Matt Phillips
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Senior Markets Correspondent at Sherwood News. Ex-NYT, Axios, WSJ, QZ. Banjo/mando player. ❤️ ≠ ❤️. Opinions, vengeance mine.
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Articles by Matt Phillips
AI stocks bounce back — with one notable exception
Data: FactSet; Chart: Matt Phillips/Axios The AI trade has regained momentum despite — or maybe because of — Nvidia's struggles following the weekend revelations from CEO Jensen Huang. The big picture: Monday's sudden burst of exuberance for AI was the latest wide swing for a market upended by last week's "blue tsunami" in the midterm elections and the threat they could pose to the data center boom.
Trek ditched IsoSpeed on the new Domane and made its everyday road bike lighter, simpler, and snappier
This Review Continues for Members My full test and verdict are here. Next, I want to hear what you think. Bicycling members can continue the discussion with me on Discord, where I'll answer questions and hear how the Domane works for riders beyond my test. The invitation appears after the review. Should You Buy It? If you want a comfortable, relatively upright road bike for rough pavement, long rides, and some light gravel, the new Domane belongs on your list.
It's going to be tough to tap the brakes on the AI race
Slowing an investment boom on the scale of the AI build-out is a tricky business. Americans may have voted in the midterms to tap the brakes on the AI race, but curbing the investment boom—or some might say, gently deflating the AI bubble—is easier said than done. The historical record shows that once major investment booms are in motion, it can be difficult to temper them without sparking a stampede of investors out of assets.
It's going to be tough to tap the brakes on the AI race
Data: FactSet; Chart: Matt Phillips/Axios Slowing an investment boom on the scale of the AI buildout is a tricky business — as Thursday's rout in the stock market demonstrated. Why it matters: Americans may have voted in the midterms to tap the brakes on the AI race, but curbing the investment boom — or some might say, gently deflating the AI bubble — is easier said than done.
Tech stocks tumble
Data: Financial Modeling Prep ; Chart: Pete Gannon/Axios Tech stocks plunged Thursday in the most visible sign yet that investors are growing worried about a slowdown in the AI boom. The latest: The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index was down 4.7% at 3 p.m., with just an hour left in trading. The broader stock market was also down sharply.
NASDAQ plummets toward correction territory
Data: Financial Modeling Prep ; Chart: Pete Gannon/Axios Tech stocks plunged Thursday in the most visible sign yet that investors are growing worried about a slowdown in the AI boom. The latest: The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite index fell more than 5% in late morning trading, pushing it closer to correction territory before recovering a bit by midday. A correction is defined as a decline of at least 10% from a recent high.
NASDAQ plummets toward correction territory
Data: Financial Modeling Prep ; Chart: Pete Gannon/Axios Tech stocks plunged Thursday, in what could become their worst showing since the April 2025 tariff panic. Zoom in: The Nasdaq Composite index was down over 5% in late morning trading, pushing it closer to correction territory — defined as a decline of at least 10% from a recent high. Between the lines: AI-related shares led the sell-off with companies closely tied to the data center build-out posting double digit losses.
Nasdaq plummets toward correction territory
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Why this could be the AI pause that refreshes
Data:FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Voters clearly put the brakes on the AI buildout this week, but the biggest tech companies kept on rolling. Why it matters: The rally in the shares of the likes of Microsoft and Amazon reflects a growing realization on Wall Street that a slowdown in the AI race may not be such a bad thing. If companies can put off enormous spending commitments, they get to show healthier cash flows, avoid financing costs and possibly sidestep risky investments.
Palantir loses its wow factor
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Palantir loses its wow factor
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Palantir Technologies, the AI-driven analytics platform known for its work for the military, reported better-than-expected quarterly sales and earnings and raised its full-year sales guidance, yet still its stock slumped.
Crude oil price tumbles aren't helping diesel
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips; Note: Daily closes of continuous futures prices for Brent crude oil and New York Harbor Heating Oil #2. U.S. diesel futures registered a muted response to Monday's tumble in global crude oil prices, with the suddenly politically salient price of the industrial fuel still up more than 100% from the end of 2025.
St. Landry Parish President rescues horse stranded in high water Original
ST. LANDRY PARISH, La. (Acadiana News First) - A horse trapped in a St. Landry parish creek put parish officials to work over the weekend, and they say they’re ready for any call, come hay or high water. On Sunday (Nov. 1), Parish President Jessie Bellard, along with Animal Control and the Parish Public Works department, got word of the horse trapped in high water, Bellard said in a Facebook post. Video posted by Bellard shows him operating a backhoe with straps connected to the trapped horse.
