Tesla acknowledged Tuesday that "political sentiment" may be undermining the company's financial performance and that tariffs are poised to do the same.
Elon Musk said Tuesday that he will take a major step back from his work as the leader of the Department of Government Efficiency.
Why it matters: The Tesla CEO has become a close and outspoken ally of President Trump, but his government-slashing work via DOGE has sparked a damaging backlash on Tesla.
You may recall usreporting last year that interest in cardio equipment was declining, while demand for strength equipment was rising.
The trend is becoming clear as women and older exercisers, in particular, have become more interested in weights, Bloomberg reports.
Between the lines: Crunch Fitness and Planet Fitness are cutting cardio equipment by more than 40% at many of their gyms.
"Similar transformations are happening at fitness centers across the U.S. as they attempt to attract an increasingly muscle-obsessed population," according to Bloomberg.
💭 Nathan's thought bubble: I see the trend playing out at my local gym.: There are lines for the weights, but you can always get a treadmill.
President Trump said on Tuesday that has no plans to fire Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell, backtracking days after suggesting he was looking forward to the economic policymaker's "termination."
Why it matters: Trump has ramped up attacks on Powell over the past week alongside demands that the Fed cut rates immediately, raising fears among investors about the fate of the central bank's independence.
Verizon signaled Tuesday that consumers would face price increases on phones from President Trump's tariffs, becoming the latest in a drumbeat of companies indicating that price hikes are on the way.
Why it matters: Tariffs cause the cost of imports to rise — and many companies are facing decisions on whether to take a hit to profits or pass those costs along to customers.
Many more creative stablecoins will find themselves in a legal gray area if something like the STABLE Act passes, because it calls for a moratorium on issuing new "endogenously collateralized" stable tokens.
Which leaves the ones that exist in a strange spot.
Why it matters: The market for such tokens (known better as algorithmic stablecoins) is much smaller than that of the big guys, Tether's USDT and Circle's USDC, but the market for these more decentralized alternatives exists and persists into the billions of dollars.
Blockchain investors don't need to leave the decentralized web to invest in the only truly hot commodity these days: actual gold, because gold has long been tokenized, basically just like the dollar has been.
Why it matters: Gold has proven to be the real safe haven in the current economic turmoil, hitting another all-time high price yesterday.
Tokenized gold gives digital-asset investors an easy path to retreat from the crypto markets without moving their portfolio off blockchains.
How it works: Much like stablecoins, issuers of tokenized precious metals find a way to custody physical supply. They then create tokens that correspond to a fixed amount of those assets.
AuthMind, a Bethesda, Maryland-based identity protection startup, tells Axios that it's raised $19.3 million in seed funding led by Cheyenne Ventures.
Why it matters: This highlights a rising cybersecurity threat whereby hackers — both human and machine — mimic verified users to access networks and devices. Logging in vs. breaking in.
President Trump's economic policies are starting to weigh heavily on the U.S. ad market, which was just starting to stabilize after years of pandemic-era volatility.
Why it matters: In addition to economic turbulence, ad-supported companies face very difficult comparisons from last year, which will make it difficult for media and tech companies to meet previous growth projections.
The U.S. economy is the big drag on global growth expectations this year, thanks in large part to President Trump's tariffs, according to forecasts released by the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday.
Why it matters: The estimates reflect the consequences from Trump's sudden reset of the world's trading system, with worse economic conditions expected in nearly every major country.
California and Texas are home to the major U.S. metro areas with the greatest shares of young adults living with their parents, a recent analysis finds.
Why it matters: While living at home as a young adult is sometimes viewed negatively as a "failure to launch," it can also reflect economic realities, cultural preferences, caregiving needs, and other factors.
President Trump is toeing an economic red line that few before him have dared even consider crossing.
Why it matters: The mere possibility that Trump could erode the Federal Reserve's independence has been enough to unnerve investors and tank the stock market.
Chinese automakers are turning to Russia and the Middle East to offset the impact of global tariffs imposed by the U.S., Europe and other countries.
Why it matters: Despite the global tariff storm, China remains an industry juggernaut, dominating vehicle sales in its home market while continuing to expand exports around the world.
The Republican leader of a congressional task force focused on the Federal Reserve tells Axios in an exclusive interview there is bipartisan interest in stronger guardrails around the central bank's independence.
Why it matters: The comments from Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Ok.) come as President Trump ramps up attacks on Fed chair Jerome Powell, stoking fears the White House might seek to remove him from the post.
