With March home prices across the US sliding sequentially almost 0.2%, and rising just 0.83% YoY, the weakest annual appreciation since July 2023…

…  the balance in the real estate market is rapidly shifting away from a sellers’ market. And sellers are not happy.

A near record 5.8% of all US home listings were pulled off the market in April, according to Redfin. That’s tied with December 2025 for the highest share since March 2020, when the onset of the pandemic ground the housing market to a halt and spooked sellers. April delistings surged 3.8% month-over-month, the second straight month in which they have increased. Prior to 2020, delistings were never as common as they are now.  

Delistings are on the rise largely because it’s a buyer’s market. Many homeowners want to sell – but only if they can get the price they want.  In many cases, prospective sellers test the waters but pull their home off the market when they don’t get the price or terms that make selling worth it.  And with most homeowners in possession of sufficient liquidity buffers to avoid the need for liquidation, expect many more delistings as expectations for rapidly rising home prices crash and burn. 

“Sellers are still getting used to the post-pandemic normal,” said Patricia Ammann, a Redfin Premier agent in Arlington, VA. “Prices aren’t soaring like they were five years ago–high gas prices and the rising cost of living overall is trickling down to the housing market, making buyers much less likely to bid prices up. Buyers know they have negotiating power, often offering under the asking price and completing inspections, but some sellers just won’t budge.”

The growing flood of AirBnB properties being dumped into a bidless market aside, Ammann noted that the most desirable properties still elicit multiple offers and sell above asking price with no contingencies. 

According to Redfin, there are a few forces driving the trend:

• Homes are taking longer to sell. Mortgage rates came down from their recent peak in April, but they were still double pandemic-era lows–and home prices are still rising. Affordability is strained, which has pushed many house hunters to the sidelines. With fewer buyers competing for homes, sellers are more likely to wait weeks or months without a strong offer.
• Inventory is rising faster than demand. In many parts of the country, listings have piled up as more homeowners try to sell as buyer activity slows. That increased competition among sellers means some homes sit unsold, prompting owners to pull them off the market rather than cut their price.
• Some sellers still have pandemic-era price expectations. Homeowners who watched prices soar during 2020-2022 may still expect bidding wars or top-dollar offers. But today’s buyers are more price-sensitive because monthly housing costs are much higher. When sellers don’t receive the offers they anticipated, some choose to delist and wait for conditions to improve.
• Economic uncertainty is making both buyers and sellers cautious. Concerns about the Iran war, inflation, tariffs and job security are causing some homeowners to hesitate about moving unless they can get a strong price.
• Delisting can be a strategic reset. Sellers sometimes remove a stale listing to relaunch it later with a new price, new photos or during a more active season. Others are deciding to rent their homes instead, especially if they have a low mortgage rate they don’t want to give up.

Meanwhile, as the first wave of sellers is delisting, another wave of more motivated sellers – those who delisted their homes previously – are now re-listing them: 2.5% of homes that were on the market in April belonged to sellers who had pulled their listing in the previous 12 months, then relisted. That’s tied with the prior two months for the highest share since mid-2020, when many homeowners were putting their homes back on the market after delisting at the start of the pandemic

Homeowners who pulled their home off the market over the last year are increasingly trying again as they come to terms with today’s buyer’s market. As high mortgage rates and growing inventory continue giving buyers negotiating power, sellers are aligning with the realities of the market. 

They were also betting on a stronger spring market, hoping for a bump in homebuying demand after a slow few years that were marked by sky-high mortgage rates. The market did improve in April as rates dipped a bit, though it slowed down again in May as rates jumped. 

“Many of last year’s sellers delisted when they couldn’t get the price they wanted. Now, some of them are circling back, willing to price realistically and do what it takes to sell their home,” said Monica DiSchiano, a Redfin Premier agent in Austin, TX. “They’ve realized that if they’re selling for less, the next home they buy will cost less, too.”

Delistings Most Common in Atlanta and San Jose 

In Atlanta, one in 10 (10.7%) homes listed in April were pulled off the market–the highest share among the 50 most populous U.S. metros. Next come San Jose, CA (9.3%), Los Angeles (7.8%), Dallas (7.8%) and Seattle (7.7%). Buyers hold the negotiating power in all those metros, meaning they often try to negotiate prices down or get concessions, which can lead sellers to pull their homes off the market instead of hitting lowball bids.

