Today, Feb. 2, 2026, volatility continues in commodities while manufacturing data boosts markets. Markets steadied today after last week’s choppy finish. The S&P 500 (^GSPC +0.54%) rose 0.54% to 6,976.44, the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC +0.56%) added 0.56% to 23,592.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI +1.05%) climbed 1.05% to 49,407.66 as stocks shook off early commodity-driven selling. Market ...
Today, Feb. 2, 2026, volatility continues in commodities while manufacturing data boosts markets. Markets steadied today after last week’s choppy finish. The S&P 500 (^GSPC +0.54%) rose 0.54% to 6,976.44, the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC +0.56%) added 0.56% to 23,592.11. The Dow Jones Industrial Average (^DJI +1.05%) climbed 1.05% to 49,407.66 as stocks shook off early commodity-driven selling. Market movers Investors are becoming more cautious about companies that spend a lot on AI, particularly whether those investments are paying off, which is dividing tech stocks. Micron Technology (MU +5.42%) jumped again today on bullish analyst commentary, putting it firmly on the positive side of the split. Nvidia (NVDA 2.89%) dipped following news reports about potentially stalled OpenAI investments. Telecommunications heavyweight AT&T (T +0.34%) gained attention after closing its Lumen fiber deal. Walt Disney (DIS 7.20%) lagged after lukewarm growth forecasts in its earnings report. What this means for investors Stocks found their footing again, boosted by positive manufacturing data. Today’s Institute for Supply Management report showed factory activity had grown in January, taking it to its highest point since August 2022. Volatility in precious metals continued. Prices fell further over the weekend, triggering margin calls, and recovered a little during the day. The drops put an end to record-breaking rallies in gold and silver, and raise questions about whether worse is still to come. Investors will be watching after-hours earnings from Palantir Technologies (PLTR +1.03%) today for signs of over- or underperformance. Alphabet (GOOG +1.88%) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD +4.03%) are also due to report this week. The January jobs report, due Friday, will be delayed because of the partial government shutdown.
New York, Feb 2, 2026, 17:52 EST — After-hours Apple (AAPL.O) shares rose 4.1%, finishing Monday at $270.01. After-hours trading saw the stock dip 0.6% to $268.31, following a volatile regular session where prices fluctuated between $259.21 and $270.49 on heavy volume. (StockAnalysis) The move followed a weekend policy update in India granting foreign companies five years of tax certainty when sup...
New York, Feb 2, 2026, 17:52 EST — After-hours Apple (AAPL.O) shares rose 4.1%, finishing Monday at $270.01. After-hours trading saw the stock dip 0.6% to $268.31, following a volatile regular session where prices fluctuated between $259.21 and $270.49 on heavy volume. (StockAnalysis) The move followed a weekend policy update in India granting foreign companies five years of tax certainty when supplying equipment to contract manufacturers in designated zones. This tweak could ease obstacles for Apple’s growing iPhone production in the country. “This exemption removes a key deal-breaking risk for electronics manufacturing in India,” said Shankey Agrawal, partner at BMR Legal. (Reuters) Why it matters now: Apple is ramping up its focus on India to expand manufacturing outside China, with the market viewing any policy support as a quick boost. This also highlights that the company’s supply chain narrative remains active, even after its blockbuster holiday quarter. Investors are grappling with Apple’s latest earnings and outlook, which forecast double-digit growth for the March quarter despite warnings about supply bottlenecks. CEO Tim Cook told analysts, “We’re currently constrained,” pointing to a global memory-chip shortage that he expects will weigh more heavily on second-quarter gross margins — the profit metric after production costs — as component prices climb. (Reuters) Those constraints are the catch. The stock has surged, yet the market grapples with pricing in two conflicting factors: steady demand and a cost environment that could tighten if component supplies shrink again. The broader market gave a boost. The S&P 500 climbed 0.54%, while the Nasdaq rose 0.56%, driven by a rotation back into tech and chip-related stocks. “The fundamentals are good and earnings are strong,” noted Tim Ghriskey, senior portfolio strategist at Ingalls & Snyder. Concerns lingered over a partial U.S. government shutdown after the Bureau of Labor Statistics announced the January em...
