When Ubokobong Amanam lost his fingers in an accident he teamed up with his brother John, a special effects artist, to design a prosthetic that suited him – now they run a thriving business On a humid morning in Uyo, Nigeria, Ubokobong Amanam shows off the lifelike prosthetic where his fingers once were. The skin bears tiny wrinkles, and the nails are naturally shaped. Seven years ago, he was badl...
When Ubokobong Amanam lost his fingers in an accident he teamed up with his brother John, a special effects artist, to design a prosthetic that suited him – now they run a thriving business On a humid morning in Uyo, Nigeria, Ubokobong Amanam shows off the lifelike prosthetic where his fingers once were. The skin bears tiny wrinkles, and the nails are naturally shaped. Seven years ago, he was badly injured in a firework accident. Doctors could save him, but not his fingers. The prosthetics available at the time were clumsy, poorly fitted and designed for bodies nothing like his. Continue reading...
Fresh from a rampant qualification and a win over Brazil, Hajime Moriyasu’s side want to make another statement with a first victory over England Just before the 2002 World Cup, South Korea played Scotland and England in the space of a few days. A 4-1 win against the former in the second city of Busan was followed by a 1-1 draw on the honeymoon island of Jeju, with the future Manchester United tea...
Fresh from a rampant qualification and a win over Brazil, Hajime Moriyasu’s side want to make another statement with a first victory over England Just before the 2002 World Cup, South Korea played Scotland and England in the space of a few days. A 4-1 win against the former in the second city of Busan was followed by a 1-1 draw on the honeymoon island of Jeju, with the future Manchester United teammates Michael Owen and Park Ji-sung the scorers. These results gave the Taegeuk Warriors the confidence to reach the semi finals. Japan are not on home soil but have lined up the same opposition, beating Scotland 1-0 in Glasgow on Saturday before heading to Wembley on Tuesday. Continue reading...
After setting the women’s around-the-world record two years ago, the Alaskan is aiming for a new mark with her next 18,000 mile journey On 11 September 2024, Lael Wilcox returned to Chicago after 108 days in the saddle , smashing the women’s around-the-world cycling record by more than two weeks. The extraordinary feat had taken her 18,000 miles over remote mountains and across 22 countries. But i...
After setting the women’s around-the-world record two years ago, the Alaskan is aiming for a new mark with her next 18,000 mile journey On 11 September 2024, Lael Wilcox returned to Chicago after 108 days in the saddle , smashing the women’s around-the-world cycling record by more than two weeks. The extraordinary feat had taken her 18,000 miles over remote mountains and across 22 countries. But it left Wilcox with a lingering question: could she break Mark Beaumont’s outright record of 78 days and 14 hours? Shaving 30 days off her time would require a major pivot in philosophy from adventure riding to pure racing, with an emphasis on efficiency, aerodynamics, and rigorous planning. Motivated to prove that women can compete with men in ultra-cycling, Wilcox will start her second attempt on 7 June in Chicago. Continue reading...
Welcome to the forum for Dividend Growth Investing discussion on Seeking Alpha. A new article is posted every two weeks as a space for sharing of ideas, discussing concepts, and digging deeper on DGI. All previous blogs are listed in chronological succession on the main chat page . As promised and with your valued feedback, we are publishing a new version of the article with some changes to make i...
Welcome to the forum for Dividend Growth Investing discussion on Seeking Alpha. A new article is posted every two weeks as a space for sharing of ideas, discussing concepts, and digging deeper on DGI. All previous blogs are listed in chronological succession on the main chat page . As promised and with your valued feedback, we are publishing a new version of the article with some changes to make it more engaging. The structure of the article will now include a response from one of you in the community regarding your thoughts on DGI. If you’d like to share your DGI thoughts with us in future editions, you can email us at moderation@seekingalpha.com and let us know . We’ll be looking at continuing to do this moving forward. For a reminder, you can find our moderation guidelines for this space in our profile . And please share your thoughts below to continue the discussion and learning on DGI. More on Dividend Growth Investing: How Our 7-Funds Portfolio Earns 7.8% And Potentially Beats The Market The portfolio has delivered a trailing 12-month yield on cost of 9.42% and an annualized return ( CAGR ) of 14.67%, outperforming the S&P500 with 20% lower volatility. This strategy is designed for retirees seeking high, consistent income and reduced volatility without sacrificing long-term growth potential. The Biggest Risk In BDCs, And How I Mitigate It As A Bull The average debt to equity for private BDCs is 0.94x, which offers sizeable access to additional liquidity (debt) to meet the redemptions in case through organic loan repayments it is not possible. Similarly, based on recent examples , it is clear that there is a "NAV-aligned" market to sell parts of the portfolio (without fire-sale discounts). In the worst case, the alternative asset managers themselves could step in with the necessary firepower. 5 Lessons That Completely Reshaped How I Approach Dividend Investing On the surface, dividend investing looks very simple: simply buy a diversified portfolio of stocks tha...
