What we’re reading (7/23)

• “Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon On US Economic Outlook: ‘We’re In For A Bumpy Ride’” (CNBC). GS chief sees persistent high unemployment, slower growth, and a weaker dollar ahead.

• “Microsoft Reports Record Revenue To Wrap Up A Record-Breaking Fiscal Year” (MarketWatch). MSFT shares apparently up 34 percent this year despite the S&P 500 being up less than one percent amid the covid-19 crisis. Reportedly, the company’s “Azure cloud-computing offering and cloud-software offerings have become more essential as its corporate customers sent employees home to work remotely.”

• “Pfizer, BioNTech Get $1.95 Billion Covid-19 Vaccine Order From U.S. Government” (Wall Street Journal). The deal is apparently for about 100 million doses, with an option for 500 million more, assuming in-development vaccines in question get cleared by regulators. No details on pricing per dose, but Americans to receive it free of charge.

• “The Amazon Critic Who Saw Its Power From The Inside” (New York Times). The story of Tim Bray, the engineering whiz/polymath and Amazon alum. who resigned in May citing “a vein of toxicity” in the company’s culture and is now calling for anti-trust intervention.

• “Overserved” (Epsilon Theory). Hilarious commentary about the ridiculousness of investment marketing materials ubiquitous on Wall Street (in this case, related to SpaceX’s N-Series funding round).