Good morning. US stock futures were muted in Friday morning trading as investors shifted their attention to the upcoming June jobs report and the implications for the Federal Reserve’s policy stance.

"People are crazy when they try and draw inferences that they do from 3, or 5, or even 10 years on an asset class or actively managed fund"

Ken French

Top News

Biden Admin seeks halt on social media contact ban

WHAT: The Biden Administration is going all out on an emergency request to a federal appeals court to hit the brakes on a lower court ruling that prevents government agencies and officials from communicating with social media companies about moderating their content.

WHY: The lower court order alleged that US government officials effectively coerced social media companies to censor posts over concerns they would fuel vaccine hesitancy during the Covid-19 pandemic or upend elections.

EU launches antitrust probe into Amazon acquisition

WHAT: Hold on to your dust bunnies folks! The European Commission has just launched an “in-depth” investigation into Amazon’s plans to acquire Roomba maker iRobot. The Commission is concerned the $1.7 billion acquisition will limit competition in the market for robot vacuum cleaners and further strengthen Amazon’s marketplace dominance.

WHY: Amazon announced the iRobot deal last year as part of an effort to expand its presence in the smart home space.

Twitter fires legal letter at Meta

WHAT: And just like that, a legal battle over who sits on the iron throne of social media may be about to kick off! Twitter is threatening to sue Meta Platforms over its new Threads app after the company’s lawyer Alex Spiro sent a letter to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

WHY: The newest challenge to Twitter follows a series of chaotic decisions that has alienated both users and advertisers, including Musk’s latest move to limit the number of tweets users can read per day.

In Other News

Starbucks sued over worker treatment

 WHAT: Starbucks is caught in the hot seat as the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) serves them a steaming lawsuit. Apparently the coffee giant refused to rehire 33 workers during a store reorganization in downtown Seattle. The NLRB filed a petition in court claiming that Starbucks’ plan to create a “Heritage District” and make 73 workers reapply for their jobs was an illegal move.

WHY: Starbucks has recently had strained relations with some employees, including last month when workers at dozens of US stores went on strike to protest managers’ decisions not to let them hang rainbow flags and other Pride month decor.

50 million in 24 hours!

WHAT: Meta’s new Threads app is off to a blistering start! CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced that the app had 50 million sign ups within the first 24 hours of its launch, making it one of the fastest growing apps in history.

WHY: Meta is leaning heavily on Instagram as the gateway of its latest app, showing the company increasingly views the photo and video sharing platform as its future rather than its former namesake Facebook.

VC funding dries up

WHAT: It looks like the global venture capital (VC) funding party took a nosedive in the first half of 2023. Global VC funding fell from $293 billion in the first half of 2022 to $144 billion for the corresponding period this year, a whopping 51% decline.

WHY: VC and startups have run head-first into a high interest environment that is expected to persist for some time, while also grappling with a tech industry that has faced a reckoning after hiring rapidly during the pandemic boom.

Key Economic Events

• Friday - Unemployment Rate (June)

Notable Briefs

• The best investors do these things if they’re worried about the stock market!

• Here are 10 signs it might be time for a career pivot

• Everything you need to know about tax planning

• Was this forwarded to you? Sign up here.

• Want to advertise in Daily Market Briefs? Go here.