
Zurich‑based Plenum Investments announced that its assets under management have topped US$2 billion, roughly doubling the figure achieved in July 2023. The growth stems from four UCITS catastrophe‑bond and insurance‑linked securities funds, which now enjoy institutional‑scale assets. The firm’s organic expansion reflects strong demand for limited‑capacity CAT bond exposure. Plenum’s CEO highlighted the role of long‑term client partnerships in reaching this milestone.
EUR/USD neutral; testing 50‑day SMA/61.8% fib at 1.1769. Momentum weak after brief post‑SCOTUS dollar selloff; tariff uncertainty persists. Insight: short below 50‑day SMA to 1.1670–1.1650. — Viktor Kopylov, PhD, CFA More insights: t.me/si14Kopylov

Retail investors have turned leveraged ETFs from niche tools into a core trading instrument, driving a 29% annual growth in fund volume since 2020. By mid‑2025, roughly 452 leveraged funds existed, with single‑stock products accounting for half of equity‑fund turnover....
Telefonica posted a modest revenue rise of 1.3% in Q4 2025, reaching €9.174 billion, and delivered €2.069 billion in full‑year free cash flow. The group expanded its access base to 326.1 million, driven by fibre and 5G uptake, while adjusted EBITDA grew 2.8%...

The International Council on Mining & Metals (ICMM) warned that heightened government oversight is tightening the global metals cycle, curbing the explosive price spikes typical of past supercycles. In its 2025 Tax Contribution Report, ICMM members paid $37 billion in taxes...

The episode breaks down the looming Social Security shortfall highlighted in the 2025 trustees report, explaining that while the trust fund may be depleted by 2033‑34, benefits would simply be reduced to match payroll tax revenue rather than disappearing. It...
Setser: "$100b a month is a large sum, it had to go into a fairly liquid corner of the market". And of course if on top of this China really were reducing its exposure to USD assets, we would need more...

Hims & Hers disclosed its fourth‑quarter earnings and announced that it has withdrawn the controversial GLP‑1 weight‑loss pill it briefly launched. The decision followed conversations with key ecosystem stakeholders, including regulators and partner pharmacies. The company highlighted modest revenue growth...

The California FAIR Plan secured a $400 million wildfire reinsurance cat bond from Golden Bear Re Ltd. (Series 2026‑2), priced at a 9.5 % spread and an expected loss of 2.65 %. The single‑tranche issuance runs three years to February 2029 and brings the plan’s...

In this episode Ryan Morrissey explores the pros and cons of gifting money or assets to adult children while the parents are still alive. He emphasizes assessing one’s own financial health, long‑term care needs, and the purpose of the gift—whether...

Unicapital Securities cut its PSEi year‑end target to 6,800, down from 7,100, after re‑rating the index at a 10.5‑times price‑to‑earnings multiple. The downgrade reflects a lingering corruption scandal that has stalled government infrastructure projects and heightened policy uncertainty, including a...
The Union Cabinet is set to approve Joint Declarations of Intent with Germany and Canada on critical minerals. The agreements will target joint exploration, sustainable mining, supply‑chain resilience and technology transfer for minerals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel and rare...

House Justice Committee chair Rep. Gerville Luistro announced that impeachment proceedings against Vice President Sara Duterte will commence on March 2, a process she says will influence voter sentiment ahead of the 2028 presidential election, where Duterte has already declared her...
India will revamp its real‑GDP calculation by adopting a double‑deflation approach that blends 500‑600 price items from the consumer‑price index and the wholesale‑price index, replacing the earlier 180‑item basket. The new methodology, slated for release on 27 February with a...

Phuket is rapidly emerging as Thailand’s next real‑estate hub as developers pivot from a saturated Bangkok market. Sansiri announced a 24 billion‑baht sales target, planning about 20 new projects—including 13 luxury villas and a Bang Tao condominium—by 2028. Rival firms such as...

Bangladesh’s new government has formally asked the United Nations to delay its graduation from least‑developed country (LDC) status. The request cites mounting macroeconomic stress, trade uncertainty and institutional weaknesses. Deferring graduation would preserve preferential trade benefits that shield Bangladeshi exports...

