Trending Market News

Joby Aviation has begun flying its first production electric air taxi that will undergo FAA certification testing, marking a major milestone toward commercial operations. The six-rotor aircraft can carry a pilot and four passengers, taking off vertically like a helicopter and flying level like an airplane. Joby plans to launch limited operations in Dubai and the U.S. later this year.

• Joby test pilots have logged over 50,000 miles in developmental aircraft; FAA pilot evaluations are scheduled for later this year to obtain type inspection authorization
• The company aims to start operations in Dubai later this year with two of four landing sites under construction, and is participating in five of eight FAA pilot programs under a White House-backed initiative
• Joby targets production of four aircraft per month by 2027 at manufacturing facilities in California and Dayton, Ohio

UK regulators Ofcom and the ICO on March 12 demanded that Meta, TikTok, Snap, YouTube, and Roblox strengthen age verification and child safety measures, warning of enforcement action under the Online Safety Act. The platforms must demonstrate by April 30 how they will tighten age checks, restrict stranger contact with children, and make feeds safer.

• Companies face fines up to 10% of global revenue (Ofcom) or 4% of annual turnover (ICO) for non-compliance with child safety requirements
• Regulators cite concerns about algorithmic feeds exposing children to harmful content and platforms failing to enforce their own minimum age rules of 13
• The move follows the ICO's recent fine of Reddit for £14.5 million for inadequate age verification, as the UK considers broader restrictions similar to Australia's under-16 social media ban

Google is selling a majority stake in its GFiber internet unit, combining it with Astound Broadband to form an independent fiber provider. Investment firm Stonepeak will become the majority owner while Google retains a minority stake. The new entity will be managed by the existing GFiber executive team.

• The combined company will be majority owned by investment firm Stonepeak, with Google transitioning from operator to minority investor
• GFiber CEO Dinni Jain described the move as 'the next step in our decade-long mission to redefine what customers can expect from their internet provider'
• The existing GFiber executive team will continue to lead operations and manage the combined network footprint

SoftBank-backed PayPay priced its U.S. IPO at $16 per share, below its expected range, raising $880 million and achieving a $10.7 billion valuation. The Japanese digital wallet provider proceeded with the listing despite market volatility caused by the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. This marks SoftBank's first major U.S. listing since Arm Holdings' IPO in 2023.

• The IPO raised $880 million through 55 million American depositary receipts at $16 per share, below the originally targeted price range amid challenging market conditions
• PayPay has approximately 72 million registered users in Japan and attracted anchor investors including Visa, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and Qatar Investment Authority purchasing up to $220 million in shares
• The company briefly paused its IPO earlier in the week to reassess market conditions before resuming, and will list on Nasdaq under the symbol 'PAYP'

Costco customers filed a nationwide class action lawsuit seeking refunds for higher prices charged due to tariffs that were later struck down by the Supreme Court. The suit demands that Costco return any tariff refunds it receives to customers who paid elevated prices, while the company has only committed to channeling potential refunds into future lower prices for an indeterminate group of shoppers.

• The Supreme Court ruled on February 20 that Trump overstepped authority by using emergency powers to impose tariffs, prompting over 2,000 companies including Costco to sue for duty recovery in the U.S. Court of International Trade
• Costco CEO stated it remains unclear if or when businesses will receive IEEPA tariff refunds, and the company plans to use any refunds for future lower prices rather than direct customer reimbursement
• The lawsuit accuses Costco of seeking 'double recovery' and argues the company has made no commitment to return refunds to consumers who actually bore the tariff costs

Atlassian announced it will lay off approximately 1,600 employees, representing 10% of its workforce, as part of a restructuring to prioritize artificial intelligence and enterprise sales. The software provider expects to incur pre-tax charges between $225 million and $236 million related to the layoffs and office space reductions.

• The layoffs affect roughly 10% of Atlassian's total workforce, equating to approximately 1,600 positions
• Total restructuring costs are expected to reach between $225 million and $236 million in pre-tax charges, covering both severance and office space reductions
• The company aims to 'rebalance' resources to focus on the 'future of teamwork in the AI era' and strengthen its enterprise sales capabilities

President Trump announced plans to tap the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to reduce energy costs amid the ongoing Iran conflict. This follows the International Energy Agency's agreement to release 400 million barrels of oil, the largest stockpile release in the IEA's 50-year history, to address supply disruptions caused by the war.

