Market Highlight | Mosaic Wealth Management

1

Home buying has cooled off

There is a notable shift in the housing market, where sellers were previously favored for years, buyers are gaining the advantage in some parts of the U.S. Existing home sales are down 2.4% through April nationally despite a 5.1% gain in the number of properties for sale. Senior economist of the National Association of Realtors Nadia Evangelou says demand is remaining low due to the high cost of housing and affordability constraints along with raised mortgage rates. Zillow expects home values to drop by 1.4% this year as more sellers enter the market than buyers. Markets like Austin, TX, and Fort Myers, FL where new listings have surged and price growth has slowed are most vulnerable to significant declines. In contrast, prices in the Midwest should weather the downturn better, thanks to steady economic growth and modest increases in the housing supply.

2

Stock futures open higher after EU fast-tracks trade talks with US

On Friday of last week, President Trump threatened 50% tariffs on the EU as well as significant levies on foreign-made iPhones. During a weekend phone call with the European Commission President, Trump agreed to delaying the introduction of new EU tariffs until July 9. This delay helped relieve investors and stocks opened up higher with S&P futures rising 1%, Nasdaq futures climbing 1.2% and Dow futures gaining around 0.8%.

3

GOP tax bill approved

The House passed the massive bill early Thursday last week with a final vote of 215-214. The vote followed a day of constant negotiations within the GOP before finally getting passed. Republicans made one last round of revisions that boosted state and local tax deductions to win over centrists. This bill affects many different areas, extending Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, no tax on tips, and ending the $7,500 EV credit that was part of Joe Bidens Inflation Reduction Act. The entirety of the bill would raise our debt limit by $4 trillion.

4

Salesforce acquires Informatica

Salesforce announced an $8 billion dollar acquisition deal for data-management firm Informatica. This acquisition comes after talks between the two firms fizzled in 2024 due to the fact the companies couldn’t agree on terms. Informatica shares have fallen YoY from a high of around $39 in mid-April, 2024 to a low of $18 in April, 2025, bringing its market value to under $7 billion. People close to Salesforce say this deal is a move to help bolster its AI capabilities. This is the largest acquisition Salesforce has completed since the $28 billion acquisition of Slack in 2021.

5

Consumer confidence beats expectations in May

Consumer confidence numbers were reported earlier this morning and came out at 98.0 vs a forecast of 87.1. According to board officials, much of the positive sentiment came from developments in the U.S.- China trade talks. This rebound in CB confidence follows five months of declines amid the trade war President Trump launched against U.S. trading partners. Markets rose sharply after this news and continue trending bullish for the day with Nvidia and Salesforce reporting quarterly earnings tomorrow after market close.