Argentina’s economy posted a slight expansion in January following a quarter of weaker-than-expected growth for President Javier Milei . Economic activity rose 0.4% from December, according to government data published Thursday. From a year ago, the gross domestic product proxy grew 1.9%, matching the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The agriculture sector led growth, while ret...
Argentina’s economy posted a slight expansion in January following a quarter of weaker-than-expected growth for President Javier Milei . Economic activity rose 0.4% from December, according to government data published Thursday. From a year ago, the gross domestic product proxy grew 1.9%, matching the median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The agriculture sector led growth, while retail and manufacturing fell. Monthly inflation , which Milei vowed to slow below 1% this year, came in closer to 3% in February and last slowed in May. It’s still a significant improvement from the crisis Milei inherited, but his disinflation campaign has lost momentum. The president’s approval rating this month hit its lowest since he took office to 36%, according to LatAm Pulse, a survey conducted by AtlasIntel for Bloomberg News. Gross domestic product rose 0.6% in the fourth quarter compared to the three months through September, below economists’ estimates, while the economy expanded 2.1% in the quarter. Exports led growth, followed by private consumption, as as public spending and capital investment declined. Unemployment climbed to 7.5% in the same quarter, the highest fourth-quarter since the Covid-19 pandemic. Economists estimate Argentina will grow 3.4% this year and inflation will slow to 26% this year, according to the central bank’s February survey.
Mahmud013/E+ via Getty Images Investment Approach Fidelity® Select Financials Portfolio is a sector-based, equity-focused strategy that seeks to outperform its benchmark through active management. The fund focuses on higher-quality companies, as measured by return on equity, which we believe can drive robust growth and create more-attractive risk-adjusted returns. Additionally, the fund targets im...
Mahmud013/E+ via Getty Images Investment Approach Fidelity® Select Financials Portfolio is a sector-based, equity-focused strategy that seeks to outperform its benchmark through active management. The fund focuses on higher-quality companies, as measured by return on equity, which we believe can drive robust growth and create more-attractive risk-adjusted returns. Additionally, the fund targets improving businesses where such improvement is underappreciated by the market and allows the company to transition to a more profitable franchise in the future. We look for firms with an attractive valuation relative to the sector index, and believe combining high quality and low valuation should compound returns over time with lower risk of multiple compression, as well as less downside capture. Stock selection and idea generation come from fundamental, bottom-up research that leverages the deep and experienced global financials team at Fidelity. We consider attractive financial stocks outside of the benchmark that offer the potential for favorable risk-adjusted returns. Sector strategies could be used by investors as alternatives to individual stocks for either tactical- or strategic-allocation purposes. FUND INFORMATION Manager(s): Gerard Benson Matthew Reed Trading Symbol: FIDSX Start Date: December 10, 1981 Size (in millions): $1,049.38 Morningstar Category: Fund Financial Stock markets, especially foreign markets, are volatile and can decline significantly in response to adverse issuer, political, regulatory, market, or economic developments. The financials industries are subject to extensive government regulation, can be subject to relatively rapid change due to increasingly blurred distinctions between service segments, and can be significantly affected by availability and cost of capital funds, changes in interest rates, the rate of corporate and consumer debt defaults, and price competition. Foreign securities are subject to interest rate, currency exchange rate, ec...
e-crow/iStock via Getty Images After bouncing yesterday, gold prices are declining again today, on pace for a one-day drop of over 3%. While today’s decline is not nearly enough for new lows on an intraday basis (it got down to the 200-DMA Monday), if gold closes at these levels, it will mark a new closing low for the current drawdown. That would take the peak-to-trough decline to 18.5% and very c...
e-crow/iStock via Getty Images After bouncing yesterday, gold prices are declining again today, on pace for a one-day drop of over 3%. While today’s decline is not nearly enough for new lows on an intraday basis (it got down to the 200-DMA Monday), if gold closes at these levels, it will mark a new closing low for the current drawdown. That would take the peak-to-trough decline to 18.5% and very close to bear market levels (20%+ decline from a closing high without a 20%+ rally in between). Bear markets haven’t been common for gold lately, as the current bull market began exactly three and a half years ago on 9/26/22. From that low through the closing high on 1/29/26, gold prices rallied 231.7%. In terms of magnitude, that would rank at the third longest since at least 1974, trailing only the 1,865-calendar-day bull market ending in May 2006 and the 1,694-day run ending in August 2020. For all 15 bull markets, the average length was 716 days, making the current one, if it turns out to have ended in January, 71% longer than average. In terms of magnitude, the most recent bull market also ranks as one of the strongest. For all 15 bull markets since 1974, the average gain was 105%, or less than half of the gain during the current bull. In fact, the only bull market that experienced a larger gain was the 418-day bull market that ended in January 1980. In that 14-month rally, gold prices tripled from $191 up to $834 per ounce. Ironically, the level gold traded at when that bull market started is about the same as the amount by which gold prices are trading lower today! Original Post Editor's Note: The summary bullets for this article were chosen by Seeking Alpha editors.
