Here We Go Again on Inflation: Used Vehicle Prices Jump in January, Expected to Jump More in Record Tax-Refund Season
Used‑vehicle auction prices surged 2.4% in January, outpacing the typical 0.4% seasonal gain, as Manheim reports stronger retail demand and tighter wholesale supply. Larger-than‑usual tax refunds, driven by new 2025 tax credits, are fueling bigger down‑payments and pushing prices higher. Supply remains constrained at 26.6 days, well below the pre‑pandemic 32‑day norm, while ICE models rose 2.2% and EVs only 0.4%. The price jump will soon filter into the CPI, adding fresh inflation pressure.
Global FX: RBA, JP Elections, Euro/APAC Rotation, Dovish BoE, US Data
The FX team discusses a variety of topics: the euro bloc/ APAC FX rotation, RBA hawkish pivot, scenarios around upcoming JP elections, the dovish BoE surprise and recent US data. This podcast was recorded on 06 February 2026. This communication is...
US Mineral Supply Chains Remain Exposed to China Chokehold: USGS Report
The U.S. Geological Survey’s 2026 mineral commodities summary shows the United States now imports 100% of 16 of the 90 non‑fuel minerals it tracks, up from 15 a year earlier, and relies on foreign sources for more than half of...
Iran Can Still Normalize Its Economy—But the Path Will Be Painful and Slow
Iran’s inflation, hovering around 20% and spiking above 40% during sanctions, has become a structural feature of its macro‑economy. The country’s fragmented exchange‑rate system, fiscal deficits financed by the central bank, and dominant state‑linked enterprises perpetuate price pressures. Analysts argue...
Heliostar Pours First Gold From San Agustin Mine
Heliostar Metals announced the first gold pour from its newly restarted San Agustin mine in Durango, marking its second operating asset after La Colorada. The open‑pit mine is projected to deliver roughly 45,000 ounces of gold from existing reserves, prompting...
European Rates: ECB and BoE February Meetings, Skinny Carry in Euro Area, Increased UK Political Noise
In this brief episode, J.P. Morgan analysts Francis Diamond, Aditya Chordia, and Khagendra Gupta dissect the February policy meetings of the European Central Bank and the Bank of England, highlighting the limited rate‑differential (or "skinny carry") in the Eurozone and...
The Long Volatility Premium: Short the Market, Get Paid?
Patrick Kazley’s new paper argues that the apparent drag from buying put options is largely a hidden short‑beta exposure, not an inherent cost of long volatility. By neutralizing this beta, a pure long‑volatility factor delivers positive returns over time. The...
BMO Launches New ETF Index Strategies
BMO Asset Management announced the launch of three new MSCI‑based exchange‑traded funds on the Toronto Stock Exchange: the BMO MSCI Canada IMI High Dividend Yield Index ETF, the BMO MSCI EAFE Small‑Mid Cap Index ETF, and the BMO MSCI USA...
Data and Functionality Signaled Chubb’s Strong 4Q Underwriting Income
Chubb posted fourth‑quarter earnings of $7.52 per share, comfortably beating FactSet’s $6.77 consensus. The insurer’s combined ratio improved to 81.2%, well under the 84.4% estimate, driving record underwriting profitability. Investment income surged, helped by a bond‑heavy portfolio and a favorable...
Weight of Freight: Suez Uncertainty- Implications for Clean Tankers and Diesel”
Erika Tsirikou and Josh Michalowski discuss how ongoing Red Sea tensions are forcing tankers to bypass the Suez Canal and the potential reopening of the canal by 2026. They examine the resulting pressure on clean LR1 and LR2 freight rates,...
DPM Adds 20% More Gold-Silver to Extend Bulgaria Mine
DPM Metals announced a 20% increase in measured and indicated resources at its Chelopech gold‑copper mine, boosting total reserves to 1.6 million ounces of gold and 6.23 million ounces of silver. The update extends the mine’s projected life to ten years, up...