Delistings were least common in Pittsburgh, where 3.5% of April’s listings were pulled off the market. Next came Columbus, OH (3.6%), Chicago (3.6%), Cincinnati (3.7%) and New Brunswick, NJ (4.4%). Chicago and New Brunswick are two of just a few metros in the U.S. that are not buyer’s markets. 

Bay Area Homeowners Are Relisting at High Rate

In San Francisco, 4.2% of the homes that were on the market in April were relistings of homes that had been delisted in the prior 12 months. That’s the highest share of the metros analyzed by Redfin. It’s followed by neighboring San Jose, where 4.1% of all listings were relistings. Next came Boston (3.8%), Oakland, CA (3.7%) and Riverside, CA (3.7%). 

Relistings are most prevalent in the Bay Area because the local market is hot, fueled largely by the AI boom. Many homeowners are taking advantage of rising demand by putting their houses back on the market.  Relistings were least common in Pittsburgh (1.6%), also the metro area where delistings were least common. It’s followed by Virginia Beach, VA (1.7%), Cincinnati (2%), Montgomery County, PA (2%) and New Brunswick, NJ (2.1%). 

The list of the 20 US metro areas with the highest delisting rates is shown below.

Source: Redfin

Via American Greatness,

President Donald Trump on Wednesday formally advanced a long-sought effort to make it easier to remove senior federal employees involved in policymaking, arguing the change will help ensure government agencies are responsive to elected leadership and the American people.

Trump signed an executive order implementing Schedule Policy/Career, or Schedule P/C, a new employment classification that places certain career federal workers into positions that can be hired and removed in a manner similar to political appointees.

The policy is a revival of the first Trump administration’s Schedule F initiative and is expected to affect roughly 8,000 federal employees.

According to the White House, the move is designed to address longstanding difficulties in removing federal workers accused of poor performance or misconduct.

The executive order states that employees placed into the new category would be “exempted from the adverse action procedures that make removals for poor performance or misconduct so difficult.”

The administration argued that some high-ranking career officials have remained in influential government positions despite poor performance or resistance to implementing presidential policies.

“Consequently, employees with significant policy-making responsibilities can stay in their jobs for years even if they perform poorly, engage in misconduct, or are unwilling to advance Presidential policy across administrations, making their agencies less capable of delivering for the American people,” the White House said in a fact sheet.

The administration described the reclassified positions as “at-will positions.”

Most of the employees expected to be affected occupy some of the highest-ranking career positions in government. According to the White House, approximately 97 percent of workers likely to be reclassified hold GS-15 positions, the highest level on the federal pay scale.

Supporters of the change argue it will strengthen accountability within the federal bureaucracy by ensuring policymakers can more effectively carry out the agenda voters elected them to implement.

The White House also sought to reassure critics that political affiliation would not determine employment decisions.

“These remain ‘career’ positions and the non-partisan hiring processes, competitive status, and other aspects of these roles will not change,” the administration said.

“Removal decisions will also be made without respect to political affiliation,” the fact sheet added.

Federal employee unions criticized the move, arguing it weakens longstanding civil service protections.

Everett Kelley, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, called the order “a blatant attempt to corrupt the federal government by eliminating employees’ due process rights so they can be fired for political reasons.”

Kelley argued that workers could become reluctant to report wrongdoing if they fear losing their jobs.

“Workers who once felt comfortable reporting waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement at their place of employment because they were protected from retaliation will now be afraid for their jobs if they speak out,” Kelley said.

The administration’s action comes amid a debate over the role and accountability of the federal bureaucracy.

The modern merit-based civil service system was established in 1883, replacing an earlier patronage system that often distributed government jobs based on political loyalty.

The Trump administration finalized the rule creating Schedule P/C in February, but the policy remains the subject of multiple lawsuits filed by federal employee unions.

Those lawsuits contend the new classification violates the Civil Service Reform Act by removing protections guaranteed under federal law and weakening the merit-based hiring system.

The administration, however, maintains that the policy targets only employees with substantial policymaking authority and is intended to improve government performance rather than alter the nonpartisan nature of career civil service positions.

Authored by Ryan Gladwin via Decrypt.co,

Cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase is rolling out a perpetual futures product for pre-initial public offering (IPO) companies, allowing traders to speculate on a company’s valuation before its debut.

The first pre-IPO company to be traded on the platform is Elon Musk’s aerospace company, SpaceX.

