| |
| Sponsored by  | |
Good afternoon. Here's what you should know today, Aug. 6: | |
- Tupperware is the new GameStop
- Trump's legal team is hashing out timings for his various cases
- Need to hire in a hot job market? Let workers do some remote work
| |
| Thanks for reading What's News! Look for the 🔐 to enjoy a free article on us—and share the link with a friend (or forward the whole newsletter!). | |
| |
 | | PHOTO: NATHAN HOWARD/BLOOMBERG NEWS | | |
1. Investors think the economy could support years of higher interest rates. | |
| The yield on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note has surged close to its highest level in more than a decade, lifted by bets on a so-called soft landing (🔐read for free), in which inflation returns to the Federal Reserve's 2% annual target while the economy keeps on expanding. The implications of that scenario could be profound, suggesting that the economy can withstand much higher rates than investors have long believed was possible. Fresh inflation data this week will give investors more clues about the resilience of the economy, while across the pond, the U.K. is due to report second-quarter GDP figures. | |
2. Trump's lawyers are trying to delay trial dates in one case, while waiting for another to drop. | |
| The Justice Department and Donald Trump are expected to offer competing visions for how the legal process should play out in the federal trial on conspiracy charges stemming from his alleged attempts to remain in power in the aftermath of the 2020 election. The former president's lawyers indicated they wanted to take their time to prepare a defense, while prosecutors are pressing for the quickest resolution possible. The two sides are expected to propose trial dates this week. Meanwhile, all eyes will turn to Georgia, where another indictment of Trump could be issued in the next two weeks. At the same time, attorneys are also hashing out the timing of a hush-money case against Trump in New York. | |
| Trump Indictment Mystery: Where Is Mark Meadows? (Read) Trump's Donors Help Fund His Legal Bills, Becoming Windfalls for His Attorneys (Read) | |
3. Meme stocks are a thing again. | |
| Day traders are piling into meme stocks again, sending shares of Tupperware, Yellow and Rite Aid soaring. Tupperware is teetering financially, but its stock has climbed from below $1 to about $5 in the past two weeks. It jumped 36% on Friday alone after news of a restructuring plan. Trucking-business Yellow shut down operations around a week ago, but shares have jumped some 400% since. And shares of cash-strapped drugstore chain Rite Aid surged 68% in the past week—for no obvious reason. Their rallies contrast with the overall market: The S&P 500 just notched its worst weekly performance since March, with earnings for its constituents headed for their third quarterly fall in a row. Most companies have already reported results for the second quarter, but some big names remain, including Walt Disney on Wednesday. | |
| Breaking Down the Worst Earnings Quarter in Years (Read) 📷 Tupperware's Plastic Empire Through the Years (Photos) 🎧 After 99 Years, Yellow Heads for Bankruptcy. What Went Wrong? (Listen) | |
4. Airlines are preparing to temporarily reduce some flights due to an engine recall. | |
| Carriers in the U.S., Europe and Asia will curtail their schedules to inspect planes affected by the recall of hundreds of Pratt & Whitney jet engines, leaving the unit of the aerospace and defense company RTX facing a potential multibillion-dollar bill. Some 137 engines used on Airbus single-aisle jets would need to be inspected over the next several weeks, which is a problem for carriers that were already dealing with staffing shortages and air-traffic control congestion. | |
5. America's truckers, cargo pilots and package carriers are fed up. | |
| Surging demands on transportation workers are fueling labor standoffs at companies critical to U.S. supply chains. Workers say they are entitled to a larger share of the corporate profit generated during the pandemic and better pay and recognition for showing up through the health crisis when other staff was able to work remotely. Employers say they are offering outsize wage increases and changing their operations to improve conditions for workers. United Parcel Service, which recently reached a labor agreement to prevent a potential strike by roughly 330,000 package-delivery drivers and package sorters, is expected to report its earnings on Tuesday. | |
| The Teamsters Boss Who Calls Himself S.O.B. (Read) | |
6. The Women's World Cup rolls on without its defending champions. | |
| Eight teams will play in the quarterfinals this week. The U.S. won't be among them. The Americans' soccer dynasty ended today with a defeat on penalty kicks to Sweden, a result that denied them their aim of becoming the first team to win a third consecutive title. For coach Vlatko Andonovksi and the U.S. Soccer Federation that hired him, a reckoning must follow. | |
| The Two-Year Slide That Ended the U.S. Women's Soccer Dynasty (Read) | |
| 📰 Enjoying this newsletter? Get more from WSJ and support our journalism by subscribing today with this special offer. | |
| |
🗨 Follow coverage of detained WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich | |
| The WSJ's Evan Gershkovich is being wrongfully detained in Russia after he was arrested while on a reporting trip and accused of espionage—a charge the Journal and the U.S. government vehemently deny. Follow the latest coverage, sign up for an email alert, and learn how you can use social media to support Evan. | |
| |
| |
