US equity markets eased as inflation concerns persist - Dow eased -54-points or -0.16% . The broader S&P500 lost -0.25%, with Communication Services (down -0.88%), Utilities (-0.86%) and Information Technology (0.70%) leading eight of the eleven primary sectors lower. Energy (up +2.30%) was the clear outperformer. Tesla Inc fell -2.19%, with famed investor Michael Burry – who made a fortune betting against mortgage securities before the 2008 global financial crisis - revealing a short position against the electric vehicle maker of 800,100 shares or ~US$534M in a regulatory filing. AT&T Inc fell -2.7% (after hitting a record intra-day high of US$33.88 earlier in the session) after confirming weekend press speculation that it will merge its content unit WarnerMedia with rival Discovery Inc (down -5.05%) in a deal to create a media giant with an enterprise value of US$150B. United Airlines Holdings Inc rose +2.33% after announcing that it is adding more than 400 daily flights to its July schedule and will increase its service to destinations in Europe, as booking for summer travel had more than tripled (up +214%) compared with 2020 levels The technology-centric Nasdaq lost -0.38%, paring an earlier decline of over >1.2%. Microsoft Corp lost -1.2% and Apple Inc -0.93%. The small capitalisation Russell 2000 edged +0.11% higher. In broader stock moves, Airbnb Inc dropped -6.16% as its post initial public offering (IPO) lockup period ends, allowing insiders the right to sell shares.