Japan’s economy minister Ryosei Akazawa asked U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to ensure Japan is not treated less favorably under the new 150‑day tariff regime that replaces the invalidated reciprocal levies. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down President Trump’s global...
Leverage Shares saw its leveraged ETP trading volume surge 53% in 2025, driven largely by STOXX‑linked products. The 3x Tesla ETP topped the year’s volume and remained the most traded leveraged ETP on the London Stock Exchange for a third...
President Donald Trump enacted a 10% global tariff on Tuesday, following a Supreme Court ruling that invalidated his earlier sweeping duties. The administration is preparing a formal order to lift the levy to 15%, though a timeline remains unclear. The...

Business development companies (BDCs) are experiencing a resurgence, highlighted by a 30‑day SEC yield of 9.21% for VanEck’s BIZD ETF and an industry‑wide yield of roughly 11.3%. Credit metrics show non‑accrual rates at 1.2% and loan prices near par, indicating...

Grains Australia CEO Richard Simonaitis told the GRDC Perth Update that bio‑fuel policies are reshaping Australian grain exports, with EU canola demand driving Western Australia’s highest‑value market. At the same time, feedgrain demand in Southeast Asia is accelerating faster than...
🔴This is one of the WORST starts for the S&P 500 to the year in HISTORY: S&P 500 is lagging the rest of the world equities by 8 percentage points, the worst start to a year in at least 17 years. The...

The opening range breakout strategy does not perform the same on every market. Backtesting the 3 minute ORB on Nasdaq futures versus Gold futures showed a clear difference. Nasdaq produced a higher win rate and a smoother equity curve with consistent expansion...
India’s Directorate General of Foreign Trade has slashed RoDTEP export rebates by 50%, cutting both rates and value caps across all eligible categories. The move raises the effective cost of exporting, especially for price‑sensitive goods such as textiles and raw...
China Hits Japanese Firms With Export Bans—Move marks another escalation in economic campaign against Japan over prime minister’s Taiwan comment @wsj_douglasj https://t.co/KP8DkI7RD5 https://t.co/KP8DkI7RD5

#TurkeyWatch 🇹🇷: Turkey's main stock index, the BIST 100, is up nearly 24% YTD, and foreign investors are piling into Turkish bonds and equities. Turkey's disinflation story is gaining credibility and capital is flowing in. BEWARE. TURKEY'S MONETARY POLICY REMAINS TOO LOOSE. https://t.co/ubNTzVl6KH

Researchers Jantabadi, Ermagun, and Levinson analyze access‑density mismatch across the fifty most populous U.S. metropolitan areas. They find a statistically significant positive correlation between local residential density and both automobile and transit access, with automobile access exerting a stronger effect....

European auto sales fall even as EV demand cushions the drop https://t.co/MRYjYElcs2 via @MonicaRaymunt https://t.co/fVEMCkDkcZ
SCMP: "Consumer spending during China’s Lunar New Year rose modestly this year, according to early official data, as authorities extended the holiday and stepped up stimulus measures to support domestic demand." https://t.co/d5LzFaVd4V via @scmpnews
Commonwealth Bank of Australia announced the elimination of 300 positions, primarily within its technology division, as part of a broader workforce reshaping. The cuts coincide with a $90 million, three‑year upskilling initiative designed to ready staff for an AI‑driven shift over...
The irony is that to reduce trade imbalances, tariffs should mostly substitute for currency devaluation, in which case a single, universal tariff is likely to be far more effective than a hodgepodge of bilateral and sectoral tariffs. https://t.co/QVpoGNLwuH

So no more dedollarization of China's formal reserves if the US softens its Taiwan policy? Tis an option that China is at least considering per Lingling Wei and the WSJ 1/ https://t.co/365Y8wHJV4