Waiting on Next Week's Data
Friday's economic calendar was thin, with only the Consumer Sentiment report standing out. Treasury yields edged slightly higher but stayed near the 4.20% threshold, keeping bond markets largely unchanged. The previous day's disappointing labor figures have heightened market attention on...
January 2026 Metals Options Report
Gold options opened 2026 with record‑high activity, posting a month‑to‑date average daily volume of 73 K contracts for monthly tenors and 30 K for weekly. Spot gold surged past $5,000 per ounce, driven by a weaker dollar and heightened geopolitical tension, while...
Friday Reading List - 6 February 2026
The Friday Reading List for February 6, 2026 surveys a wave of political and security developments across Latin America, focusing on the United States' renewed pressure on Cuba, shifting dynamics in Brazil, Costa Rica, and Mexico, and the fallout from...
What a Year of Trump 2.0 Has Taught Us About the Global Economy
In his second term, President Donald Trump pushed average U.S. import tariffs to about 18%, the highest level since the Great Depression. The higher duties widened the trade deficit and contributed to persistent inflation, prompting the Federal Reserve to cut...
Stockholm’s Capital Markets Success: More Than Meatballs
In this episode Barbara Stewart, CFA, explores why Stockholm has become Europe’s leading capital‑raising hub, highlighting a surge in IPOs, private‑equity activity, and corporate‑bond issuance. She attributes the durability of this flow to a deep investment culture fostered by the...
Mini Tech Wreck Or Repeat Of The Big One?
Technology stocks have tumbled sharply, prompting fears of a repeat of the 2000‑2002 tech bust. Analysts argue the current landscape differs, as major hyperscalers—Alphabet, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta—are slated to spend roughly $650 billion on AI infrastructure by 2026, with the...
The Liquidity Tide Is Turning: Warning for Risk Assets
The episode explains how a shift in global liquidity, driven by the Federal Reserve’s move toward quantitative tightening, is ending the era of easy money and causing risk assets like Bitcoin and high‑growth tech stocks to falter. It highlights the...
FAO Food Price Index Declines in January for Fifth Consecutive Month
The FAO Food Price Index slipped to 123.9 points in January, marking a fifth consecutive monthly decline and a 0.4% drop from December. Prices fell sharply for dairy (‑5%) and sugar (‑1%), while the cereal price index edged up 0.2%...
AI Hangover
The episode examines the sudden shift in market sentiment toward AI, moving from optimism to caution as investors question who truly benefits from the technology. It highlights emerging signs of a softer jobs market, including delayed employment data and rising...
It’s Time to Rethink the Standard Investment Advice. But Not Too Much.
The article warns investors that unprecedented market volatility—from a 25% drop in silver to record concentration among AI‑driven mega‑caps—calls for a reassessment of traditional portfolio guidance. It highlights stress in U.S. bond and money markets amid political attacks on the...
2025 Tax Returns: Here’s What to Know About Filing This Year
The 2025 filing season arrives with a landmark tax and spending bill that adds $129 billion in individual tax cuts, boosting average refunds by roughly $1,000. Key provisions include a permanent larger standard deduction and new credits that favor higher‑income households....
PYPL Is Too Cheap And Will Reward Patient Shareholders
PayPal (PYPL) is trading at a steep discount, with its stock price near $40 representing a 7.6‑times earnings multiple. The company plans a $6 billion share‑repurchase program in 2026 that could retire roughly 16% of its diluted shares, boosting earnings per...
Rhenman & Partners Strengthens Board With Former PP Pension CEO
Rhenman & Partners has appointed Kjell Norling, former CEO of PP Pension, to its board of directors. Norling brings 12 years of experience leading an institutional investor and a strong background in fund distribution. The boutique manages the €646 million Rhenman...
Gold Daily Call for February 6th, 2026
The Gold Daily Call episode for February 6th, 2026 breaks down the latest movements in the gold market, focusing on price trends, macroeconomic drivers, and upcoming central bank policy decisions. Host analysis highlights the impact of recent inflation data, US...
