National Diesel Average Rises for the 14th Consecutive Week, Reports Energy Information Administration
The Energy Information Administration reported diesel prices rose to $5.643 per gallon for the week of April 6, marking the 14th consecutive weekly increase and a $2.00 jump from a year ago. The price is up 24.2 cents from the previous week and nears the all‑time high of $5.783 set in June 2022. Analysts attribute the surge to higher crude prices and geopolitical tension after U.S.–Israel strikes on Iran. Carriers warn the rise is squeezing trucking capacity and lengthening maritime routes.
The OBBBA Improved the Treatment of Investment—But There’s Still Work to Do
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) makes key expensing provisions permanent, allowing companies to immediately write off equipment, machinery, and domestic R&D costs. It also expands Section 179 for small businesses and adds a temporary expensing rule for new manufacturing...
Delta Stock: Earnings Coming Up — It Has This Jet Fuel Advantage Over Peers.
Delta Air Lines will report earnings first among U.S. carriers as jet fuel prices spike amid the Iran‑War. The airline’s ownership of the Monroe Energy refinery in Pennsylvania gives it a strategic edge in securing Northeast jet fuel supply, cushioning...
A Generational Buying Opportunity Has Opened up for U.S. Tech Stocks, Says Goldman Sachs
Goldman Sachs’ chief global equity strategist Peter Oppenheimer warned that U.S. technology stocks have posted their weakest relative returns against the broader market in half a century. The firm argues the steep price decline creates a generational buying opportunity for...
Singapore: Growers Face Pressure From Rising Energy, Fuel Costs
The war in the Middle East has pushed fertilizer, fuel and transport costs sharply higher for Singapore farms. Vegeponics Farm warns its fertilizer stock will last only six months, with prices set to rise further if the conflict continues. Delivery...
"Polyhouse Growers and First-Time Hydroponic Entrepreneurs Make up the Bulk of Our Customer Base"
India’s protected‑cultivation sector is fueling a 15‑20% annual rise in coir substrate demand, with polyhouse growers and first‑time hydroponic entrepreneurs forming the core of Biogrow Substrates’ client base. The company reports stable raw‑material costs but notes freight volatility, driven by...
A Single Chokepoint Failure Reveals the Fragile Architecture of Africa’s Energy Supply Chain
The abrupt closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which carries about 20% of global oil, has halted tanker traffic and left African importers scrambling for fuel. Nations such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Zambia are already experiencing severe shortages and price...
Appian Opens Unit in São Paulo to Invest in Latin America
Appian Capital Advisory announced the launch of a new headquarters in São Paulo to source and evaluate mining assets across Latin America. The move is part of a broader British fund strategy that aims to deploy roughly $220 billion in investments...
Cyber Stocks Look to Go From Losers to Winners
Cybersecurity stocks have lagged the broader software market this year, with the Global X Cybersecurity ETF down 15% YTD, yet analysts argue AI‑driven threats could reverse the trend. AI agents expand the attack surface, prompting enterprises to boost security spending...
TYG: Can See Durable Growth Over The Coming Decade
Tortoise Energy Infrastructure Corp (TYG) received a Buy rating, offering a 12.25% forward distribution yield through leveraged exposure to midstream energy and power infrastructure. The fund’s portfolio is weighted 54.2% toward renewables and power assets, including holdings such as CWEN,...
BlackRock, State Street Target Invesco’s $379 Billion Tech Grip
Wall Street’s two largest ETF managers, BlackRock and State Street, have filed paperwork to launch pure Nasdaq 100 ETFs, challenging Invesco’s long‑standing monopoly on the index. Invesco’s flagship QQQ Trust, which manages about $379 billion, could face fee‑driven competition from the newcomers....
Trump's $2.2T Proposed Defense Budget Boosts Lockheed Martin's Outlook
President Trump’s $2.2 trillion FY2027 defense budget proposal backs the purchase of 85 new F‑35 jets, easing the biggest downside risk to Lockheed Martin’s outlook. The Pentagon’s support comes as the company holds a record $194 billion backlog, providing revenue visibility through...
