Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

An Iran deal could actually trigger a painful stock-market selloff, despite Wall Street’s optimism (May 28, MarketWatch):

Rather than rallying further, an announcement of a credible deal between the U.S. and Iran — one that would at least temporarily reopen the Strait of Hormuz — might be just the thing that catalyzes a painful pullback for indexes like the S&P 500, according to Charlie McElligott, cross-asset strategist at Nomura.

Investors should keep an eye on trading activity in call options, McElligott said. Once demand for calls tied to hot megacap and semiconductor names starts to slacken, it could be a sign that a selloff is imminent, he said.

Core inflation hit an annual rate of 3.3% in April, as expected, Fed’s preferred gauge shows (May 28, CNBC):

The personal consumption expenditures price index increased a seasonally adjusted 0.4% for the month, putting the 12-month inflation rate at 3.8%, the Commerce Department reported. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for respective readings of 0.5% and 3.8%.

Excluding food and energy, core prices rose 0.2% for the month and 3.3% for the year, against estimates of 0.3% and 3.3%.

U.S. GDP Growth Revised Lower for First Quarter (May 28, Wall Street Journal):

Gross domestic product, a broad measure of the goods and services produced across the U.S., rose at a 1.6% seasonally and inflation-adjusted annual rate in January through March, the Commerce Department said Thursday.

The department previously estimated first-quarter GDP rose at a 2% rate. It said the new, lower estimate primarily reflected “downward revisions to investment and consumer spending.”

Consumer spending looks strong, but higher inflation is a big reason why (May 28, MarketWatch):

Personal spending increased 0.5% in April, the government said, but inflation also rose 0.4%. Household spending barely rose if inflation is taken into account.

Nor did incomes with inflation. They were unchanged in April, mainly because farmers earned less. Workers with regular jobs did see a small bump up in pay.

China’s next export shock walks on two legs — and costs less than a used car (May 27, MarketWatch):

If Chinese manufacturers can make robots cheap enough, useful enough and scalable enough, the result could be a new phase in China’s manufacturing rise: not just cheaper Chinese products, but cheaper Chinese production itself.

Some Chinese humanoid robots are being offered for as little as $13,500. That price point is the part investors should notice. A $13,500 robot does not need to be perfect to matter. It only needs to handle enough repetitive tasks in warehouses, electronics plants, auto factories and logistics centers to change the economics of labor.

U.S. prices oil fall more than 5% after Rubio says U.S. will give Iran talks ‘every chance to succeed’ (May 27, CNBC):

Iran and the U.S. teetered this week between a deal and a renewed round of military escalation. U.S. forces launched strikes in southern Iran in a move the Pentagon described as defensive. Tehran vowed to retaliate for the attacks.

Industry veterans are skeptical oil flows will quickly return to prewar levels.

Inflation worries weigh on US consumer confidence in May (May 26, Reuters):

The Conference ​Board said its consumer confidence index slipped ⁠0.7 points to 93.1 this ​month. Data for April was revised higher ​to show the index at 93.8 instead of 92.8. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast ​the index would drop to 92.0.

“Consumer ​confidence edged downward in May as the inflationary ‌impacts ⁠of the war in the Middle East intensified,” said Dana Peterson, chief economist at the Conference Board.

Oil prices tumble as deal to end Iran war appears close, though Trump says there’s no rush (May 25, MarketWatch):

Iranian officials said that while some understandings had been reached, there was still much work to be done before an agreement could be signed, the Associated Press reported.

West Texas Intermediate crude for July delivery fell nearly 6% on Monday, to around $91 a barrel.

See Also:

8 Genius Moves to Make When the Price of Everything Is Going Up

Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

Winners and Losers From Trump and Xi’s Beijing Summit Talks (May 15, Bloomberg):

Donald Trump got the pageantry he craved during his trip to China. But the US president concluded the summit largely where he began, receiving little help from his self-described “friend” Xi Jinping in dealing with a messy war in Iran and a challenging political climate at home.

The trip resulted in some initial winners, including Xi Jinping, Jensen Huang, and Visa Inc., while others such as Taiwan, Boeing Inc., and Congressional Republicans were seen as losers.

U.S. retail sales rise again, but higher gas prices and inflation play a big role (May 14, MarketWatch):

Retail receipts a seasonally adjusted 0.5% last month, the government said Thursday, an increase that matched the Wall Street estimate.

If gas stations are omitted, retail sales rose a more modest 0.3%. The problem is, consumer prices rose 0.6% in April. That suggests shoppers got less bang for their buck.

U.S Jobless Claims Rose Last Week (May 14, Wall Street Journal):

U.S. jobless claims rose last week but were still relatively low, signaling employers held back from widespread layoffs.

The number of people who filed for unemployment benefits rose by 12,000 to 211,000 in the week through May 9, the Labor Department said Thursday. Economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal were expecting to see 205,000 new claims.

Wholesale inflation jumps 6% in April on annual basis, biggest increase since 2022 (May 13, CNBC):

The producer price index rose a seasonally adjusted 1.4% for the month, much higher than the 0.5% Dow Jones consensus forecast and the upwardly revised 0.7% March increase.

“Inflation is sticky and accelerating. The core reading confirms a deeper structural trend, especially in services,” said David Russell, global head of market strategy at TradeStation. “The Hormuz crisis is aggravating the problem, but this goes way beyond oil.”

