Tesla approves share award worth $29 billion to CEO Elon Musk

Image source: Wikimedia Commons

Tesla has granted 96 million new shares worth about $29 billion to CEO Elon Musk, a move aimed at keeping the billionaire entrepreneur at the helm as he fights a court ruling that voided his original pay deal for being unfair to shareholders.

In 2024, a Delaware court voided Musk's 2018 compensation package, valued at over $50 billion, citing that the Tesla board's approval process was flawed and unfair to shareholders.

Musk kicked off an appeal in March against the order, claiming a lower court judge made multiple legal errors in rescinding the record compensation.

Earlier this year, the EV maker said the board had formed a special committee to consider some compensation matters involving Musk, without disclosing any details. Reuters reports.

📈 Stocks rise as investors cling to hopes for US rate cuts

Global stocks rose on Monday, boosted by the prospect of lower interest rates, after a weak U.S. jobs report prompted a dramatic re-assessment of the rate outlook and ignited concern over the reliability of U.S. economic data.

Friday's U.S. July nonfarm payrolls report missed expectations and revised the figures for May and June sharply lower, sparking a selloff on Wall Street and denting the dollar.

By Monday, with the chance of a September rate cut from the Federal Reserve at 85%, some stability returned to the broader market, allowing Europe's STOXX 600 to rise 0.6% in morning trading. The dollar edged up against a basket of six other major currencies. Reuters reports.

🛡️ Ballooning 'buffer' ETF market leads to more complex array of products

Investors are piling into financial products that offer them the chance to forgo some potential gains in exchange for protection against a market selloff, with the number of exchange-traded funds offering variants on this concept doubling in number and size over the last two years.

So far this year, some 30 of these so-called buffer funds have made their debut in the U.S. as investors try to protect recent gains from the risk that soaring valuations and ongoing policy tumult will prompt a retreat. Yahoo Finance reports.

🧑‍⚖️ Trump to name new Fed governor, jobs data head in coming days

Trump made the comments to reporters Sunday on his way back to the White House from a weekend in Bedminster, New Jersey. He has faced criticism for his relentless attacks on the Fed and for firing Bureau of Labor Statistics chief Erika McEntarfer after data showed weak jobs growth — moves that are seen as undermining institutions typically viewed as free from political influence.

For the Fed, the president said he has a “couple of people in mind” for the role that opened up after Adriana Kugler announced Friday that she would vacate her board of governors seat, which wasn’t due to expire until January. Her exit handed Trump a sooner-than-anticipated opportunity to appoint a governor who more closely aligns with his preference for lower interest rates. Yahoo Finance reports.

✈️ Over 3,000 Boeing fighter jet workers go on strike after rejecting contract offer

More than 3,200 union members who assemble Boeing's fighter jets in the St. Louis area and Illinois went on strike on Monday after rejecting a second contract offer the previous day.

Boeing Defense said it was ready for the work stoppage and it will implement a contingency plan that uses non-labor workers.

According to the company, the rejected four-year contract would have raised the average wage by roughly 40% and included a 20% general wage increase and a $5,000 ratification bonus. It also included increasing periodic raises, more vacation time and sick leave. Reuters reports.

🚗 Tesla's July China-made EV sales fall 8.4%

Tesla's sales of China-made electric vehicles in July fell 8.4% from a year earlier, reversing a mild increase in June, in the face of rising competition from rivals offering lower-priced new models.

Deliveries of Tesla's China-made Model 3 and Model Y vehicles, including exports to Europe and other markets, reached 67,886 units last month, down 5.2% from June, data from the China Passenger Car Association showed on Monday. Reuters reports.

⌚ Swiss luxury watchmakers' shares drop after Trump tariff shock

Swiss luxury watchmakers' shares, including Richemont and Swatch, were volatile in early trade on Monday, reflecting the challenge for the industry after U.S. President Donald Trumpset a 39% tariff on Swiss imports.

The sector, which exported watches worth 26 billion Swiss francs ($33 billion) in 2024, is already under pressure from a stronger franc and falling global demand. Reuters reports.

💻 Nvidia’s set to regain some China access. But it still faces eroding AI chip market share

Nvidia’s H20 chips are likely to return to China, but tech experts don’t expect them to be met with the same fanfare in the market in light of new competition and regulatory scrutiny.

The Trump administration last month gave Nvidia assurances that it would be permitted to resume sales of its H20 chips to China, after their exports had been effectively banned in April. It also announced a new “fully compliant” made-for-China chip. CNBC reports.

🔊 Xiaomi unveils new AI voice model to boost auto, home tech

Xiaomi Corp. on Monday released an open-source voice model to complement its automotive and home appliance technologies, further heating up the race to build AI tools for more than just text.

The new MiDashengLM-7B is based on Xiaomi’s foundational voice model, which has been deployed in cars and smart home gadgets, with integration of Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s open-source Qwen2.5-Omni-7B. The Beijing-based phone and auto maker detailed the advancements and provided benchmarks in a post on its WeChat account. Yahoo Finance reports.

(All pricing and percent gains are based on Early Pre-Market from 4:00 AM to 7:00 AM Eastern Time)
Benzinga reports.

1) $PBM: Psyence Biomedical

Total gain: +123.72%

2) $COMM: CommScope Holding

Total gain: +44.8%

3) $GYRO: Gyrodyne

Total gain: +43.22%

4) $UNIT: Uniti Group

Total gain: +33.4%

5) $VERB: Verb Technology

Total gain: +33.22%

The closing price of the top three market percent gainers trading near or above $3 on August 1.
Benzinga reports.

*All pricing and percent gains are based on regular market trading hours from 9:30am to 4:00pm Eastern Time

1) $MGRT: Mega Fortune

Total gain: +32.15%

The stock appeared to be moving on no notable news.

2) $ATEC: Alphatec Holdings

Total gain: +30.43%

The company announced financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2025, along with recent corporate highlights. Surgical revenue grew 29% to $168 million, and total revenue increased by $40 million, or 27.5%. Full-year revenue and profitability guidance were raised. Benzinga reports.

3) $EVOK: Evoke Pharma

Total gain: +28.4%

The stock appeared to be moving on no notable news.

*Estimate and Actual numbers represent Earnings Per Share in US Dollars


PLTR: Palantir Technologies
2Q 2025

After Market Close
Estimate: 0.120
Actual: N/A

BNTX: BioNTech
2Q 2025

Before Market Open
Estimate: -1.310
Actual: N/A

SEMR: Semrush Holdings
2Q 2025

After Market Close
Estimate: 0.060
Actual: N/A

Time (ET) | Report | Period

10:00 am - Factory orders - June

“The markets are the same now as they were five or ten years ago because they keep changing—just as they did then.”

- Ed Seykota

Sourced in: "Market Wizards: Interviews with Top Traders”, by Jack D. Schwager, published in 1989.