This Latin American e-commerce and fintech leader delivers integrated marketplace, payments, and logistics solutions across the region. On February 2, Triasima Portfolio Management Inc. disclosed in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing that it sold 3,013 shares of MercadoLibre (MELI 0.03%) during the fourth quarter, an estimated $6.33 million trade based on quarterly average pric...
This Latin American e-commerce and fintech leader delivers integrated marketplace, payments, and logistics solutions across the region. On February 2, Triasima Portfolio Management Inc. disclosed in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing that it sold 3,013 shares of MercadoLibre (MELI 0.03%) during the fourth quarter, an estimated $6.33 million trade based on quarterly average pricing. What happened According to the SEC filing dated February 2, Triasima Portfolio Management Inc. sold 3,013 shares of MercadoLibre during the fourth quarter. The estimated value of this sale was $6.33 million, calculated using the average closing price for the quarter. As a result, the fund’s quarter-end position decreased by $7.19 million, a figure that includes both the share sale and price fluctuations. What else to know Following the sale, MercadoLibre represents 0.14% of Triasima Portfolio Management Inc.’s 13F assets under management Top holdings after the filing: NYSE: RY: $41.05 million (6.1% of AUM) NASDAQ: SHOP: $29.40 million (4.4% of AUM) NYSE: TD: $23.70 million (3.6% of AUM) NYSE: KGC: $21.84 million (3.3% of AUM) NYSE: CM: $20.21 million (3.0% of AUM) As of February 2, shares of MercadoLibre were priced at $2,145.37, up 12.4% over the past year and underperforming the S&P 500’s 15% gain in the same period. Company overview Metric Value Revenue (TTM) $26.19 billion Net Income (TTM) $2.08 billion Price (as of February 2) $2,145.37 One-Year Price Change 12% Company snapshot MercadoLibre offers a diversified suite of services including the Mercado Libre online marketplace, Mercado Pago fintech platform, logistics and fulfillment via Mercado Envios, digital advertising, and classified listings. The company generates revenue primarily through transaction fees from e-commerce sales, fintech payment processing, credit solutions, logistics services, and value-added advertising products. It serves businesses, merchants, and individual consumers across Latin America,...
On Feb. 2, 2026, record holiday iPhone sales, surging services, and fresh AI moves put Apple's growth story under the microscope. Expand NASDAQ : AAPL Apple Today's Change ( 4.12 %) $ 10.69 Current Price $ 270.17 Key Data Points Market Cap $3.8T Day's Range $ 259.19 - $ 270.49 52wk Range $ 169.21 - $ 288.62 Volume 3.1M Avg Vol 47M Gross Margin 47.33 % Dividend Yield 0.40 % Apple (AAPL +4.12%), a d...
On Feb. 2, 2026, record holiday iPhone sales, surging services, and fresh AI moves put Apple's growth story under the microscope. Expand NASDAQ : AAPL Apple Today's Change ( 4.12 %) $ 10.69 Current Price $ 270.17 Key Data Points Market Cap $3.8T Day's Range $ 259.19 - $ 270.49 52wk Range $ 169.21 - $ 288.62 Volume 3.1M Avg Vol 47M Gross Margin 47.33 % Dividend Yield 0.40 % Apple (AAPL +4.12%), a designer and seller of consumer electronics, software, and online services, closed Monday at $270.01, up 4.06%. The stock moved higher after the company reported record fiscal Q1 2026 revenue for the period ended Dec. 28, 2025, late last week. Bullish analyst calls and upbeat commentary on iPhone and India growth have investors buying the stock. Trading volume reached 72.9 million shares, coming in about 55% above its three-month average of 47 million shares. Apple IPO'd in 1980 and has grown 210,270% since going public. How the markets moved today The S&P 500 (^GSPC +0.54%) added 0.54% to finish Monday at 6,976, while the Nasdaq Composite (^IXIC +0.56%) rose 0.55% to close at 23,592. Within big tech, industry peers Microsoft (MSFT 1.52%) closed at $423.37, down 1.61%, while Alphabet (GOOGL +1.72%) finished at $343.69, up 1.68%, underscoring shifting sentiment among mega-cap tech leaders. What this means for investors Reaction to last week’s Apple earnings continued today. After reporting all-time records for total company revenue and earnings per share (EPS), analysts reiterated support for Apple stock. Chief financial officer Kevan Parekh told investors that Apple expects year-over-year revenue to jump between 13% and 16% in the current quarter. That guidance surpassed analyst estimates. Strong growth in China and India provided more tailwinds for the stock. Several analysts reacted by assigning a $325 price target on the stock. That implies 20% upside even after today’s stock jump.
