Morning Download from Invincible Money 

Personal finance + economics + markets

Good morning investors! This week flew by and we’re already to Friday! I hope everyone has a better day than Elon Musk did yesterday.

Today we cover:

1. U.S. home sales very slow

2. FedNow goes live

3. Is Jarvis coming soon?

4. The Hollywood strike takes down Netflix

5. Tesla had a rough day

6. Financial minimalism

📊 Economy 

June home sales in the U.S. very slow

Home sales in the US fell to the slowest pace in 14 years in June, as rising mortgage rates and a shortage of homes for sale continue to weigh on the market.

• Sales of previously owned homes (as opposed to new builds) fell 18.9% from a year ago, according to the National Association of Realtors.

• The decline in sales was driven by a sharp rise in mortgage rates, which have climbed more than 2 percentage points since the start of the year.

Summary: It’s not a lack of demand, but a lack of supply. There just aren’t enough homes for sale as people don’t want to sell homes at a lower price and then have to get a new mortgage at a much higher rate.

FedNow goes online

The Federal Reserve has officially launched its new FedNow instant payments service, which will allow banks and credit unions to offer their customers the ability to send and receive payments in seconds, for less cost and it’s available 24/7. (Details here)

• The service is expected to be available to banks and credit unions starting in late July 2023.

• 35 banks, including JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo, have already signed on.

• Some say that FedNow may make the desire for a CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency) irrelevant. 🤞🏾

📰 News

Jarvis coming soon?

The development of autonomous AI agents is a rapidly growing field of research, with companies like Google, Amazon, and Microsoft all investing heavily in the area. These agents are designed to operate in the real world without human intervention, and some experts believe that we could see truly autonomous AI agents within the next few years.

Think Jarvis, Siri or Alexa, but actually useful.

Here are some stats about autonomous AI agents:

• The global market for autonomous AI agents is expected to reach $1.2 trillion by 2025.

• The automotive industry is the largest investor in autonomous AI agents, with $50 billion invested in 2022.

• The healthcare industry is the second-largest investor in autonomous AI agents, with $25 billion invested in 2022.

• There are currently over 100 companies developing autonomous AI agents.

Hollywood troubles

The Hollywood strike continues and one media giant, Barry Diller, says it could cause Hollywood’s collapse and huge losses for streamers like Netflix (see Netflix stock below). (Watch here)

📈 Stocks

S&P 500 4,534.87 (-0.68%)
DJIA 35,225.18 (+0.47%)
NASDAQ 14,063.31 (-2.05%)
VIX 13.99 (+1.67%)

Most active stocks

🚙 Tesla [TSLA -9.74] hit the skids after an earnings call wherein Elon described the economy as “turbulent times.”

Why down? Investors weren’t happy to hear about slower production planned for Q3 due to factory upgrades and few details about when the Cybertruck production would begin.

Also covered:

• Musk said Tesla is “using a lot of Nvidia hardware.” (isn’t everyone?)

• Demand for the Tesla truck is “so far off the hook, you can’t even see the hook.”

• Tesla would continue to cut vehicle prices if needed if interest rates remained high.

🍿Netflix [NFLX -8.41%] closed down as investors are concerned over the ongoing writer/actor strike. The CEO said he’s “super committed” to reaching an agreement. I would be too if my entire business was dependent on it.

📻 Sirius XM Holdings Inc. [SIRI +42.26%] had an incredible day thanks to shorts covering and maybe buying related to rebalancing of the Nasdaq 100 index.

📚 What I’m watching

It’s been 10 years since the movie “Her” gave us a sense of what it would be like if Alexa or Siri had a real personality. If you haven’t seen the movie and want something thought-provoking and fun, this movie is as timely as ever.

🔐 Crypto

Bitcoin $29,814.00 (-0.2%)
Ethereum $1,894.31 (0.3%)
Total market cap $1.25 (-0.0%)
* Prices as of July 20th, 11:10 PM UTC

Lawmaker tells SEC to refocus

U.S. Representative Ritchie Torres urged the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to refocus its efforts on going after bad actors in the cryptocurrency industry.

Torres said he looked forward to how the SEC plans to "reassess its regulatory assault on crypto assets" following the Ripple ruling.

What he wants: He hoped the SEC would "concentrate the Commission's enforcement energies where it belongs: on the bonafide bad actors who perpetrate serious transgressions like fraud, market manipulation, and the misappropriation of customer funds."

SEC unclear: The Judge in the Ripple case, Sarah Netburn, said the SEC had failed to provide "clear guidance" on how it defines a security in the cryptocurrency context. 🤦🏻‍♂️

✌🏽Crypto VC activity not dead: Polychain Capital raises $200M and plans to raise another $400M. The VC firm currently manages $2.6 billion.

💵 Personal Finance

Use Financial Minimalism for a better life

Financial minimalism is a lifestyle and mindset that focuses on simplifying one's finances and reducing the emphasis on material possessions and consumerism. It is based on the idea that by living with less, we can free up our time, money, and energy to focus on what's truly important in life.

There are many benefits to financial minimalism, including:

• Increased financial freedom: When you spend less, you have more money to save and invest. This can lead to financial freedom, which is the ability to live the life you want without being tied down to a job or a paycheck.

• Reduced stress: Financial stress is a major problem for many people. Financial minimalism can help to reduce this stress by giving you more control over your finances and helping you to feel more confident about your financial future.

• Increased happiness: Studies have shown that people who live simply are happier than those who are constantly chasing after material possessions. Financial minimalism can help you to focus on the things that are truly important to you and to live a more fulfilling life.

💰 Be a Better Investor

👩🏽‍⚖️ Legal Stuff
Nothing in this newsletter is financial advice. Always do your own research and think for yourself.