Reaction to elections will be key for markets
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips After another rough week for the AI trade, stocks seem to be bracing for more uncertainty in the days ahead. Why it matters: While the AI trade has sputtered, the S&P 500 has managed to largely tread water thanks to strength from shares tied to the basics of the economy, like consumer staples, health care and utilities.
Reaction to elections will be key for markets
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips After another rough week for the AI trade, stocks seem to be bracing for more uncertainty in the days ahead. Why it matters: While the AI trade has sputtered, the S&P 500 has managed to largely tread water thanks to strength from shares tied to the basics of the economy, like consumer staples, health care and utilities.
Some of the spookiest charts about the markets
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips It's natural to be jumpy this time of year, with armies of undead pedestrians hitting the streets Saturday in search of moist human brain — and Skittles. To add to the mood, here are some of the charts we've seen recently that have made the hair on our arms stand up. Why it matters: After weeks of wobbling sideways, the markets seem to be at a crossroads amid real questions about the durability of the AI trade and the economic boom that backs it.
Alphabet suffers a rough day for the ages
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Alphabet suffers a rough day for the ages
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Thursday was a day that will live in infamy for Alphabet shareholders, as the stock plunged 12.6%, vaporizing more than half a trillion dollars in value. Why it matters: The massive one-day loss shows how AI continues to cause violent bouts of uncertainty throughout the markets, even for giants like Alphabet that have been considered big winners of the AI buildout.
Zwift's new, pricier tier adds a virtual coach and real-road routes. I tried both.
Since its 2015 debut, Zwift has focused on indoor riding in a gamified virtual world. Now the company is nudging riders toward the real world, too. Zwift+ introduces a new subscription tier with two big features: a virtual coach that sometimes tells you to ride outdoors, and video routes that let your avatar ride real roads while you stay indoors. I've got all the details, along with my first impressions of riding the new routes and working with Coach.
Big Tech's AI flex gets mixed reviews
Data: FactSet, company filings; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips If you're making big bets on AI, you better have the revenue and cash flows to back it up. The big picture: Starkly different market reactions to quarterly results from Microsoft and Google parent Alphabet illustrate the attributes that investors appear to be valuing at the moment. The latest: Microsoft shares surged after hours Wednesday as sales and earnings per share for the quarter that ended Sept. 30 both beat analyst expectations.
Bond investors have gotten picky about AI
Data: Tradeweb; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Even as AI borrowing roars on, the bond market is becoming more selective about which companies, projects and structures to finance. Why it matters: Bond markets determine borrowing costs. And since the AI boom increasingly relies on debt, borrowing costs have become a key constraint.
OpenAI's new model cuts prices again
Data: Ramp; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips OpenAI has launched a cheaper GPT-6.1 Terra model, costing up to half as much per token as the previous version. Why it matters: Prices for tokens — a basic unit for AI usage — have been falling sharply, raising questions about both the strength of the demand for AI and how much revenue the data center boom will ultimately create and shower on investors.
Investors caught by surprise by Brazil's election
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Brazilian assets tumbled Monday following the re-election of Brazil's left-leaning incumbent in a presidential runoff Sunday. Why it matters: The re-election of Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva — known as Lula— underscores the economic challenges Brazil faces as the one-time union organizer heads toward his fourth non-consecutive presidential term. The latest: Brazil's currency plunged roughly 9% against the dollar.
Investors buckle up amid AI trade turbulence
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Investors rushed for cover last week in the face of economic, political and market turmoil. Why it matters: The scramble for safety in both stock and bond markets suggests that investors see reducing risk as the simplest response to the crosscurrents — at least for now.
AI pixie dust is losing its stock market power
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Soaring sales, booming backlogs and gangbusters guidance from AI-related companies just doesn't cut the mustard in this market moment. Why it matters: The lackluster response to still strong AI-related earnings points to growing investor doubts about the durability of the boom. Catch up quick: A broad swath of AI-related shares took it on the chin this week, including: Hyperscaler Meta (down 9.4%).
Meta joins Big Tech's negative free cash flow club
Data: FactSet, company filings; Chart Axios/Matt Phillips Mark Zuckerberg's Meta got smacked around Thursday after reporting earnings that looked pretty strong at first glance. Why it matters: Its drubbing in the stock market — Meta ended down 7% —suggests that investors are growing concerned that Big Tech's insistence on pouring more and more capital into data centers could end up costing them in the long run.