Equity Markets In The Eye Of The Storm
US equity markets entered 2026 on a solid macro footing, with earnings projected to rise near 10% and nominal GDP accelerating. While the Middle East conflict has spiked commodity prices, analysts expect the war to resolve within months, allowing energy...
Submit Your Questions: How Will the Iran War Impact China?
A live Ask‑an‑Expert session is scheduled for April 10, featuring Joe Leahy and Cheng Leng from Bloomberg's Beijing bureau. The discussion will focus on how the ongoing Iran‑Israel war could reshape China's strategic, economic, and energy interests. Participants can submit...
Shipping Constraints Mount as US Crude Exports Test Limits
Overseas demand for U.S. crude has surged amid the Iran conflict, pushing export volumes toward record levels. Analysts now argue that practical constraints limit Gulf Coast shipments to under 6 million barrels per day, far below the often‑cited 10 million‑bpd capacity. The...
Fastmarkets to Launch Cold-Rolled Grain Oriented Electrical Steel, Ex-Whs Eastern China Price Assessment: Pricing Notice
Fastmarkets will begin publishing a bi‑weekly price assessment for cold‑rolled grain‑oriented electrical steel (GOES) in Eastern China starting April 17. The new assessment follows a month‑long consultation and adds to Fastmarkets’ existing coverage of non‑grain oriented steel in China and...
Stock Market Week 14/26: RENIXX up +10.7% in Q1 - Market Observers See Shift in Priorities - Plug Power: Major...
The RENIXX index climbed 10.7% in Q1 2026, trading between 1,200 and 1,300 points after a 3.1% rise to 1,249.06 on April 2. Plug Power led weekly gains with an 11.7% jump, boosted by a 275 MW electrolyzer order in Canada. Vestas added...
UBS Has Alarming News About Oil if the Strait of Hormuz Closes
UBS commodity analyst Giovanni Staunovo warned that a shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz could remove roughly 10 million barrels of crude per day from global markets, adding to an already 90% reduction in flow. The chokepoint normally carries about 20 million...
Market Valuation, Inflation and Treasury Yields - March 2026
The latest Advisor Perspectives update shows the P/E10 ratio soaring to 37.1, well above its 17.7 historical average, while inflation runs at 2.66%—inside the 1.4‑3.0% “sweet spot” that historically supports higher valuations. Simultaneously, the 10‑year Treasury yield has risen to...
“Last Milking”: How “Rough and Dirty Operators” Profit From Failing Buildings
The piece exposes a niche of investors snapping up New York rent‑stabilized buildings at roughly $30,000 per unit, betting on a "last milking" strategy that extracts cash while neglecting upkeep and eventually defaulting on mortgages and taxes. The 2019 Housing...
CMNIX: A Steady Hand In Volatile Markets
The Calamos Market Neutral Income Fund (CMNIX) delivered positive absolute returns in Q1 2026 despite a 4.3% decline in the S&P 500 and a turbulent bond market. Its core convertible arbitrage and hedged‑equity strategies generated gains, while merger‑arbitrage and SPAC‑arbitrage allocations added...
When Clients Ask About Private Credit: How Advisors Can Address Common Concerns with Confidence
Advisors are increasingly fielding high‑net‑worth client questions about private credit amid headlines of isolated fund failures and broader concerns about liquidity and risk. The article explains that private credit’s long‑term, contract‑driven returns differ fundamentally from the daily price swings of...
Whose Water Powers the Cloud? Data Centers and the Right to Water in Johor
Johor, Malaysia, has become Southeast Asia’s fastest‑growing data‑center hub, with capacity reaching about 5.8 GW by mid‑2025—almost double the previous year. The rapid expansion has sparked a water‑use crisis, as medium‑sized centers consume roughly 110 million gallons annually and mega‑centers up to...
Britain’s Innovators Backed with Around £100m of New Investment
The UK government has launched a £100 million (≈ $127 million) annual investment boost by expanding the Enterprise Management Incentives (EMI) scheme and doubling limits for the Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS) and Venture Capital Trusts (VCT). The reforms quadruple EMI’s asset ceiling to...
