AlexSecret/iStock via Getty Images S&P Global ( SPGI ) is a global financial information services firm focusing on benchmarks, credit ratings, data, and analytics. It has scale and diversified markets with decades of operating experience. Notably, it has a regulated status for its credit rating segment. The firm is spinning off its Mobility segment, which should improve the growth and margin profi...
AlexSecret/iStock via Getty Images S&P Global ( SPGI ) is a global financial information services firm focusing on benchmarks, credit ratings, data, and analytics. It has scale and diversified markets with decades of operating experience. Notably, it has a regulated status for its credit rating segment. The firm is spinning off its Mobility segment, which should improve the growth and margin profile while simplifying the business. Also, it is arguably a leader in AI adoption. As a dividend growth stock, S&P Global is familiar as a Dividend King with a 53-year streak of annual increases and outstanding safety. The company has many attractive qualities, including significant competitive advantages, a sound financial position, historical operating experience in stock and capital markets, and sustained continuous growth over time. That said, investor fears about AI disruption have caused the share price to decline, reducing the valuation to below its historical average. Hence, I view S&P Global as a ‘buy.’ Overview of S&P Global S&P Global, Inc. is a global financial information services firm founded in 1860 and headquartered in New York, New York. Today, it provides benchmarks, credit ratings, data, and analytics. The company operates through five segments: S&P Global Market Intelligence (~33% of total revenue), S&P Global Ratings (~31% of total revenue), S&P Global Energy (~15% of total revenue), S&P Global Mobility (~11% of total revenue), and S&P Dow Jones Indices (~11% of total revenue). The S&P Global Market Intelligence segment provides data and analytics. S&P Global Ratings provides credit ratings and research to clients. The S&P Global Energy provides information and benchmarks for energy and commodity markets. The S&P Global Mobility segment offers solutions to the automotive value chain. The S&P Dow Jones Indices is an index provider. The firm is most famous for its Dow Jones Industrial Average (“DJIA”) and S&P 500 Index and its credit ratings on debt. S&P Gl...
freemixer/E+ via Getty Images The herd got spooked on Friday, but the market is not about to go over the proverbial cliff just yet. In this piece, we outline the reasons why we are betting that the bull market will continue. For two months running, we have been pointing out the pattern of seasonal weakness in the months of May and June. SPX seaonality (equityclock.com) The May "stall" (black-oval,...
freemixer/E+ via Getty Images The herd got spooked on Friday, but the market is not about to go over the proverbial cliff just yet. In this piece, we outline the reasons why we are betting that the bull market will continue. For two months running, we have been pointing out the pattern of seasonal weakness in the months of May and June. SPX seaonality (equityclock.com) The May "stall" (black-oval, below) was too shallow to provide a "buy-the-dip" opportunity, but the June dip (pink-oval) has done that already. May and June "stall" (angtraders.com) We are likely to see some follow-through and more opportunity to profit from selling naked put options, but the conditions remain for the bull market to continue. The fundamental driver of the stock market is money creation. At the moment, money creation is higher than it was last year, and the net-transfer component of money-creation--the net movement of money from the Treasury to private bank accounts--has been improving rapidly over the last two months. When three of the four money measures (net money creation, net transfers, bank credit, and nominal spending) are higher YoY, the SPX closes higher, like it did in 2024 (chart below) Money-Flows (angtraders.com) Friday's impressive drop is unlikely to be the start of a bear market. Bear markets start 6-18 months after the second 10y-2y rate inversion (highlighted on the chart below by pink ovals). If the rate differential continues to move lower at the current pace, it will invert for the second time at the start of 2027, which means a bear market won't start before mid-2027 at the earliest. 10y-2y and unemployment (angtraders.com) While the driver of the market is money, sentiment is the "barometer". Market tops are accompanied by a combination of fear of missing out (greed) and euphoria (it is different this time). The put:call ratio is a proxy for the level of fear and greed in the herd: the lower the ratio is, the lower the hedging is and the less fear that is in the ...
Kuwait is offering to sell its crude to refiners in Asia for the first time since the Iran war started, the latest indication that oil flows from Persian Gulf producers are opening up despite Tehran’s threat to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. At least 4 million barrels of the nation’s main export grade, carried on two very large crude carriers, are being offered to refiners in at least Chin...