The AI boom has a new complication
Data: Silicon Data, Ramp; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Prices for tokens — a measure of AI usage — have tumbled in recent months. Why it matters: The price drop raises questions about the strength of an AI boom fueled by supposedly bottomless demand for computing power. The latest: There's no token price that captures all activity, but several available public indexes show similar declines.
This neocloud may have a silver lining
Data: Tradeweb; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Goldman Sachs has raised its rating on the shares of CoreWeave to a "buy" recommendation after a brutal week for the data center operator. Why it matters: That view may come as a surprise given that the tumble in CoreWeave bonds and stock last week had appeared to encapsulate all what markets fear about the debt-dependent AI boom: too much money, most of it borrowed, chasing returns that may prove elusive.
Why health care stocks are rallying
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Health care stocks have done well in recent months as investors turn toward "defensive" shares and appear to have priced in increasing odds of Democrats gaining power in the midterm elections. Why it matters: The price moves suggest that traders and investors see increasing odds that some cuts to federal health spending imposed by President Trump's big 2025 spending bill could be undone, analysts say.
Quintana Roo's new aero race bike is fast, light and highly configurable. But is that enough to stand out?
Quintana Roo's Service Course Studio NEXT is a mouthful of a name, but the idea is straightforward: a premium aero road bike from a brand with decades of triathlon experience. Its configurable build lets buyers choose more of the details up front than most race-bike brands allow. That gives the Service Course a different starting point in a crowded category. I rode it to find out how QR's triathlon instincts translate to road—and whether they give this bike a reason to stand out.
Why CoreWeave's woes matter to the market
CoreWeave's huge debts, giant spending plans and myriad financial ties to giants like Microsoft, Nvidia and OpenAI make it an ideal test of whether the AI boom can stand up to serious market scrutiny. Why it matters: If the recent sharp sell-off in CoreWeave's bonds means bond investors are less interested in funding the data center build-out, it could mark a major change for the AI boom that has been powering the U.S. economy and stock market.
Why CoreWeave's woes matter to the market
Bitcoin 3 hours ago Top 3 cryptocurrencies under $2 to buy right now finbold.com - Steve Muchoki • 3h With the total 3, the crypto market capitalization excluding Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), having retraced nearly 7% over the past two weeks to … Investing 2 hours ago Why Nvidia Stock Is Rising While AMD, Broadcom, and Intel Stocks Are Falling in Premarket Today, October 16 tipranks.com - Shalu Saraf • 2h Nvidia ($NVDA) stock rose 0.27% in premarket trading on Friday, while Advanced...
AI tremors felt in corporate bond market
Data: Tradeweb; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips CoreWeave was at the heart of the market's volatility Wednesday. Why it matters: The heavily indebted, cash-burning neocloud — a data center operator that effectively rents out its AI computing capacity — is seen as something of a canary in the coal mine for the broader AI trade. The sharp sell-offs in its bonds and stocks underscored how jittery investors are getting about the AI investment binge.
Why the chip stocks wobbled
Data: Goldman Sachs; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips; Note: Micron numbers reflect actual results reported on Sept. 30, 2026. Semiconductor stocks are the clear winners in terms of profiting from the AI buildout, with their results a key to the market's climb this year. Why it matters: Strong earnings growth is a core reason stocks have been able to stand up to the surge in interest rates over the last few months.
A golden age of corporate profits
Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips; Note: After-tax profit data includes inventory and capital depreciation adjustments. Corporate America is raking in record profits, luxuriating in luscious margins and capturing the largest chunk of the country's income on record. Why it matters: The corporate bonanza is bolstering the stock market, but it may also be playing a role in the persistently sour sentiment among the American electorate.
It really is a golden age for one part of America
Data: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips; Note: After-tax profit data includes inventory and capital depreciation adjustments. Corporate America is raking in record profits, luxuriating in luscious margins and capturing the largest chunk of the country's income on record. Why it matters: The corporate bonanza is bolstering the stock market, but it may also be playing a role in the persistently sour sentiment among the American electorate.
Lafayette man arrested after police chase in New Iberia
NEW IBERIA, La. (Acadiana News First) - A Lafayette man is facing multiple charges after a police chase in New Iberia. Joseph Carpenter, 55, of Lafayette.