Current Price of Oil as of April 7, 2026
Oil’s benchmark Brent crude rose to $113.40 a barrel on April 7, 2026, up $2.15 from the previous day and roughly 75% higher than a year ago. The price jumped 33.85% over the past month, reflecting tighter supply and renewed geopolitical...
Oil Prices Rise as Hormuz Stays Shut Ahead of Trump Deadline, Strikes on Iran Intensify
Oil prices jumped as the Strait of Hormuz remained closed, with Brent at $111.16 a barrel and U.S. WTI nearing $116, creating a rare WTI premium over Brent. President Trump gave Iran until midnight GMT to reopen the strait, threatening...
War in Iran Drives Russian Oil Prices to a 13-Year High
Russian Urals crude surged to $116.05 a barrel on April 2, the highest level in over 13 years, as the Iran‑linked oil rally lifts global prices. The price far exceeds the $59 per barrel budget assumption, delivering a windfall that eases Kremlin...
Social Security & Inflation: What You Need to Know
Social Security’s cost‑of‑living adjustments (COLAs) are calculated annually using the CPI‑W, but the index often underrepresents retirees’ spending patterns, especially on health care and housing. Between 2010 and 2024, beneficiaries lost about 20 % of their buying power because COLAs lagged...
The Stock Market Rally: Buy Or Fade It?
Last week the S&P 500 rallied 3.4% and the Nasdaq 4.4%, but the move stalled at key technical levels. The Money Flow Breadth Ratio fell to 35%, indicating sustained institutional selling pressure. Meanwhile, oil surged above $110 per barrel, pushing inflation...
Oil Outage Labelled ‘Biggest in History’ Sends Prices and Nerves Higher
Six million barrels per day have gone offline as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, creating the biggest oil outage in modern history. The shutdown has cut roughly 20% of global supply, pushing Brent to about $109 and WTI to...
War Adds ‘Uncertainty Premium’ to Canadian Mortgages as Fixed Rates Jump
A Middle‑East conflict has pushed Canadian bond yields higher, adding an "uncertainty premium" to fixed‑rate mortgages. In three weeks, three‑ and five‑year rates jumped about 0.5 percentage points, taking the five‑year average to roughly 4.95%. About 1.4 million mortgages—23% of the...
How February Broke One Grain Marketing Guru’s Heart
February saw an unusual break in grain market patterns, with corn futures falling below $4.60 per bushel and technicals pointing to a potential downside breakout. USDA’s first crop‑progress report showed planting ahead of schedule, reaching 3% of the U.S. corn...
Fault Lines And Flashpoints: Navigating Credit Markets Through A Geopolitical Shock
Calamos Fixed Income managers expect Middle‑East tensions to ease within months, allowing energy prices to fall and the Federal Reserve to restart rate cuts in the latter half of 2026. Their defensive credit positioning, built in prior quarters, shielded the...
Trump's Iran Deadline, the Altman-Musk Feud, Novo's Wegovy Pill and More in Morning Squawk
President Donald Trump’s 8 p.m. ET deadline to force Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz is tightening, pushing oil prices higher and denting market sentiment. Activist investor Bill Ackman has offered a roughly $64 billion cash‑and‑stock deal to acquire Universal Music...
"Limited Volumes Available, but €80 per Kilo Still Hard to Sell"
Van Ooijen Citrus received its first Spanish greenhouse cherries, delivering 60 kg today with an additional 100 kg expected next week. The fruit is priced at €80 per kilo, a level the company admits is hard to move. Buyers view these early‑season cherries as...
Strawberry Market Sees Higher California Supply and EU Price Pressure
The global strawberry market is diverging regionally as spring unfolds. California is set for a high‑volume season, with the Santa Maria area leading peak conventional output in April and organic supplies arriving later. Florida’s winter‑freeze damage has trimmed yields, while Mexican...
The Cycle Persists Through Geopolitical Disruption
Calamos Growth and Income Fund maintains a positive yet cautious stance amid the Iran war, viewing it as a mid‑cycle disruption rather than a recession catalyst. The fund’s base case assumes the Strait of Hormuz normalizes by early May and...
