Pre-marketing equities: the real estate boom could run out of steam

There’s more: US retail sales for July, which arrived on Tuesday, indicated that spending on home improvement projects had retreated.

“Buyer traffic has fallen to its lowest level since July 2020 as some potential buyers are experiencing sticker shock from higher construction costs,” said NAHB President Chuck Fowke.

The NAHB predicts that housing supply bottlenecks may ease in the coming months and that “the market should return to more normal conditions.”

But in the midst of an unpredictable pandemic, only time will tell if high prices start to moderate, bringing finicky buyers back into the fold.

Look at this space: normalcy is certainly not there yet. The UK’s Office for National Statistics said on Wednesday that house prices in the country rose by more than 13% in June, the highest annual growth rate since November 2004.

The UK average house price hit a record high of £ 266,000 ($ 365,780), up £ 31,000 ($ 42,630) from June 2020 last year.

In the United States, the National Association of Realtors said last week that the median selling price of existing single-family homes rose nearly 23% to $ 357,900 in the second quarter, an increase of $ 66,800 compared to 2020.

Overview: The state of the housing market has major consequences not only for consumers looking to sell their homes or make purchases, but also for the economy in general. This is a major point of contention for central bankers, who are debating when to withdraw support in the pandemic era.

Companies are hoarding cash amid Delta fears

Large corporations around the world are adding huge piles of money, a sign that businesses are increasingly nervous about how the highly contagious Delta variant of Covid-19 could harm the global economy.

The latest: The world’s largest non-financial corporations had a record $ 6.85 trillion in cash on their balance sheets at the end of the second quarter, according to data from S&P Global Ratings.

Second quarter totals are up slightly from late 2020, reports my CNN Business colleague Paul R. La Monica. Gareth Williams, global head of corporate research for S&P Global Ratings, estimates the cash level could reach $ 7.1 trillion by the end of the year.

Companies have also taken advantage of low interest rates to borrow more money, which has helped increase both liquidity and debt levels for blue-chip companies.

“Companies spend on buyouts, dividends and mergers. The capital markets are wide open,” said Christopher Harvey, head of equity strategy at Wells Fargo. “The cost of financing is incredibly cheap, so businesses are putting out debt and the cash continues to pile up.”

Tesla’s autopilot goes under the microscope

Regulators have serious questions about Tesla’s autopilot function, and their concerns weigh on the company’s shares.

The agency said seven of the crashes left 17 injured and one dead, and its investigation will “gain a better understanding of the causes of some Tesla crashes,” including “the technologies and methods used to monitor, assist and enforce commitments with driving when the autopilot is in use. “

“Tesla and [CEO Elon Musk’s] repeated overestimations of their vehicle’s capabilities… put Tesla drivers – and all travelers – at risk of serious injury or death, ”Senate Democrats Richard Blumenthal and Edward Markey said in a letter to the President of the FTC, Lina Khan.

Investor Snapshot: Tesla shares closed 3% lower on Tuesday following the announcement of the investigation. They are up 1% in pre-market on Wednesday. But regulators’ scrutiny of a key feature of Tesla will remain to be watched as the company ramps up deliveries.

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