The SpaceX pre-IPO will be settled using the USDC stablecoin, can be traded 24/7, and all positions will automatically translate when the IPO is complete.

That means traders could make massive profits or losses depending on the difference between the pre-IPO valuation and the debut stock price.

“Pre-IPO perps are great to get exposure to private companies before they go public (outside the U.S. only for now) and to help with price discovery,” Brian Armstrong, co-founder and CEO at Coinbase, tweeted.

It is worth noting that the pre-IPO perp product is not available for users from the United States. The Coinbase blog post explained that more pre-IPO listings will be announced “soon,” including companies in technology, AI, energy, and space.

Pre-IPO perps are great to get exposure to private companies before they go public (outside the U.S. only for now) and to help with price discovery.

Now on Coinbase with SpaceX as our first listing. https://t.co/bQLLymd9wb

— Brian Armstrong (@brian_armstrong) June 4, 2026

This news comes the same day that Forbes reported that SpaceX’s estimated IPO price of $135 per share would make Musk the first-ever trillionaire. Reuters reported that the IPO is targetted for June 12.

On prediction market Myriad, owned by Decrypt’s parent company Dastan, users place a 91% chance on Musk reaching the milestone net worth before July.

Perpetual futures, or simply perps, allow traders to speculate on the direction of an asset via a “long” or “short” position, without needing direct exposure to the underlying asset. Unlike traditional futures contracts, perps do not have an expiration date—making them a useful tool to hedge bets across a prolonged period of time.

Last year, perps became the crypto degen’s new favorite way of investing with the rise of decentralized exchange Hyperliquid, which allowed anyone to use the investment tool.

Coinbase’s new product combines this popular trading method with pre-market trading—another common offering in crypto. Often, exchanges offer users the opportunity to speculate on the price of a soon-to-debut crypto token in what’s called pre-market trading.

However, traders be warned: pre-market prices are often inaccurate and extremely volatile as new information emerges.

Late Wednesday saw President Trump receive a rare and much belated rebuke from the House of Representatives as it voted to pass a war powers resolution related to Iran. The passed resolution directs the withdrawal of US troops from armed hostilities with Iran, in a closely divided 215–208 vote, aided by four Republicans.

But this wasn’t the only Trump-defying vote that took place Wednesday, as The Hill reports: “Six Republicans joined Democrats on Wednesday to push through a vote on military aid for Ukraine, a blow to President Trump’s handling of Russia’s war against the country and his withdrawal of U.S. support for Kyiv.”

“The House voted 218-204 in a procedural motion that clears the way for a vote on the Ukraine Support Act, authored by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee,” the report adds.

So interestingly, and in a bit of a blaring contradiction, the House has shown itself to be dovish on the Iran war but hawkish on Russia-Ukraine.

Or rather, they are ‘pro’ Ukraine war but ‘anti’ Iran war, strangely enough.

“This vote is not a process vote, it’s a statement on whether this Congress and all of its members stand with and support Ukraine and the people of Ukraine, and its fight for freedom, its fight for democracy, and its fight for liberty,” Meeks said on the floor after the vote.

There was no mention of using this massive funding for diplomacy, and to get Ukrainian and Russian negotiators back to the table:

It provides $8 billion in military financing loans to Ukraine, extends the Ukraine Security Assistance Initiative (USAI) through 2027, which allows for the U.S. to send Ukraine weapons directly from Pentagon stockpiles, additional sanctions against Russia, among other provisions.

Instead, there was the usual simplistic black-and-white moral posturing in a Bush-style “with us or against us” kind of way. “It’s between Ukraine or Putin, I choose Ukraine,” Republican Rep. Joe Wilson stated.

Late last month Ukraine and Russia moved on from a brief ceasefire and resumed blasting each other. Russia has continued to make gradual progress in taking control of both the Luhansk and Donetsk oblasts which together comprise the Donbas region. Moscow is insisting that Ukraine’s ceding of the last parts of the Donbas is a precondition to resumed peace talks.  

Not accounting for more billions in taxpayer dollars thrown into the Ukraine war — to say nothing of the money pit that is the US-Israeli war on Iran — the US government was in February projected to post a fiscal-year 2026 deficit of $1.9 trillion. Not that anyone in Washington cares. 

Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity,

Officers from the force that failed Henry Nowak have now admitted they felt “controlled and pressured to feel certain ways” after mandatory DEI sessions that hammered home ‘white privileged’ and unconscious bias.

The trainer outsourced to deliver the course was described as “deeply hateful of white people and British culture.” Serving and former Hampshire officers told former Home Secretary Suella Braverman they were furious but stayed silent out of fear for their careers.

Multiple officers from Hampshire Constabulary have now gone on record about the ideological pressure inside the force.

Several serving and former Hampshire Police Officers have told me that ‘we had it drummed into us about our white privilege and unconscious bias’.

Training was outsourced to a third party company and the trainer ‘was deeply hateful of white people and our culture.’

Officers… https://t.co/2h0Ns1NnRA

– Suella Braverman (@SuellaBraverman) June 3, 2026

They described how DEI modules on white privilege, unconscious bias, and the importance of being an “ally” were drilled into them.

‘Do we think the training that those officers were forced to do might have ultimately contributed to Henry’s terrible final moments? because I do.’
@PatrickChristys unveils a plethora of diversity and inclusion guides applied within Hampshire & Isle of Wight Constabulary. pic.twitter.com/jRe1K31224

– GB News (@GBNEWS) June 3, 2026

It’s not limited to this one police force either.

Back in April 2025, we detailed how UK police forces were already forcing officers into training explicitly designed to make them accept their “white privilege.”

Thames Valley Police rolled out mandatory equity training covering white privilege, micro-aggressions, and the push from “non-racist” to “anti-racist.” An independent review led by former assistant chief constable Kerrin Wilson found the sessions created deep divisions.

White officers expressed strong frustration and felt disadvantaged, while some minority officers said the training was harmful to real diversity efforts and would deter them from seeking promotion.

Former government advisor and ex-police officer Rory Geoghegan warned that crude categorisation by skin colour and critical race theory ideology had no place in an impartial police service.

The Hampshire police chief has publicly denied any anti-white bias or two-tier system. Yet the bodycam evidence and these officer admissions tell a different story.

Hampshire Police Chief denies police are “anti-white” after officers handcuffed and arrested Henry Nowak after he was stabbed and falsely accused of ‘racism.’

“Do we have a two-tier type policing system? I would refute that. I would say absolutely not!” pic.twitter.com/GIx1La0ZJ7

– Oli London (@OliLondonTV) June 3, 2026

An ex-cop who reviewed the footage called the response “unfathomable,” rejecting excuses about fast-moving situations or complexity. Basic procedure requires treating a victim who says he has been stabbed and cannot breathe as a medical emergency first – not as a potential racist offender based on the word of the man who stabbed him.

Yet, the police watchdog investigated the officers’ conduct and concluded there was no wrongdoing.

“We have investigated ourselves and decided we did nothing wrong” pic.twitter.com/Aq1sFo4cL7

– Basil the Great (@BasilTheGreat) June 3, 2026

This is the same pattern seen in other high-profile failures: institutions investigate themselves, apply their own captured standards, and declare everything acceptable.

The public saw the footage. Henry Nowak’s family saw their son die after being treated as the problem rather than the victim. The watchdog saw no issue.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has defended religious exemptions that allow Sikhs to carry large ceremonial knives in public. At the same time, British women face prosecution for carrying ordinary pepper spray for self-defense on the streets at night.

BREAKING:

Keir Starmer says he won’t remove the exemption which allows Sikhs to carry large ceremonial knives on them.

Meanwhile, English women are being prosecuted for carrying regular pepper spray on them when out on the streets at night pic.twitter.com/d8PF2NkdSL

– Visegrad 24 (@visegrad24) June 2, 2026

To make matters even worse, a tiny replica sword from a video game will land a white British man in prison.

You will go to jail for owning a miniscule video game sword replica in the UK.

But if you’re a foreigner, you will be exempt from the law entirely. pic.twitter.com/LCkhv50Y2O

– Templarpilled (@Templarpilled) June 3, 2026

The contrast could not be clearer.

Religious or cultural exemptions shield other groups from the same strict weapons laws. Henry Nowak’s case shows what happens when the system already views native Britons through a lens of presumed guilt or lesser priority.

Henry Nowak was not a threat. He was a student who had been stabbed and was dying in front of officers trained to see race first and humanity second. The attacker walked away with different treatment. The victim’s pleas were secondary to a racism narrative pushed by the perpetrator’s side.

