In Other News …

In this buzz: Dow Industrial Average; Tesla; Amazon; Altria (Marlboro) and more…

The Dow Industrial Average…
… finished in the green yesterday, but overall equities were unchanged across the board as investors await today’s start of Jay Powell’s two day testimony before Congress.
Jerry will discuss all things
– inflation expectation,
– rate hike and
– recession related.
The highlight of the week, however, will be❗Friday’s release of February’s payroll and unemployment data.

Tesla cuts prices…
Elsewhere, Tesla cut the prices of two of its models in the U.S. in an attempt to remain price competitive in the EV market. Tesla has been on a price cutting bender since January.

Amazon…
… announced it will close eight of its cashier-less Go, convenience stores in the near future. AMZN opened its first Go locations in 2018 and planned to roll up lots more. However. Announced closings will leave only about 20 stores open. Amazon has struggled with its bricks and mortar initiatives; even its Whole Foods acquisition only accounts for approximately 3% of its total revenue.

Tobacco maker Altria (Marlboro)…
… is dipping its toes back in the e-cig market after its giant flop of an investment in Juul. Altria is buying startup NJOY for about $2.7 billion. It may be shocking that the cigarette maker is willing to be burned (see what I did there) so soon after its $12.8 billion 35% stake in Juul is only worth $250 million.

The difference?
Regulators don’t seem to hate NJOY. It’s one of the only e-cig makers with FDA clearance. It seems critical for Altria to have a presence in the e-cig market as more smokers have abandon ciggies for vapes.