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), a designer and seller of consumer electronics, software, and online services, closed Monday at $270.01, up 4.06%. The stock moved higher after the company reported record fiscal Q1 2026 revenue for the period ended Dec. 28, 2025, late last week. Bullish analyst calls and upbeat commentary on iPhone and India growth have investors buying the stock. Trading volume reached 72.9 m...
Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), a designer and seller of consumer electronics, software, and online services, closed Monday at $270.01, up 4.06%. The stock moved higher after the company reported record fiscal Q1 2026 revenue for the period ended Dec. 28, 2025, late last week. Bullish analyst calls and upbeat commentary on iPhone and India growth have investors buying the stock. Trading volume reached 72.9 million shares, coming in about 55% above its three-month average of 47 million shares. Apple IPO'd in 1980 and has grown 210,270% since going public. How the markets moved today The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX:^GSPC) added 0.54% to finish Monday at 6,976, while the Nasdaq Composite (NASDAQINDEX:^IXIC) rose 0.55% to close at 23,592. Within big tech, industry peers Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) closed at $423.37, down 1.61%, while Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) finished at $343.69, up 1.68%, underscoring shifting sentiment among mega-cap tech leaders. What this means for investors Reaction to last week’s Apple earnings continued today. After reporting all-time records for total company revenue and earnings per share (EPS), analysts reiterated support for Apple stock. Chief financial officer Kevan Parekh told investors that Apple expects year-over-year revenue to jump between 13% and 16% in the current quarter. That guidance surpassed analyst estimates. Strong growth in China and India provided more tailwinds for the stock. Several analysts reacted by assigning a $325 price target on the stock. That implies 20% upside even after today’s stock jump. Where to invest $1,000 right now When our analyst team has a stock tip, it can pay to listen. After all, Stock Advisor’s total average return is 942%* — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 196% for the S&P 500. They just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy right now, available when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of February 2, 2026. Howard Smith has positions in Alphabet, Appl...
ismagilov/iStock via Getty Images The BetaPro Natural Gas Leveraged Daily Bull ETF ( HNU:CA ) is a leveraged exchange-traded fund designed to provide investors with 2x the daily performance of natural gas while hedging against the US Dollar relative to the Canadian Dollar. HNU presents investors with strong liquidity, with an average of $40.41mm in share value changing hands on a daily basis. Give...
ismagilov/iStock via Getty Images The BetaPro Natural Gas Leveraged Daily Bull ETF ( HNU:CA ) is a leveraged exchange-traded fund designed to provide investors with 2x the daily performance of natural gas while hedging against the US Dollar relative to the Canadian Dollar. HNU presents investors with strong liquidity, with an average of $40.41mm in share value changing hands on a daily basis. Given that commodities trading is seen as speculative and also given the heightened risk associated with leveraged strategies, investors will need to exhibit strict risk management protocol and should only consider HNU for daily exposure. About BetaPro Natural Gas Leveraged Daily Bull ETF HNU was launched by Global X Investments Canada on January 16, 2008, on the Toronto Stock Exchange [TSX]. The strategy has a management expense ratio of 138 bps, making the strategy on par with US peer leveraged strategies like the ProShares Ultra Bloomberg Natural Gas ETF ( BOIL ). HNU has a modest bid/ask spread, or the price dispersion between buyers and sellers of the ETF, of 0.30%, adding certain costs to active traders when entering and exiting a trade. HNU was designed to track the BetaPro Natural Gas Rolling Futures Index . The Index was designed to track the most liquid futures contracts for natural gas in the front month, or the month with the nearest expiration, and incrementally rolls forward to the following month beginning on the fourth trading day of each month. Futures contracts generally present a certain degree of value decay as a result of the construct of the contracts. Futures contracts include costs like carry costs, as well as interest costs. Contracts may also be exposed to costs associated with rolling contracts forward to the following month, which may result in additional profit or loss depending on the price difference between the two months. For example, if the natural gas price curve is in contango, HNU may face higher costs to roll the contracts forward, as the f...
