☕ Taking swipes

Why space junk might cost NASA... June 26, 2024 [View Online]( | [Sign Up]( | [Shop]( [Morning Brew]( PRESENTED BY [EnergyX]( Good morning. Are you the kind of person who hoards large wads of cash in cans of tomatoes? Then a) You’re probably pumped for The Bear to return today and b) you could use some new inspiration in the money management department. Enter Money With Katie’s best-selling 2024 Wealth Planner, which subs out the tomato juice for a gorgeous template that makes it easy to chart your financial progress. Through Sunday, you can snag the Wealth Planner + Mid-Year Review bundle (it’s that time of the year) for 30% off. Make Carmy proud and [check it out](. —Matty Merritt, Sam Klebanov, Cassandra Cassidy, Abby Rubenstein, Neal Freyman MARKETS Nasdaq 17,717.65 +1.26% S&P 5,469.30 +0.39% Dow 39,112.16 -0.76% 10-Year 4.238% -1.0 bps Bitcoin $61,915.33 +3.38% Nvdia $126.09 +6.76% Data is provided by *Stock data as of market close, cryptocurrency data as of 6:00pm ET. [Here's what these numbers mean.]( - Markets: Stocks declared “we are so back” yesterday, as Nvidia [rebounded]( to snap a three-day losing streak. Investors will be watching its annual shareholder meeting today to see if the AI chipmaker can keep the momentum going.  FINANCE [The credit card swipe fee battle rolls on]( [Gavel banging down on Visa and Mastercard.]( Scialabba A lawsuit almost old enough to drink will live to see another day. Yesterday, a New York federal judge officially [rejected]( a controversial settlement between retailers and credit card giants Visa and Mastercard. In 2005, the same year Google Maps and Wedding Crashers graced the world, four merchant associations filed an antitrust class action lawsuit against Visa, Mastercard, and the banks that work with them, claiming they had too much power over swipe fees—the amounts retailers must pay to accept credit card payments. The parties reached a [settlement]( this March: - Mastercard and Visa said they would slowly lower rates, which hover anywhere from 2% to 4% on consumer transactions, by 0.04 percentage points for the next three years and the average rate would be lowered 0.07 points for five years. - But many large retailers were outraged by the outcome, saying that the estimated $30 billion it would save them over five years was not nearly enough. These fees are big business: Last year, banks and other financial groups that issue Visa and Mastercard credit cards raked in $172 billion in swipe fees, according to the Merchants Payments Coalition. Merchants want less honor One rule that merchants want to ditch—and that was not addressed in the settlement—is the “honor all cards” stipulation. It means that if a business wants to accept one type of credit card, it has to accept all cards under the Visa or Mastercard umbrella, no matter what bank is behind them or if they cost more in swipe fees. Judge Margo Brodie had already made clear earlier this month that she wasn’t planning to approve the deal, [hinting]( that the honor all cards rule’s survival was partly to blame. But her opinion wasn’t released with her decision yesterday, so we don’t yet know why she denied the deal (it’s expected around June 29). What’s next? Likely a new settlement that offers a better deal for merchants, or the case will have to go to trial.—MM PRESENTED BY ENERGYX [The lithium boom]( [EnergyX]( Did you know it takes 10k iPhone batteries’ worth of lithium to make one EV? With over 350m EVs projected to be sold globally by 2030, [demand for lithium is expected to soar]( and current extraction methods won’t be able to meet it. EnergyX revealed that their technology could extract 300% more lithium than traditional methods, and investors everywhere took note. They’ve received [$90m+ in investments from GM and others]( and also just last week announced Project Lonestar, a US lithium plant supported by a $5m DOE grant, causing an upcoming share-price increase. Now’s your chance: [Your opportunity to invest in EnergyX at their current price of $9/share ends tomorrow](. WORLD [Tour de headlines](#) [Police spray protesters in Kenya with a water canon]Luis Tato/Getty Images Protests against Kenya tax hike turn deadly. Kenya’s President William Ruto [vowed]( to crack down after protesters he called “treasonous” entered parliament and burned part of the building in a failed effort to keep legislators from passing an unpopular finance bill to raise taxes. Police fired live rounds, and at least five people were killed. Many others were injured. During the demonstrations against the bill, which were primarily led by young people, former US President Barack Obama’s half-sister