DorSteffen/iStock via Getty Images The European Union and India have reached a landmark free trade agreement after nearly two decades of negotiations, the largest such deal concluded by either side, representing about one-third of global trade. "We have concluded the mother of all deals," declared European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who is on a three-day visit to India. "We have cr...
DorSteffen/iStock via Getty Images The European Union and India have reached a landmark free trade agreement after nearly two decades of negotiations, the largest such deal concluded by either side, representing about one-third of global trade. "We have concluded the mother of all deals," declared European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who is on a three-day visit to India. "We have created a free trade zone of 2B people, with both sides set to benefit." "This agreement represents approximately 25% of global GDP and about one-third of global trade," India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced. The EU and India already trade over €180B ($213.36B) worth of goods and services per year. The FTA is expected to double EU exports to India by 2032 by eliminating or reducing tariffs, saving around €4B ($4.74B) per year in duties on European products. Under the deal, India will slash tariffs on EU cars from 110% to as low as 10%, and duties on car parts will be eliminated after 5-10 years. India will mostly eliminate tariffs ranging up to 44% on machinery, 22% on chemicals and 11% on pharmaceuticals that it imports from the EU. The FTA also removes or reduces India's tariffs on EU exports of agri-food products—tariffs on wines will be cut from 150% to 75% and eventually to levels as low as 20%; tariffs on olive oil will go down from 45% to 0% over five years; processed agricultural products like bread and confectionary will see tariffs of up to 50% eliminated. The deal will grant EU companies privileged access to the Indian services market, including sectors such as financial services and maritime transport. The EU and India intend to launch a joint platform on climate action in the first half of 2026. The EU plans to provide €500M in support over the next two years to help India's efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and accelerate its long-term sustainable industrial transformation. The FTA must be approved by the European Parliament and ratified by Ind...
Updates from the decider in Colombo, 9am GMT start Always in reserve: Dawson’s moment beckons at last Liam Dawson has been around for England’s finest white-ball moments in the past decade. He was an uncapped inclusion in the 2016 World T20 touring party, when Eoin Morgan’s fresh-faced team were denied right at the end by Carlos Brathwaite’s “remember the name” sixes . He was there as a squad memb...
Updates from the decider in Colombo, 9am GMT start Always in reserve: Dawson’s moment beckons at last Liam Dawson has been around for England’s finest white-ball moments in the past decade. He was an uncapped inclusion in the 2016 World T20 touring party, when Eoin Morgan’s fresh-faced team were denied right at the end by Carlos Brathwaite’s “remember the name” sixes . He was there as a squad member on that golden day at Lord’s in 2019 and a travelling reserve when England won the T20 World Cup in Australia three years later. But, remarkably, the 35-year-old is still waiting to make his debut at a global tournament. It has been an international career spent on call, limited to 33 appearances in all formats, his left-arm spin and handy batting there to use in case of emergency. Continue reading...
SementsovaLesia/iStock via Getty Images What is the overall trend in commodity prices? Prices will be flat to slightly upward in 2026 for most globally traded industrial commodities, with crude oil the major exception. Trade barriers will continue to increase. Any upside pressure to pricing is more likely to come from supply disruptions or trade policies than from demand. As measured by the Materi...