Inflation Soared to 3.8% in April, Driven by Gasoline Prices (May 12, Wall Street Journal):

Economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected inflation of 3.7%. The April increase was the highest in three years.

Prices excluding food and energy categories—the so-called core measure economists watch in an effort to better capture inflation’s underlying trend—rose 2.8%.

Lawmakers Query Iran War Cost as Trump Renews Strike Threats (May 12, Bloomberg):

The US and Iran remain too far apart for a deal, with Bloomberg Economics’ Dina Esfandiary and Becca Wasser saying that if neither side is willing to make concessions, then a lasting peace deal will remain elusive.

Michael Burry Warns of Stock Crash as Tech Jump Echoes 2000 Peak (May 11, Bloomberg):

Michael Burry, the investor made famous in The Big Short, is warning that the Nasdaq 100 Index is headed toward a dramatic reversal after a “parabolic” surge that has driven technology valuations to unsustainable heights.

“We are witnessing history. In the stock market, that is not a good thing,” Burry said. He likened it to the “scene of the bloody car crash, minutes before it happens.”

See Also:

8 Genius Moves to Make When the Price of Everything Is Going Up

Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

Why Morgan Stanley sees little possibility of a stock-market retreat (April 27, MarketWatch)

The drivers identified by Mike Wilson in his weekly warm-up research note published Monday are the strong earnings growth the S&P 500 is exhibiting so far this reporting season, an expanding capex cycle, the ongoing adoption of AI and the fact that, having been buffeted by geopolitical headwinds, passive investors are essentially under-risked.

Moody’s Upgrades China’s Outlook, Citing Resilience in Face of Challenges (April 27, Wall Street Journal)

Despite the property-sector slump and an expected slowdown in export growth, Moody’s expects exports to continue supporting a relatively strong pace of economic expansion.

It forecasts real GDP growth at 4.5% in 2026 and 4.2% in 2027, giving policymakers enough space to address structural challenges.

Oil could end the year at $100 if flows don’t normalize soon, says Goldman Sachs (April 27, MarketWatch)

In a situation where exports normalize by mid-June, there is no reduction in capacity and the U.S and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries provide stronger supply responses, oil could fall to just under $80 a barrel.

Corporate America Is Minting Money—and Not Just in Tech and Finance (April 27, Wall Street Journal)

Consumers—long the engine of the U.S. economy—feel solidly in the dumps. High oil prices act like a tax, dragging down household consumption while boosting inflation.

Yet the biggest U.S. public companies are seeing profit and revenue surge. Year-over-year growth in earnings per share is expected to exceed 13% for the sixth quarter running, according to estimates from financial-data firm LSEG.

OpenAI Misses Key Revenue, User Targets in High-Stakes Sprint Toward IPO (April 28, Wall Street Journal)

Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has told other company leaders that she is worried the company might not be able to pay for future computing contracts if revenue doesn’t grow fast enough, according to people familiar with the matter.

JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon says a credit-led recession would be ‘worse than people think’ (April 29, MarketWatch)

The boss of the world’s biggest bank noted that out of the thousands of private-credit firms, some of them are “brilliant,” “but I guarantee to you not all thousand of them are,” he said.

Concerns over a possible private-credit crisis is intensifying as Wall Street’s biggest banks have increasingly come under fire for their significant exposure.

Brent oil tops $118 after Trump says he will blockade Iran until it agrees to a nuclear deal (April 29, CNBC)

“The blockade is somewhat more effective than the bombing,” Trump told Axios on Wednesday. “They are choking like a stuffed pig, and it is going to be worse for them. They can’t have a nuclear weapon.”

Divided Fed Officials Hold Rates; Powell to Stay as Governor (April 29, Bloomberg) 

Federal Reserve officials left interest rates unchanged, but revealed a deepening division over the outlook for policy amid increased uncertainty caused by the conflict in the Middle East.

Four officials voted against the decision, including three who objected to language in their post-meeting statement that suggested the central bank would eventually resume cutting rates.

Inflation rate leaps to nearly 3-year high after Iran war. The Fed’s hands are now tied. (April 30, MarketWatch) 

The personal-consumption price index jumped 0.7% in March, reflecting the biggest increase since the middle of 2022. Higher gas prices tied to the Iran war were mostly to blame.

The yearly rate of inflation climbed to 3.5% from 2.8%. That’s the highest level since the spring of 2023.

U.S. Economy Grew 2 Percent in Early 2026 Even as War in Iran Began to Hit Energy Prices (April 30, New York Times)

“On net it’s a solid number. Consumer spending has held up,” said Jason Draho, head of asset allocation for the Americas at UBS. He added, though, that the strength “could be fully offset” if higher energy prices persist for the next six months.

Trump Family Crypto Project Quietly Sold as Holders Got Stuck (May 1, Bloomberg)

The family built its fortune on licensing the Trump name — real estate, Bibles, sneakers — but digital assets have opened a new revenue stream.

For World Liberty’s investors, things have worked out differently from what many expected. Early buyers remain locked out of 80% of their token holdings, unable to sell into a market that has already moved sharply against them.

Elon Musk’s Tesla Compensation Last Year Surpassed $158 Billion (May 1, Wall Street Journal)

The pay package was part of a stratospheric compensation plan approved by shareholders last year as a way to motivate Tesla’s chief executive to spend more time at the electric-vehicle maker.