1. Microsoft Azure Cloud Service Outage
2. Cybersecurity Firm Tenable Considering Sale
3. Stellantis Offers Employee Buyout Options
4. U.S. 10-Year Treasury Yield Hits New Low
5. Microsoft Azure Growth Slows, Stock Plunges
6. PayPal Raises Forecast, Stock Soars
7. Hong Kong Tycoons Selling Properties to Repay Debt
1. Microsoft Azure Cloud Service Outage
Today, Microsoft Azure cloud services experienced an unexpected outage due to a surge in usage. Sources revealed that the same reason also caused Starbucks’ mobile ordering to fail for several hours.
Starting at 7 a.m., there were hundreds of outage reports involving services like Azure and Microsoft 365. Microsoft said it would continue to monitor the situation until services are fully restored.
Earlier this month, Microsoft’s operating system faced major issues due to a buggy update from CrowdStrike. Now, its services are facing new problems.
Microsoft is scheduled to release its earnings report this Tuesday, and investors are eager to see signs of its AI strategy paying off.
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2. Cybersecurity Firm Tenable Considering Sale
Sources revealed that cybersecurity firm Tenable Holdings is considering strategic options, including a sale, after receiving several acquisition interests.
Today, Tenable’s stock surged as much as 14%, before settling at a loss of 8.4%, with a market cap of $5.6 billion.
Sources believe suitable buyers include private equity firms and strategic acquirers. Tenable helps more than 44,000 enterprise clients understand and reduce cyber risk.
Earlier this month, Israeli cybersecurity company Wiz turned down a $23 billion offer from Google.
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3. Stellantis Offers Employee Buyout Options
Automotive giant Stellantis announced it will offer buyout compensation to employees who voluntarily resign.
This afternoon, Stellantis announced that all non-union employees at vice president level or below are eligible to apply for the buyout, with no minimum tenure requirement.
In recent years, many automakers have heavily invested in EVs, driving up costs. On the other hand, declining consumer demand has caused revenue to fall.
In the second half of this year, Stellantis pledged to cut costs by $540 million.
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4. U.S. 10-Year Treasury Yield Hits New Low
With less than a day before the Federal Reserve announces its benchmark interest rate decision, the 10-year U.S. Treasury continued to rally for the fourth consecutive day, with its yield reaching a four-month low.
This morning, new U.S. government data showed that the number of job openings in June declined, and layoffs eased—signs that the job market is cooling, but not weakening.
This afternoon, the 10-year Treasury yield fell 0.05% to 4.13%.
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5. Microsoft Azure Growth Slows, Stock Plunges
After the market closed today, Microsoft released its Q4 fiscal report. In the fourth quarter, revenue grew 15% to $64.7 billion, and adjusted earnings per share were $2.95—both just barely exceeding analysts’ expectations.
However, revenue from Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing services rose 29%, down from 31% in the previous quarter.
CEO Satya Nadella has been integrating AI technologies across Microsoft’s product lines, including launching the Copilots AI assistants. Azure also introduced subscription tiers that include OpenAI’s products.
Last week, Google also shocked Wall Street and investors with surging costs, leading to a stock plunge.
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6. PayPal Raises Forecast, Stock Soars
Today, payment software company PayPal announced it has raised its full-year EPS forecast from $3.65 to $3.98, triggering its largest stock surge in over 20 months.
Total payment volume rose 11% in Q2 to $416.8 billion, slightly below expectations. In recent years, PayPal’s stock declined and the company reduced acquisition activities.
Today, PayPal also announced a $6 billion stock buyback program, up from a previous $5 billion. In Q2 alone, the company repurchased $1.5 billion in shares to reward shareholders.
PayPal’s stock surged as much as 10% today, marking its biggest one-day gain since November 2022.
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7. Hong Kong Tycoons Selling Properties to Repay Debt
Amid the downturn in Hong Kong’s real estate market, many wealthy families are being forced to sell properties at steep discounts to repay debt.
Last month, a debt-laden Hong Kong tycoon family sold seven properties for $250 million, many of which were sold at significant discounts. In April, a family-run firm sold its stake in the AIA Central building after losing $20 million.
Another family, which made its fortune through retail property development, sold a shop at a 60% loss, and several of its other real estate holdings were taken over by special servicers.
According to CBRE data, 75% of high-end property sellers in the first half of this year faced financial difficulties.
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This content is sourced from Financial Times, Bloomberg, and The Real Deal, among other financial news outlets.