MARKET MOVERS
- Tesla and Block partner with Blockstream to create a Solar-Powered Bitcoin mining plant. Construction on the mining facility began Friday, Blockstream said. Once it’s completed, it will result in a projected 3.8 megawatts of solar renewable power to mine Bitcoin. The facility will use an array of 3.8 Megawatt Tesla Solar PV and 12 megawatt-hours Tesla Megapack.
- Reversing globalization could cause pain and profit for companies. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has fast-forwarded a shift away from the decades-long trend of economic integration and globalization. Economists say breaking globalization apart will be inflationary. A slow evolution that will take years or even decades to play out as companies relocate plants, rebuild supply chains, refocus product lines and rethink marketing. Read more here.
- The merger between Discovery and WarnerMedia has closed. The two have completed their megamerger, becoming the country’s newest media juggernaut. That juggernaut is called Warner Bros. Discovery, and it’ll house the massive library of shows, movies, and news programming that the two companies are known for. Controlling the debt load might mean that HBO won’t be adding pricey new prestige dramas to the mix anytime soon.
- Cash App launches Bitcoin paycheck conversion feature at Bitcoin Miami. Block announced that U.S. customers can now use Cash App's "Paid in Bitcoin" feature to automatically convert their salary (or part of it) into Bitcoin. Clients who've connected their Visa debit cards to the service via its Cash Card function can opt to automatically convert a percentage of each direct deposit into Bitcoin (BTC). The amount can be adjusted at any time.
- Food prices soared 12.6% between February and March. Their highest levels on record, with the war in Ukraine disrupting shipments of critical supplies like wheat and vegetable oils. Higher food prices can lead to social unrest in low-income countries, where food accounts for a much larger share of spending. In sub-Saharan Africa, food makes up 40% of consumer spending, compared to 17% in higher-income economies. Read more here.
- The number of new listings rose by 8% compared to a year ago. But even with the climb, housing shortages abound: Active inventory remains down 13% compared to a year ago. With home prices and mortgage rates climbing over recent weeks, more aspiring home buyers are becoming priced out. Sellers may be taking notice. About 12% of homes for sale had a price drop during the four weeks ending April 3, according to a recent report from Redfin.
- Residential construction spending rises for the 5th consecutive month. The 1.1 percent increase was 16.6 percent higher than a year earlier and followed a 1.1 percent increase in spending for January. Spending stands at an annual rate of $850.6 billion. Demand for new homes has remained strong. The increase was attributed to spending on new home construction, both single-family and multifamily.
WHAT TO WATCH
- Elon Musk says Tesla may have to get into lithium mining. Elon Musk tweeted Tesla may get into the lithium mining and refining business directly and at scale because the cost of the metal, a key component in manufacturing batteries, has gotten so high. The Tesla and SpaceX tech boss was responding to a tweet showing the average price of lithium per tonne in the last two decades.
- The new sleeping giant is India. Jason Calacanis thinks it's the missing chip in the future. India is a sovereign country that makes its own decisions. They have an effective economy. They are also producing products for western countries. They have nuclear power, and they can speak English. India is perhaps the most important player in all this and is just laying back to see how events play out. Source(1:01:21)
- Companies will have a hard time raising money on their terms. Chamath Palihapitiya thinks that we're in a situation where until the Fed sees that there's massive trading of liquidity which means until we see the indices crack big time at 3500-3600 in the S&P, they're just going to keep ratcheting things up. This might mean that there's an 18-month period where companies cannot raise money on their own terms. They have to raise money on market terms instead. Source(13:15)
- Circle leads U.K. stablecoin charm offensive. Circle Internet Financial Ltd. has conducted a number of “state visits” to the U.K. in the last year, flying over its most senior executives to engage with government, regulators, and industry bodies with a view to expanding its business in the region. Euro and sterling-pegged stablecoins are under consideration. Read more here.
- Disney launches their Orlando affordable housing development. Walt Disney Co. is setting aside nearly 80 acres of land in Orange County, Fla., to build more than 1,300 units of affordable housing. An affordable-housing developer will build the project near Disney’s Central Florida theme parks, the company said this week. The development is still subject to local approvals.
