the company's fourth large AI client.

Several analysts said the new customer is OpenAI, and the Financial Times reported on a partnership between the two companies.

Broadcom is the newest entrant into the trillion-dollar club, thanks to the company's custom chips for AI, already used by Google, Meta and TikTok parent ByteDance. With Its 13% jump this week, the stock is now up 120% in the past year, lifting Broadcom's market cap to around $1.6 trillion.

"The company is firing on all cylinders with clear line of sight for growth supported by significant backlog," analysts at Barclays wrote in a note, maintaining their buy recommendation and lifting their price target on the stock.

For the other giant AI chipmaker, the past week wasn't so good.

Nvidia shares fell more than 4% in the holiday-shortened week, the worst performance among the megacaps. There was no apparent negative news for Nvidia, but the stock has now dropped for four consecutive weeks.

Still, Nvidia remains the largest company by market cap, valued at over $4 trillion, with its stock up 56% in the past 12 months.

Microsoft
also fell this week and is on an extended slide, dropping for five straight weeks. Shares are still up 21% over the last 12 months.

On the flipside, Tesla has been the laggard in the group. Shares of the electric vehicle maker are down 13% this year due to a multi-quarter sales slump that reflects rising competition from lower-cost Chinese manufacturers and an aging lineup of EVs.

But Tesla shares climbed 5% this week, sparked mostly by gains on Friday after the company said it wants investors to approve a pay plan for Musk that could be worth up to almost $1 trillion.

The payouts, split into 12 tranches, would require Tesla to see significant value appreciation, starting with the first award that won't kick in until the company almost doubles its market cap to $2 trillion.

Tesla Chairwoman Robyn Denholm told CNBC's Andrew Ross Sorkin the plan was designed to keep Musk, the world's richest person, "motivated and focused on delivering for the company."

https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/05/tech-megacaps-worth-market-cap.html

#23284998 at 2025-07-06 18:20:15 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #28384: Soonday™ Edition

Elon has gone too far.

My investment firm (
@InvestAzoria
) has decided to postpone next week's public listing of our Azoria Tesla Convexity ETF.

Our decision comes in direct response to
@ElonMusk
's announcement that he is launching a new national political party.

This creates a conflict with his full-time responsibilities as CEO of Tesla. It diverts his focus and energy away from Tesla's employees and shareholders.

Azoria believes that Tesla is the most compelling long-term investment in AI. With breakthroughs in robotaxis, Optimus, and full self-driving, no other company is positioned to lead the future like Tesla.

In May, when Elon stepped back from his work at DOGE and returned his attention to Tesla, we were encouraged. With Elon fully engaged, he gave shareholders renewed confidence in Tesla's future.

Elon's announcement today undermines that confidence.

Unlike his work with SpaceX or xAI, which complement Tesla's R&D efforts in AI, automation, and engineering, a political party not only fails to complement Tesla's mission-it actively undermines it.

I just sent the attached letter to Robyn Denholm, Chair of Tesla's Board of Directors.

I encourage the Board to meet immediately and ask Elon to clarify his political ambitions and evaluate whether they are compatible with his full-time obligations to Tesla as CEO.

I remain hopeful that Elon will return his full attention to Tesla. If not, I trust the Board will take appropriate action.

https://x.com/j_fishback/status/1941694303278870923

#22979073 at 2025-05-01 16:51:48 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #28043: May (or May not) Day ~ The Choice To Know Is Yours PRAY Edition

1 May, 2025 10:18
Musk labels WSJ 'a discredit to journalism'
The outlet has published a "deliberately false" piece about him, the world's richest man has said

Elon Musk has branded the Wall Street Journal a "discredit to journalism," categorically denying the outlet's claim that Tesla's board wants to replace him as the CEO of the electric car company.

The WSJ claimed, citing anonymous sources, that about a month ago Tesla's board reached out to a number of executive search firms to work on a formal process for finding a new CEO. The directors "got serious" after Tesla's stock plunged and investors got "irritated" by Musk's focus on his job as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm issued a statement in whichshe called the report "absolutely false."

"The CEO of Tesla is Elon Musk and the board is highly confident in his ability to continue executing on the exciting growth plan ahead," Denholm stressed.

Musk reacted to the report on his X platform on Thursday, insisting that "it is an extremely bad breach of ethics that the Wall Street Journal would publish a deliberately false article" and slammed the outlet for its failure to include the Tesla board's "unequivocal denial"of claims that it is searching for a new CEO in its article.