was tear-gassed by police while giving an interview about her opposition to the bill live on CNN. ⚕️ The surgeon general declared gun violence a public health crisis. US Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy is warning the public about something new with a 39-page advisory on the public health impact of [firearm violence]( that calls on the nation to address it like it did motor vehicle safety and the health impact of tobacco. His recommendations to Congress, which come as mass shootings have been on the rise and gun violence is the leading cause of death for children, include universal background checks and laws that ban automatic rifles, restrict gun use in public spaces, and regulate the gun industry. The IRS apologized to billionaire Ken Griffin for a tax records leak. Usually, nobody wants to hear from the IRS, especially not a hedge fund founder, but this time, Griffin got an unusual message: a [public apology]( from the agency. The IRS said it was working on the data security problems that allowed a contractor (now in prison) to leak private information about him and other wealthy taxpayers to the media. The “we’re so sorry” is part of the settlement of the Citadel founder’s lawsuit against the IRS over the leak, which he has now dropped. Other targets of the leak included Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, and Donald Trump. SPACE [NASA might pay for its rogue space junk]( [ISS]( Images For once, Florida Man isn’t playing legal defense: Alejandro Otero and his family are [asking NASA]( to compensate them for a piece of space trash that smashed into their home in Naples, Florida, earlier this year. The US space agency admitted that the 1.6-pound metal chunk that caused roof damage (but didn’t hurt anyone) was a fragment of equipment it jettisoned from the International Space Station, which it had (wrongly) expected to burn up before reentering the atmosphere. The cosmic case could set a liability precedent for human-made space objects that cause trouble on American soil. Being made whole for the roof hole Under the Federal Torts Claim Act, the family is seeking over $80,000 in damages, their attorney, Mica Nguyen Worthy, told the Washington Post. They claim to have suffered non-insured property loss, business interruption damages, and emotional anguish damages. - Worthy says the Oteros want to establish a streamlined process for Americans to be paid for incidents involving space debris from NASA. - Governments are currently responsible for compensating space junk damage, but only for incidents on foreign soil under the Space Liability Convention. More space junk is coming. Increasingly frequent launches have led to more instances of debris falling to Earth, like the piece of a SpaceX Dragon trunk that recently landed near Asheville, North Carolina.—SK TOGETHER WITH DELTA [Delta]( What will your results reveal? Get a fresh dose of career perspective with [this quiz]( we made with Delta and The Female Quotient. It’s designed to help you identify your top career blocker and provides you with actionable steps to move past it. So go ahead and [take the quiz]( results might surprise you. CLIMATE [Denmark passes tax on cows passing gas]( [Herd of cows]( Fludra/Getty Images A new law in Denmark challenges long-held thinking that it’s better out than in. The Danish government [agreed]( this week to a tax for farmers with cattle, making it the first country to impose a carbon tax on agriculture. How it works: - Starting in 2030, farmers with livestock will be taxed 120 Danish kroner ($17) per metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent [emitted]( from each bovine. - A typical Danish cow produces 6 metric tons of CO2 equivalent per year, bringing the average annual charge per cow to a little over $100. - Emissions from pigs will also be taxed, though cows create more. Livestock is [forecast]( to account for 46% of Denmark’s emissions by 2030, according to Politico, and the country is targeting 70% emissions reductions by then. The livestock tax could help the Danes meet their goal, as experts predict the tax could cut as much as 1.8 million metric tons of carbon dioxide. Elsewhere…the tootin’ news comes months after farmers across Europe [protested]( against proposed regulations on agriculture emissions, and New Zealand recently [halted]( its efforts to impose a “burp tax” on sheep and cows after farmers protested nationwide.