SementsovaLesia/iStock via Getty Images What is the overall trend in commodity prices? Prices will be flat to slightly upward in 2026 for most globally traded industrial commodities, with crude oil the major exception. Trade barriers will continue to increase. Any upside pressure to pricing is more likely to come from supply disruptions or trade policies than from demand. As measured by the Materials Price Index (MPI) by S&P Global Market Intelligence, industrial materials prices bottomed in the second quarter of 2025. For the fourth quarter of 2025, the MPI was 5% below its year-earlier level. Year-over-year growth for the second quarter of 2026 is expected to be only 0.7%, and for the second quarter of 2027 it is an additional 2.9%. There is no overwhelming driver such as COVID-19-related shortages (2020–22) or relapse from the spike (2023–24). Therefore, analysis is best done for individual commodities rather than trying to assert a broad trend. The key for buyers looking at 2026 compared with 2025 is higher prices for metals and lower prices for crude oil, natural gas outside of the US, and chemicals. The strong divergence of different regional environments is also noteworthy. What is our forecast for energy-related commodity prices? A loose crude oil market will keep prices low over 2026. OPEC+ production gains over the course of 2025 have created a supply glut. This will keep Brent crude prices at or slightly below $60/b for the duration of 2026. The United States’ Jan. 3 apprehension of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro is unlikely to have much effect on prices — at least in the short term. Venezuelan crude production is much lower than its turn of the millennium peak, and the likely effects on imports will have only marginal effects on global prices. This year will see the strongest US natural gas price since 2022. A wave of natural gas export facilities came online during 2025. Despite entering the withdrawal season with inventories at the top of the five...
London ( UKX ) +0.21% to 10,169. Germany ( DAX:IND ) +0.09% to 24,954. France ( CAC:IND ) -0.01% to 8,130. Consumer confidence in France stood at 90 in January 2026, unchanged from December. In other parts of Europe, Spain’s unemployment rate fell to 9.93% in Q4. Sweden’s trade surplus widened to SEK 7.4 billion in December. Producer prices in Sweden fell 2.7% Y/Y in December. Finland’s manufactur...
London ( UKX ) +0.21% to 10,169. Germany ( DAX:IND ) +0.09% to 24,954. France ( CAC:IND ) -0.01% to 8,130. Consumer confidence in France stood at 90 in January 2026, unchanged from December. In other parts of Europe, Spain’s unemployment rate fell to 9.93% in Q4. Sweden’s trade surplus widened to SEK 7.4 billion in December. Producer prices in Sweden fell 2.7% Y/Y in December. Finland’s manufacturing confidence fell to -1 in January. Finland’s consumer confidence dropped to -8.7 in January. Finland’s unemployment rate rose to 9.8% in December. Retail sales in Denmark rose by 3.3% Y/Y in December. The pan-European Stoxx 600 ( STOXX ) traded 0.22% higher to 610.9, a s investors digested a fresh round of corporate earnings. Passenger car registrations in the EU increased 5.8% Y/Y to a six-month high of 963,319 units in December 2025. Tesla ( TSLA ) finished 2025 with weaker European sales, as Chinese automaker BYD ( BYDDF ) continued to outperform Elon Musk’s EV company. The European Union and India concluded a long-awaited free trade agreement after nearly two decades of negotiations. In the bond market , the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield was up 1 basis point to 4.22%. Germany's 10-year yield was up less than 1 basis point to 2.88%. UK's 10-year yield was up less than 1 basis point to 4.51%. Currencies: ( EUR:USD ) ( GBP:USD ) ( CHF:USD ) ETFs: (NYSEARCA: EWG ), (NYSE: GF ), (NYSEARCA: EWI ), (NYSEARCA: EWQ ), (NASDAQ: FGM ), (NASDAQ: DAX ), (NYSEARCA: FLGR ), (NYSEARCA: FXB ), (NYSEARCA: EWU ), (NASDAQ: FKU ), (BATS: EWUS ), (NYSEARCA: FLGB ), (NYSEARCA: GREK ) More on Europe DAX: What To Know About The ETF That Tracks The 'S&P 500' Of Germany EUR/USD Hints A Breakout After Latest Trump-Greenland Chaos (Technical Analysis) Impact On U.S.-EU Tensions: Risk-Off, U.S. Dollar Subdued, Heightened Demand For Gold And Silver Tesla struggles in Europe as BYD surges past EV sales European stocks mixed at start of week dominated by Fed’s rate decision
(RTTNews) - Asian stocks advanced on Tuesday after Wall Street's strong overnight performance. Investors shrugged off geopolitical and U.S. government shutdown worries to focus on upcoming big tech earnings and the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision. Spot gold hit a new record high above $5,100 an ounce while the U.S. dollar fell as investors reassessed President Trump's policies, geopolitic...
