DHUnplugged #614: Chopping Block…

Oil taking a leg lower.... All eyes on CPI data and earnings this week Home prices are on the chopping block..   PLUS we are now on Spotify and Amazon Music/Podcasts! Click HERE for Show Notes and Links DHUnplugged is now streaming live - with listener chat. Click on link on the right sidebar. Love the Show? Then how about a Donation? Follow John C. Dvorak on Twitter Follow Andrew Horowitz on Twitter Warm Up - Earnings season begins this week - Twitter Saga continues - or comes to an end? - Euro hits parity - Abortion pill companies heating up Market Update - Oil Crushed - down 20% since recent high - German consumer confidence - historic lows - IMF cuts its growth forecast for US to 2.3% from 2.9% - CPI data tomorrow - everyone bracing for a big number - VIX near 27 - not too high considering Oil - Oil prices near $96   $94  (looks like $93 support line - next stop if cannot hold) - Airlines Up, Cruise lines up (could be some short covering into earnings and due to oil prices) Robot Fish - Robot fish that "eat" microplastics may one day help to clean up the world's polluted oceans, says a team of Chinese scientists from Sichuan University in southwest China. - The black robot fish is irradiated by a light, helping it to flap its fins and wiggle its body. Scientists can control the fish using the light to avoid it crashing into other fish or ships. - If it is accidentally eaten by other fish, it can be digested without harm as it is made from polyurethane, which is also biocompatible, Wang said. Housing Update - Americans are canceling deals to buy homes at the highest rate since the start of the Covid pandemic. - The share of sale agreements on existing homes canceled in June was just under 15% of all homes that went under contract, according to a new report from Redfin. - That is the highest share since early 2020, when homebuying paused immediately, albeit briefly. Cancelations were at about 11% one year ago. - Higher mortgage rates and surging inflation are causing many potential homebuyers to reconsider their purchases. - Total mortgage application volume fell 6.5% last week compared with the previous week, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's seasonally adjusted index. Demand hit the lowest level in 22 years. - Next Shoe to drop? Housing Prices on the chopping block....? Big Move - Electric vehicle startup Canoo (GOEV) said Tuesday Walmart has agreed to buy at least 4,500 of its upcoming electric delivery vans, in a significant win for the Texas-based vehicle maker. - Shares of Canoo were up more than 70% in premarket trading after the news was announced to trade above $4 per share. - Walmart has signed a "definitive agreement" to purchase at least 4,500, and possibly as many as 10,000, of its all-electric Lifestyle Delivery Vehicles, a small electric van designed for local delivery service, Canoo said. Bicycles - Peloton said Tuesday that it plans to exit all of its in-house manufacturing and instead will expand its current relationship with Taiwanese manufacturer Rexon Industrial, in a bid to turn the money-losing business around. - Peloton Chief Executive Officer Barry McCarthy said this is a step for the company to simplify its supply chain and fix its cost structure, which is a top priority. - "We believe that this along with other initiatives will enable us to continue reducing the cash burden on the business and increase our flexibility," McCarty said in a statement. Something is Wrong - London's Heathrow said it would cap the number of departing passengers at 100,000 a day this summer to try to limit traveler disruption as it struggles to cope with a rebound in demand. - Airlines at Britain's busiest airport have already responded to a government appeal to cut capacity but Heathrow said it needed them to go further. - It said airlines, baggage handlers and the airport could collectively serve 100,