Homeownership still out of reach; Nvidia shoots to top of Wall Street; Are we inching closer to war between Israel and Hezbollah?

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Gen-Z has already torn Millennial fashion staples like skinny jeans and side parts to shreds. Now they’re coming for our no-show/ankle socks. It’s reigniting the generational divide, and creating a fun debate on social media.

Gen-Zers say crew socks are in. Millennials can’t part with their ankle socks.

No, there are no winners in this debate. But yes, your socks may be aging you.

Mosheh, Jill, & Courtney

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📌 HOMEOWNERSHIP BREAKS THE BANK

Worries are piling up about the state of the housing market. Is any relief on the horizon? Here’s what data from this week shows.

A GLIMMER OF GOOD NEWS
Mortgage rates are beginning to ease, now at their lowest level since mid-April and below the psychologically high 7% level. The decline is partially thanks to the inflation report we got last week, which showed that the rise in prices in May was slower than expected. If inflation continues to cool, we could start to see mortgage rates follow suit.

• The rate fell from 6.95% to 6.87% -- that’s still a little bit higher than we were year ago, when the rate averaged 6.67%

• The five-year adjustable rate mortgage fell to 6.27% -- the lowest level since February.

• THE RIPPLE EFFECT: There’s just not enough homes for sale.

  And that’s because many owners don’t want to sell their house and give up their ultra-low interest rates.

  • Home construction has also lagged for years, creating a shortage, and exacerbating the problem.

PRICED OUT
The cost of buying a home is still a huge financial burden, with home prices far outpacing paychecks. It’s putting homeownership – once considered a pillar of the American dream – out of reach for millions.

• The ripple effect: Since the pandemic, home prices have risen a staggering 47%. That spike has left millions with no option but to rent, which has driven up the competition - and thus prices - in the rental market.

• Then, there are the “house poor,” —homeowners who pay more than 30% of their monthly income on housing. More than 18 million Americans are living in homes that stretch their budgets far beyond what's considered financially healthy.

WHERE DO YOU LAND?
Enter your city into this link to see the income gap in your city.

📌 HEZBOLLAH AND ISRAEL: CONCERNS ABOUT A WIDER WAR

The head of Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed terror group based in Lebanon, is threatening an “all out war” against Israel from the land, air, and sea. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah added that the group has now “obtained new weapons,” but did not share any more details.

“NO PLACE” SAFE
Hezbollah has been attacking Israel for more than 8 months, in coordination with Hamas (both are backed by Iran), forcing the Israeli military to respond on a near-daily basis. The aggression is building frustration within Israel to do more to stop the attacks on its northern border—where tens of thousands of civilians have had to evacuate their homes.

Hezbollah warned that week that “no place” would be safe from its attacks if the war were to widen. The terror group hinted it could attack Haifa, Israel's third-largest city. U.S. officials are reportedly concerned that Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system wouldn’t hold up amid a barrage of Hezbollah rockets. The group is estimated to have more than 150,000 missiles (10x Hamas’ arsenal).

WHY CYPRUS?
A full-scale war could devastate both Israel and Lebanon, as well as the surrounding region. “Cyprus will be part of this war too” if it opens its airports and bases to the Israelis, Hezbollah’s chief said.

• The risk of involving Cyprus adds a new dimension into the war: pulling a European Union nation into a conflict that already runs so deep throughout the Middle East. Cyprus has been careful not to provoke its dangerous Middle East neighbors, but has also repeatedly condemned Hamas for its October 7th attack on Israel.

BOTTOM LINE:
Israel, Hezbollah, and Lebanon (where Hezbollah is based) would all like to avoid an all-out war. The US and European allies are also trying to prevent the current hostilities from expanding.

But, the longer the back and forth small-scale attacks continue— in conjunction with the continuing war in Gaza—the more likely it is that this escalates into a full-blown war.

