🗣️ Powell Speaks

+ BYD’s 5-Minute Charge Leaves Tesla in the Dust

March 19, 2025

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Good afternoon! Every $2.43 drop in Tesla stock costs Elon Musk $1 billion—and the stock’s already fallen $241.85 since December, wiping out $100 billion from his net worth. Tesla shares have tumbled about 52% since hitting $479.86 in December, slashing Musk’s stake from $197 billion to $97.7 billion. For context, there have been 12 days this year where Musk’s fortune shrank by more than $5 billion, including three $10 billion-plus hits.

Investors have lost faith in Tesla, and Musk’s cozy ties to the federal government aren’t helping. The brand has also taken a hit with American consumers especially among EV buyers due to protests and vandalism. Tesla’s recent slump has Musk looking less like a market genius and more like someone who forgot to charge the battery on their EV.

MARKETS

*Stock data as of market close*

  • Wall Street got what it wanted. Stocks surged Wednesday after the Federal Reserve held rates steady and reaffirmed its outlook for two rate cuts in 2025. The S&P 500 climbed 1.1%, while the Nasdaq jumped 1.4%—its best day this month. The Dow added 383 points, or 0.9%, as investors welcomed some long-awaited monetary clarity.

  • Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s "wait-and-see" stance was enough to calm the nerves of traders spooked by recent volatility. The VIX, Wall Street’s fear gauge, tumbled nearly 7%, signaling easing market jitters. While Powell left the door open for further policy adjustments, markets seem to have interpreted the Fed’s message as a green light for risk-taking.

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STOCKS
Winners & Losers

What’s up 📈

  • Signet Jewelers soared 17.29% after reporting a surprisingly strong holiday season, beating analyst estimates and boosting investor confidence. ($SIG)

  • Roku climbed 7.10% after Trump Media & Technology Group launched its new streaming platform Truth+ on the Roku Channel Store. ($ROKU)

  • Boeing popped 6.84% after CFO Brian West provided upbeat commentary at an investor conference, saying cash burn is easing this quarter and factories are improving. ($BA)

  • Tesla rose 4.68% after receiving approval from the California Public Utilities Commission for a ride-hailing service permit, which could pave the way for future robotaxi services. ($TSLA)

  • Autodesk gained 3.21% after Starboard Value said it’s preparing to wage a proxy fight and intends to nominate new directors ahead of the company’s annual meeting. ($ADSK)

What’s down 📉

  • HealthEquity plunged 17.07% after posting weaker-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings. The company reported 69 cents per share on $311.8 million in revenue, missing estimates of 72 cents per share on $305.8 million in revenue. ($HQY)

  • Williams-Sonoma shed 3.49% after the company warned that revenue could decline by as much as 1.5% this year due to a shorter fiscal year. ($WSM)

  • Gilead Sciences sank 2.47% on reports that the Health and Human Services Department is considering cutting the federal budget for HIV prevention programs, which could impact Gilead's HIV drug sales. ($GILD)

  • General Mills slipped 2.05% after reporting fiscal third-quarter revenue of $4.84 billion, missing FactSet's estimate of $4.96 billion, and lowering its full-year guidance. ($GIS)

  • Intel dropped 6.94%, making it the worst performer in the S&P 500, despite being up more than 18% over the past year. ($INTC)

FEDERAL RESERVE
Powell Downplays Growing Risks, Sees Tariff Impact as Transitory


The Fed held interest rates steady at 4.25% to 4.5% on Wednesday, as Jerome Powell did his best impression of a steady hand in a shaky economy. Despite mounting concerns about slowing growth and rising inflation from Trump’s trade war, Powell insisted the tariff impact would be “transitory” — yes, the same word the Fed used (incorrectly) before inflation spiraled post-Covid. Investors shrugged and pushed the S&P 500 up 1% as Powell delivered his trademark calm.

Data doesn’t lie: While Powell’s tone was chill, the Fed’s updated forecasts weren’t. Growth expectations for 2025 got slashed from 2.1% to 1.7%, and inflation projections ticked up from 2.5% to 2.7% — not exactly the soft landing everyone was hoping for. Powell acknowledged that recession risks have “moved up,” but said the economy is still “solid” and inflation expectations remain “well-anchored.” Sure, Jerome.

