GoKawiilThis is CNBC's Morning Squawk newsletter. Subscribe here to receive future editions in your inbox. Good morning. The Boston Marathon is today, and I'm feeling particularly inspired by this runner who went from being partially paralyzed to running in this year's race. Stock futures are falling this morning. The three major indexes are coming off a winning week. Here are five key things investors need to know to start the trading day:
1. The seizure
Ships and tankers in the Strait of Hormuz off the coast of Musandam, Oman, April 18, 2026. Stringer | Reuters
2. Tech ties
Former U.S. Federal Reserve Governor Kevin Warsh speaks during a monetary policy conference at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution in Palo Alto, California, U.S. May 9, 2025. Ann Saphir | Reuters
Kevin Warsh, Trump's pick to be the next chair of the Federal Reserve, will head to Capitol Hill tomorrow for his Senate confirmation hearing, where he will likely face questions about his ties to Silicon Valley. As CNBC's Matt Peterson and Steve Liesman report, Warsh's connections to tech leaders — including Palantir CEO Alex Karp, PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen — would make him the closest person to tech world to lead the central bank. Thanks to his time managing venture-capital investments in the technology sector for investor Stanley Druckenmiller, he'd also be one of the wealthiest Fed chairs ever. Because of Warsh's background, a key question this week could be how much access tech moguls would get to the Fed under his leadership. Warsh is known for his free-market and anti-regulatory views, as well as his belief that artificial intelligence could reshape the economy — and, by extension, monetary policy.
3. Looking to merge
A General Motors Co. Chevrolet dealership in Colma, California, US, on Friday, Jan. 23, 2026. David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images
There's a tale of two fortunes playing out for family-run car dealerships across the U.S. As CNBC's Michael Wayland writes, more mega-dealerships are springing up while smaller competitors struggle. Data from a trade publication shows that the top 150 dealers accounted for 27% of all new retail and fleet vehicle sales last year, up from 21.2% about a decade prior. This cohort also collectively owned a quarter of dealerships, up from less thank 20%. Wall Street has gotten wind of the consolidation trend, too. Dealer stocks Lithia Motors and AutoNation have seen their market caps surpass the $6 billion mark.
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