Bloomberg Daybreak: US Edition

Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.

On today's podcast:

1) President Trump said he’s considering a “massive attack” on Iran to push the nation to negotiate a peace deal. The president told Axios that Iran isn’t ready to make a deal and “they haven’t received enough pain yet,” and that he was “close to making a decision” on attacks that would be “bigger than ever before.” The US has launched strikes intended to degrade Iran’s ability to attack commercial shipping in Hormuz, and Trump has threatened “major military punishment” on Iran and the Houthi militant group it backs in Yemen if they target commercial ships.

2) President Trump is rebuilding his tariff strategy with new levies on 60 economies. The US will collect duties of between 10% and 12.5% on imports from most major trading partners, following an investigation into the alleged failure of around 60 economies to prevent forced labor in their supply chains. Goods from some trading partners deemed to have adopted forced-labor restrictions will be subject to 10% tariffs, including Mexico, the UK, Canada and India, while duties on items from the European Union and Taiwan won’t exceed 10%. The rates under the new authority took effect Friday at 12:01 a.m. New York time, with certain exemptions, such as for products that can’t be produced in the US or where tariffs would cause economy-wide disruptions.

3) Intel delivered a revenue forecast that shattered Wall Street estimates, indicating that booming data center spending is helping fuel a long-awaited turnaround. Sales will be $15.8 billion to $16.8 billion in the third quarter, with the low end of that range easily clearing the $15.1 billion average analyst estimate. The outlook underscores Intel’s gains with data center customers, which are clamoring for chips to satisfy demand for artificial intelligence computing, with sales in that segment soaring 59% last quarter.
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Intel surged in late trading after the chipmaker’s revenue forecast shattered estimates, indicating that booming data center spending is helping fuel a long-awaited turnaround. Sales will be $15.8 billion to $16.8 billion in the third quarter, the company said Thursday in a statement. Even the low end of that range would easily clear the $15.1 billion average analyst estimate.

For instant reaction and analysis, Bloomberg Businessweek Daily hosts Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec speak with:
Mandeep Singh, Bloomberg Intelligence Global Head of Technology Research
Ed Ludlow, Bloomberg Tech co-host
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Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.

On today's podcast:

1) The Iran-backed Houthis claimed their first attack on commercial ships in recent months, targeting two Saudi Arabian oil tankers in the Red Sea with missiles and drones. The Saudi government confirmed an attack on one refined-products tanker, called the Encelia, and the British navy said a tanker was struck by a projectile near the Saudi town of Al Shuqaiq. The move could effectively close another maritime chokepoint vital to energy markets, following Iran’s shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, and oil prices are rising and Brent crude jumping.

2) Alphabet raised its capital spending forecast to a range of $195 billion to $205 billion this year, up from a previous forecast of $190 billion. The company's quarterly cash flow was negative for the first time since going public, with negative free cash flow of $5.9 billion in the period, and its cloud revenue totaled $24.77 billion, up 82% from a year earlier. Alphabet's cloud backlog grew to $514 billion, with over half expected to convert to revenue within 24 months, and the company's net income was $9.11 a share, well above Wall Street's forecasts.

3) Tesla's profit tumbled despite a strong quarter for its automotive business, pressuring Elon Musk's plan to refocus the electric-vehicle maker on artificial intelligence and robots. Spending on ambitious initiatives surged to $5.8 billion in the second quarter, resulting in Tesla's first cash burn in two years, and the company still expects capital expenditures in excess of $25 billion this year. Tesla's shares were down about 5% in pre-market trading in New York on Thursday, after the company reported adjusted earnings that fell short of analyst estimates and negative free cash flow of $1.09 billion.Eric Mollo
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Listen for instant reaction and analysis of megacap tech earnings from Alphabet and Tesla.

Alphabet reported second-quarter cloud revenue that far surpassed Wall Street’s expectations and said the division’s backlog of contracted business ballooned to more than $500 billion, offering fresh evidence that the company’s massive AI investments are paying off.

Meanwhile, Tesla missed Wall Street’s profit expectations even after a strong quarter of auto sales, a setback for the electric-vehicle maker as it looks to build out new lines of business in robotics, autonomy and AI.

To break down all of this, Bloomberg Businessweek Daily hosts Carol Massar and Tim Stenovec speak with:
Ed Ludlow, Bloomberg Tech co-host
Keith Naughton, Bloomberg News Auto Reporter
Mandeep Singh, Bloomberg Intelligence Global Head of Technology Research
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today's top stories, with context, in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:
1) The US widened the scope of its airstrikes on Iran overnight, striking a military site near the north-western city of Tabriz. The Iranian government activated air defenses in Tehran and the US struck other areas, with Iran firing on US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan. There are no negotiations between the US and Iran, with a spokesman for the Iranian ministry saying "our new message is that the enemy violated the memorandum and should implement it."
2) President Trump said generic drug manufacturers must move production to the US or face a 100% import duty from August 2028. The move aims at “reshoring” generic pharmaceutical production in the US, with companies that don’t build plants onshore facing levies that would then double, to 200%, in August 2029. The planned tariffs would raise costs for manufacturers, risking higher prices and potential shortages for generic treatments that account for more than 90% of US prescriptions.
3) New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill said about 6,600 people who identified themselves as noncitizens were registered to vote due to a software error in the state’s motor vehicle system. The applicants answered “no” when asked on a keypad whether they were US citizens while applying for driver’s licenses and identification cards, but the system registered them anyway. A preliminary analysis found that fewer than 400 of the people who were registered cast ballots, and they were registered as Democrats, Republicans and unaffiliated voters, and were spread across the state.
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