This is the predictable result of years of ideological capture inside policing – training that reframes basic law enforcement as potential oppression when the victim is white and British.

Officers who spoke out did so at personal risk. The watchdog protected the system. Starmer protects exemptions for some while ordinary citizens, especially women, are left defenseless under the same rules.

Britain’s police were once expected to protect the public without fear or favor. When training teaches officers to weigh skin color and ideology before acting on a dying man’s words, the institution has already failed its core purpose. Henry Nowak paid the price. The admissions now emerging confirm what the footage always showed.

The pushback against this capture is growing. Exposing the training, the excuses, and the double standards is the first step toward restoring policing that serves the entire country rather than imported ideologies. Native Britons deserve equal protection under the law – not to be treated as somehow ‘privileged’ while they bleed to death.

Ford reported U.S. sales of 190,828 units in May, down 13.6% year over year, bringing year-to-date sales to 826,810 units, down 11%. The declines were broad-based, reflecting ongoing weakness in EV demand and continued portfolio shifts away from certain lower-margin vehicles. EV sales fell nearly 44% during the month, while hybrid sales declined 16%.

Among key nameplates, Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning both posted declines of roughly 45%, while Escape sales fell more than 80% as Ford continues to de-emphasize the model. Offsetting some of the weakness, Bronco, Explorer, Maverick, Transit and Heavy Trucks all delivered year-over-year growth.

The sales results generally appeared consistent with management commentary at the UBS Autos and Auto Tech Conference, where Ford indicated that industry demand trends in May unfolded largely as expected. Executives specifically noted that some of the volume declines associated with products such as Escape were anticipated as the company continues shifting its mix toward higher-margin vehicles.

More importantly, management reiterated that 2026 is tracking in line with expectations outlined during first-quarter earnings. A key focus remains the recovery from the Novelis aluminum supply disruption, which is expected to result in $1.5 billion to $2.0 billion of incremental costs this year. Ford incurred approximately $300 million of those costs during the first quarter and expects the impact to increase during the second and third quarters before easing as Novelis returns to full capacity in the fourth quarter. According to management, the recovery remains largely on track despite some expected unevenness along the way.

The company also remains comfortable absorbing an estimated $2 billion year-over-year commodity headwind, which is fully incorporated into Ford’s $8.5 billion to $10 billion adjusted EBIT guidance. Management additionally pointed to stable pricing conditions, suggesting that recent industry concerns about demand deterioration have yet to materially impact Ford’s business.

Looking beyond 2026, Ford outlined several potential earnings drivers for 2027. The most obvious benefit will be the absence of the Novelis-related costs, but management also highlighted ongoing improvements in warranty performance, material costs and launch expenses as the company moves beyond several major investment cycles. Ford expects these gains to help offset spending associated with future growth initiatives.

Those initiatives continue to center around Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) and Ford’s next-generation EV architecture, which management increasingly describes as a broader platform opportunity rather than a single vehicle program. The company plans to invest approximately $1 billion across BESS and the Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) platform this year, with spending accelerating in the second half.

Ford remains particularly enthusiastic about the UEV platform, which is scheduled to launch in 2027. Management believes the architecture can support feature-rich, technology-focused vehicles at price points around $30,000, potentially allowing EVs to compete directly with internal combustion vehicles rather than just other EVs. Prototype vehicles are already being tested in Michigan, and executives continue to emphasize the platform’s scalability and potential for attractive economics as volumes grow.

The BESS opportunity also appears to be gaining importance in Ford’s long-term strategy. Management highlighted progress toward bringing its 20 GWh facility online by the end of 2027 and expressed confidence regarding eligibility for production tax credits and other incentives. Executives suggested that Ford’s licensing arrangement with CATL provides a unique advantage that may be difficult for competitors to replicate, while also noting that the company sees no current issues regarding supply-chain compliance.

Another potential source of upside is Ford’s Super Duty business. Management indicated that the capacity ramp continues to progress well, providing additional optionality should demand remain strong.

Taken together, the UBS discussion reinforced the view that Ford’s investment story is becoming less about monthly sales fluctuations and more about the earnings framework management is building for the latter part of the decade. While May sales remained under pressure, management’s message was largely unchanged: 2026 is unfolding as expected, the Novelis recovery remains on track, and the company continues to position itself around battery storage, next-generation EVs and a structurally more profitable core business heading into 2027.

