Weekend roundup

Here’s what you missed while you were living your best life:

• 🛫 Qantas agreed to pay $79 million to settle a flight cancellation suit. It’s one of the biggest fines ever for an airline, after it sold thousands of tickets for so-called ‘ghost flights’.

• 🖥️ IT firm Atos says it received four restructuring offers. The debt-laden French company says it’ll decide which one to pursue by the end of the month.

• ⛅️ Jack Dorsey stepped down from Bluesky’s board. The decentralized social media platform confirmed it parted ways with the Twitter founder. Over the weekend, Dorsey also called Elon Musk’s X “freedom technology”.

Featured weekend story

Buffett praises Apple, but cuts his stake

Legendary investor Warren Buffett heaped praise on Apple at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting on Saturday. But he also revealed he’s cut his stake ($) in the tech giant. Berkshire reported a $135.4 billion holding in Apple at the end of the first quarter, down from $174.3 billion three months earlier.

Despite the sale, Buffett said Apple was “even better” than American Express and Coca-Cola, which are “wonderful” businesses Berkshire also owns. He added that, unless something changes dramatically, Apple will remain its largest investment.

The sale increased Berkshire’s cash pile, which hit a record $189 billion at the end of March amid a lack of sizable deals. Buffett said he’s been unable to find acquisitions that would “move the needle” for the firm, though the money is benefiting from higher interest rates in the meantime.

What to watch this week

European stocks are up this morning as investors consider the possibility of rate cuts after softer-than-expected US jobs data. Friday’s non-farm payrolls showed 175,000 jobs were added in April, falling short of the 240,000 average estimated by economists in a Dow Jones survey.

Indices at 12:00 AM (ET)

Here are your upcoming market events:

• 🇨🇳 Xi’s European tour. China’s President kicked off his trip with a visit to France. His mission? Stabilize China’s relationship with Europe and perform damage limitation on trade ties with the EU.

• 🐭 Disney earnings. It’s the first set of numbers since CEO Bob Iger successfully fought off activist investor Nelson Peltz. The likes of Uber, Airbnb, and BP also report.

• 🇬🇧 BOE rate decision. Policymakers are expected to keep rates on hold, but investors will be watching the monetary policy report for clues about a possible timeline.

Off-balance sheet items

Here’s what we’re reading this week:

• 📰 The inside story of John F Kennedy Jr’s George magazine (Esquire). In the 90s, John F Kennedy Jr founded a revolutionary magazine which covered politics like it was pop culture. Was it folly, or a glimpse of the Trumpian future?

• 🤑 Is Hunterbrook Media a news outlet or a hedge fund? (New Yorker). The hybrid media-finance company wants to monetize investigative journalism in the public interest. Is it a visionary game changer or a cynical ploy?

• ☕️ How to start small rituals that make every day feel special (SELF). A psychologist and Harvard professor lets us in on the magic behind meaningful routines.

Chart of the week

The bottom line

Aquire new customers and drive revenue by patterning with us.

Balance Sheet is rapidly growing with 1,500+ readers working in the world’s leading organizations. You can learn more about partnering with us here.