Here’s what you need to know today

• Australia’s Reserve Bank has declared it is close to winning the fight against inflation. RBA Chief Economist Sarah Hunter told reporters, “We think, we hope, we’re pretty close to getting inflation back at target. It’s almost there”. Given inflation has started ticking back up in the US, we hope this isn’t an early crow. (AFR)
  
  

• The US and China have reportedly reached a deal to shift TikTok to US-controlled ownership. The deal is to be confirmed on a Friday call between US President Trump and Chinese President Xi. The agreement comes before the 17 September (i.e. today) deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok or have it banned in the US. (Reuters)
  
  

• While unconfirmed, speculation is rife that Oracle will be the US company the acquires TikTok. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confirmed that commercial terms had been agreed between ByteDance and another private party, and would not be disclosed. (CBS News)
  
  

• Alphabet, parent company of Google, has become the fourth company to reach a value of US$3 trillion. Alphabet’s shares are up 70% since their April lows. Only one company has crossed the US$4 trillion mark: Nvidia. (Financial Times)
  
  

• President Trump has announced plans to file a $15 billion lawsuit against the New York Times, after the paper reported further ties between the US President and Jeffrey Epstein. Since re-taking office President Trump has sued the Wall Street Journal, CBS News, ABC News, and the Des Moines Register. (CNN)
  
  

• CSL has announced it will invest up to $760 million in biotech VarmX, a Dutch company developing a new treatment to restore blood coagulation (clotting). This is CSL’s first major investment since it announced 3,000 job cuts and plans to spin off its vaccine unit last month. (AFR)
  
  

• Elon Musk bought about US$1 billion of Tesla shares, his largest ever acquisition and first open-market purchase since 2020. Tesla shares were up 4% on the day the purchase was announced, taking the car maker back to up 1% for the year. (Capital Brief)
  
  

• Momentum is growing for the US to scrap quarterly reporting requirements for public companies. After a change to half-yearly reporting (like in Australia) was floating by the Long-Term Stock Exchange, the proposal has gained steam after being supported by President Trump. Such a regulatory change would require SEC approval, which last rejected such a change in 2018. (Associated Press)

What the…?

A new study from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology has found that 95% of organisations are getting “zero return” from investments in generative AI.

Right now, the real returns are accruing the infrastructure providers for AI (Google, Amazon, Oracle, Microsoft) and the AI model makers (OpenAI, Anthropic). For these returns to be sustained, the end customer for AI - governments and businesses from across the economy - must start to see real returns from their investments. It appears, at least according to MIT, that is yet to materialise. (The Economist)

Investing is a lifelong journey

Here’s what you can learn today

Scott Phillips: The #1 tip I’d teach every investor

We’ve asked a number of experts their #1 tip for investors. This week in the email, we’re sharing some of their answers. (Watch the full montage here)

Today, we’re sharing the answer from Scott Phillips, Chief Investment Officer at Motley Fool Australia.

Scott: Start. Invest regularly. Stay the course and be diversified. They’re probably the four, right, if you stay the course with the wrong stock, you and get smashed. So I’m assuming you’re investing in a decent portfolio.

If you can start young, you can lag the market by a couple of percentage points a year and still retire a millionaire, right? You don't have to be very good. In fact, people say, oh, you’re young, you can take more risk. I would say exactly the reverse. You’re young. Why the hell would you take the risk? You can just let compounding do the work for you and retire really wealthy.

If you can save, start, save regularly, invest it half decently, even reasonably ordinarily. You can lose to the average and still do really, really, really well. Now, don’t lose to the average, buy an ETF or beat the market, but they’re your opportunities, right?

I really want to tell people, investing shouldn’t be exciting. Again, next Afterpay, right? That’s our marketing [at Motley Fool]. Once we get you inside the door, we say, “Thanks for coming. We’ll try and find your next Afterpay. By the way, this is not about hitting refresh on your computer. This is not about making a hundred percent returns in six months time. This is not about the ups and downs and the dopamine and the excitement.”

If you want excitement, go to the racetrack. Investing should be slow and boring. Aesop, the more I learn about investing, guys, I’ve mentioned Aesop’s Hare and Tortoise way too many times in the last 12 months because whenever I come back to it, it’s literally just that. We know. We were told thousands of years ago, how do you invest? Well be the tortoise. Literally just be the tortoise. And compounding is so magical. It does the work for you.

Get started. Invest regularly. Stay the course. Be diversified. 99% of people who do that will be extraordinarily stoked at retirement with how much money they’ve amassed.

Want to watch the full video? Check it out on the Equity Mates Clips YouTube channel:

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