Stock Market News: Tesla, Rivian shares climb, Threads tops 100 million users

Traders on the floor of the NYSE. REUTERS

U.S. stocks ended slightly higher on Monday following last week's losses, but caution prevailed ahead of Wednesday's consumer prices report and the start of second-quarter earnings later this week.

Investors are anxious to see if price pressures are continuing to moderate. That could shed light on the interest rate outlook, with many traders expecting the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates by 25 basis points this month.

Investors were digesting comments from several Fed officials who said on Monday additional rate hikes are needed to bring down inflation that is still too high, but the end to the U.S. central bank's current monetary policy tightening cycle is getting close.

The Marriner S. Eccles Federal Reserve Board Building is seen on September 19, 2022 in Washington, DC. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

The Federal Reserve will likely need to raise interest rates further to bring down inflation that is still too high, but the end to its current monetary policy tightening cycle is getting close, several U.S. central bank officials said on Monday.

The Fed has raised interest rates by 5 percentage points since March 2022 to bring down the highest U.S. inflation in four decades. Fed policymakers opted last month to forego a rate increase to give themselves time to assess the still-developing effects of the previous hikes in borrowing costs, even as most also penciled in at least two more increases by the end of 2023.

"We're likely to need a couple more rate hikes over the course of this year to really bring inflation" sustainably back to the U.S. central bank's 2% goal, San Francisco Fed President Mary Daly said during an event at the Brookings Institution, giving voice to the most common view among her rate-setting peers at the Fed.

But, Daly added, while the risks of doing too little are still greater than those of overdoing it on rate hikes, the two sides are getting into better balance as the Fed nears "the last part" of its hiking cycle.

Two A320's pictured at an airport. REUTERS

Europe's Airbus inaugurated a new assembly line for its A321neo jetliner in southwest France on Monday, granting a new lease of life to the deserted home of the defunct A380 superjumbo as it basks in record demand for smaller jets.

Speaking in the cavernous Jean-Luc Lagardere plant outside Toulouse, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire hailed the rebirth of an "industrial cathedral" as President Emmanuel Macron pursues policies of boosting manufacturing employment.

Airbus says the new line will create 700 jobs by 2026, about half the full-time total when the world's largest jet was built there, while supporting a fabric of thousands of suppliers.

The plant's makeover highlights a shift in the industry's attention from its largest and boldest creations like the double-decker A380 to stalwart single-aisle designs, which are enjoying a second wind due to their increased performance and efficiency.

This photo, taken in New York, Thursday, July 6, 2023, shows Meta's new app Threads. Meta has unveiled an app called Threads to rival Twitter, targeting users looking for an alternative to the social media platform owned by Elon Musk. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)

Meta Platforms' Twitter rival Threads crossed 100 million sign-ups within five days of launch, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said on Monday, dethroning ChatGPT as the fastest-growing online platform to hit the milestone.

Threads has been setting records for user growth since its launch on Wednesday, with celebrities, politicians and other newsmakers joining the platform seen by analysts as the first serious threat to the Elon Musk-owned microblogging app.

"That's mostly organic demand, and we haven't even turned on many promotions yet," Zuckerberg said in a Threads post announcing the milestone.

The app's sprint to 100 million users was much speedier than that of OpenAI-owned ChatGPT, which became the fastest-growing consumer application in history in January about two months after its launch, according to a UBS study.

SVB (Silicon Valley Bank) logo is seen in this illustration taken March 19, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic

Bankrupt SVB Financial Group has sued the U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) to recover the $1.93 billion that the regulator seized while it took over Silicon Valley Bank in March, a filing in a bankruptcy court on Sunday showed.

The group said inability to access the funds was affecting its reorganization as the money should be generating more than $100 million in annual interest. Without that, it might have to seek costly and uncertain "debtor-in-possession" financing.

The lender collapsed in March after a deposit flight that triggered the worst U.S. banking crisis in 15 years and led to the failure of two other regional banks.

Front passenger side 7/8 of the 2023 Cadillac LYRIQ driving at dusk. (Cadillac)

General Motors Co on Monday cut the starting price for the Cadillac Lyriq in China by almost 14%, joining Volkswagen in a new round of electric vehicle price reductions in a market where global automakers are under pressure.

The Lyriq, a luxury crossover based on GM's Ultium EV architecture, is now priced from 379,700 yuan ($52,466) from 439,700 yuan ($60,784) previously, according to GM's China website.

GM also offered an additional discount equivalent to almost $2,500 for Lyriq buyers who put down a deposit in China before the end of August.

Photo by Yichuan Cao/NurPhoto via Getty Images

Tesla shares got a ninth price hike following the electric vehicle maker's blowout delivery numbers recently reported.

Jefferies hiked its price target to $265 per share from $185 but maintained a hold rating on the stock which, as of Monday, is trading above that level.

Earlier this month, the company reported better-than-expected deliveries of 466,700 and production of 479,000.

POLITICS

Yellen vows US will protect its own 'national security' after China's espionage law threatens American firms

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said during her 10 hours of meetings with Chinese officials that she raised concern over a new counterespionage law.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen held a series of high level meetings during her trip to China addressing strained relations with the U.S. amid national security issues.

Rivian shares are continuing their roll for a ninth straight day, following last week's run covered by FOX Business.

MARKETS

Rivian shares ride eighth straight day of gains

Rivian may have finally arrived. Shares of the electric vehicle maker are on pace to post the best eight-day stretch on record after a week of positive Wall Street calls.