Axios

"Barbie" is officially the biggest movie of the year, after bringing in a staggering $162 million in its opening weekend, according to numbers from Comscore.

Why it matters: The film's success proves movies with a strong female lead can pull their weight at the box office, especially amid superhero fatigue.

Greta Gerwig's vision for "Barbie" has translated into record-setting ticket sales — and a new record for women filmmakers.

Driving the news: This weekend's $162 million North American opening is the biggest premiere ever for a movie directed by a woman.

Microsoft and OpenAI's deepening partnership helped to set off an AI race, but the resulting investor euphoria could be giving way to more discerning questions.

Driving the news: “Given the exorbitant costs associated with the development, hosting and serving of AI products, many investors are concerned about the potential for [fiscal 2024] commentary regarding a material increase,” says Jefferies research analyst Brent Thill in a preview of the company's latest earnings slated for tomorrow afternoon.

Tech will remain the favored play for retail investors for the remainder of the year — if they stick with what they said last month.

Driving the news: 23% of individual market participants will "most likely" increase their investments in tech during the last half of 2023, according to a survey of 1,000 U.S. retail investors conducted in early to mid-June by investing platform eToro.

The first July economic data is out — and it looks pretty good for the U.S. economy.

Why it matters: There's growing confidence that the U.S. can pull off a so-called soft landing, that is, taming inflation without annihilating employment or growth.

Music streaming services just hit users with a flurry of price increases, including the first-ever from Spotify.

Why it matters: The music industry is moving fast to make more money from streaming, in what could be the beginning of the end for a golden age of incredibly cheap music for consumers.

Expect everything from soda, baked goods and Halloween candy to cost more thanks to “sugarflation.”

Why it matters: Sugar prices are on the rise and expected to keep increasing with tight supplies coupled with weather mayhem, experts told Axios.

The job market is humming nationally, but zoom in and you get another extraordinary snapshot: Many states across the country are experiencing all-time lows in unemployment.

Why it matters: Labor market boom times are supporting local economies, with parts of the country experiencing tighter conditions than some residents have seen in their lifetimes.

The U.S. central bank now has a real-time payments service.

Why it matters: FedNow wants to do what crypto has endeavored to do — speed up payments and make settlements available 24/7, 365 days a year.

TikTok wants to draw in people who want to post text-based content.

Driving the news: The app, which popularized short-form video, announced a slew of new features for sharing written thoughts and updates on Monday as competition between Twitter and Instagram's new app, Threads, has heated up.

There's a new(ish) social media app on the block.

Driving the news: On Sunday night, Elon Musk began rolling out the long-teased rebrand of Twitter into X.

Finding a niche tattoo artist has never been easier, if you're willing to travel.

Why it matters: People are embarking on road trips and booking flights for new ink, expanding options and opportunities for themselves and artists alike.

With the U.S. in the midst of a relentless heat wave, all eyes are on the electric grid, which experts say is in desperate need of modernization.

Why it matters: Access to air conditioning is not only an economic imperative, but increasingly a life or death issue.

Remember when the U.S. government nearly ran out of cash during the debt ceiling standoff? Its bank account sank below $50 billion — for perspective, the Harvard endowment has more money than that.

The latest: One deluge of T-bill issuance later, that account — known as the Treasury General Account — is back up over $500 billion.

Don't look now, but a wider swath of stocks are joining the upswing.

Why it matters: It bodes well for growth that an increasing number of stocks — including small caps and so-called cyclical companies closely tied to immediate ups and downs of the economy — are showing signs of life.

Meet the "Luna," a new variety of avocado grown on a smaller tree and easier to harvest than the dominant Hass breed.

Why it matters: The Hass, with its creamy texture and wonderful taste, has fueled our love affair with guacamole and avocado toast. A competitive alternative could make supplies of the fruit more plentiful.

Hot, dangerous conditions that parts of the West, Texas and Florida have endured for weeks will expand across the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. this week — starting in the north-central states and Plains, the National Weather Service warns.

The big picture: Nearly 78 million people were under heat alerts in the U.S. Monday morning, as health officials report a spike in callouts and emergency department visits due to the extreme weather.