Agronometrics in Charts: Strait of Hormuz Disruption Sends Fertilizer Prices Skyrocketing 30 Percent
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has halted roughly half of global urea exports, driving fertilizer prices up about 30 percent in just weeks. The disruption also curtails sulfur shipments, tightening supplies for phosphate fertilizers and compounding the shortage....
Copy Trading in South Africa – Is It a Shortcut or a Smart Strategy for New Forex Traders?
Copy trading has gained traction among South African forex newcomers, offering a way to mirror seasoned traders’ positions automatically. The model promises rapid market entry without the need to develop a personal strategy, appealing to smartphone‑savvy users lacking formal education....
How The Iran War Is Reshaping Global AI Strategy
Iranian missile and drone attacks have begun targeting data centers in the Gulf, hitting Amazon Web Services facilities in the UAE and Bahrain and an Oracle site in Dubai. The strikes expose a new class of strategic asset, prompting concerns...
MLP/Midstream 2025 Total Shareholder Yields Rise
Total shareholder yields for MLPs and broader midstream rose in 2025 as dividend growth outpaced flat price returns. The Alerian MLP Infrastructure Index (AMZI) saw its dividend yield climb to 7.5% while buyback yield slipped to 0.3% after repurchases fell...
Will the Iran Crisis Lead to Another Round of Food Price Spikes?
The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has driven a sharp rise in fertilizer and energy costs, with urea prices up about 40 percent, while grain markets remain largely stable, showing only modest increases in wheat, maize and soybeans. Unlike...
Texas Confronts Eye-Popping Water Needs that Threaten Its Growth Story
Texas faces a looming water shortage that threatens its rapid population and economic growth. The Texas Water Development Board estimates $174 billion—about $3.5 billion per year—will be needed for water infrastructure over the next 50 years, with mega‑projects like $10 billion reservoirs on...
OCR on Hold at 2.25%
The Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s Monetary Policy Committee kept the Official Cash Rate at 2.25 percent as the Middle‑East conflict pushed global oil prices higher and disrupted supply chains. Near‑term headline inflation is projected at 3.0 percent in the March 2026 quarter and...
The Case For Convertibles... When Many Things Could Happen
In Q1 2026 convertible securities delivered strong performance as equity markets slipped, offering investors growth exposure while tempering downside volatility. The Calamos Convertible Fund (CICVX) remains confident amid heightened geopolitical risk, emphasizing a fundamentally driven approach. AI infrastructure is highlighted...
The RBC iShares Alliance Expands Lineup with the Launch of Five New Exchange-Traded Funds
The RBC iShares alliance launched five new exchange‑traded funds on the Toronto Stock Exchange, adding three 2032 target‑maturity bond ETFs (Canadian government, Canadian corporate, and U.S. corporate) and two actively managed equity ETFs covering Canadian and U.S. large‑cap stocks. Management...
Continuing Consequences From the US-Iran Conflict
The US‑Iran conflict has forced the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, driving crude oil prices up 83% to over $110 a barrel and pushing U.S. gasoline to $4.79 per gallon. Higher energy costs are feeding persistent inflation, complicating the...
MSCI Mulls Changes to Climate Benchmarks Methodology
MSCI announced a public consultation on revising the methodology of its climate‑focused benchmark indexes. The firm is considering how to treat companies involved in nuclear weapons production within its Climate Action Index family. Stakeholders can submit comments through a dedicated...
Broadcom Stock Rises On Google AI Chip Deal
Broadcom announced a long‑term agreement with Alphabet to supply custom AI chips, including TPUs and networking components, extending through 2031. The deal also expands collaboration with Anthropic, granting the AI startup access to about 3.5 GW of TPU‑based compute beginning in...
Energy, Materials Propel NDIV to Strong March Performance
The Amplify Energy & Natural Resources Covered Call ETF (NDIV) posted a 13.99% total return for March, driven primarily by its heavy exposure to energy and materials. Energy accounted for roughly 80% of the index and delivered an 8.90% return,...