(RTTNews) - Asian stocks advanced on Tuesday after Wall Street's strong overnight performance. Investors shrugged off geopolitical and U.S. government shutdown worries to focus on upcoming big tech earnings and the Federal Reserve's interest-rate decision. Spot gold hit a new record high above $5,100 an ounce while the U.S. dollar fell as investors reassessed President Trump's policies, geopolitical risks and the outlook for European-held U.S. financial assets. Oil prices traded lower in Asian trade on oversupply concerns. China's Shanghai Composite index edged up by 0.18 percent to 4,139.90 after data showed profits at China's industrial firms rose in 2025 for the first time in four years. Hong Kong's Hang Seng index jumped 1.35 percent to 27,126.95, extending a rally for a fifth day running on signs of improved earnings momentum for Chinese industrial firms. Japanese markets rose notably as the yen steadied after recent strong gains amid speculation the U.S. may coordinate intervention with Japan. The Nikkei average rose 0.85 percent to 53,333. 54 amid gains in heavyweight technology stocks. The broader Topix index settled 0.31 percent higher at 3,563.59. Advantest surged 5.9 percent and Tokyo Electron rallied 2.5 percent Seoul stocks soared to end at a new high despite U.S. President Trump's threat to raise tariffs on Korean imports. Trump attributed a 25 percent tariff hike on South Korean goods to the country's legislature failing to codify a trade agreement reached with the U.S. last year. Seoul's presidential office assured the U.S. it was committed to implement the deal with Washington and would respond calmly to the tariff announcement. The Kospi average climbed 2.73 percent to 5,084.85, with semiconductor stocks leading the surge. Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix jumped 4.9 percent and 8.7 percent, respectively to reach new record levels. Australian markets hit a three-month in a broad-based rally led by mining and gold stocks. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 su...
Oselote Tencent ( TCEHY ) plans to expand its data center footprint in the Middle East, a top executive at the Chinese tech giant told CNBC, as the company looks to boost its cloud computing business outside China. Dowson Tong, CEO of Tencent’s cloud group, said that the company plans to expand the number of “availability zones,” locations designated as sites for potential clusters of data centers...
Oselote Tencent ( TCEHY ) plans to expand its data center footprint in the Middle East, a top executive at the Chinese tech giant told CNBC, as the company looks to boost its cloud computing business outside China. Dowson Tong, CEO of Tencent’s cloud group, said that the company plans to expand the number of “availability zones,” locations designated as sites for potential clusters of data centers, for its cloud services over the next 12 to 18 months in countries across Asia Pacific, Europe, and the Middle East. In the Middle East, Tencent ( TCEHY ) is “actively” exploring building data centers there to service cloud customers, Dowson added. “We do intend to increase our investment in the region and establish a stronger partnership network. And that’s all in the plan,” he said, declining to give more specific timelines or countries where exactly the availability zones might be. Last year, Nvidia ( NVDA ), OpenAI ( OPENAI ), and partners launched the Stargate AI project in the UAE to build a major AI computing hub. More on Tencent Tencent: A Flagship Chinese Tech Giant Still Trading Below Intrinsic Value Tencent Holdings Limited (TCEHY) Q3 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Tencent Holdings Limited 2025 Q3 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation China informs Alibaba, others to prep for Nvidia H200 orders: report Polen Global Growth Portfolio adds to Taiwan Semiconductor, trims stake in Oracle in Q4 2025
Alexander Sikov/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis Strive U.S. Semiconductor ETF ( SHOC ) warrants a buy rating due to its strong mix of top semiconductor companies that are demonstrating accelerating growth with competitive advantages in the industry. Furthermore, the fund has a competitive expense ratio and reasonable valuation. However, I prefer VanEck Semiconductor ETF ( SMH ) due to it...