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

President Trump on Wednesday downplayed Iranian attacks that targeted US bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, saying they may have been “slightly provoked” since the US launched strikes against Iran beforehand.

“There’s a reason for everything, and we hit them pretty hard last night,” the president told reporters in the Oval Office. “Some people would say they were slightly provoked because we took a strong action for a different reason, so they were reciprocating.”

Iran launched the missile and drone attacks after the US bombed a commercial ship attempting to reach Iran and launched strikes on Iran’s Qeshm island.

During the Iranian attack on Kuwait, a passenger terminal at Kuwait’s international airport was hit, and at least one person was killed, and more than 60 were injured. Local officials said the terminal was hit by Iranian drones, which Iran denied, claiming that it was struck by an errant US Patriot missile interceptor.

Kuwait’s aviation authority later released a video of the strike that appeared to show a drone striking the terminal.

US Central Command denied Iran’s allegation in a statement that came after it claimed that Iranian missiles fired at Kuwait “fell short or broke apart en route” and a second wave of Iranian drones failed to hit their intended targets.

“An additional wave of Iranian drones attempting to attack US forces in Kuwait failed to impact intended targets tonight. US Central Command air defenses successfully downed multiple drones and ensured no American personnel or assets were harmed,” CENTCOM said.

Trump on Iran attacking Kuwait:

There is a reason for everything, and we hit them pretty hard… They were slightly provoked; they were reciprocating. pic.twitter.com/VvIgyJHb3m

— Clash Report (@clashreport) June 3, 2026

Despite the casualties at the Kuwait airport, Trump said the Iranian attacks were “not a big deal” and that the US “nipped it in the bud very quickly.” When asked if the ceasefire was still in place, he said, “In that part of the world, ‘ceasefire’ is when you’re shooting in a more moderate manner.”

Iran’s attacks were its most significant response yet to US violations of the ceasefire, representing a new Iranian strategy to avoid more “tit-for-tat” strikes. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi vowed on Wednesday that Tehran would continue to have a strong response to any US attacks.

“Our Armed Forces are conducting self-defense strikes on sites the US is permitted to use to attack civilian shipping and violate the ceasefire,” Araghchi wrote on X in a post that included a video of US Secretary of State Marco Rubio praising the UAE and Kuwait for being cooperative with US military operations.

Kuwait’s civil aviation authority released surveillance footage it says is an Iranian drone crashing into its international airport on Wednesday.

Follow live updates on the Iran war: https://t.co/s1XGe7eeW2 pic.twitter.com/5LTFWaj0sX

— ABC News (@ABC) June 4, 2026

“Any hostile act will be met with an immediate, decisive response. What sanctions and war failed to achieve won’t be won with more war,” the top Iranian diplomat added.

The number of Americans filing for unemployment benefits for the first time jumped to its highest in three months last week at 225k (215k exp), but this remains well within the range of the last five years…

Source: Bloomberg

The biggest increase in initial claims came from California while Texas saw the biggest decline…

Continuing Jobless Claims dipped to 1.777 million Americans (remaining below the 1.8mm Maginot Line), just above two year lows…

Source: Bloomberg

However, despite the seemingly solid claims data, outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reports that US tech companies in May announced the most job cuts in nearly two years as they ramp up spending on artificial intelligence.

The tech sector said last month it planned to eliminate 38,242 positions, the most since August 2024.

Total private-sector job cut announcements, meanwhile, were down 7% over the past five months versus the same period a year earlier, reinforcing the picture of an ongoing “low-hire, low-fire” environment in most industries.

In May, Artificial Intelligence (AI) led all reasons for job cuts for the third month in a row, with 38,579 announced cuts.

It is the highest monthly total ever recorded for the reason since Challenger began tracking it in 2023, and it accounted for 40% of all cuts announced in May – up from just 7% in January, 25% in March, and 26% in April.

For the year, AI has been cited in 87,714 cuts, or 22% of all 2026 layoffs, already far surpassing the 54,836 attributed to the reason in all of 2025.

“The labor market is being reshaped by technology in real time,” said Andy Challenger, the company’s chief revenue officer.

“AI is now the leading reason companies give for cutting jobs.”

The figures jibe with recent high-profile, AI-related workforce reduction plans announced by companies including Meta Platforms Inc., Intuit Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc. Filings for unemployment insurance, however, haven’t meaningfully increased despite the slew of layoff announcements, which have mostly been targeted at white-collar positions.

