Archive

July 2025

Browsing

Amazon is extending its annual Prime Day sales and offering new membership perks to Gen Z shoppers amid tariff-related price worries and possibly some consumer boredom with an event marking its 11th year.

For the first time, Seattle-based Amazon is holding the now-misnamed Prime Day over four days. The e-commerce giant’s promised blitz of summer deals for Prime members started at 3:01 a.m. Eastern time on Tuesday and ends early Friday.

Amazon launched Prime Day in 2015 and expanded it to two days in 2019. The company said this year’s longer version would have deals dropping as often as every 5 minutes during certain periods.

Prime members ages 18-24, who pay $7.49 per month instead of the $14.99 that older customers not eligible for discounted rates pay for free shipping and other benefits, will receive 5% cash back on their purchases for a limited time.

Amazon executives declined to comment on the potential impact of tariffs on Prime Day deals. The event is taking place two and a half months after an online news report sparked speculation that Amazon planned to display added tariff costs next to product prices on its website.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt denounced the purported change as a “hostile and political act” before Amazon clarified the idea had been floated for its low-cost Haul storefront but never approved.

Amazon’s past success with using Prime Day to drive sales and attract new members spurred other major retail chains to schedule competing sales in July. Best Buy, Target and Walmart are repeating the practice this year.

Like Amazon, Walmart is adding two more days to its promotional period, which starts Tuesday and runs through July 13. The nation’s largest retailer is making its summer deals available in stores as well as online for the first time.

Here’s what to expect:

Amazon expanded Prime Day this year because shoppers “wanted more time to shop and save,” Amazon Prime Vice President Jamil Ghani recently told The Associated Press.

Analysts are unsure the extra days will translate into more purchases given that renewed inflation worries and potential price increases from tariffs may make consumers less willing to spend. Amazon doesn’t disclose Prime Day sales figures but said last year that the event achieved record global sales.

Adobe Digital Insights predicts that the sales event will drive $23.8 billion in overall online spending from July 8 to July 11, 28.4% more than the similar period last year. In 2024 and 2023, online sales increased 11% and 6.1% during the comparable four days of July.

Vivek Pandya, lead analyst at Adobe Digital Insights, noted that Amazon’s move to stretch the sales event to four days is a big opportunity to “really amplify and accelerate the spending velocity.”

Caila Schwartz, director of consumer insights and strategy at software company Salesforce, noted that July sales in general have lost some momentum in recent years. Amazon is not a Salesforce Commerce Cloud customer, so the business software company doesn’t have access to the online giant’s e-commerce sales and so is not privy to Prime Day figures.

“What we saw last year was that (shoppers) bought and then they were done, ” Schwartz said. “We know that the consumer is still really cautious. So it’s likely we could see a similar pattern where they come out early, they’re ready to buy and then they take a step back.”

Amazon executives reported in May that the company and many of its third-party sellers tried to beat big import tax bills by stocking up on foreign goods before President Donald Trump’s tariffs took effect. And because of that move, a fair number of third-party sellers hadn’t changed their pricing at that time, Amazon said.

Adobe Digital Insights’ Pandya expects discounts to remain on par with last year and for other U.S. retail companies to mark 10% to 24% off the manufacturers’ suggested retail price between Tuesday and Friday.

Salesforce’s Schwartz said she’s noticed retailers becoming more precise with their discounts, such as offering promotion codes that apply to selected products instead of their entire websites.

Amazon Prime and other July sales have historically helped jump-start back-to-school spending and encouraged advance planners to buy other seasonal merchandise earlier. Analysts said they expected U.S. consumers to make purchases this week out of fear that tariffs will make items more expensive later.

Brett Rose, CEO of United National Consumer Supplies, a wholesale distributor of overstocked goods like toys and beauty products, thinks shoppers will go for items like beauty essentials.

“They’re going to buy more everyday items,” he said.

As in past years, Amazon offered early deals leading up to Prime Day. For the big event, Amazon said it would have special discounts on Alexa-enabled products like Echo, Fire TV and Fire tablets.

