Oracle stock surges on potential $20B Meta AI cloud deal
President Trump is pushing to reduce the SEC’s financial reporting requirements from quarterly to semiannual reporting. He’s framing the idea in a positive light: it would allow managers to focus on the business, lower compliance costs, and fight “short-termism” in markets.
In reality, it would weaken one of the hallmarks of US capital markets: timely and transparent disclosure. The SEC has required US-listed companies to report results quarterly since 1970, a standard that has long supported investor confidence and efficient markets.
Quarterly reporting provides investors with regular insight into company performance, reducing uncertainty and lowering the cost of capital. Semiannual reporting would work against investors by increasing information gaps, raising the risk of surprises, and creating more room for insider advantage. Investors would be left with stale data, and when results finally arrive, the adjustment to new information could be sharper and more volatile.
The dynamic would be especially evident in fast-moving industries like technology, where six months can radically alter a company’s outlook.
Ultimately, less frequent disclosure would not benefit investors. It would harm them. Fewer checkpoints may lead investors to demand a higher risk premium, effectively pushing equity valuations lower while raising the cost of capital for businesses. In the end, semiannual reporting requirements are more likely to undermine markets than strengthen them.
August Retail Sales Blew Past Estimates
Retail sales rose 0.6% in August, outpacing the 0.2% consensus and matching July’s upwardly revised figure. Control group sales, which feed directly into GDP calculations, increased 0.7% in August versus estimates of 0.4%. August marks three consecutive months of growth, suggesting consumer spending remains resilient despite higher borrowing costs and softening labor data.
The details paint a picture of broad-based strength. As shown below, sales increased in 9 of the 13 categories. Online shopping contributed over half of the growth in August, with restaurants and auto sales also adding significantly.
For the Fed, the retail sales beat complicates the story. While the labor market has softened and producer prices fell last week, consumers continue to spend at a healthy pace. For now, August retail sales reinforce the case for a more gradual path of rate cuts heading into today’s FOMC meeting.
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