📌 NVIDIA’S EXPLOSIVE GROWTH INTO WORLD’S MOST VALUABLE COMPANY

I JUST CAN’T WAIT TO BE KING
It was a wild ride on Wall Street this week if you own stock in Nvidia, a chipmaker that eclipsed Microsoft and Apple to be crowned as the world’s most valuable public company for the first time ever Tuesday.

Its valuation rose to $3.34 trillion at its high - solidifying its standing among the tech greats. That made it worth more than:

• France’s economy

• Every building in NYC

• The entire US oil and gas industry

Nvidia stocked then dipped more than 3% yesterday, handing the keys back to Microsoft. But it’s still a three-company race for #1.

POWERING THE A.I. BOOM
As the world rushes to accelerate A.I. advancements, tech leaders are leaning on Nvidia as the powerhouse driving the revolution. The company designs a special kind of computer chip that took tech giants like Intel - which dominated the chip industry decades ago - by storm (Nvidia, for example, is the hardware used in all Tesla cars). On Tuesday, Nvidia became 25 times more valuable than Intel.

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
Nvidia was founded in 1993 over a meal at Denny’s, where the founder, Jensen Huang, worked. Huang credits his work ethic to washing dishes and cleaning toilets at the diner — and talks about how no task is below him.

His net worth increased to about $120 billion this week when Nvidia became the most valuable company in the world, making him the 11th richest person on Earth.

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⏳ SPEED READ

🚨NATION

📌 Widespread flooding in South Texas after Alberto makes landfall (NBC NEWS)

📌 Supreme Court dropping decisions on guns, abortion, Trump immunity and more in coming days (USA TODAY)

📌 Biden touts refugee resettlement milestone after asylum crackdown (BLOOMBERG)

📌 Manhattan DA drops charges against most of the Columbia University protesters.(NBC NEWS)

🌎 AROUND THE WORLD

📌 China and US holding first nuclear talks in 5 years (REUTERS)

📌 Japan looks at charging tourists more than citizens at restaurants, amid visitor boom (NIKKEI)

📌 US says Ukraine can hit inside Russia ‘anywhere’ its forces attack across the border (POLITICO)

📌 Israeli military says Hamas can’t be destroyed, escalating feud with Netanyahu (WSJ)

📌 French president condemns antisemitism after 12 year old Jewish girl is raped by schoolmates (BBC)

📱BUSINESS, SCIENCE & TECH

📌 Amazon’s ditching the plastic air pillows in its boxes. (CNBC)

📌 McDonald’s debuts $5 Meal Deal and Free Fries Friday: ‘We heard our fans loud and clear’(NY POST)

📌 SpaceX unveils backpack-sized ‘Starlink Mini’ satellite internet antenna for $599. (CNBC)

📌 Netflix to open retail centers in Texas and Pennsylvania with live ‘Bridgerton’ ‘experiences’ (LA TIMES)

🎬 SPORTS & ENTERTAINMENT

📌 Remembering Donald Sutherland: From cool in ‘MASH’ to sexy in ‘Don’t Look Now’ to tragic in ‘Ordinary People,’ he was a chameleon, and the most human of movie stars (VARIETY)

📌 Rapper Travis Scott arrested on Miami Beach on disorderly intoxication, trespassing charges (CBS NEWS)

📌 ‘Yellowstone’: Paramount Network reveals premiere date for second half of Season 5 (DEADLINE)

📌 This weightlifting workout in your 60s can preserve strength for years (WASHINGTON POST)

Mo News Podcast: A daily conversation about the news that matters.

🎉 CHEERS TO THE FREAKIN’ WKND  

• WHAT WE’RE WATCHING: Jill: Hostages on MAX; Mosheh: Black Barbie, Netflix

• WHAT WE’RE READING: Jill: Funny Story by Emily Henry Mosheh: Tired of Winning by Jon Karl

• WHAT WE’RE EATING: Jill: Apple Crumb Ice Cream from the Jericho Cider Mill; Mosheh: A cinnabun from L'Appartement 4F