In a separate comment, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO labeled the WSJ a "discredit to journalism."

Tesla suffered a 71% drop in profits and a 9% decline in revenue for the first quarter of 2025, during which time Musk became an increasingly polarizing figure, due to his close ties to US President Donald Trump and his work as the head of the DOGE, an agency tasked with slashing government spending.

Since January, dozens of Tesla-linked locations have been hit by protests, in what Musk claims is a coordinated effort bankrolled by major Democratic donors. There have also been violent attacks, including arson attempts, on the company's dealerships, vehicles and charging stations.

A week ago, Musk announced that he will scale back his government role because the "major work" to establish DOGE has now been completed. During a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Trump thanked the tech billionaire for his contribution, saying "you know you are invited to stay as long as you want… I guess he wants to get back home to his cars."

https://www.rt.com/news/616611-musk-tesla-ceo-wsj/

The WSJ Editors or Opinion writers lie all the time, they bash Trump daily and non-stop, it surprising if they write something nice occasionally.

#7966667 at 2020-01-30 18:39:04 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #10196: "State of the Union" ~Q Edition

Tesla directors settle, isolating Musk as SolarCity trial looms

Directors of Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) settled a shareholder lawsuit over its 2016 acquisition of SolarCity Corp, leaving Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk as the lone defendant facing claims that Tesla paid $2.6 billion for a worthless solar system installer, according to court documents.

The settlement comes as a trial is scheduled to start on March 16 in Delaware in which shareholders seek $2.6 billion in damages, the entire cost of the SolarCity deal.

A lawyer for Musk and a spokesman for Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Tesla shareholders have alleged Musk breached his fiduciary duties, squandered Tesla's assets and unjustly enriched himself by pushing to buy the money-losing solar company in which he was the biggest investor.

The settlement covered five current directors, Robyn Denholm, Ira Ehrenpreis, Antonio Gracias, Stephen Jurvetson and Kimbal Musk. Brad Buss, who was a director at the time of the SolarCity deal, was also part of the settlement, which was paid from insurance policies, according to court documents.

Bloomberg reported the settlement was worth $60 million.

"Plaintiffs probably think they have a cleaner shot on the merits if the only issues they have to raise are with Elon Musk and Elon Musk's actions," said Brian Quinn, a professor at Boston College Law School. The case was brought in the Court of Chancery in Delaware, where Tesla is incorporated, by an individual investor and five investment funds.

Tesla said in a statement to Reuters in September the allegations were "based on the claims of plaintiff's lawyers looking for a payday, and are not representative of our shareholders."

The suit represents another legal headache for Musk, who in the past two years has settled a lawsuit by securities regulators over his use of Twitter and won a defamation trial brought by a British cave explorer.

Musk and the Tesla board also are scheduled to defend Musk's pay package at a trial in Delaware next year. At the heart of the current case are allegations that Musk and the other board members did not fully disclose the depth of SolarCity's problems, or their own conflicts.

SolarCity was founded in 2006 by Musk and his cousins, Lyndon Rive and Peter Rive, who were the company's CEO and chief technology officer as well as directors. Musk was SolarCity's chairman and largest shareholder, and five of Tesla's directors were direct or indirect owners of SolarCity stock. Entering 2016, SolarCity's stock was on a sharp downward trajectory and the company was slashing its workforce and bleeding cash.

Tesla touted synergies of combining the companies in the all-stock deal, which was approved by Tesla shareholders.

After the deal closed, Tesla slashed its solar sales force and ended a solar marketing deal with Home Depot. Quarterly solar installations plummeted and are well below levels SolarCity enjoyed in its heyday. Tesla has said Musk's involvement in deal discussions and all other material information were accurately described to shareholders in public filings before the deal closed.

On Wednesday, Tesla reported its second straight quarterly profit, sending its stock surging to an all-time high.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-solarcity-lawsuit/tesla-directors-settle-isolating-musk-as-solarcity-trial-looms-idUSKBN1ZT2HF

#3916035 at 2018-11-15 19:22:04 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #4980: Goose Drone Edition

WTF???

Fox's Varney kills extremely bizarre interview with Elon Musk's brother, apologizes to viewers

The following interview might be what some people would consider a "train wreck."

Elon Musk's brother, Kimbal Musk, was featured on Fox Business' "Varney & Co." on Thursday, where he made a very impressionable appearance.