Walmart said its July sale would include a 32-inch Samsung smart monitor priced at $199 instead of $299.99; and $50 off a 50-Inch Vizio Smart TV with a standard retail price of $298.00. Target said it was maintaining its 2024 prices on key back-to-school items, including a $5 backpack and a selection of 20 school supplies totaling less than $20.

Independent businesses that sell goods through Amazon account for more than 60% of the company’s retail sales. Some third-party sellers are expected to sit out Prime Day and not offer discounts to preserve their profit margins during the ongoing tariff uncertainty, analysts said.

Rose, of United National Consumer Supplies, said he spoke with third-party sellers who said they would rather take a sales hit this week than use up a lot of their pre-tariffs inventory now and risk seeing their profit margins suffer later.

However, some independent businesses that market their products on Amazon are looking to Prime Day to make a dent in the inventory they built up earlier in the year to avoid tariffs.

Home fragrance company Outdoor Fellow, which makes about 30% of its sales through Amazon’s marketplace, gets most of its candle lids, labels, jars, reed diffusers and other items from China, founder Patrick Jones said. Fearing high costs from tariffs, Jones stocked up at the beginning of the year, roughly doubling his inventory.

For Prime Day, he plans to offer bigger discounts, such as 32% off the price of a candle normally priced at $34, Jones said.

“All the product that we have on Amazon right now is still from the inventory that we got before the tariffs went into effect,” he said. “So we’re still able to offer the discount that we’re planning on doing.”

Jones said he was waiting to find out if the order he placed in June will incur large customs duties when the goods arrive from China in a few weeks.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Just when we thought tariff talk had gone quiet, it’s back on center stage. With the reciprocal tariff deadline landing this Wednesday, President Trump has mailed out notices that new duties will kick in on August 1. Countries such as Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, and Kazakhstan face a 25% levy, while a few others may see steeper rates.  

Wall Street didn’t take the news well. On Monday, the S&P 500 ($SPX) closed lower by 0.79%.  

Before the July 4 long weekend, the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite ($COMPQ) notched fresh record highs, buoyed by solid jobs data. But like migratory birds, tariffs circled back on Monday and pushed stocks lower almost across the board.  

Monday’s performance can be encapsulated by the StockCharts MarketCarpets screenshot below. It was pretty much red except for a few lonely green squares. 

FIGURE 1. STOCK MARKET’S PERFORMANCE ON MONDAY, JULY 7. Besides a few lonely green squares, the screen lit up red. Image source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Why Pullbacks Can Be Your Friend

Stock market pullbacks aren’t all bad. They give investors and traders a chance to go bargain hunting. A handy tool is the Market Movers panel in your StockCharts Dashboard. Check the “S&P 500 % Down” category to spot the 10 stocks in the index that had the largest % loss for the trading day. Then view the charts and see if any deserve a place in your ChartLists.

Two names that caught my eye: 

  1. Tesla, Inc. (TSLA)
  2. ON Semiconductor Corp. (ON) 

FIGURE 2. MARKET MOVERS PANEL FROM MONDAY, JULY 7. From this list, two stocks worth considering as “buy the dip” opportunities are TSLA and ON. Image source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Tesla, Inc. (TSLA): Sitting on the Fence

While it’s clear that politics helped knock TSLA down, the chart tells a fuller story. 

From the daily chart of TSLA below, it’s clear that the stock has seen some erratic movement recently. 

FIGURE 3. DAILY CHART OF TSLA’S STOCK PRICE. TSLA’s stock price has danced above and below its 200-day simple moving average, and momentum is relatively weak. Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

Since April, TSLA’s stock price looked like it was recovering after it broke out above its 200-day simple moving average (SMA). However, in early June it dipped below it and then went above it, and is now back below it. The June 23 high was below the end of May high. The relative strength index (RSI) and percentage price oscillator (PPO) indicate weakening momentum. The big question is where is TSLA going to find support? 

