Hello, Quartz members, and welcome to Sunday Reads!
Who will soon forget the week Elon Musk interviewed Donald Trump on X after 48 minutes of technical glitches? Not to mention Starbucks kicking out its CEO like a cold Venti.
But it’s Sunday, and time to set your sights on some hand-picked reads. Here are some of our favorite Quartz stories of the week, plus a preview of a story coming next week, to start your day.
Do you like this newsletter? Let us know. We look forward to hearing from you.
5 things we particularly liked about Quartz
👮♀️ The Ponzi scheme is alive. And you thought the days of the Ponzi scheme were over when Bernie Madoff went to prison. Ha! As William Gavin of Quartz reports, the SEC has put a stop to another pyramid scheme in which an Atlanta-based investment manager allegedly squandered client money on a $3 million yacht, cars, real estate and a NetJets subscription. Not very flying.
🐩 The number of wills for pets is increasing. More and more Americans are leaving money for their pets or their care, and now US state laws are following this trend. Madeline Fitzgerald reports on the increase in pet wills.
🛫 The problems of Airbus and Boeing. French aircraft manufacturer Airbus is experiencing a bumpy ride, plagued by supply chain problems – and this at a time when competitor Boeing’s problems with the 737 should actually be causing market share to be lost. Melvin Backman records the turbulence.
🛒 Walmart wins. Thanks to strong second-quarter earnings, shares of the U.S.’ largest retailer rose. What’s the reason? Wealthier shoppers and renovated stores that have more mannequins to fill some of the empty spaces. Francisco Velasquez on the latest in major retail.
💻 Buffett’s big tax bill. When Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway decided to sell off part of its huge Apple holding, the company was left with a tax bill that could exceed $15 billion. Rocio Fabbro calculates.
1 small foretaste
Will AI change Bitcoin mining? Maybe, but not anytime soon, as Vinamrata Chaturvedi reports next week. Find out why the core process of Bitcoin mining remains a raw computational task, even though there are ways AI can speed up the process. Visit qz.com on Monday morning for a look into the future of everything.
What we see this week
- Monday: The Democratic Party Convention begins (ends on Thursday).
- Tuesday: Lowe’s reports earnings before the stock market opens; Kamala Harris holds a rally in Milwaukee.
- Wednesday: TJX, Target, Macy’s and Zeekr all report their results before the market opens.
- Thursday: Dollar Tree and Peloton announce their profits; the FDA is to decide whether approve Regeneron Pharmaceuticals’ treatment of multiple myeloma.
Thank you for reading! Here’s to the coming week and don’t hesitate make contact with comments, questions, feedback, cheers, or details about the latest Ponzi scheme. Sunday Reads is brought to you by Peter S. Green and Morgan Haefner.