Kuwait is offering to sell its crude to refiners in Asia for the first time since the Iran war started, the latest indication that oil flows from Persian Gulf producers are opening up despite Tehran’s threat to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz. At least 4 million barrels of the nation’s main export grade, carried on two very large crude carriers, are being offered to refiners in at least China and South Korea, traders familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified as they’re not authorized to speak to the media. The offers are the latest indication that Hormuz flows are starting to open up — a trend that has coincided with increased US coordination of transits. The United Arab Emirates has also been selling millions of barrels of oil from inside the Persian Gulf to refiners in Asia. Still, flows remain far below prewar levels. Oil from the region’s fifth-largest producer loads from deep inside the Persian Gulf, requiring tankers to run the Hormuz gauntlet to reach global markets. Traders said the oil is being offered directly by state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp. rather than an intermediary. The barrels in question have already exited the waterway and can be taken to ports in Asia promptly, they said, without elaborating on the sales terms. KPC declined to comment.
(RTTNews) - French stocks climbed higher Tuesday morning amid hopes for a peace deal in the Middle East following Israel and Iran halting their attacks against each other. Oil's fall contributed as well to the firm undertone in the market.
(RTTNews) - French stocks climbed higher Tuesday morning amid hopes for a peace deal in the Middle East following Israel and Iran halting their attacks against each other. Oil's fall contributed as well to the firm undertone in the market.
Juliana Sahran/iStock via Getty Images Key Takeaways Markets: In the first quarter of 2026, new issuance of municipal (muni) bonds exceeded the average seen in the past few years (Source: Barclays). The war in the Middle East which began at the end of February, continued throughout March, dominating market sentiment during the month. By quarter-end, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury (...
Juliana Sahran/iStock via Getty Images Key Takeaways Markets: In the first quarter of 2026, new issuance of municipal (muni) bonds exceeded the average seen in the past few years (Source: Barclays). The war in the Middle East which began at the end of February, continued throughout March, dominating market sentiment during the month. By quarter-end, the yield on the benchmark 10-year US Treasury (UST) note moved 15 basis points (BPs) higher to 4.32%, and the yield on the 30-year UST bond increased by seven bps to 4.91%. The March US Federal Reserve (Fed) Federal Open Market Committee meeting left rates unchanged, and the statement and press conference emphasized uncertainty related to the Iran war. The Fed indicated that it would look through any initial oil supply shock effect on inflation to focus on core developments, while also noting a likely dragging effect on the economy; ultimately the Committee retained an easing bias. Contributors: Overweight allocation to muni bonds with 20 or more years to maturity, security selection in A rated bonds and overweight allocation to muni bonds with no external credit rating. Detractors: Security selection in AA rated bonds, security selection in AAA rated bonds and overweight allocation to A rated bonds. Outlook: Municipal bond valuations continue to appear attractive, particularly on a tax-adjusted basis. In a more challenging environment, strong bottom-up research and disciplined security selection will be essential to identifying relative value and preserving portfolio quality. Morningstar Rating™ Overall Rating as of March 31, 2026 ★★★★ (4-Star) Advisor Class ★★★ (3-Star) Class A As of 03/31/2026 the fund's Advisor Class shares received a 4 star and Class A shares received a 3 star overall Morningstar rating™, measuring risk-adjusted returns against 255, 233 and 176 Muni National Intermediate funds over the 3-, 5- and 10-year periods, respectively. A fund's overall rating is derived from a weighted average of the perfor...
White Cube Bermondsey, London A body falls through the sky, figures flail and thrash, while sagging skin and brittle limbs are scrawled on every work. This is the German painter’s last collection – and it’s both brutal and beautiful On one wall, a body falls calmly through a serene blue sky. On the opposite, splat, it’s landed with a thud on the blood-spattered mud. You don’t need to be an expert ...
White Cube Bermondsey, London A body falls through the sky, figures flail and thrash, while sagging skin and brittle limbs are scrawled on every work. This is the German painter’s last collection – and it’s both brutal and beautiful On one wall, a body falls calmly through a serene blue sky. On the opposite, splat, it’s landed with a thud on the blood-spattered mud. You don’t need to be an expert in image analysis to figure out what Georg Baselitz’s final paintings are about: death was coming for him, and he knew it. Baselitz died in April aged 88 years old. He was one of the most influential, recognisable painters of his generation, and this body of work was his last. It’s impossible to look at these paintings and drawings and not see them through the lens of death. They feel like a final attempt to come to terms with life and what it has meant, and a desperate, furious, chaotic reckoning with the end of it all. Continue reading...
Key PointsSpaceX's June 12 IPO could raise $75 billion and value the company at $1.8 trillion, making it potentially the largest public offering in history.
Key PointsSpaceX's June 12 IPO could raise $75 billion and value the company at $1.8 trillion, making it potentially the largest public offering in history.