Cuts on the horizon

The Fed’s “dot plot” still points to two rate cuts this year — if things don’t go sideways. Powell kept his options open, saying the Fed is “well positioned to wait for greater clarity.” Translation: We’re not cutting unless the data forces our hand. Powell also left the door open for more cuts in 2026, suggesting the Fed sees rates drifting lower over the next 18 months.

Inflation dĂŠjĂ  vu

The word “transitory” triggered some flashbacks because, well, it didn’t exactly age well the last time. Powell argued that tariffs might cause a short-term price bump but won’t embed into long-term inflation — though some economists aren’t so sure. If businesses start baking tariff-related costs into pricing, that could fuel inflation for longer than Powell’s hoping.

Powell’s tightrope: The Fed’s walking a fine line here. Cut too soon, and inflation could stick around. Wait too long, and growth could stall out. For now, Powell seems content to sit back, let the data roll in, and hope Trump’s trade war doesn’t turn into a bigger mess.

NEWS
Market Movements

EV
BYD’s 5-Minute Charge Leaves Tesla in the Dust

BYD just dropped a game-changer in the EV race — a new charging platform that can add 250 miles of range in just 5 minutes. That’s faster than some people can pump gas, and it sent BYD shares soaring 6% to a record high on Tuesday. The new "Super e-Platform" will debut next month in BYD's Han L sedan and Tang L SUV, priced from about $37,000. The company also announced plans to install 4,000 ultra-fast chargers across China.

How it stacks up

BYD’s 1,000-kilowatt charging speeds blow Tesla’s latest 500-kilowatt Superchargers out of the water, which can add about 200 miles in 15 minutes — or roughly 13 miles per minute. Mercedes-Benz claims its EQ Tech chargers can reach 20 miles per minute, but BYD is now setting the pace with 50 miles per minute. That’s nearly double Tesla’s speed, making it the fastest charging option on the market.

Strategic shift: Analysts say BYD’s charging breakthrough marks a shift in strategy. Instead of trying to undercut Tesla on price or performance, BYD is going after one of the biggest hurdles to EV adoption — charging speed. “BYD is elevating the game,” said independent China auto analyst Lei Xing. “Fast charging could push more drivers to switch from gas to electric.”

Tesla’s losing ground

BYD has already overtaken Tesla as the top EV seller in China, and it’s widening the gap. Tesla’s China shipments fell 49% in February, while BYD sold 318,000 vehicles last month — up 161% year-over-year. Unlike Tesla, which relies solely on EVs, BYD also benefits from strong hybrid sales, which accounted for nearly half of its total deliveries in 2024.

The road ahead: BYD’s charging speed could boost demand for its next-gen models and pressure Tesla and other automakers to keep up. With 4,000 new charging stations on the way and a growing lead in China’s massive auto market, BYD isn’t just chasing Tesla anymore — it’s setting the pace.

Calendar
On The Horizon

Tomorrow

Thursday’s lineup features existing home sales data, which could hint at whether the housing market is finally starting to defrost after a long winter chill. We’ll also get the weekly jobless claims report, which investors are watching closely for signs of labor market weakness.

On the earnings front, it’s a packed day. Nike ($NKE), Micron Technology ($MU), Lennar ($LEN), Accenture ($ACN), PDD Holdings ($PDD), and KinderCare Learning Companies will all report their latest numbers — and with consumer spending under pressure, expectations are mixed.

Before Market Open:

  • FedEx is in the middle of a major overhaul, spinning off its freight division and reshuffling what’s left. Investors haven’t exactly been thrilled — and with tariffs and rising shipping costs adding pressure, it’s not hard to see why. Management will need to show they’ve got a clear strategy for navigating the trade turbulence if they want to turn things around. Shipping is already a brutal business, and the added uncertainty from trade policy isn’t helping. If FedEx misses expectations or offers shaky guidance, shareholders could be in for more turbulence. ($FDX)

NEWS
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RESOURCES
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