Inflation for May reached 4.2%, the highest level since April 2023, driven by the energy price shock stemming from the Iran war, according to the consumer price index report released yesterday. But the month-over-month increase was smaller for May than April, in a sign that the worst of the price spikes may be behind us:

• Another good sign is that gas prices have ticked down slightly so far in June.
• Of course, prices continuing to decrease will depend on the US achieving a durable peace agreement with Iran and oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz returning to prewar levels.

When asked about the report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics yesterday, President Trump said, “I love the inflation,” and that oil barrel prices are coming down because “we took out the other night, 22 ships,” seemingly referring to the US getting ships through the strait under cover of darkness in a clandestine operation.

Working on your core

The core CPI reading, which excludes the more volatile energy and food prices, is considered a better indicator of future inflation by analysts, and it offers reasons for optimism:

• Core prices climbed 0.2% in May, which was less than the 0.4% rise in April and came in under the 0.3% predicted by analysts.
• For the year, the CPI is up 2.9%, in line with experts’ expectations.

Sky-high beef prices fell, but…beware the screwworm. The cost of uncooked ground beef, roast, and steaks dropped last month, but the parasitic fly that appeared in the US last week could complicate logistics for ranchers and lead to higher prices. Government and industry officials stressed that the pest with a fun-to-say name isn’t an immediate threat to the food supply.

As for interest rates, few expect a cut when the Fed makes its first announcement with Chair Kevin Warsh in charge next Wednesday. The odds favor one rate movement this year—a hike in December.—DL

US strikes on Iran continued for a second day. The round of attacks began at midnight on Thursday in Tehran and continued until about 4:30am local time. President Trump said the strikes were launched because Iran was taking “too long to negotiate” a peace deal. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said early Thursday local time that it had responded with attacks of its own on US military assets in Kuwait and Bahrain. Also yesterday, the US military said it had shot and disabled the oil tanker Settebello in the Gulf of Oman because it violated the American blockade of Iran. An Indian official said this morning that three Indian nationals were killed in the attack on the vessel.

Knicks lead 3–1 after making biggest comeback in NBA Finals history. Game 4 of the series, held last night at Madison Square Garden, looked like it would be going to the San Antonio Spurs, which led by 29 points for a moment. With 2 minutes and 21 seconds left on the clock, the Knicks narrowed the deficit to just one point. Knicks forward OG Anunoby made a one-handed tip-in with 1.2 seconds left in the game, bringing the score to 107–106 in favor of New York. Game 5 will be played on Saturday night in San Antonio. If the Knicks win it, the championship is theirs.

Amazon takes on more shipping jobs, scaring legacy players. Amazon said it would offer “less-than-truckload” (also known as LTL) shipping to customers through its Amazon Supply Chain Services, whether or not those customers or shipments have anything to do with sales on Amazon’s marketplace. That means industry stalwarts like Old Dominion, FedEx Freight, and Saia will now compete with Amazon for those freight jobs. LTL shipments are anything larger than a parcel but smaller than a full truckload. Legacy freight companies are already struggling with high fuel prices.—HVL

It’s the first day of the World Cup, and in addition to sporting fresh new grass fields and extra tall beer cans, 11 stadiums across the US have scrubbed thousands of normal sponsors from their grounds. This expensive “debranding” stems from FIFA’s requirement that stadiums be wiped clean to protect the organization’s multimillion-dollar marketing deals with companies like Coca-Cola and Adidas.

Through July 19, Seattle’s Lumen Field will don covers over the Lumen logo on everything from the stadium exterior to smaller interior logos. One Lumen marketing exec even drew more attention to the company by creating social media content showing him covering up all the logos in the stadium.

• SoFi Stadium will be “Los Angeles Stadium” this summer (and then again in 2028 for the Olympics).
• The process has been a bit of a nightmare for older stadiums like the 71,000-seat Mercedes-Benz Atlanta Stadium, which has a retractable roof and required 2,000+ removals and coverups.
• NRG Stadium in Houston budgeted over $1 million to meet the debranding requirements, according to Sports Business Journal.

Big picture: FIFA has deployed a “no free press” strategy, as the organization is set to reap roughly $2.8 billion in marketing rights in the current four-year cycle, the bulk of which will come from matches taking place on everyone’s phone screens during their commute over the next few weeks.

Here’s a World Cup viewing guide with info on where and how to watch matches. —MM

It’s almost time for a popcorn bucket shaped like Mark Zuckerberg’s head. Yesterday, Sony released the trailer for The Social Reckoning, Aaron Sorkin’s follow-up to the 2010 Oscar winner The Social Network (which he wrote). It jumps 17 years ahead of the prior movie, leaving Facebook’s beginnings behind to explore one of its reputational tipping points.

Based on true events, the new film follows an established Zuckerberg (Jeremy Strong) and former Facebook engineer Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison) as she leaks internal documents to Wall Street Journal reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White). Spoiler alert:

• With Haugen’s help, the WSJ reported in October 2021 that Facebook and Instagram knowingly harmed teen mental health and contributed to the spread of hate speech, among other adverse effects.
• Much of the film’s dialogue is likely dramatized, but one key line in the trailer is from Haugen’s actual Senate testimony: “Senior leadership knows, and is doing nothing,” she said.

Why do a sequel now? “There isn’t a life that Facebook’s algorithm hasn’t touched, and that influence has shaped everything,” Sorkin said at the trailer’s CinemaCon premiere in April. “So it’s time to say more.”

The new film—which Strong said he prepared for by watching “everything [Zuckerberg’s] ever said and done”—comes out on Oct. 9.—ML

The online world can be a beautiful yet confusing series of tubes. On Thursdays, the Brew’s Molly Liebergall untangles them for you.

New York City is experiencing a renaissance period of community and creative chanting. Before the San Antonio Spurs beat the Knicks on Monday, ensuring that the NBA Finals would last for at least five games, nobody in the tristate area could stop hearing this in their feed: “My mayor Muslim, my bagel’s Jewish, my Christian Dior, Knicks in four.”

The rhyme—which ties together mentions of NYC’s first Muslim mayor, Zohran Mamdani, the city’s rich Jewish deli culture, and a lyric from the late rapper Pop Smoke—enchanted the internet after a fan shouted it into a camera during recent celebrations outside of MSG.

Interestingly…the clip originated from a man-on-the-street style interview with someone holding a Kalshi-branded microphone, leading some to side-eye this viral moment as a possible advertising setup.

Regardless, ideas for a replacement line that rhymes with “Knicks in five” are now flowing online.—ML