Key Points Ford has sharply pivoted away from fully electric vehicles in response to changes made by the Trump administration. Will the new strategy work over the next decade? 10 stocks we like better than Ford Motor Company › Long-term investing is usually the key to life-changing returns in the stock market -- but not if you bet on the wrong horse. Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is an example of a...
Key Points Ford has sharply pivoted away from fully electric vehicles in response to changes made by the Trump administration. Will the new strategy work over the next decade? 10 stocks we like better than Ford Motor Company › Long-term investing is usually the key to life-changing returns in the stock market -- but not if you bet on the wrong horse. Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is an example of a perennial underperformer. Shares in the automotive giant have grown only 16% over the last decade. And while the total return jumps to 97% when you include cash dividends, that's still far below the S&P 500 index's gain of 325% over the same time frame. Can Ford break out of its chronic slump and generate the cash flow needed to maintain or grow the dividend payout that represents the vast majority of its returns? Let's dig deeper to find out what might come next for the company. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now. Continue » The Trump administration throws a curveball The administration of President Donald Trump has introduced uncertainty to many aspects of the U.S. economy, but the automotive industry is arguably the most affected by the new policies. Massive tariffs on all of the U.S.'s trading partners have disrupted global automotive supply chains. But more importantly, they make it difficult for companies like Ford to properly plan for the future or build production capacity in the best locations. Simply moving production to the U.S. isn't a long-term solution, because the tariffs rest on uncertain legal grounds and could be overturned in the coming months or when a new president takes office. The uncertainty makes it impossible for Ford to predict the correct course of action. And mistakes could have consequences that far outlast Trump's term. The company's abrupt pivot away from electric vehicles demonstrates the value destruction that can occur when a company miscalculates futu...
Bloomberg’s Caroline Hyde discusses Disney's earnings lifted by record results in its parks division. Plus, Oracle kicks off a massive bond sale as the software giant looks to raise $45 billion to $50 billion this year through a combination of debt and equity sales to build additional cloud infrastructure capacity. And sources say Elon Musk is in advanced talks to combine SpaceX with xAI. (Source:...
Bloomberg’s Caroline Hyde discusses Disney's earnings lifted by record results in its parks division. Plus, Oracle kicks off a massive bond sale as the software giant looks to raise $45 billion to $50 billion this year through a combination of debt and equity sales to build additional cloud infrastructure capacity. And sources say Elon Musk is in advanced talks to combine SpaceX with xAI. (Source: Bloomberg)
Investing.com -- Elon Musk’s SpaceX has acquired his artificial intelligence company xAI, the companies confirmed in a letter published by SpaceX on Monday. In the announcement, Musk outlined plans to create "the most ambitious, vertically-integrated innovation engine on (and off) Earth," combining AI, rockets, space-based internet, and communications technology. The combined entity is said o be v...
Investing.com -- Elon Musk’s SpaceX has acquired his artificial intelligence company xAI, the companies confirmed in a letter published by SpaceX on Monday. In the announcement, Musk outlined plans to create "the most ambitious, vertically-integrated innovation engine on (and off) Earth," combining AI, rockets, space-based internet, and communications technology. The combined entity is said o be valued at $1.25 trillion, or at roughly $527 per share, Bloomberg reported shortly before SpaceX’s press release. The move comes amid a widely-speculated potential public listing for the space company that may, according to numerous reports, value it even higher, at as much as $1.5 trillion. The acquisition aims to address what Musk describes as unsustainable terrestrial power demands for AI data centers. He proposes launching a constellation of satellites functioning as orbital data centers powered by solar energy. "In the long term, space-based AI is obviously the only way to scale," Musk wrote in the letter. "My estimate is that within 2 to 3 years, the lowest cost way to generate AI compute will be in space." The plan involves using SpaceX’s Starship rocket to launch "millions of tons" of satellites annually. Each satellite would generate approximately 100 kW of computing power, potentially adding 100 gigawatts of AI computing capacity per year. Now that the SpaceX-xAI merger has been confirmed, the market will likely set its eyes on Musk’s eletric car company, Tesla, amid separate rumors late last week that the billionaire entrepreneur was also considering a potential merger between SpaceX and Tesla. According to that a Bloomberg reprot that cited unnamed sources, such a deal could attract significant interest from infrastructure funds and Middle Eastern sovereign investors. Musk has not commented on the potential Tesla combination. Related articles Musk’s SpaceX acquires Musk’s xAI, envisions "space-based AI data centers" Gold may hit $5,000/oz in 1H'26 - HSBC Goldman ...
