Axios

Three companies — leaders in their respective industries — are mired in a public spat over the fallout of July's global IT outage.

Why it matters: The she-said, he-said stories spilling out from Delta Air Lines, cybersecurity giant CrowdStrike and Microsoft have escalated into a blame game full of legal threats — just one repercussion of a world increasingly full of a few key tech dependencies.

Disney's streaming services reached profitability last quarter, which was earlier than expected.

The big picture: The media and entertainment giant has ESPN+ to thank, as sports have become the only true reliable source of mass audience engagement.

The two astronauts whose weeklong mission aboard the International Space Station is now stretching into its second month could be left in orbit until winter.

Why it matters: NASA astronauts Barry "Butch" Wilmore and Sunita "Suni" Williams have been in limbo after docking with the ISS on June 6 as part of the Boeing Starliner's first crewed test flight.

Delta passengers filed a lawsuit against the airline for refunds following the chaotic CrowdStrike worldwide outage that led to thousands of flight cancellations.

Why it matters: The July outage hit businesses worldwide and was estimated to be the largest IT outage in history. It left Delta in a head-to-head battle with CrowdStrike, which is already facing a class action lawsuit over alleged negligence.

McDonald's is betting on nostalgia to drive sales with its next rendition of the adult Happy Meals — the "collector's meal."

Why it matters: The limited-time meal — which launches Aug. 13 and comes with a collectible glass — is the fast-food giant's latest attempt to bring consumers back.

Glencore, the Swiss commodities giant, announced that it no longer plans to spin off its coal business.

Why it matters: This reflects how some institutional investors are cooling on ESG, and how coal economics are being boosted by soaring U.S. energy demands.

Domestic companies in the battery supply chain are launching a new industry coalition that seeks stronger support for U.S. projects.

Why it matters: Battery Advocacy for Technology Transformation aims to occupy a unique lobbying role in the crowded space.

Even if Treasury yields don't fall further from their current levels, there's still quite a lot of room for mortgage rates to continue to drop.

Why it matters: Mortgage rates are still more than 2.6 percentage points higher than the 10-year Treasury yield. That's way above historic levels.

Retail investors decided to BTFD on Monday.

Why it matters: One of the big questions in behavioral finance is whether individual investors are inclined to panic sell during big market plunges.

The rate on the 30-year-fixed mortgage is at 6.55%, the lowest since May 2023, per data out Wednesday morning from the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Why it matters: It's a sign the housing market might be starting to thaw.

KKR has agreed to buy a majority stake in consultancy FGS Global from WPP in a deal that values the communications specialist at $1.7 billion.

Why it matters: The agreement boosts KKR's existing stake in the firm and is another example of private equity's pull to the communication advisory space.