Watch three support levels on your chart. TSLA’s stock price has moved above the first support level. Look for momentum to pick up to confirm the upside move. If TSLA’s stock price doesn’t hold at this level and falls further towards the $270 or $220 levels, similar conditions would apply. However, a significant fall in price would weaken momentum significantly and would need stronger evidence to consider going long. 

ON Semiconductor (ON): Stalling at Resistance

ON has lagged its chip-making peers. Over the past year, ON Semiconductor has underperformed the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (SMH). ON supplies chips to automakers and manufacturers, so its fortunes rise and fall with car demand. 

The daily chart of ON below shows that since early April the stock price has recovered with a series of higher highs and higher lows. It is now facing resistance of its 200-day SMA, a resistance area that coincides with the February high and the early January gap down. Momentum looks like it’s rising as indicated by the slight rise in RSI and a potential bullish crossover in the PPO. 

FIGURE 4. DAILY CHART OF ON SEMICONDUCTOR. Since early April, ON has printed higher highs and higher lows. The stock price is now hovering around its 200-day SMA, and momentum seems to be gaining a little strength. Chart source: StockCharts.com. For educational purposes.

I would look for ON to clear $58 on strong volume and improving momentum before opening a long position.  

Closing Position

  • Add price alerts in StockCharts at each support level (for TSLA) or resistance level (for ON).
  • When an alert triggers, re-evaluate the chart to confirm if momentum is strong enough for a price reversal and upside follow-through. 

A short-term investment could be a better choice for TSLA since its price performance is correlated to Elon Musk’s involvement with the company. 

ON could be a steadier, longer-term investment if the stock price breaks above resistance. 

No matter what, decide in advance where you’ll place your stops. Then stick to your plan because discipline always wins.


Disclaimer: This blog is for educational purposes only and should not be construed as financial advice. The ideas and strategies should never be used without first assessing your own personal and financial situation, or without consulting a financial professional.

Russia launched its largest drone attack on Ukraine since the beginning of its invasion, Ukrainian officials said Wednesday, just hours after US President Donald Trump pledged more military support for Kyiv and accused his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin of throwing “bullsh*t” over peace talks.

The massive aerial assault involved 741 drones, Ukraine’s Air Force said, eclipsing the previous record number of 539 drones, set on July 4, by hundreds – but it was largely repelled, with the damage limited and no immediate reports of deaths.

“This is a demonstrative attack, and it comes at a time when there have been so many attempts to achieve peace and cease fire, but Russia rejects everything,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Telegram.

“Our partners know how to apply pressure so that Russia will be forced to think about ending the war, not new strikes. Everyone who wants peace must act.”

The barrage, which mainly targeted the city of Lutsk, in northwestern Ukraine, was so intense it caused Poland’s military to scramble aircraft in its airspace. It comes after weeks of intensifying aerial strikes on Ukraine by Russia.

“Last night, our region was again subjected to a mass attack,” Ivan Rudnitskyi, the head of the military administration in Volyn region, home to Lutsk, said on Telegram. “Virtually everything was flying towards Lutsk.”

Ukraine’s Air Force said it destroyed 718 of the drones. There were no immediate reports of fatalities. One woman was hospitalized with chest injuries in the city of Brovary, near Kyiv, its mayor said.

Ukraine launched 86 drones towards Russia overnight, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense.

Moscow’s scaled up assault on Kyiv follows a remarkable 48 hours in the White House, where Trump vented his anger about Russian leader Vladimir Putin’s lack of commitment to a peace deal and pledged more support for Ukraine.

“We get a lot of bullsh*t thrown at us by Putin, if you want to know the truth,” Trump said in a Cabinet meeting. “He’s very nice all of the time, but it turns out to be meaningless.”

Kyiv urgently needs more US-made Patriot interceptor missiles to repel Russian attacks.

“We’re going to send some more weapons (to Ukraine),” Trump said on Monday evening. “We have to — they have to be able to defend themselves.”

“They’re getting hit very hard. We’re going to have to send more weapons,” Trump added. “Defensive weapons, primarily, but they’re getting hit very, very hard.”