After nearly three painful minutes, Stuart Varney cut off the interview and apologized to viewers for the strange interaction.
What are the details?

The interview was bizarre from the outset. Varney welcomed Kimbal Musk, who sits on Tesla's company board, to the show.

"Hi, and thank you for having me here," Kimbal said. "I'm so excited about Plant A Seed Day."

Varney smiled and went on to ask Kimbal about Tesla's new chairman, Robyn Denholm.

"You are on the board at Tesla," Varney said. "And you've got a new chair. Have you heard anything from her? Is she laying down the law?"

Kimbal responded, "I am so happy for the future of Tesla. On March 20, 2019, we're going to do a Plant a Seed Day-"

Varney cut Kimbal off and protested: "Come on! You are on the board of Tesla - which is very much in the news. You've got a new chair to replace your brother, Elon Musk. You've got to tell me: Is she laying down the law? Have you had contact with her? What's she saying? What's she doing on the board?"

Kimbal was eager to respond - but not necessarily with what Varney expected.

"I am very happy about the future of Tesla," Kimbal repeated. "Let me tell you about a story-"

Varney interrupted once more, becoming increasingly irritated by Kimbal's deflection.

"I want to know what's going on at Tesla with the new board chair, and you are on the board," Varney said. "Can you answer the question? What is she doing? What do you know that she's doing so far? I don't need to know you're happy about future of Tesla, I want to know what your new chair is doing at Tesla on the board."

It quickly became clear that Kimbal wanted to talk about nothing but Plant a Seed Day, and Varney nothing but Tesla's new chairman.

"What I'd like to share, I'm so happy about the future of Tesla," Kimbal reiterated and then launched into his promotion for Plant a Seed Day. "Plant A Seed Day in 2019 will be a way for companies across America to participate-"

Neither would budge, and Varney eventually had to kill the interview.

"You think my viewers want to learn about Plant a Seed Day?" Varney thundered. "They don't care!"

Kimbal insisted that Americans would care about Plant a Seed Day, but Varney was having none of it.

"OK. I'm wrapping it up," Varney said. "I'm sorry. It's over. I will not be used."

After the interview was cut off, an exasperated-looking Varney appeared on the screen and issued an apology.

"Deep breath," an off-screen voice can be heard saying.

Varney responded, "Sorry about that."

https://www.theblaze.com/news/2018/11/15/foxs-varney-kills-extremely-bizarre-interview-with-elon-musks-brother-apologizes-to-viewers

#3799154 at 2018-11-08 14:50:35 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #4828: Breaking News And Breaking Ribs Edition

Tesla Names Robyn Denholm To Replace Elon Musk As Chairman

Tesla (TSLA) chose Robyn Denholm to succeed Elon Musk as board chair, selecting an independent director to contend with the electric vehicle maker's mercurial chief executive officer following his run-ins with regulators and investors.

Denholm, 55, is of two women on Tesla's nine-member board. She will assume the Tesla chairman role immediately. A director since 2014, she will leave her position as CFO and head of strategy at Australian phone company Telstra Corp. at the end of her six-month notice period.

The appointment marks the end of an era for Musk, 47, who became chairman when he led a $7.5 million initial investment in Tesla in April 2004. Musk will remain CEO and a board director, but the fallout from his Twitter posts - which started with a claim that he secured funding and support to buy out investors at $420 a share - will last for years to come.

https://www.investors.com/news/technology/tesla-chairman-Robyn-Denholm-replaces-elon-musk-sec/

#3798534 at 2018-11-08 13:57:28 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #4827: Autumn Chill Edition

NEWS

Tesla names director Denholm as chair after Musk rows.

(Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) has ended weeks of speculation by promoting one of the electric carmaker's independent directors, Australian accountant Robyn Denholm, to replace Elon Musk as chairman.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-tesla-chair/tesla-names-director-Denholm-as-chair-after-musk-rows-idUSKCN1ND0PI

#3796515 at 2018-11-08 08:44:09 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #4824: TEXT 'SHAKING' IF ORANGE MAN BAD Edition

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6366475/Tesla-appoints-female-Australian-telecoms-executive-Robyn-Denholm-replace-Elon-Musk-chairman.html

#3796225 at 2018-11-08 07:56:40 (UTC+1)
Q Research General #4824: TEXT 'SHAKING' IF ORANGE MAN BAD Edition

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/11/08/Robyn-Denholm-will-replace-elon-musk-as-teslas-board-chair.html>>3796208