The Truth About Administrative Bloat At U.S. Colleges
The episode debunks the popular claim that U.S. colleges suffer from administrative bloat by examining federal staffing and enrollment data. It shows that student‑to‑staff ratios are far lower than viral rumors suggest—about 6.4 : 1 overall and 5.2 : 1 at four‑year institutions—and that...
Sony Hikes Forecasts Even as PlayStation Falters
Sony raised its FY2025‑26 profit forecast to 1.13 trillion yen, citing a weaker yen and offsetting a slowdown in PlayStation sales. Operating profit is projected to grow 20.6% with revenues reaching 12.3 trillion yen. Despite a 16% decline in PS5 sales and...
Inside China’s EV Boom: Why the World’s Most Competitive EV Market Is in China
China remains the world’s largest electric‑vehicle market, with millions of EVs on its streets daily. The ecosystem features a dense mix of legacy manufacturers like BYD and tech entrants such as Xiaomi and Huawei, each launching high‑performance or software‑centric models....
Bonds as Bargaining Chips: The $8 Trillion Selloff that Could Shake U.S. Markets
European investors hold roughly $8 trillion of U.S. Treasury debt, a quarter of the Treasury market, and recent geopolitical friction with the Trump administration has sparked talk of using those holdings as leverage. A Danish pension fund’s $100 million Treasury sell‑off highlighted...
Stronger Start Thanks to Employment Data
U.S. Treasury bonds edged higher in early trading on Thursday, with gains accelerating after 7 a.m. ET. The market reacted to two labor‑market releases: the Challenger job‑cut data at 7:30 a.m. and the more impactful weekly jobless claims at 8:30 a.m., the latter...
Moderate Growth Still Expected For Delayed US Q4 GDP Report
The delayed fourth‑quarter GDP report, slated for Feb 20, is nowcast at a 2.7% annualized expansion, a slowdown from the 4.4% pace recorded in Q3 but still indicating resilience. Complementary data from the Dallas Fed’s Weekly Economic Index and recent PMI...
Too Many Bulls Getting Shocked As AI Turns On Humans
Investors Intelligence’s Bull/Bear Ratio climbed to 4.13, signaling an over‑bought market from a contrarian viewpoint. Despite the high sentiment, the S&P 500 broadened, with Communication Services, Consumer Staples, Energy, Industrials and Materials posting record highs. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 Value index appears...
US Weekly Oil Data
The episode breaks down the latest U.S. weekly oil production and inventory figures, highlighting recent shifts in crude output, refinery utilization, and stockpile levels. It explains how these data points are influencing price movements and market sentiment, especially in the...
The Dreaded Hindenburg Omen
The mid‑week market update flagged a fresh appearance of the Hindenburg Omen, a technical signal that emerges when market breadth splits and price momentum wanes. The omen indicates that a significant number of stocks are simultaneously hitting new highs and...
Thursday: NZ Employment Rises
In this brief episode, ANZ Research analysts discuss the latest data showing a rise in New Zealand employment, highlighting the sectors driving the growth and the implications for wage pressure and inflation. They note that the job market is tightening, with...
Take-Two Raises Outlook, Expects Record FY2027 Net Bookings Driven by GTA 6
Take‑Two Interactive reported third‑quarter FY2026 net bookings of $1.76 billion, a 28% year‑over‑year increase, driven largely by recurrent consumer spending that now represents 76% of total bookings. GAAP net revenue rose to $1.70 billion while the operating loss narrowed to $92.9 million. The...
Hormuz on the Brink?
U.S. forces escalated the standoff with Iran after an F‑35 shot down an Iranian drone that approached a carrier in the Arabian Sea. Both sides have scheduled high‑level talks in Istanbul, raising hopes for a diplomatic de‑escalation. The dispute centers...