A Pentagon spokesman later said that “at President Trump’s direction, the Department of Defense is sending additional defensive weapons to Ukraine to ensure the Ukrainians can defend themselves while we work to secure a lasting peace and ensure the killing stops.”

Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth did not inform Trump before authorizing the weapons pause last week, according to five sources familiar with the matter.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Doctors in Gaza say they were forced to cram multiple babies into one incubator as hospitals warned that fuel shortages are forcing them to shut off vital services, putting patients’ lives at risk.

The UN has warned that the fuel crisis is at a critical point, with the little supplies that are available running short and “virtually no additional accessible stocks left.”

“Hospitals are rationing. Ambulances are stalling. Water systems are on the brink. And the deaths this is likely causing could soon rise sharply unless the Israeli authorities allow new fuel in – urgently, regularly and in sufficient quantities,” the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said.

An 11-week Israeli blockade on humanitarian aid earlier in the year pushed the enclave’s population of more than 2 million Palestinians towards famine and into a deepening humanitarian crisis. Limited aid deliveries resumed into the besieged enclave in May but aid groups have said it is not nearly enough to meet the scale of the needs.

The director of the Al-Ahli Hospital, south of Gaza City posted a photo on social media Wednesday of multiple newborn babies sharing a single incubator which was taken at another facility, Al-Helou.

“This tragic overcrowding is not just a matter of missing equipment — it’s a direct consequence of the relentless war on Gaza and the suffocating blockade that has crippled the entire healthcare system,” Dr. Fadel Naim wrote in a post on X.

“The siege has turned routine care for premature babies into a life-or-death struggle. No child should be born into a world where bombs and blockades decide whether they live or die.”

The director of Al-Shifa Hospital in northern Gaza said the shortages were forcing them to close kidney dialysis sections so they could focus on intensive care and operating theatres.

Footage from inside the hospital showed doctors using flashlights as they treated patients.

Another facility, the Nasser Medical Complex, said it had 24 hours of fuel left and was concentrating on vital departments such as maternity and intensive care.

Fuel vital for basic services

In addition to fuel shortages, difficulty finding replacement parts for the generators that power Gaza’s hospitals risks is forcing more to shut down.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in central Gaza issued an urgent statement that the facility’s main generator had broken down due to a lack of spare parts, forcing it to rely on a smaller backup unit.

“Fuel will run out within the coming hours, and the lives of hundreds of patients are at risk inside the hospital wards,” the statement said.

“The hospital’s shutdown threatens to disrupt healthcare services for half a million people in the Central Governorate.”

Beyond hospitals, fuel is essential to keep basic services running in Gaza. The territory relies heavily on imports for cooking, desalination and wastewater plants, and to power the vehicles used in rescue efforts.

Israel has restricted the entry of fuel throughout the conflict, and has previously claimed Hamas could use it to launch weapons.

The aid group Doctors Without Borders (MSF) warned of what it called “an unprecedented humanitarian crisis” unfolding in Gaza, in a statement Tuesday and called for a ceasefire and the entry of far greater levels of humanitarian aid.

“Our teams have worked to treat the wounded and supply overwhelmed hospitals as indiscriminate attacks and a state of siege threaten millions of men, women and children,” MSF said.

“We urge Israeli authorities and the complicit governments that enable these atrocities, including the UK Government, to end the siege now and take action to prevent the erasure of Palestinians from Gaza.”

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Waymo announced Tuesday that it is offering accounts for teens ages 14 to 17, starting in Phoenix.

The Alphabet-owned company said that, beginning Tuesday, parents in Phoenix can use their Waymo accounts “to invite their teen into the program, pairing them together.” Once their account is activated, teens can hail fully autonomous rides.

Previously, users were required to be at least 18 years old to sign up for a Waymo account, but the age range expansion comes as the company seeks to increase ridership amid a broader expansion of its ride-hailing service across U.S. cities. Alphabet has also been under pressure to monetize AI products amid increased competition and economic headwinds.

Waymo said it will offer “specially-trained Rider Support agents” during rides hailed by teens and loop in parents if needed. Teens can also share their trip status with their parents for real-time updates on their progress, and parents receive all ride receipts.

