Maserati MC20 clocks nearly 198 mph at Cape Canaveral. (0:15) Consumer confidence expectations fall to 12-year low. (1:15) Massachusetts probing Robinhood over prediction markets. (4:20) Show Notes Vanguard cuts U.S. growth forecastEpisode transcripts: seekingalpha.com/wsb Sign up for our daily newsletter here and for full access to analyst ratings, stock quant scores, dividend grades, subscribe to Seeking Alpha Premium at seekingalpha.com/subscriptions.
Chapter 1: How did Maserati set an autonomous driving speed record?
Welcome to Seeking Alpha's Wall Street Lunch, our afternoon update on today's market action, news, and analysis. Good afternoon. Today is Tuesday, March 25th, and I'm your host, Kim Kahn. Our top story so far, forget 88 miles per hour is the future, how about 198? Stellantis announced that its Indy Autonomous Challenge Maserati MC20 shattered records for autonomous driving on March 3rd.
The driverless Maserati blazed down the Space Florida launch and landing facility runway at 197.7 miles per hour to set the speed record. The Maserati was controlled by AI driver software without any problems. Held at the iconic NASA Space Shuttle runway in Cape Canaveral, the India Autonomous Challenge tested the limits of autonomous technology through high-speed racing.
Chapter 2: What technology powers the Maserati MC20's speed?
The MC20's 630-horsepower V6 Nettuno engine was highlighted as delivering 0-100 kmph acceleration in 2.88 seconds and a top speed of over 326 kmph. It was also noted that the autonomous car benefits from the Maserati twin-combustion technology, the innovative combustion system built entirely in-house at Maserati, and evolved from the pre-chamber technology used on Formula One powertrains.
Looking to the economy, the conference board's measure of March consumer confidence sank to 92.9 from 100.1 in February, below the forecast of 94.2. The Expectations Index slid 9.6 points to 65.2, the lowest level in 12 years and well below the 80 threshold that usually indicates a recession ahead. The Present Situation Index dipped to 134.5 from 136.5 prior.
Chapter 3: Why is consumer confidence at a historic low?
Stephanie Guichard, senior economist at the Conference Board, says consumer optimism about future income, which has held up quite strongly in the past few months, largely vanished, suggesting worries about the economy and labor market have started to spread into consumers' assessments of their personal situations.
Chapter 4: How are economists analyzing the drop in consumer confidence?
Pantheon macroeconomist Samuel Toombs says the Conference Board survey echoes the University of Michigan survey in suggesting the new administration's plans for tariffs and spending cuts are going down like a lead balloon with households.
The headline confidence index now is 17 points lower than October, just before the elections, and a massive 32 points lower than in March 2017, two months into Mr. Trump's first presidential term, he said. The drop in confidence is weighing on auto and home purchase plans. Plans to purchase a major household appliance are holding up well for now, only because households are front-running tariffs.
Toombs added that medium one-year-ahead inflation expectations rose to 5.1% from 4.8% in February and are now well above their 2000-2019 average of 4.3%. But there may be a silver lining on prices. The Fed remains more focused on medium-term inflation expectations, which are not covered in this report, he said.
What's more, we continue to expect a weakening labor market to reduce services inflation, keeping core PCE inflation anchored near 3% this year in the most plausible scenarios for tariffs. Among active stocks, B of A Securities upgraded Cloudflare two notches to buy from Underperform, raising the price target to $160 from $60, citing improving fundamentals.
Analyst Madeline Brooks said, Mobileye is drawing buyers after Volkswagen said it is working with the automated driving assistance software company to enhance driver assistance in future vehicles. The German automaker is working with Vallejo and Mobileye to upgrade the advanced driver assistance systems up to level 2 plus in its upcoming vehicle portfolio based on its MQB platform.
And KB Home slumped after the homebuilder's Q1 earnings fell short of expectations, and the company trimmed its 2025 guidance as affordability concerns and macroeconomic uncertainties weighed on demand. The company's guidance for 2025 includes housing revenue of $6.6 to $7 billion versus the prior outlook of $7 to $7.5 billion and the visible alpha consensus of $7.03 billion.
Average selling price is expected to be $480 to $495,000 versus its prior range of $488 to $498 and the visible alpha estimate of $490,600. In other news of note, Massachusetts is going after Robinhood over its decision to expand its trading offerings to prediction markets.
The brokerage recently teamed up with Kalshi to offer event contracts after testing the waters in the 2024 presidential election and a similar push for Super Bowl 59.
While the new prediction hub on Robinhood is focused on things like the NCAA March Madness tournament, there are plans to eventually expand into economic events such as corporate earnings and Fed rates, which are already offered on Kalshi's website.
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