• Trump stated he will reduce the SPR temporarily to lower prices, then refill it later, noting he 'filled it up once' previously
• The IEA coordinated release of 400 million barrels represents the largest emergency oil stockpile deployment in over 50 years
• The reserve tapping is a direct response to massive supply disruptions resulting from the Iran war

The Trump administration plans to announce new trade investigations under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, aiming to replace reciprocal tariffs that the Supreme Court ruled illegal in February. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent predicts tariffs will return to pre-ruling levels by August, using authorities he describes as 'more robust' despite being slower-moving.

• Section 301 investigations allow the president to impose tariffs on nations found engaging in unfair trade practices, potentially replacing IEEPA-based tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court in a 6-3 ruling on February 20
• Trump previously signed an executive order imposing a 10% 'universal tariff' under Section 122 of the Trade Act, but these tariffs expire within 150 days
• Bessent stated that Section 301 authorities have 'survived more than 4,000 legal challenges' and characterized them as more legally durable than the invalidated approach

Bumble Inc. reported fourth-quarter revenue of $224.2 million, exceeding analyst estimates of $221.3 million, as the dating app operator begins seeing early results from its strategic turnaround plan. Founder Whitney Wolfe Herd returned as CEO about a year ago and has been implementing product improvements and AI-enabled features to attract younger users and compete in a saturated market.

• Revenue beat expectations at $224.2 million versus estimates of $221.3 million
• Total paying users decreased 20.5% to 3.3 million in the quarter, indicating user base challenges despite revenue growth
• CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd is leading a strategic overhaul focused on AI features and product improvements to appeal to younger daters

Oracle disclosed in its quarterly filing that its stake in TikTok's U.S. joint venture is valued at roughly $2 billion, representing a 15% ownership and board seat. The investment is part of a national security-driven restructuring that transferred TikTok's U.S. operations from China's ByteDance to a group of investors in January 2025, with the entire U.S. business valued at $14 billion.

• Oracle holds 15% of TikTok USDS Joint Venture with a board seat; Silver Lake and Abu Dhabi's MGX each own 15%, while ByteDance retains just under 20%
• Oracle's $2.2 billion in non-marketable investments recorded for the period ending Feb. 28 consists substantially of its TikTok stake, and the company serves as trusted technology provider housing all U.S. user data
• The transition has faced technical issues, including multiple data center outages causing service disruptions and content posting lags for creators in January and March 2025

President Donald Trump stated he is not concerned about potential domestic terror attacks from Iran amid an ongoing 11-day U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran. Trump claimed the U.S. has severely degraded Iran's military capabilities, destroying its Navy, Air Force, and air defense systems. The conflict has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a critical oil shipping chokepoint, prompting Chubb to lead a government insurance program for ships transiting the area.

• Trump stated Iran has 'lost their Navy, their Air Force' and has 'no anti-aircraft apparatus at all,' claiming the U.S. is 'leaving certain things' in Iran that could be destroyed if needed
• The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed due to the conflict, with Chubb serving as lead underwriter for a U.S. government insurance program to protect ships passing through the strait
• Trump dismissed questions about a New York Times report citing video evidence that an American Tomahawk missile likely struck an Iranian elementary school, killing 175 people including many children

MercadoLibre announced a $3.4 billion investment in Argentina for 2023, marking a 30% increase from its $2.6 billion commitment for 2025. The e-commerce giant, which counts Argentina as one of its three main markets alongside Brazil and Mexico, will use the funds to expand logistics, develop distribution centers, improve technology, and grow its fintech arm Mercado Pago.

• The company plans to create nearly 2,000 new jobs in Argentina in 2026, adding to its current workforce of approximately 16,700 employees in the country
• Investment will focus on expanding logistics network, new distribution centers, platform technology improvements, and growing the Mercado Pago fintech service
• MercadoLibre was founded in Argentina but is currently headquartered in neighboring Uruguay, with operations across Latin America

Elon Musk announced 'Macrohard' (also called 'Digital Optimus'), a joint project between Tesla and xAI that combines AI systems to emulate the functions of entire software companies. The system pairs xAI's Grok language model with Tesla's AI agent to process real-time computer actions, positioning it as a potential disruptor to established software business models similar to Anthropic's Claude Cowork.

• The system runs on Tesla's in-house AI4 chip paired with xAI's Nvidia-based server hardware, described as cost-competitive
• This follows Tesla's $2 billion investment in SpaceX last month in an all-stock deal that valued SpaceX at $1 trillion and xAI at $250 billion
• xAI filed a trademark application for 'Macrohard' in August 2025, with the name serving as a reference to Microsoft

Regenxbio announced positive interim results from an early-to-mid stage trial of its experimental gene therapy for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The data showed continued improvement in muscle function along with a clean safety profile. This represents potential progress in treating this severe genetic muscle-wasting disease.