Teen accounts are initially only being offered to riders in the metro Phoenix area. Teen accounts will expand to more markets outside California where the Waymo app is available in the future, a spokesperson said.

Waymo’s expansion to teens follows a similar move by Uber, which launched teen accounts in 2023. Waymo, which has partnerships with Uber in multiple markets, said it “may consider enabling access for teens through our network partners in the future.”

Already, Waymo provides more than 250,000 paid trips each week across Phoenix, the San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Austin, Texas, and the company is preparing to bring autonomous rides to Miami and Washington, D.C., in 2026.

In June, Waymo announced that it plans to manually drive vehicles in New York, marking the first step toward potentially cracking the largest U.S. city. Waymo said it applied for a permit with the New York City Department of Transportation to operate autonomously with a trained specialist behind the wheel in Manhattan.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

Boeing delivered 60 airplanes last month, the most since December 2023, as the plane maker seeks to raise production of its bestselling 737 Max jets after a series of manufacturing and safety problems.

The tally was the highest since before a door plug from one of its new 737 Max 9 planes blew out midair in January 2024, sparking a new crisis for the company and slowing production and deliveries of aircraft. Of the monthly total, 42 were 737 Maxes, going to customers including Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines and United Airlines.

CEO Kelly Ortberg, who took the top job at Boeing last August, has said the company has made progress in improving production rates and quality on its factory lines.

For the three months ended June 30, Boeing handed over 150 airplanes, its best second quarter since 2018, before two crashes of Max planes five months apart grounded the jets and sparked a multiyear crisis at the top U.S. exporter. That was also the last year Boeing posted an annual profit. Its problems also gave rival Airbus a bigger lead over Boeing.

Boeing this spring had been producing about 38 Max aircraft a month and will need Federal Aviation Administration approval to go above that limit, which the agency set after the door plug accident. Ortberg said at a Bernstein investor conference in late May that he’s confident that the company could increase production to 42 of the jets a month.

The company booked 116 gross orders in June, or 70 net orders when including cancellations and accounting adjustments. Boeing often removes or adds orders to its backlog for a variety of reasons including customers’ financial health.

Boeing’s backlog stood at 5,953 as of June 30.

The manufacturer is set to report second-quarter financial results on July 29, when investors will be focused on Ortberg’s plan to increase production and aircraft deliveries.

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS

The past week has been relatively stable in terms of sector rankings, with no new entrants or exits from the top five. However, we’re seeing some interesting shifts within the rankings that warrant closer examination. Let’s dive into the details and see what the Relative Rotation Graphs (RRGs) are telling us about the current market dynamics.

Sector Rankings Shuffle

The top three sectors, technology, industrials, and communication services, remain firmly entrenched in their positions. But the real action is happening just below them. Financials climbed to the number four spot, consequently pushing utilities down to fifth place. This shift is significant, as it indicates a move towards more cyclical sectors in the top rankings.

These changes suggest a potential shift towards more economically sensitive and offensive sectors, which supports a bullish scenario or at least a move away from defensive positioning.

  1. (1) Technology – (XLK)
  2. (2) Industrials – (XLI)
  3. (3) Communication Services – (XLC)
  4. (5) Financials – (XLF)*
  5. (4) Utilities – (XLU)*
  6. (8) Materials – (XLB)*
  7. (7) Consumer Staples – (XLP)
  8. (6) Real-Estate – (XLRE)*
  9. (10) Consumer Discretionary – (XLY)*
  10. (9) Energy – (XLE)*
  11. (11) Healthcare – (XLV)

Weekly RRG

The weekly Relative Rotation Graph continues to show strength in the technology sector within the leading quadrant. Industrials is also maintaining its position in the leading quadrant, with a very short tail, indicating a consistent relative uptrend.

Communication services, financials, and utilities are currently in the weakening quadrant. However, communication services have rebounded and appear to be making their way back towards the leading quadrant again.

Financials and utilities, on the other hand, are showing negative headings, with utilities displaying the weakest momentum (longest tail).