Alexander Sikov/iStock via Getty Images Investment Thesis Strive U.S. Semiconductor ETF ( SHOC ) warrants a buy rating due to its strong mix of top semiconductor companies that are demonstrating accelerating growth with competitive advantages in the industry. Furthermore, the fund has a competitive expense ratio and reasonable valuation. However, I prefer VanEck Semiconductor ETF ( SMH ) due to its inclusion of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company ( TSM ) and its slightly lower fees. Strive U.S. Semiconductor ETF—Overview and Compared ETFs SHOC is a passively managed ETF that seeks to capture a broad cap-weighted list of U.S. semiconductor companies. Therefore, SHOC excludes many international holdings such as TSM. With its inception in 2022, the fund has 31 holdings and $154M in AUM. For comparison purposes, other funds examined are VanEck Semiconductor ETF, State Street® SPDR® S&P® Semiconductor ETF ( XSD ), and Invesco Semiconductors ETF ( PSI ). SMH is a popular fund that seeks to capture the largest semiconductor companies in both the United States and around the world. I wrote on SMH in early 2024 and rated the fund a strong buy, which I still maintain. XSD differs from all other funds in that it uses a modified equal-weight index to capture a mixture of large, mid, and small-cap semiconductor companies. PSI captures the top 30 U.S. semiconductor companies based on criteria including price and earnings momentum, quality, and value. Funds Compared: Performance, Expense Ratio, and Dividend Yield SHOC has an impressive 3-year average annualized return of 41.41%. XSD saw the worst 3-year performance with an average annual return of 24.67%. However, this performance was still superior to the broader market, as measured by the S&P 500 Index over the past three years. PSI also saw a strong 3-year average return of 33.48%. SMH saw the best 3-year performance with an average return of 53.17%. 3-Year Total Return: SHOC and Compared ETFs (Seeking Alpha) SHOC’s expe...
tadamichi/iStock via Getty Images The following segment was excerpted from the Highwood Value Partners H2 2025 Letter To Investors. Portfolio Review As such, I think the best use of the remainder of this letter is to provide insight into “the big five” investments. My intention is to give you a more focused assessment of each investment case across a few key variables rather than a general update ...
tadamichi/iStock via Getty Images The following segment was excerpted from the Highwood Value Partners H2 2025 Letter To Investors. Portfolio Review As such, I think the best use of the remainder of this letter is to provide insight into “the big five” investments. My intention is to give you a more focused assessment of each investment case across a few key variables rather than a general update on development of all our investments as I usually do. If you wish to know the developments at Trigano ( TGNOF ), Motorpoint ( MTPTF ) or JZ Capital ( JZCLF ), please get in touch and I will provide those as well. Below is the usual table which summarizes key statistics on the portfolio as of December 31st and previous periods for comparison. To summarize, we are 83% invested in the shares of 11 companies, we employ no leverage and the companies we own are well capitalised (net cash balance sheets on average). We own their common stock at 48 cents on the dollar of my estimate of fair value and median P/E of 7.5x. Highwood Value Partners Portfolio As of Date % Invested Median Price / Est. Intrinsic Value Median Market Cap, in Mns of USD Median Net Debt (CASH) / EBITDA Median EV / Sales Median P/E 31-Dec-19 41% 0.54x 550 -0.8x 1.6x 15.1x 31-Dec-20 78% 0.69x 713 -0.3x 2.2x 13.1x 31-Dec-21 84% 0.52x 1387 -0.5x 2.0x 13.3x 31-Dec-22 96% 0.45x 1013 0.2x 1.0x 10.6x 31-Dec-23 95% 0.54x 1027 -0.2x 0.9x 10.7x 31-Dec-24 97% 0.47x 2008 -0.5x 1.3x 8.1x 31-Dec-25 83% 0.48x 2292 -1.2x 1.2x 7.5x Click to enlarge The Big Five In this section I will assess the investment cases for our five largest positions with respect to (a) how the corporate fundamentals are developing versus my initial thesis, (b) why the opportunity in the shares likely exists in a competitive equity market and (c) catalysts on the horizon to drive the closing of the gap between price and value over the next year or two. 1) Burford Capital ( BUR ) – Core Value Burford Capital is our UK listed global market leader in liti...