On the bright side, through May 2026, U.S. employers have announced 80,472 planned hires, narrowly topping the 79,741 announced at this point in 2025. However, hiring announcements remain historically low by pre-pandemic standards.

Summary

• Hezbollah chief rejects outcome of Lebanon-Israel talks, insisting that a truce must encompass whole country.
• WSJ reports that the White House intends to maintain a ceasefire with Iran unless American troops are killed; oil drops also after Trump states on TS 
• Trump lashes out after House War Powers votes passes Wednesday evening, attacking especially four Republicans who voted in favor.
• Trump downplayed Iran’s attacks on US bases in Kuwait & Bahrain, saying “they were slightly provoked…so they were reciprocating.”

*  *  *

Hezbollah Rejects Outcome of Lebanon-Israel Talks: Secretary General

Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem in new speech rejects the Washington-mediated conclusion to direct Lebanon-Israel talks:

Naim Qassem has warned that Israeli areas across the border will remain under threat as long as the Lebanese people and villages come under attack from the Israeli army.

He also rejected attempts to tie the group’s deployment to wider political arrangements, saying the group refuses any link between Hezbollah’s presence and a ceasefire, or Israel’s withdrawal.

Some highlights from Qassem’s address:

• ‘The revolution in Iran was launched from an Islamic background on the principles of resisting injustice and occupation, and it announced that it is neither Eastern nor Western”
• ‘The West and America will not accept Iran as a model of righteousness and justice; rather, they want it to be subordinate to their interests and their tyranny.”
• ‘Thanks to Iran for helping us to regain our land and our right to confront the Israeli-American aggression despite its major confrontations”; describes direct negotiations as “absurd and humiliating” for Lebanon.
• As long as Israel is in Lebanon, resistance will continue.
• Northern Israel will remain at risk as long as Lebanese villages are being bombed.
• “We are only concerned with ending the comprehensive aggression—with a ceasefire and the withdrawal of “Israel””
• As long as the occupation exists, the resistance will continue.
• “We have not given any commitment to anyone not to resist the aggression and respond to it. And as long as the aggression continues, we will confront it with all the power we have.”
• “The main objective must be the withdrawal from Lebanese territories so that the army spreads in the south of the Litani River and the liberation of the detainees”
• “We do not accept any link between the existence of the resistance, the cessation of aggression and the withdrawal of “Israel”

Iran’s foreign ministry is also still insisting that the broader US-Iran ceasefire must incorporate Lebanon.

Oil Prices Fall As Trump to Maintain Iran Ceasefire Unless American Troops Are Killed

President Trump in an early Thursday morning Truth Social post has said the United States is “in the middle of my final negotiations to end the War” – while blasting the Republicans who voted the night prior to limit war powers “GRANDSTANDERS” and “unpatriotic”.

Even though Iran is denying that any direct negotiations are taking place, following a big flare-up this week in new tit-for-tat fighting which involved Iran sending more missiles and drones on Gulf states, especially Kuwait, the reference to ‘final negotiations’ was possibly enough to get oil prices to react, with a drop in crude. There was also a report that the White House intends to maintain a ceasefire with Iran unless American troops are killed.

Trump’s new apparent strategy to just wait things out with no new planned military attacks has been featured in The Wall Street Journal as follows:

President Trump has told aides privately that he would consider ending the ceasefire with Iran if Tehran kills American troops, U.S. officials said, insisting that the weekslong pause in airstrikes remains intact despite a steady stream of violent skirmishes.

The president’s reluctance to reignite the war suggests he might be willing to withstand smaller flare-ups for weeks—or even months—to avoid a broader conflict in the Middle East.

And Rubio appeared to second this in fielding questions about this week’s violence:

Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the tit-for-tat attacks as purely defensive in nature and not a renewed outbreak of full-scale war. 

“They are happening in response to an Iranian action,” Rubio said in a House hearing Wednesday. “If they don’t shoot at those ships, we don’t shoot, but we have to respond.”

