The Treasury vs. Fed & Foot Locker Stumbles

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Foot Locker, the troubles at the shoe store OG continue to weigh on parent company Dick's. We ask if the chain can find its footing again.
Oura Health, the smart ring maker, may soon be ringing the opening bell for its own IPO. We have the latest. As money mover day, we invite economist and Fed expert, Danielle DiMartino Booth, back to the show to weigh in on the tension between the Treasury and the Fed. For Tuesday, August 25th, this is Brew Markets Daily, and I'm Ann Berry.
More market details to come. But first, a Treasury versus Fed showdown is brewing. In Washington, DC, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has announced a slew of government bond buybacks aimed at managing yields and therefore interest rates downwards. Meanwhile, over in Wyoming, just later this week, they have eyes on the annual Jackson Hole Economic Policy Symposium. Waiting to see if new Fed Chair Kevin Warsh will comment on his long-held belief that government intervention in markets, just like Bessent's, are undesirable. So there's a lot going on and to break it all down, I welcomed Danielle DiMartino Booth back to the show to share her unique perspective. Danielle is the CEO and Chief Strategist of QI Research and a former Fed insider, having worked for nearly a decade at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. She's a fan favorite, because she brings great energy. And in our conversation, she describes why the Treasury's actions, quote, messes with what's called the basis trade, what we're seeing out of Japan and why it rings a warning bell for the United States and her conviction that signs of disinflation in America need more attention. As always, Danielle brings that energy and insight, and it's a conversation you won't want to miss coming up in just a moment.
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**Ann Berry** (3:32)
Well, let's take a quick spin through some of the headlines moving the markets today, kicking it off with an earnings report. Yes, we're still in earnings season.
Shares in Dick's Sporting Goods shedding more than 25 percent. Yes, you heard that correctly, 25 percent. That's after the retailer missed on earnings and cut its full year guidance.

**SPEAKER_1** (3:51)
Dick said that an aggressively discounted market weighed heavily on its Foot Locker business, where comparable sales fell 3.6 percent for the quarter, weaker demand for some legacy styles also hurt results. Sound like shoppers want some fresh sneaker designs. Dick's acquired Foot Locker for roughly $2.4 billion last year in a deal designed to extend its global reach, but the integration is clearly not taking hold.

**Ann Berry** (4:13)
Well, Dick's had forecast Foot Locker's same-store sales to rise by 3 percent this year. Instead, they're looking at that magic metric falling by as much as 2 percent, so decline in the air. Well, that's Foot Locker. Comparable sales at Dick's core business actually rose nearly 5 percent this quarter. So truly, Foot Locker is the drag on its new parent company.
Well, Dick's shares are down over 40 percent since that Foot Locker acquisition came to life. By the way, we called it, you heard it here on Brew Markets First. We had said that the then-burgeoning Dick's Sporting Goods was buying an albatross to hang around its neck.