Watchdog Warns on ‘Fire Sale Dynamics’ Risk in Repo Market
The Financial Stability Board warned that leveraged trades in the short‑term repo market could spark fire‑sale dynamics, pressuring sovereign bond prices. It highlighted a $16 trillion global repo market, with hedge‑fund borrowing near $3 trillion—about 25% of their assets—often conducted with zero...
The BlackRock TCPC Story
The episode dissects BlackRock TCPC’s recent 19% NAV drop, revealing that the loss was driven by six concentrated positions heavily weighted in second‑lien loans and equity rather than first‑lien senior debt. The host contrasts this risky capital‑structure positioning and volatile...
Waiting on ISM Services as Early Data Fails to Inspire
ADP's employment numbers released at 8:15 a.m. ET came in softer than analysts expected, yet Treasury yields barely moved. Fifteen minutes later, the Treasury Department posted its quarterly financing estimates, which were in line with prior forecasts but warned that borrowing...
WEEKLY WEBCAST: Meet Kevin Warsh
In a new webcast, Dr. Ed interviews Kevin Warsh, President Trump’s leading candidate for Federal Reserve chair. Warsh argues the U.S. economy is entering a productivity‑driven growth phase that requires supply‑side, low‑tax, low‑regulation policies. He rejects the Phillips Curve, labeling...
Watch Out for Japan’s Election on Sunday
The episode analyzes the recent collapse in gold and silver prices, attributing it to extremely low speculative open interest on COMEX and a lack of buyers, which created a price vacuum. It notes that the market has now stabilized as...
Small Cap Stocks Continue To Roar In 2026
Small-cap and micro‑cap stocks have taken the lead in early 2026, with the iShares Micro‑Cap ETF (IWC) posting an 8.7% year‑to‑date gain. Small‑cap value (IJR) and core ETFs are also outperforming large‑cap value (IVE) and the broader S&P 500 (SPY),...
LG Energy Solution Targets 90GWh of Battery Orders in US Energy Storage Market in 2026
LG Energy Solution announced a target of 90 GWh of new battery‑energy‑storage‑system (BESS) orders in the United States for 2026, raising its ESS cell output to over 60 GWh while keeping total global capacity at roughly 300 GWh. The company plans to slash...
Interview with Jasmine of Money Magpie
In this episode, Alasdair Macleod discusses the potential collapse of the fiat currency system, drawing parallels to the Weimar Republic's hyperinflation and the subsequent surge in gold prices. He argues that fiat money depends on confidence and credit, but governments...
KOSPI Surges +1.57%: Hardware Sovereignty (Samsung)
In this episode LoRosha analyzes the February 4 Asian market session, highlighting a 1.57% rise in the KOSPI driven by Samsung Electronics breaking the 169,000 KRW mark and reaching a $720 billion market cap. He argues that despite heavy foreign net...
PayPal Shares Plunged 86% From the 2021 Goofball High and Right Into Our Imploded Stocks
PayPal’s stock tumbled 20% to $41.70 after it reported a Q4 earnings miss, weak total payment volume growth, and announced a surprise CEO change, appointing HP chief Enrique Lores as its new leader effective March 1, with CFO Jamie Miller serving...
The Hidden Cost Of Investment Income
The episode explores a new Longview Research Partners analysis that challenges the traditional view of bond interest and REIT dividends as portfolio positives, showing that forced investment income can erode over 1% of after‑tax wealth for high‑net‑worth investors. The hosts...
Bank of England Should Hold Interest Rates, City AM Shadow MPC Says
City AM’s Shadow Monetary Policy Committee, comprising nine independent economists, voted 7‑2 to keep the Bank of England’s base rate at 3.75%, citing persistent inflation and mixed business‑survey signals. Inflation for the year to December remains at 3.4%, above the...
Economy & Earnings Are Heating Up
The latest Yardeni Quick Takes forecasts a robust 2026, targeting the S&P 500 at 7,700 by year‑end and 10,000 by 2030. Treasury yields are expected to hover between 4.25% and 4.75%, while gold is projected at $6,000 per ounce now and...