Daily RRG

Switching to the daily RRG, we get a more granular view of recent sector movements:

  • Technology remains the strongest sector, with a high RS ratio and a short tail
  • Communication services are rotating at a slightly negative heading but still within the leading quadrant
  • Financials and industrials are showing promise in the improving quadrant
  • Utilities continues to rotate within the lagging quadrant, confirming its weakness

The positioning of these sectors, particularly the strength of technology and improvements in financials and industrials, suggests a shift towards more cyclical and less defensive sectors in the market.

Technology

Tech continues its rally after breaking above the $240 resistance area. The raw RS line is also climbing, having broken out of its falling channel. This sector remains the market leader and shows no signs of slowing down.

Industrials

The industrial sector has cleared its overhead resistance and is pushing higher. Its RS line is putting in new highs, reflecting strong relative performance. The RRG lines remain in the leading quadrant and may be turning up again, a bullish sign.

Communication Services

Comms have broken above their resistance around 105. While still at the lower boundary of its rising RS channel, it’s starting to pick up steam. Both RRG lines are climbing, with RS momentum approaching the 100 level. A cross above that level would put it back in the leading quadrant.

Financials

Financials broke through overhead resistance last week, which is a significant positive development. It’s now above both horizontal resistance and its former support line. The relative strength line needs some work, but with the current price breakout, improvement seems likely in the near future.

Utilities

The weak link in the top five, utilities, remains range-bound. It’s still above support, but not by much. With the broader market rising, utilities’ sideways movement is causing its RS line to drop. The RRG lines are rolling over, and we may soon see this sector rotate into the lagging quadrant on the weekly RRG.

Portfolio Performance Update

I must admit, our portfolio is still underperforming. The current drawdown is a little over 8%, which isn’t ideal. However, this is the nature of trend-following strategies. We’re sticking with our approach through this period of underperformance, confident that historical results support our patience.

If market trends continue as they are, we should see more offensive sectors rotate into the top five. This shift, in turn, should help us overcome the current drawdown and eventually bring us ahead of the S&P again.

Remember, investing is a marathon, not a sprint. Periods of underperformance are normal and to be expected. The key is to stay disciplined and trust in your strategy.

#StayAlert and have a great week. –Julius


Australian Mines (ASX:AUZ) has entered into a legally binding term sheet with Cabral Resources, a subsidiary of GoldMining (TSX:GOLD,NYSE:GLDG) to earn up to an 80 percent interest in the Boa Vista gold project.

As per the terms of the agreement, Australian Mines’ acquisition will follow a staged earn-in structure. This includes three payments of C$250,000 each year over three years, totaling C$750,000.

Boa Vista is located in Brazil’s Tapajós province, which is recorded to have a historical production of over 30 million ounces of gold and is recognised for high-grade, structurally focused gold systems.

“Boa Vista offers compelling near-surface mineralisation with district-scale exploration upside, supported by existing datasets and strong historic drilling results,” said Australian Mines CEO Andrew Nesbitt.

Among Boa Vista’s prospects is VG1, which holds a historic inferred resource of 8.47 million tonnes at 1.23 grams per tonne (g/t) gold for 336,000 ounces. Drill intercepts at the project were described by the company as “robust,” with 104.5 metres at 1.59 grams per tonne gold, including 23.5 metres at 4.51 g/t gold.

Boa Vista is also located 80 kilometres away from GoldMining’s São Jorge project, which has indicated resources of 0.62 million gold ounces and inferred resources of 0.13 million gold equivalent ounces.

Australian Mines said that they intend to update Boa Vista’s historical resource to JORC 2012 standards, alongside advancing metallurgical, environmental and baseline studies.

Plans for an initial 3,000 metre diamond drill program to test expansion potential and refine targets are also in place.

The company is also currently developing its flagship Sconi project in Queensland, which is expected to deliver nickel and cobalt over a 30 year mine life.

Securities Disclosure: I, Gabrielle de la Cruz, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

This post appeared first on investingnews.com