Business

5 things to know before the stock market opens Wednesday

June 5, 2024

Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:

1. Unsteady start to June

It was a muted Tuesday for the markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 140.26 points, or 0.36%, for the day. The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite saw milder gains and scraped out increases of 0.15% and 0.17%, respectively. Treasury yields were notably lower on Tuesday, with the rate on the benchmark 10-year note slipping about 7 basis points. Many investors are looking ahead to the nonfarm payrolls report that’s set to drop on Friday, hoping for news that will inspire the Federal Reserve to cut rates but that won’t trigger fears of a recession. Follow live market updates.

2. A Musk divided

Elon Musk, Chief Executive Officer of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of X speaks during the Milken Conference 2024 Global Conference Sessions at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., May 6, 2024.

David Swanson | Reuters

Elon Musk ordered Nvidia to ship thousands of artificial intelligence chips reserved for Tesla to X and xAI instead, according to emails written by Nvidia senior staff and widely shared inside the company. The emails also suggest that Musk presented an exaggerated picture of Tesla’s procurement of expensive processors to shareholders, Tech Zone Daily’s Lora Kolodny reports. That comes as Musk has repeatedly touted his ability to turn Tesla into “a leader in AI & robotics.” But, by prioritizing his privately held social media company X and AI venture xAI, Musk delayed the automaker’s receipt of over $500 million in processors by months.

3. Paramount’s plan B

The Paramount Pictures logo is displayed in front of Paramount Studios on January 31, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.

Mario Tama | Getty Images

Paramount Global‘s three CEOs laid out go-forward plans at an annual shareholder meeting Tuesday for if a sale of the company doesn’t go through as anticipated. Paramount and Skydance have agreed to terms of a merger, but the deal is awaiting signoff from controlling shareholder Shari Redstone, Tech Zone Daily reported earlier this week. Their strategic priorities include exploring streaming joint venture opportunities with other media companies, eliminating $500 million in costs and divesting noncore assets. It’s basically the other option for Paramount’s controlling shareholder, Shari Redstone — owner of National Amusements, which owns 77% of Class A Paramount shares — if she chooses not to sell. The strategies aim to lower Paramount’s long-term debt.

4. Unions unite?

Demonstrators during an Amazon Labor Union (ALU) rally outside an Amazon warehouse in the Staten Island borough of New York, on Tuesday, April 11, 2023.

Paul Frangipane | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Amazon‘s first U.S. labor union said Tuesday it has taken steps to affiliate with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. The Amazon Labor Union was formed in 2021 as a grassroots group of current and former workers and won a historic union election in Staten Island, New York. But it’s struggled to negotiate a contract with Amazon and rifts have formed in its ranks. The support of the Teamsters could give the ALU some additional weight to jumpstart its negotiations with Amazon, but the move still needs to be ratified by the Teamsters and the ALU.