A Virginia man having an affair with the family’s Brazilian au pair was found guilty Monday of murdering his wife and another man that prosecutors say was lured to the house as a fall guy. Brendan Banfield, a former IRS law enforcement officer, told police he came across Joseph Ryan attacking his wife, Christine Banfield, with a knife on the morning of 24 February 2023. He shot Ryan and then Julia...
A Virginia man having an affair with the family’s Brazilian au pair was found guilty Monday of murdering his wife and another man that prosecutors say was lured to the house as a fall guy. Brendan Banfield, a former IRS law enforcement officer, told police he came across Joseph Ryan attacking his wife, Christine Banfield, with a knife on the morning of 24 February 2023. He shot Ryan and then Juliana Magalhães, the au pair, shot him, too. But officials argued in court that the story was too good to be true, telling jurors that Banfield set Ryan up in a scheme to get rid of his wife. It later came out that Brendan Banfield and Magalhães had been having an affair. Magalhães pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2024 and testified against her former lover at trial. She said they had impersonated Christine Banfield, a pediatric intensive care nurse, on a website for sexual fetishes. She said they used the site to lure Ryan to the house for a sexual encounter involving a knife, staging the scene to look as though they had shot an intruder who was attacking the wife. Defense attorney John Carroll argued that Magalhães’ testimony could not be trusted because she was cooperating with prosecutors to try to avoid a long prison sentence. In his own testimony, Banfield said that the testimony was “ absolutely crazy”. Carroll also introduced evidence showing that there was dissent within the police department over the theory that Magalhães and Brendan Banfield impersonated Christine Banfield on social media in a “catfishing” scheme. An officer who concluded from digital evidence that Christine Banfield was behind the social media account was later transferred in what Carroll said was punishment for disagreeing with a theory favored by the department’s higher-ups. In closing arguments, prosecutor Jenna Sands told the jury they did not have to rely solely on Magalhães’ testimony, pointing to what she called a “plethora of evidence”. That included expert testimony that blood stains on R...
Green bonds are key to climate finance. Hong Kong companies have been somewhat slow to take up environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG). The MTR Corporation, Hong Kong’s citywide rail operator, is something of a pioneer. It first set up a green bond framework about a decade ago to determine how best to issue such bonds and use the proceeds to invest in sustainable projects and faciliti...
Green bonds are key to climate finance. Hong Kong companies have been somewhat slow to take up environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG). The MTR Corporation, Hong Kong’s citywide rail operator, is something of a pioneer. It first set up a green bond framework about a decade ago to determine how best to issue such bonds and use the proceeds to invest in sustainable projects and facilities. Since then, it has periodically issued green bonds, usually in the local currency. However, its latest issuance has raised a record A$2 billion (US$1.4 billion), marking its first time using Australian dollar-denominated green bonds to fund environmentally friendly projects. The bonds, issued in two equal tranches, were oversubscribed more than sixfold by a variety of investors. These are a five-year tranche of A$1 billion and a 12-year tranche of A$1 billion, with coupon rates of 4.886 per cent and 5.582 per cent, respectively. The proceeds will be used to support green projects and strengthen financial resources to allow for flexible sustainable investments. Outside Hong Kong, MTR Corp also operates rail lines in Beijing, Hangzhou, Shenzhen, Macau, Melbourne, Sydney, Sweden and Britain. It has significantly increased its footprint in Australia in the last decade, and the latest bond offers are another step in that direction. Investor interest shows there is a significant capital market related to protecting the global environment. Hong Kong companies looking to diversify avenues to raise capital should take note. Advertisement The Earth is getting warmer, but geopolitical tensions are diverting attention and resources away from tackling climate change. In 2024, global cumulative green bond issuances surpassed US$3 trillion while annual issuance passed US$577 billion. Even so, green bonds still only accounted for about 3 per cent of the total global bond market. The Hong Kong government is the majority shareholder of MTR Corp, one reason the rail operator-cum-property ...