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, XETRA:APC) iPhone ecosystem is showing signs of increased customer loyalty and steady demand, while its high-margin services business remains a key support to profitability, according to UBS analysts. The bank, which maintains a 'Neutral' rating on Apple with a...
Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL, XETRA:APC) iPhone ecosystem is showing signs of increased customer loyalty and steady demand, while its high-margin services business remains a key support to profitability, according to UBS analysts. The bank, which maintains a 'Neutral' rating on Apple with a...
If you are interested in buying Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) today, it is most likely because of the success of the company's GLP-1 drugs. The sales performance of Mounjaro and Zepbound is nothing short of impressive. However, long-term investors need to step back and look at the bigger picture before buying in the hope that Eli Lilly will set them up for life. Sales of Mounjaro rose 99% in 2025. Zepboun...
If you are interested in buying Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLY) today, it is most likely because of the success of the company's GLP-1 drugs. The sales performance of Mounjaro and Zepbound is nothing short of impressive. However, long-term investors need to step back and look at the bigger picture before buying in the hope that Eli Lilly will set them up for life. Sales of Mounjaro rose 99% in 2025. Zepbound's sales rose an even more impressive 175%. Eli Lilly only breaks out one other individual drug based on sales, and the gain was just 8% for the year. In other words, almost all of Eli Lilly's 45% sales gain in 2025 came from Mounjaro and Zepbound. In fact, the two drugs accounted for 56% of the company's top line last year. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
There’s more good stuff to watch than ever — if you can afford it. | Image: Amazon Death. Taxes. All your streaming services getting a little more expensive all the time. These are the new certainties in life, it seems. Netflix has raised the cost of its subscription repeatedly in recent years. Disney Plus, Prime Video, HBO Max, Paramount Plus, Peacock — practically any service you can name — char...
There’s more good stuff to watch than ever — if you can afford it. | Image: Amazon Death. Taxes. All your streaming services getting a little more expensive all the time. These are the new certainties in life, it seems. Netflix has raised the cost of its subscription repeatedly in recent years. Disney Plus, Prime Video, HBO Max, Paramount Plus, Peacock — practically any service you can name — charges more per month than it did a few years ago, and many of them have introduced ad breaks. As customers cancel cable more quickly than anyone expected, the studios and distributors are looking for a way to make up the lost revenue . Good shows, live sports, and movies are more in demand — and thus more expensive — than ever. And after a decade of spending money like it was going out of style because all investors cared about were subscriber numbers, companies are looking for any way they can to improve their bottom line. They’re cracking down on password sharing, canceling shows for the tax breaks, and even selling prized content to other platforms. But the most common strategy is simply to charge you, the viewer, more. We’re tracking all the price increases and other changes from streaming services so you can make sure you’re only paying for what you want. (We’ll also include discounts and deals, though those seem to happen less and less.) Here’s the latest: Netflix is raising prices again Amazon Prime Video nearly doubles the price to go ad-free and stream 4K video Crunchyroll is raising prices again Paramount Plus is getting a price hike in early 2026 HBO Max is raising prices for the third year in a row Apple TV Plus is getting more expensive and will cost $12.99 per month Roku’s new ad-free video service only costs $2.99 per month Peacock is raising its prices by $3 Max’s password sharing crackdown is about to get serious. Max is going to make you pay for people you share your password with Plex Pass is going up in price — and now you’ll need it for remote playback Ma...
Arkadij Schell/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Seven & i Holdings ( SVNDY ) plans to expand its 7-Eleven store network in Asia, Europe, and other markets as it attempts to strike the right balance between utilizing its Japanese franchise model and U.S. operations with the needs of local markets. 7-Eleven still has the most stores in Japan by a wide margin. After Japan, the biggest store counts a...
