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Meta has opened its AI model to commercial use, the big four is under scrutiny as $1.6 billion in spending reductions loom for consultants and lawyers, retail sales in America increased for the third consecutive month, and McKinsey, the renowned consultancy firm announced a strategic partnership with artificial intelligence startup Cohere.

Let's jump in.

Before The Bell

Markets

  • Shares rise as a bank and tech rally lifts market sentiment, just ahead of the upcoming earnings season (AFR)

  • Decelerating inflation causes yields to tumble (AFR)

    • Inflation reaches the six percent mark (NBR)

Earnings and Data

  • Morgan Stanley fell short of Q2 profit expectations as Investment Banking Division revenues remained flat, and trading revenues declined year-over-year (CNBC)

  • Bank of America exceeded Q2 profit expectations, benefiting from increased earnings from customers' loan payments. Additionally, its investment banking and trading divisions performed better than anticipated. As a result, the bank's stock surged by over 4% (RT)

  • Lockheed Martin surpassed Q2 estimates, benefiting from heightened global geopolitical tensions and increased military expenditures. Furthermore, the company reported a record sales backlog of $158 billion (PRN)

News Summary

  • The big four is under scrutiny as $1.6 billion in spending reductions loom for consultants and lawyers (AFR)

  • Spark announces it will become the first telecommunications company in New Zealand to offer a pure 5G connection without any slower, laggier 4G links in the chain (NZHerald)

  • The first-generation iPhone fetches an astounding $300,000 at auction, a staggering 380 times its original price (NZHerald)

  • Microsoft's shares achieved a record closing value following the company's announcement of pricing for its new Microsoft 365 artificial intelligence subscription service (CNBC)

  • In June, retail sales in America increased for the third consecutive month, supported by easing inflation and a robust labour market (WSJ)

  • The US military is urgently working to ascertain the fate of a soldier who defected to North Korea (RT)

  • China is currently experiencing a record heatwave, while South Korea grapples with an increasing death toll due to floods (RT)

  • Meta has opened its AI model to commercial use, causing significant disruption in the emerging AI market (RT)

  • McKinsey, the renowned consultancy firm, announced a strategic partnership with artificial intelligence startup Cohere. The collaboration aims to deliver AI solutions to McKinsey's enterprise clients (RT)

  • Morgan Stanley is relocating over 200 technology developers from mainland China due to the country's increased restrictions on access to onshore data repositories (BBG)

Deal Flow

Investments / M&A

  • India's Tata Group selects the United Kingdom as the location for a $5 billion gigafactory for Jaguar Land Rover (RT)

  • Abu Dhabi National Oil Co, the energy giant with plans to expand its chemical operations through several ambitious deals, has increased its takeover proposal for Covestro AG to approximately €11 billion (BBG)

  • The proposed $61 billion acquisition of VMware Inc. by Broadcom Inc. has received interim UK clearance (BBG)

  • Ares Management, a global alternative investment firm, is set to acquire Singaporean private equity company Crescent Point Capital, which manages assets worth $3.8 billion (RT)

  • Alani Nu, the energy drink manufacturer, is working with JP Morgan Chase & Co as it explores the possibility of a full or partial sale. The potential valuation for the company is expected to exceed $3 billion (RT)

VC & Fundraising

  • Netcraft, a cybersecurity firm, secures a significant $100 million investment in a funding round led by Spectrum Equity (TC)

  • Isometric secures $25 million in funding to advance the development of its registry and science platform, which is dedicated to carbon removal initiatives (TC)

Equity Raises

  • Oddity Tech Ltd., a beauty and wellness company, along with its shareholders, successfully raised $424 million in an enlarged initial public offering (IPO) after pricing its shares above the initially targeted range (BBG)

Daily Picks

  • Meta has opened its AI model to commercial use, causing significant disruption in the emerging AI market (RT)

  • Microsoft's shares achieved a record closing value following the company's announcement of pricing for its new Microsoft 365 artificial intelligence subscription service (CNBC)

Job Board

New Zealand

  • ASB rural banking graduate - Apply here

  • Waterman Capital investment analyst - Apply here

Australia

  • Citadel Securities graduate and intern roles - Apply here

  • Goldman Sachs Investment Banking Intern - Apply here

  • IMC graduate and intern roles - Apply here

  • Jarden

    • Graduate role - Apply here

    • Summer internships - Apply here

  • Macquarie graduate roles - Apply here

  • Optiver

    • Graduate role - Apply here

    • Internships - Apply here

The Daily Deck is sponsored by Industrial Equity, LLC

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