• The trial is in early-to-mid stage phase, indicating the therapy is still in development and requires further testing
• Patients demonstrated continued improvement in muscle function, a key therapeutic goal for Duchenne muscular dystrophy
• The therapy showed a 'clean safety profile' with no significant adverse events reported in the interim analysis

The U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that crude oil inventories increased by 3.8 million barrels to 443.1 million barrels in the week ending March 6, significantly exceeding analysts' expectations of a 1.1 million-barrel rise. Meanwhile, gasoline stocks fell by 3.7 million barrels and distillate inventories dropped by 1.3 million barrels, both exceeding forecast declines.

• Crude stocks rose 3.8 million barrels versus expectations of 1.1 million, with refinery utilization increasing 1.6 percentage points to 90.8%
• Gasoline inventories fell 3.7 million barrels to 249.5 million (forecast: 2.6 million drop), while distillate stocks declined 1.3 million barrels (forecast: 0.7 million drop)
• Net U.S. crude imports increased by 661,000 barrels per day, and refinery crude runs rose by 328,000 barrels per day during the week

A federal judge has ruled that billionaire Leon Black, co-founder of Apollo Global Management, may be deposed in a civil lawsuit against Bank of America. The lawsuit was brought by women who accuse the bank of facilitating their sexual abuse by Jeffrey Epstein. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff scheduled a hearing regarding Black's upcoming deposition.

• The lawsuit alleges Bank of America facilitated sexual abuse by Jeffrey Epstein, with victims now seeking to depose Leon Black as part of the case
• Manhattan-based U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff set a hearing for 3 p.m. EDT to discuss the deposition details
• Leon Black is a billionaire and co-founder of Apollo Global Management, though the court filing did not specify his connection to the allegations

The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a hearing on March 31 to determine the probable cause of two fatal crashes involving Ford Motor's BlueCruise advanced driver assistance system. Both the NTSB and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have been investigating BlueCruise since 2025 to review system limitations and evaluate drivers' response capabilities in certain scenarios.

• BlueCruise is a hands-free driving system that operates on 97% of U.S. and Canadian highways without intersections or traffic signals
• Federal investigations are focused on assessing system limitations and drivers' ability to respond to certain driving scenarios
• NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy confirmed the board will meet later in March to review the fatal crashes

BMW is recalling 147,830 vehicles in China due to a manufacturing defect in the starter motor that could cause starting difficulties and, in extreme cases, pose a fire risk. The recall affects multiple imported BMW models manufactured between July 2020 and December 2022. This China recall is part of a broader global recall announced by the German automaker in February.

• The recall covers imported BMW 2 Series, 4 Series, 5 Series, 6 Series, 7 Series, X4, X5, X6, and Z4 vehicles manufactured between July 31, 2020 and December 22, 2022
• The defect involves a manufacturing issue with the starter motor that could result in difficulty starting the vehicle or present a fire risk in extreme cases
• The China recall is part of a global recall initiative announced by BMW in February after the potential starter motor defect was discovered

Tesla's China-made electric vehicle sales surged 91% year-over-year in February 2025, reaching 58,600 units for its Model 3 and Model Y vehicles produced at its Shanghai plant. The strong performance marks the fourth consecutive month of sales growth, though results benefited from a low comparison base last year and were impacted by seasonal factors including Lunar New Year production adjustments.

• Sales of 58,600 units represented a 91% increase from February 2024, following a 9.3% rise in January, but were down 15.2% month-over-month from January 2025
• February deliveries were affected by a partial assembly line shutdown for the refreshed Model Y during the Lunar New Year holiday period
• The Shanghai plant's production figures include both domestic sales and exports to markets including Europe

Eli Lilly announced a $3 billion investment in China over the next decade to expand its supply chain and build production capacity for orforglipron, its type-2 diabetes and obesity treatment. The pharmaceutical giant has already submitted a marketing application for the drug to China's regulator and plans to establish localized manufacturing for oral solid dosage forms.

• The $3 billion investment will focus on expanding supply chain capacity and building production facilities specifically for orforglipron, an oral diabetes and obesity treatment
• Eli Lilly submitted a marketing application for orforglipron to China's drug regulator at the end of 2025
• The company plans to establish a localized manufacturing and supply system for oral solid dosage forms in China