Be in the know. 14 key reads for Friday…

  1. Exclusive: Largest Papa John’s franchisee joins Irth in buyout bid for pizza chain, sources say (reuters)
  2. Despite Record Low Sentiment, US Retail Sales See Strongest Annual Gain In 8 Months (zerohedge)
  3. Consumers Spent More in April Despite High Gas Prices (nytimes)
  4. The North Face And U.S. Ski & Snowboard Enter 8-Year Apparel Deal (forbes)
  5. Inside QXO’s growth plan after $30.2 billion acquisition spree (housingwire)
  6. US business inventories post biggest gain in nearly four years in March (reuters)
  7. China will order 200 Boeing jets, Trump tells Fox News (cnbc)
  8. Trump discloses big buys of shares in Boeing and Nvidia as the companies look set to gain from his China trip (marketwatch)
  9. Exclusive: US clears H200 chip sales to 10 China firms as Nvidia CEO looks for breakthrough (reuters)
  10. Alibaba, Tencent present a tale of two strategies for AI spending (scmp)
  11. China will work behind the scenes to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, Bessent says (cnbc)
  12. JPMorgan Strategist Says Winners in Global Stocks Go Beyond AI (bloomberg)
  13. Kevin Warsh on the Fed, in His Own Words (wsj)
  14. Quest Diagnostics, Altria, and 12 More Stocks That Are Coming Back to Life After a Rough Patch (barrons)