US consumer prices in June rose at slowest annual rate since March 2021 (5 min read)
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Inflation in the US continue to slow in June, rising only 0.2% over last month and 3% from the prior year, slightly better than expected. The Core inflation, excluding food and gas, rose 0.2% on a monthly basis and 4.8% year-over-year, which was also better than estimates. Despite the cooldown, inflation is still higher than the 2% target and the Fed will be raising rates further this year. However, it's also a sign that the end of the Fed’s rate hike campaign may be near as the data reaffirm consumer prices are heading in the right direction and closer to target.

Bank of Canada hikes rate to 5%, expects inflation to be above 2% until mid-2025 (4 min read)
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The Bank of Canada has raised its key rate to 5%, the highest level in 22 years, as inflation is expected to take longer to reach the 2% target. The central bank predicts inflation will remain around 3% for the next year before gradually declining. They also increased their GDP growth forecast for this year but did not explicitly state if there will be further rate increases. Some economists believe this hike may be the last in this cycle, while others anticipate rate cuts in the future.

Meta’s Threads could be the Twitter replacement advertisers have been waiting for (5 min read)
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Since Meta’s new app, Threads, surpassed 100 million users, it has caught the attention of numerous companies and digital advertising agencies. Many businesses who have stopped advertising on Twitter over brand safety issues are now excited about the possibility of advertising on Threads once that option is available. Threads is still in the early stage of developing features and a monetization strategy, but if it ends up successfully capturing the audience looking to replace Twitter, it could be a new sizeable revenue stream for Meta.

Berkshire Hathaway takes control of LNG facility as Buffett ups bet on energy infrastructure (2 min read)
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Berkshire Hathaway Energy, a division of Warren Buffett’s conglomerate, has bought a 50% stake in Cove Point LNG, a liquefied natural gas facility in Maryland, for $3.3 billion in cash. The deal will boost Berkshire’s stake in Cove Point LNG to 75% in total. This is part of Berkshire’s growing investment in energy infrastructure, especially in natural gas, which has fallen over 40% in prices this year due to oversupply. The move will also give Berkshire control of one of the few functional facilities in the US that can export LNG to other countries.

Nasdaq 100 index to undergo special rejiggering because a few tech stocks have gotten too big (2 min read)
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Nasdaq is making a special rebalance of its Nasdaq 100 Index due to the rapid rise of a few large tech stocks. The rebalance aims to address overconcentration in the index and redistribute weights. While the index is regularly rebalanced on a quarterly basis, the combined weighting of the five largest stocks (Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Amazon, and Tesla) is currently above the 40% threshold. Nasdaq will announce new weightings on July 14.

New Music ETF Aims to Tap Into Industry’s Swift Growth (2 min read)

A new ETF provider, MUSQ, recently launched the MUSQ Global Music Industry ETF (MUSQ). It tracks its proprietary index that aims to expose investors to the music industry. MUSQ’s CEO believes that it is different from competitors because the fund only holds real music companies in the portfolio, making it the first pure-play music ETF. It includes companies such as Warner Music Group, Spotify, Live Nation, and Sonos. More details on MUSQ is available in the article.

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