—— Democrats Consider Asking Biden to Withdraw; US Home Affordability Continues to Deteriorate; Citi Bike Rental Prices to Go Up 20%; LeBron and His Son both Signed Deal with Lakers; Bezos Sell $5bn of Amazon at Record High Price; Jenson Huang Sells $169mn Nvidia Shares
1. Democrats Consider Asking Biden to Withdraw
Dozens of Democratic lawmakers are considering signing a letter demanding President Joe Biden withdraw from the race, a senior party official said, as concerns grow that his candidacy could jeopardize their control of Congress.
Biden is quickly losing the support of Democratic lawmakers and candidates worried that the 81-year-old’s continued candidacy could lead to a Republican takeover of Washington and an unchecked Donald Trump presidency.
The White House denied a New York Times report earlier on Wednesday that the president is considering bowing out of the contest just four months before the election. However, congressional Democrats are raising concerns that Biden’s presence at the top of the ticket is becoming a liability.
Democrats running for reelection in traditionally safe Democratic districts are circulating the letter, according to the official, highlighting the widespread panic within the party.
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2. US Home Affordability Continues to Deteriorate
Owning a house is less affordable for average earners in the US than at any time in the past 17 years. According to a new report from Attom, the costs of a typical home — including mortgage payments, property insurance, and taxes — consumed 35.1% of the average wage in the second quarter, the highest share since 2007 and up from 32.1% a year earlier.
The report attributes this decrease in affordability to rising expenses and mortgage rates hovering around 7%, which have outpaced income gains. A persistent shortage of listings has pushed the median home price to a record-high $360,000.
“The latest data presents a clear challenge for homebuyers,” Rob Barber, chief executive officer of Attom, said in a statement. “It’s common for these trends to intensify during the spring buying season when buyer demand increases. However, the trends this year are particularly challenging for house hunters.”
In over a third of US markets, ownership costs consumed 43% of average local wages, significantly higher than the 28% considered a guideline for affordability.
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3. Citi Bike Rental Prices to Go Up 20%
Homebuilder-stock analysts are expressing growing concerns about signs of weakening in key markets such as Florida and Texas.
Lennar Corp. and D.R. Horton Inc. were downgraded by Citigroup Inc. analyst Anthony Pettinari, who cited worries that the housing market might remain “sluggish” in the second half of the year. Similarly, Raymond James Financial Inc.’s Buck Horne lowered his recommendation for Lennar to market perform from outperform, highlighting the company’s significant exposure to Florida.
“We see softness in data – permits, starts, sales, and prices all recently below expectations – potentially continuing” in the second half of the year, Pettinari wrote in a note to clients on Tuesday. “New and existing home inventories are ticking up, and the ‘twin engines’ of the hot US housing market – Texas and Florida – are seeing some areas of softening.”
Following these downgrades, shares of Lennar and D.R. Horton each fell as much as 2.9% at the market open in New York.
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4. LeBron and His Son both Signed Deal with Lakers
James has agreed to a two-year, $104 million deal with the Los Angeles Lakers, according to a source familiar with the matter. This contract, the highest ever for someone his age, would boost his net worth to nearly $1.5 billion, as per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
This agreement allows James to fulfill his long-held goal of playing alongside his son, Bronny James Jr., who was drafted by the Lakers last week and reportedly signed a four-year, $7.9 million contract.
Entering his 22nd season in the NBA, James holds the league’s all-time scoring record and averaged 25.7 points per game last year, ranking him among the top 15 players in the league. Known as “King James” since his standout high-school career led the Cleveland Cavaliers to draft him first overall in the 2003 NBA draft, he is currently the wealthiest active player in the NBA.
James’ wealth comes from a combination of his NBA salary, sponsorships, investments, and his own consumer and entertainment business, the SpringHill Co. Another NBA legend, Michael Jordan, is worth more than $4 billion after selling his stake in the Charlotte Hornets last year.
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5. Bezos Sell $5bn of Amazon at Record High Price
Jeff Bezos disclosed plans to sell an additional 25 million shares of Amazon.com Inc., valued at $5 billion, on the day the stock reached a new record high.
The notice was filed after the market closed on Tuesday, though the sales could begin as early as that same day, according to the filing.
In February, Bezos sold shares worth about $8.5 billion over nine trading days, marking his first disposal of company stock since 2021. With the new planned sales, his total sales this year would amount to approximately $13.5 billion, based on calculations by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
After the latest sale, Bezos would still hold nearly 912 million shares, representing about 8.8% of Amazon. He remains the world’s second-richest person with a net worth of $221.6 billion, according to Bloomberg’s wealth index.
In addition to his stake in Amazon, Bezos owns the space-exploration company Blue Origin and the Washington Post.
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6. Jenson Huang Sells $169mn Nvidia Shares
Nvidia Corp. Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang sold shares worth nearly $169 million in June, the most he’s ever netted in a single month. This sale comes amid insatiable demand for Nvidia’s chips, which are crucial for powering artificial intelligence, driving the stock to new heights.
Huang sold 1.3 million shares, his first sale of the year, during a month when Nvidia’s market value briefly exceeded $3 trillion, making it the world’s most valuable company for a short period. This surge in value propelled Huang, 61, into the elite group of individuals with fortunes above $100 billion.
Nvidia’s dominant position in the market for high-end accelerators has positioned it as one of the biggest beneficiaries of the AI boom. The stock’s more than 150% gain since the start of the year has more than doubled Huang’s net worth, increasing by $63.7 billion in the last six months. The company co-founder is now ranked 13th on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, with a fortune of $107.7 billion.
The transactions were conducted under a 10b5-1 trading plan adopted in March, according to filings. Nvidia declined to comment on the sales.
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7. US Services Activity Quickly Contracts
The US services sector contracted in June at the fastest rate in four years, driven by a significant decline in business activity and a drop in orders. The Institute for Supply Management’s composite index for services fell by 5 points to 48.8. A reading below 50 indicates contraction, and the June figure was much weaker than any predictions in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
The ISM’s business activity index, which is similar to the group’s factory output gauge, dropped by 11.6 points last month, the steepest decline since April 2020. Orders placed with service providers decreased for the first time since the end of 2022.
The figures indicate a sharp and significant reversal from the previous month, when the overall measure surged to a nine-month high. The June decline in the services index, which covers the largest segment of the economy, suggests a continued moderation in growth.
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本文内容来自《Financial Times》、《Bloomberg》，以及《The Real Deal》等多家财经新闻媒体。