Arkadij Schell/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Seven & i Holdings ( SVNDY ) plans to expand its 7-Eleven store network in Asia, Europe, and other markets as it attempts to strike the right balance between utilizing its Japanese franchise model and U.S. operations with the needs of local markets. 7-Eleven still has the most stores in Japan by a wide margin. After Japan, the biggest store counts are in South Korea, the United States, and Thailand. Looking ahead, Seven & i ( SVNDY ) has a target to increase its stores worldwide to 100K by 2030, an increase of 14,000 from the current number. Since the Japanese and U.S. markets are maturing, global expansion is considered key to reaching the lofty goal. "Looking at a world map, there are many countries where we haven't yet entered," stated 7-Eleven International Chairman Shinji Abe. "There's still room for growth," he added. Seven & i Holdings ( SVNDY ) has been planning a U.S. IPO for its North American convenience-store business, with multiple reports saying the listing is targeted for the second half of 2026. That plan is part of a broader restructuring to unlock shareholder value and fund faster growth, including more U.S. store openings and possible acquisitions. More on Seven & i Holdings Historical earnings data for Seven & i Holdings Financial information for Seven & i Holdings
The real-time headphone translations experience keeps each speaker’s tone, emphasis, and cadence intact, so it’s easier to follow the conversation and tell who’s saying what.
The real-time headphone translations experience keeps each speaker’s tone, emphasis, and cadence intact, so it’s easier to follow the conversation and tell who’s saying what.
MicroStockHub/E+ via Getty Images Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows 30-year fixed‑rate mortgages climbing to 6.38% as of March 26, up 16 basis points from last week's 6.22% but still well below the 6.65% recorded a year earlier. Despite the uptick, the housing market continues to improve gradually, with year‑over‑year gains in purchase and refinance applications signaling a...
MicroStockHub/E+ via Getty Images Freddie Mac's latest Primary Mortgage Market Survey shows 30-year fixed‑rate mortgages climbing to 6.38% as of March 26, up 16 basis points from last week's 6.22% but still well below the 6.65% recorded a year earlier. Despite the uptick, the housing market continues to improve gradually, with year‑over‑year gains in purchase and refinance applications signaling a more affordable spring buying season ahead. In light of this, below is a list of the top performing Mortgage REIT stocks ranked by their one-month price performance percentage. The list includes companies in the Mortgage REITs sector and is arranged according to their recent monthly gains or losses. The list is topped by Two Harbors Investment Corp. ( TWO ), which delivered an impressive 17.06% gain over the past month, significantly outpacing its peers. Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. ( ABR ) follows in second place with a 6.00% return, making these two the only stocks on the list with positive monthly performance. The remaining entries on the list showed slightly negative returns for the month. Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. ( ARI ) and BrightSpire Capital, Inc. ( BRSP ) round out the top four positions with modest declines of -0.19% and -0.70%, respectively. The Quant Ratings for all stocks on this list are currently not covered. Here is the list: Two Harbors Investment Corp. ( TWO ), 1 month performance percentage: 17.06% Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. ( ABR ), 1 month performance percentage: 6.00% Apollo Commercial Real Estate Finance, Inc. ( ARI ), 1 month performance percentage: -0.19% BrightSpire Capital, Inc. ( BRSP ), 1 month performance percentage: -0.70% Starwood Property Trust, Inc. ( STWD ), 1 month performance percentage: -1.35% MFA Financial, Inc. ( MFA ), 1 month performance percentage: -1.99% Blackstone Mortgage Trust, Inc. ( BXMT ), 1 month performance percentage: -2.76% Chimera Investment Corporation ( CIM ), 1 month performance percentage: -3.96% Inves...
Research suggested resurgence in Christianity, especially among young people, but some respondents found to be ‘fraudulent’ A YouGov survey showing a significant rise in church attendance in parts of the UK has been withdrawn after some respondents were found to be fraudulent. The poll was central to a Quiet Revival report, published by the Bible Society last year, which prompted news stories abou...
Research suggested resurgence in Christianity, especially among young people, but some respondents found to be ‘fraudulent’ A YouGov survey showing a significant rise in church attendance in parts of the UK has been withdrawn after some respondents were found to be fraudulent. The poll was central to a Quiet Revival report, published by the Bible Society last year, which prompted news stories about an apparent resurgence in Christianity , particularly among young people . Continue reading...
On March 25, a California federal judge certified an investor class in a securities lawsuit against Nvidia Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA) and its founder and CEO, Jensen Huang. The lawsuit accuses the company and its CEO of misleading shareholders about its gaming revenue during 2017 and 2018. It ...
On March 25, a California federal judge certified an investor class in a securities lawsuit against Nvidia Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA) and its founder and CEO, Jensen Huang. The lawsuit accuses the company and its CEO of misleading shareholders about its gaming revenue during 2017 and 2018. It ...