Big Tech temp check… Microsoft, Google, Apple, and Meta are set to report. In the fall, Microsoft notched record quarterly sales as AI-vestments boosted its cloud biz. Meta posted record profit and its fastest sales growth in two years as ad $$ rebounded (Google’s ad biz also benefited from your YouTube binges). Apple beat estimates, but sales of shiny iDevices sagged. Tech stocks have lifted the market to record highs as AI hype grows. Meanwhile the FTC launched an investigation into cloud giants’ AI partnerships (think: Microsoft + OpenAI).
Super gassy… Exxon, Chevron, Marathon Petroleum, Shell, and Phillips 66 are fueling up to drop quarterly #s. In Q3, oil titans saw profits drop compared to 2022’s eye-popping record earnings. Now execs are trying to gas up returns by boosting production and scooping up rivals. Mega acquisitions by Exxon and Chevron made last quarter the biggest ever for oil deals at $144B. But as oil prices slip back down to earth, analysts expect profits to stay under pressure when the gas giants report.