AI vs. the rest of the economy
Data: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips; Note: Data center construction includes construction costs, such as labor, materials, profits of contractors, architectural and engineering work and miscellaneous overhead, interest and taxes. Does not include servers, racks, chips or memory. More and more, it seems as if there's the AI economy — and everything else.
"Mortgage puke" could be a factor in rate rise
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips The recent sharp surge in Treasury yields may reflect the feedback loop dynamics that can sometimes take over in the bond market. Why it matters: The spike in yields represents a big shift in the financial terrain beneath investors' feet. The impact of so-called convexity hedging could be playing an important role in it. How it works: Bond prices fall when interest rates rise.
Best of Wayne Shorter - Six Key Albums
It’s hard to think of another jazz musician who came of age during the early 1960s who now enjoys such a cast-iron reputation as Wayne Shorter. As a composer, his body of work matches Ellington, Mingus and Monk, and his reputation as a saxophonist only increases year by year.
S&P 500 high aside, rate surge is hitting stocks
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips The S&P 500 hit a new high Tuesday, but under the hood of the rally, higher interest rates are making a measurable imprint on the market. Why it matters: Rising rates have often marked the beginning of the end for bull markets, though no one knows how it will play out this time. The latest: At first glance, surging yields on long-term U.S. Treasury bonds haven't bothered the market much.
You bought the bike. A brand shouldn't make you subscribe to use what's already on it
Some corporations are trying to upend traditional notions of ownership. They want to turn buying into licensing . Instead of paying once and owning a product indefinitely, you receive access on terms they control, for only as long as it serves them. Now, some companies want customers to pay ongoing subscription fees to use features in products they already bought. I fear cycling equipment could be next.
Trucking costs getting elevated on 2 fronts
Data: FactSet. U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips It's not just diesel. The Trump administration's regulatory clampdown on truckers is adding to surging transportation costs. Why it matters: Trucking is a major way that price shocks get transmitted through the economy. And limits on available drivers could amplify the impact of the spike in fuel costs, with diesel now averaging $6.32 a gallon — up over 70% from last year.
Markets especially attuned to outlook for Fed
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips The yield on the 10-year note has gotten a lot of ink lately, but the yields on shorter-term government bonds have also been swinging. Why it matters: Shorter-term U.S. government debt is heavily influenced by market expectations for what the Federal Reserve will do next on monetary policy. The latest: And those yields — for instance on the two-year note, shown above — have been volatile, reflecting an uncertain economic backdrop.
UL homecoming parade to roll earlier than scheduled
LAFAYETTE, La. (Acadiana News First) - The University of Louisiana at Lafayette says Saturday’s homecoming parade will roll earlier than scheduled due to anticipated rough weather. The parade will roll at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 3, university officials said. The Alumni Watch Party will begin at 10:30 a.m. and continue through noon.
Bond market zig zags threaten S&P 500's smooth ride
Data: S&P Capital IQ; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Equity investors expect big volatility, and Treasury investors typically don't. But like so much else in the current market , that truism has been flipped on its head. Why it matters: Analysts have flagged jagged trading in the Treasury market — which translates into sharp moves in interest rates — as a potential risk for stocks. Why does the bond market affect stocks? Good question! Here are few theories — in no particular order.
Oil and interest rates dominated the third quarter
Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips; Note: Bond market figures reflect total returns for the Bloomberg U.S. Aggregate bond index and subindexes for U.S. Treasuries and U.S. investment grade and high yield corporate bonds. Momentum stocks reflects the iShares MSCI USA Momentum Factor ETF .
Oil and interest rates dominated the third quarter
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Why the hot IPO market appears to be cooling
Data: Renaissance Capital; Chart: Axios/Matt Phillips Oura's decision to put off a planned $2 billion initial public offering may be a sign of cooling in this year's piping-hot American IPO market. Why it matters: Does it reflect an ebbing in some of the market's animal spirits, in the face of the 10-year Treasury yield at ~5.25%?
No brand in its right mind would build a new rim-brake bike in 2026. Firefly did anyway. Here's why.
There are plenty of reasons to design a new bicycle in 2026. More tire clearance. Better aerodynamics. Lower weight. More integrated everything. “Because nobody was asking for it” is not usually among them. But here we are. Firefly has built the bike it says nobody asked for: a titanium road bike with 40mm tire clearance and caliper rim brakes. And goddamn, I want one.
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