The Ministry of Labour and Employment approved a pilot to automatically refund small balances in dormant Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) accounts. About 7.11 lakh accounts with balances of Rs 1,000 or less, holding roughly Rs 30.52 crore, will be transferred to the subscriber’s...
1/4 As this WSJ article points out, countries are keeping their exports competitive in the face of US tariffs by increasingly subsidizing them, with the subsidies ultimately being paid for in the form of suppressed consumption. https://t.co/phOREv8G8z
.@dunne_insights: “China controls roughly 70 percent of rare earth mining and over 90 percent of processing capacity. Without a thriving domestic EV industry creating sustained demand, America lacks the economic incentive to build the…supply chains.” https://t.co/hU5loovdzh

Xflow, a Bengaluru‑based fintech, closed a $16.6 million Series A round led by General Catalyst with participation from Stripe and PayPal Ventures, valuing the company at $85 million post‑money. The startup now has over $32 million in total funding and processes roughly $1 billion in...
Exactly. I’m not sure real people are selling stocks anymore, just algo driven slop driven by news headlines tagged to “Anthropic”.
1/7 Reuters: "China's biggest solar firms shed nearly one-third of their workforces last year, company filings show, as one of the industries hand-picked by Beijing to drive economic growth grapples with falling prices and steep losses." https://t.co/BDS9UWJaXO
Bill Ackman's Pershing Square disclosed a roughly $2 billion, 10%‑of‑capital stake in Meta Platforms while exiting its long‑held investment in Hilton Worldwide. The move reflects a shift from a fully priced, mature hotel compounder to what Ackman sees as undervalued AI‑enabled...
In 2026 hedge funds are pouring tens of millions of dollars into alternative data, turning information velocity into a core competitive lever. AI-driven analytics have lowered the barrier to processing vast datasets—from satellite imagery to web traffic—shifting the edge toward...
Equifax Canada’s Q4 2025 credit report shows total consumer debt rose to $2.65 trillion, up 3.1% year‑over‑year, driven by higher mortgage balances and a 4.5% jump in non‑mortgage debt. Non‑mortgage delinquency peaked at 1.73%, with the 26‑35 age group posting the highest...
State and local governments issued a record $498 billion in municipal bonds in 2024 and topped $580 billion in 2025, driven primarily by infrastructure, education, and transportation projects. The surge reflects a shift from waning federal pandemic aid to local financing for...
Japan is overhauling its national security strategy as U.S. “America First” policies erode traditional defense guarantees. Rising Chinese assertiveness, the spillover of the Ukraine war, and rapid advances in drone and AI warfare have forced Tokyo to prioritize strategic autonomy....

An aging fibro three‑bedroom house on Chapman Avenue in Penrith has been listed for $1.045 million, just below the suburb’s $1.075 million median. The property, bought for about $110,000 in 1999, would represent an 850 percent price jump if sold at the guide...

On February 9, Jemmia Joint Stock Company welcomed UAE Ambassador Dr. Bader Almatrooshi to its Ho Chi Minh City headquarters for a Vietnam‑UAE trade dialogue. The session gathered Vietnamese firms from real estate, agriculture, robotics, renewable energy and other sectors to discuss cooperation...
India plans to raise 1.79 trillion rupees (about $19.7 billion) by selling stakes in state‑run firms through IPOs by the 2029/30 fiscal year. The effort is part of a broader $183.7 billion asset‑monetisation drive announced by NITI Aayog, following an earlier phase that fell...
Good PIIE paper by Tamim Bayoumi and Joseph E. Gagnon on the consequences of accelerating trade imbalances. They warn that trade tensions are likely to get worse, something I have been saying for years and continue to say. I don't...

#IndiaWatch 🇮🇳: At the margin, the world is making a Pivot away towards India. TRUMP’S TARIFFS = MAKING LOTS OF US ENEMIES. https://t.co/3H8maAoa62
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) slipped 3‑4% amid order‑book optimism, prompting investors to adopt a wait‑and‑watch stance. The stock trades near 30‑times trailing earnings, making it pricey despite strong defence pipeline visibility. Mid‑cap IT names such as KPIT Technologies, Mphasis and...
So the Citrini piece is looking for about a 38.2% retracement by mid 2028 after an October '26 peak. Fibonacci is everywhere. 👀 @JC_ParetsX https://t.co/Ppnb1uG5Xl