Good morning. It is an interesting day in the markets … not that other days aren’t … as indexes rose following the release of new inflation data. But here is where some confusion might set in as some news stories report the Consumer Price Index inflation number (“CPI”) to be in line with forecasts … and slower than the June number … while other point out “Core CPI” … which removes volatile food and energy prices … may be starting an upward trend. Meanwhile, the President is back in Jay Powell attack mode … posting he wants a rate cut “NOW” (capitalized in a tweet) … as he possibly wants a decision made before numbers come out prior to the September meeting which might result in the Fed further delaying a reduction in rates. Right now, it seems the argument being made by a growing number of pro-cut economists is it is more important to battle unemployment than it is to worry about inflation … with thought that any price increases to be one-time events. Oh … yes … and the President is also threatening to file a lawsuit against Jay Powell for renovations made to the Fed building … but it is not just any old lawsuit … it is a “major lawsuit” … making the statement all the more interesting. There is a development in the auto world as Tesla is posting hiring notices for test drivers of its Robotaxis in New York City … even before applying for a permit. Quite a few visionaries see these vehicles as gaining traction (car tire joke not intended) as Waymo and Tesla lead the way. As an aside, I’ve spoken with quite a few people who have ridden in one of the “driverless” vehicles … and they seem quite satisfied once they got over any initial fear. On a different topic, while many would refuse to “sell their soul to the devil” … a tempting mistake might be made by those who sell their image to an AI developer. Such is the case in the last story below where a person took what seemed like decent and easy money to become an “AI model” … but now her face can be used in ads … even for products she has never used and might even hate. Oh, and the contract she signed has her tied up for life (and possibly beyond). The devil really may be in the details. That will about wrap it up for today. Meanwhile, I received a note from a friend pointing out a word I misspelled in one of my notes and I plead ignorance … since I do my own proofreading. I just don’t understand why many words are so difficult … and blame whoever initially decided on the spelling in the first place. One word I will never understand? “Receipt” … and I feel whoever picked this to be the correct spelling must be an idiopt. Have a great day, Joseph G. Witthohn, CFA Have any questions? Please contact info@teamemerald.com
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