More evidence of Trump’s apparently high tolerance for what he deems a violation of ceasefire:

Trump on Iran:

In that part of the world, a ceasefire is when you are shooting in a more moderate manner. pic.twitter.com/0mLQXf9mW8

— Clash Report (@clashreport) June 3, 2026

House War Powers Vote Wed. Evening

As for the House vote, it was seen as a rare direct rebuke of Trump and the fact that this war – which the American public was promised would be a ‘short’ military action of possibly a few ‘days’ or ‘weeks’ – is now approaching 100 days, and the war powers passed 215-208, with the four Republicans joining all Democrats in voting yes being Brian Fitzpatrick of Pennsylvania, Thomas Massie of Kentucky, Tom Barrett of Michigan and Warren Davidson of Ohio.

Pushing Lebanon Truce Toward Goal Line

In Lebanon, there is some remotely positive news, with Lebanon ‌and Israel ​saying had ⁠agreed ​to implement ⁠a ceasefire during talks in Washington and overseen by the US; however, once again the deal is contingent on Hezbollah agreeing to the ceasefire.

“That cease-fire is conditional on Hezbollah also stopping fighting, but in theory, the news helps to take out a key sticking point in the U.S.-Iran talks that was holding up a deal. So that’s seen oil prices reverse a run of three [days of] consecutive gains,” Deutsche Bank analyst Henry Allen stated in a research note.

Trump rages at House’s successful War Powers vote, which could portend a political shake-up going into this Fall’s midterm elections:

Some More Latest Developments

via Al Jazeera:

• Hezbollah boss warns north Israel won’t be safe if Lebanon bombed
• Several people have been wounded in an Israeli drone attack on a vehicle after Israel and Lebanon officials agreed to halt the war during a series of meetings in Washington, DC.
• Before the truce announcement, Hezbollah said it launched a “salvo of rockets” at Israeli soldiers in southern Lebanon’s Qantara, and fired drones at troops near the strategic Beaufort Castle.
• The US House of Representatives passed a resolution to rein in President Donald Trump’s powers to attack Iran without congressional authorisation in a vote of 215 to 208.
• Overnight Israeli air strikes on an apartment block in Gaza City killed at least nine Palestinians with four children among the dead.
• Iran’s foreign policy a ‘consensus’ process but supreme leader gets final say

By Ethan Howland of UtilityDive

Constellation Energy’s plans to restart the Crane nuclear power plant – formerly, and better known as Three Mile Island Unit 1 – were boosted Monday when the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approved a waiver for the company from PJM Interconnection rules. FERC approved Constellation’s waiver request over the objections of PJM’s independent market monitor.

Under the decision, Constellation will be able to transfer 760 MW of Capacity Interconnection Rights, or CIRs, from its Eddystone power plant near Philadelphia to the Crane unit. The transfer will increase the amount of electricity the nuclear unit can deliver to the grid.

Constellation planned to retire two Eddystone units on May 31, 2025, but the Department of Energy has ordered the company to them to keep running under what the DOE has described as an emergency energy shortage.

Under the DOE’s orders, the Eddystone units are not considered capacity resources, making their CIRs free to be transferred, according to Baltimore-based Constellation.

Constellation’s $1.6 billion plan to restart the 835-MW Crane nuclear unit hit a snag when PJM determined that transmission upgrades were needed to safely deliver all the unit’s power to the grid.

Those upgrades — including 765-kV and 500-kV projects — aren’t expected to be finished until December 2030 and could be delayed even longer, preventing full deliveries from the nuclear unit, which could restart in the second half of 2027, Constellation said in its March 31 waiver request at FERC.

Constellation’s request met FERC’s criteria for granting waivers, including that it solves a concrete problem, according to the agency.

“The requested waiver will allow for the transfer of CIRs between the Eddystone units and Crane, which may reduce or eliminate the number of Contingent Facilities for Crane and thereby potentially increase Crane’s interim deliverability and enable Crane to be fully operational before December 31, 2030,” FERC said.

Also, granting the waiver will not have undesirable consequences, such as harming third parties, FERC said.

“Rather, the requested waiver will provide a more efficient use of CIRs due to the Eddystone units’ current inability to use their CIRs as a result of DOE orders requiring them to operate as energy-only resources,” FERC said.

Constellation has a 20-year deal to sell all the energy, capacity and clean energy attributes from the nuclear unit to Microsoft for data centers across PJM’s Mid-Atlantic and Midwest footprint.

In its waiver request, Constellation said that reaching full deliverability status was especially important for the Crane unit. If run for extended periods below their rated power output, the equipment in nuclear units face risk of elevated vibration and wear, which can pose reliability problems, according to the independent power producer.