This week’s world famous news haiku competition is about how your summer vacation is a “retirement killer.” Advice from last week’s now hat-trick winner of this competition, Susan Weinstein, is to “rage at the world” for inspiration. Shouldn’t be too hard, should it? Send me your entry—to haiku at cheddar dot com—by noon ET Thursday, for consideration by your Cheddar peers. (Don’t worry if/when you get a bounceback email. The mailbox is working, it’s just been inundated with haikus lately!)

Matt Davis — Need2Know Chedditor

News you Need2Know

What’s the stock market up to, eh?

$SPX ( ▲ 1.18% )   $DJI ( ▲ 0.59% )   $NDX ( ▲ 1.59% )  

Companies mentioned in today’s newsletter

$SPCX ( ▲ 7.15% )   $VZ ( ▼ 5.24% )   $OPEAZZX ( ▲ 1.74% )   $ANTHZZX ( ▲ 1.03% )   $SPCX ( ▲ 7.15% )   $CMCSA ( ▲ 4.53% )  

Stocks Rise in Welcome Change After Last Week

U.S. stocks recovered a bit yesterday from a rare losing week, with the S&P 500 $SPX ( ▲ 1.18% ) climbing to break a five-day losing streak. The Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Nasdaq composite also gained ground $DJI ( ▲ 0.59% )   $NDX ( ▲ 1.59% ) . The S&P is still down about 2% from its early June highs and the Nasdaq is down 5% from its highs over the same period, but at least there wasn’t a further drop-off to start the new week, eh?

AI stocks also saw gains after Korean firms Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix announced they will invest roughly $518 billion in a South Korean chipmaking hub. SpaceX $SPCX ( ▲ 7.15% ) rose 1.5% and once again achieved a valuation of more than $2 trillion. Its upcoming addition to the Nasdaq 100 on July 7 will force index-tracking funds to buy the stock. Conversely, Verizon Communications $VZ ( ▼ 5.24% ) dropped 6% after announcing it is paying $625 million for a joint venture with BT Group.

Markets also gained despite rising oil prices, with Brent crude reaching $73.46 as Iran and the U.S. continued to engage in isolated skirmishes over the weekend. Traders seem content to write these off as the last sputters of the war. Fingers crossed, eh?

Quote of the day

Supreme Court Blocks Efforts to Fire Fed Governor Lisa Cook

The Supreme Court threw a judicial wrench into President Trump's plans to fire Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook yesterday. In a tight 5-4 decision, Chief Justice John Roberts essentially told the President that he can't just eliminate a central banker like a contestant on “The Apprentice.”

Roberts explained, “Under our precedents, Cook was entitled to notice and some opportunity to respond prior to her termination.” He pointed out that giving the President unchecked firing power “would allow the President to remove a member of the Federal Reserve at any time, for any reason,” warning: “That would turn for-cause protection into little more than at-will employment.” He also stressed that “not only the fact of independence but also the appearance of independence is key to the Federal Reserve’s design.”

The official excuse for the firing was some 2021 mortgage paperwork drama. Trump claimed Cook had misrepresented her finances in order to obtain more favorable mortgage terms. Ms. Cook has not been charged with a crime, and has denied any wrongdoing. She also fiercely clapped back: “This was never about mortgage documents... It was an attempt to remove me on a manufactured pretext because I refused to bow to political pressure.”

President Trump renewed his intention to try and fire Cook on Monday, after the decision. In a social media post, Mr. Trump described the Supreme Court’s 5-to-4 decision as “procedural,” adding that he would “take appropriate action immediately to make sure that someone who has committed wrongdoing will not be making vital decisions concerning the Welfare of the United States of America!”

Comcast Stock Soars as It Spins Off Sky and NBC

Comcast $CMCSK ( 0.0% )  has decided that mashing a sprawling media empire together with your internet bill was actually a terrible idea. The telecom giant is spinning off NBCUniversal, Sky, and its theme parks into a shiny new standalone media company, leaving the old Comcast with just broadband, wireless, and cable TV operations. Basically, they are keeping the routers and ditching the Minions.

After suffering a dismal year with shares down roughly 17% to 30%, investors immediately cheered the news of the impending split, sending the stock jumping up to 22% over the weekend. A corporate divorce, it turns out, can be lucrative.

How did executives explain this massive strategic backtrack? Co-CEO Mike Cavanagh said: “We simply don’t see these conditions changing anytime soon,” adding, “So where previously we believed that the scale and diversification benefits warranted operating these businesses as one company, we now have simply changed our mind about that.”

Whoops!

Meanwhile, Chairman Brian Roberts tried to dress up the billion-dollar breakup as a conscious uncoupling, claiming: “This is not about separating what we have built together, it’s about positioning two exceptional businesses to move forward with greater focus, agility, and the ability to fully capitalize on opportunities ahead.”

Naturally, the company sent a reassuring memo telling employees this whole ordeal simply marks “a new beginning,” which sounds like something Kim Jong-Un would write to the people in North Korea, doesn’t it?

Song of the day: Rolling Stones, ‘Jealous Lover’

"Jealous Lover" is a soulful, R&B-infused single released last week by The Rolling Stones, the third third advance track from their 25th official studio album, “Foreign Tongues,” which is scheduled for release on July 10. The track channels a slinky, slow groove reminiscent of their 1978 classic "Miss You." Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. I’m impressed they can turn a track like this out in their 80s.

Eyeing SpaceX, OpenAI Delays IPO to 2027