—CC STAT [Prime number](#) [A Tesla Cybertruck drives through an intersectio]Gado/Getty Images Turns out the Cybertruck has bigger problems than looking like it belongs at the bottom of a cereal box: Tesla [recalled]( the vehicles yesterday for the fourth time since they went on sale at the end of November. The latest recalls of the electric truck are to fix issues with its massive front windshield wiper and trim pieces that can come loose. The notice announcing the recalls also reveals how many Cybertrucks are on the road, since it covers 11,688 vehicles manufactured from Nov. 13, 2023, to June 6, 2024. (Tesla doesn’t break out its sales numbers by model in its quarterly reports.) NEWS [What else is brewing](#) - [Volkswagen]( has agreed to invest up to $5 billion in EV-maker Rivian, sending Rivian’s stock soaring after-hours. - [Julian Assange]( pleaded guilty to one felony charge in a US courtroom on a remote Pacific island as part of a deal with prosecutors that will allow the WikiLeaks founder, who published confidential military documents, to go free. A judge is expected to sign off on the deal today. - [The EU]( says Microsoft violated its antitrust laws by bundling Teams with Office, potentially setting the stage for a major fine. - [Rep. Lauren Boebert]( of Colorado won the Republican primary in the more conservative district she recently switched to in an effort to stay in Congress. In New York, [Rep. Jamaal Bowman]( a member of Congress’s “Squad” and a critic of Israel, lost his Democratic primary to George Latimer, who had significant support from pro-Israel groups. - [Israel’s Supreme Court]( ruled that the army must start drafting ultra-Orthodox men, something the nation has never done. The decision may tear apart Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s governing coalition, forcing new elections amid the war in Gaza. - [A New York judge]( partially lifted his gag order on Donald Trump, allowing the former president to talk about witnesses. But he’s still barred from identifying jurors or discussing court staff and their families. - [Abe Lincoln]( may be known for keeping his head in tough situations, but DC’s recent heat wave melted the head off a wax statue of the 16th president. RECS [Wednesday to-do list] Compare: Learn how your spending [stacks up]( to how previous generations used their cash. Watch: Oslo’s tourism department has [discovered negging](. Search for intelligent life: Scientists propose [a new way]( to try to find aliens. See how things have changed: Here’s [a visualization]( of how technology and society have evolved since the 1500s. Stress less: With just a push of a button, the [Apollo wearable]( can calm your nervous system with soothing vibrations. Fr, this bad boy cuts out stress and helps you sleep better, too. [See for yourself]( Sunny savings: We wrote a game-changing article about how you can [save as you spend this summer]( *A message from our sponsor. GAMES [The puzzle section](#) Word Search: P-p-p-p-p-poker hands is the theme for today’s puzzle. [Play it here](. Debate trivia With the Trump–Biden debate coming up tomorrow, here’s a chance to brush up on your political debate history. We’ll give you the year, the office, and the name of (at least) one participant in a debate, and you have to name who they were debating. - 1858, Illinois Senate, Abraham Lincoln - 1960, presidential, John Kennedy - 1980, presidential, Ronald Reagan - 1988, presidential, George H. W. Bush - 1992, vice presidential, Vice Admiral James Stockdale and Dan Quayle (name the third participant) - 2004, vice presidential, Dick Cheney SHARE THE BREW [Share Morning Brew]( with your friends, acquire free Brew swag, and then acquire more friends as a result of your fresh Brew swag. We’re saying we’ll give you free stuff and more friends if you share a link. One link. Your referral count: 0 [Click to Share]( Or copy & paste your referral link to others: [morningbrew.com/daily/r/?kid=4904f90a]( ANSWER - Stephen Douglas - Richard Nixon - Jimmy Carter - Michael Dukakis - Al Gore - John Edwards Word of the Day Today’s Word of the Day is: jettisoned, meaning “dropped from an aircraft or spacecraft in flight.” Thanks to David Michael Miller from Wheeling, West Virginia, for tossing us the suggestion. Submit another [Word of the Day here](. ✢ A Note From EnergyX This is a paid advertisement for EnergyX’s Regulation A+ offering. Please read the offering circular at [invest.energyx.com/](. Written by [Neal Freyman]( [Abigail Rubenstein]( [Matty Merritt]( Sam Klebanov, and [Cassandra Cassidy]( Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Interested in podcasts? - Check out ours [here]( [ADVERTISE]( // [CAREERS]( // [SHOP]( // [FAQ]( Update your email preferences or unsubscribe [here](. View our privacy policy [here](. Copyright © 2024 Morning Brew. 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