This is the forum for Growth & Total Return discussion on Seeking Alpha. A new chat begins every two weeks, and all previous blogs are listed in chronological succession on the main chat page . We won't be doing any comment cleanup in the new chat, and users will always be able to refer back to previous discussions. More on Today's Markets: Micron: Don't Try To Call The Top, Just Choose Your Risk ...
This is the forum for Growth & Total Return discussion on Seeking Alpha. A new chat begins every two weeks, and all previous blogs are listed in chronological succession on the main chat page . We won't be doing any comment cleanup in the new chat, and users will always be able to refer back to previous discussions. More on Today's Markets: Micron: Don't Try To Call The Top, Just Choose Your Risk Appetite We also have the ironic knock-on effect to consider. Lower memory intensity per workload can reduce inference cost, broaden deployment, and raise total usage. However, when coupled with potential energy bottlenecks, maybe the base case is upside resistance, not heavy downside risk. I'm humble enough to say I don't know for sure. Fastly: The Future Is Bright, But Watch For These Threats Based on its past, current, and forecast results, I expect Fastly to keep growing, and in 2026 and beyond, to grow profitably. I reach that conclusion despite the concerns noted. AMD: Helium Shortage Is The Least Of Its Problems NVDA has long struggled to meet demand. A second supplier could alleviate this supply pressure. However, looking at the results of the most recent standardized MLPerf test, NVDA's GPUs produce far more tokens per second compared to those of AMD. Assuming that the test standardizes power consumption, this could mean that NVDA's accelerators produce more tokens per second per watt. In a world where data center power supply is scarce, this is a value proposition that's hard to ignore. Broadcom: A Great Company At A Fair Price I’ll first go through the latest earnings as to provide a quick snapshot of what has been happening at the firm. Broadcom posted a double beat in its fiscal Q1 with Non-GAAP EPS coming out to $2.05, a slight beat of 3 cents, while revenue came out to a staggering $19.31B, a 29.4% Y/Y growth rate and a beat of $170MM. This was largely linked to the robust demand for custom AI accelerators and AI networking, with the overall AI revenue growth...
Ildo Frazao/iStock via Getty Images FDEM Strategy Fidelity Emerging Markets Multifactor ETF ( FDEM ) was launched on 2/26/2019 and tracks the Fidelity Emerging Markets Multifactor Index. FDEM has a portfolio of 197 stocks, a 12-month trailing yield of 3.26%, and an expense ratio of 0.25%. Distributions are paid quarterly. As described in the prospectus by Fidelity, the underlying index focuses on ...
Ildo Frazao/iStock via Getty Images FDEM Strategy Fidelity Emerging Markets Multifactor ETF ( FDEM ) was launched on 2/26/2019 and tracks the Fidelity Emerging Markets Multifactor Index. FDEM has a portfolio of 197 stocks, a 12-month trailing yield of 3.26%, and an expense ratio of 0.25%. Distributions are paid quarterly. As described in the prospectus by Fidelity, the underlying index focuses on large- and mid-cap emerging markets companies. Constituents are selected based on a composite score involving four factors: valuation, quality, momentum, and low volatility. Stocks are weighted based on market capitalization, with a sector adjustment. Weights are increased for the five sectors with the lowest correlation to a U.S. equity benchmark and decreased for the six sectors with the highest correlation. The portfolio turnover rate was 76% in the most recent fiscal year. I will use the iShares MSCI Emerging Markets ETF ( EEM ) as a benchmark. Portfolio The fund is mostly invested in large- and mega-cap companies (75% of asset value), with significant exposure in China (25.8%), Taiwan (19.4%), and South Korea (16.7%). Other countries are below 10%. The aggregate weight of China and Taiwan (45.2%) points to significant geopolitical risk, like for most emerging markets funds. FDEM top countries (chart: author; data: Fidelity, iShares) The presence of South Korea and Taiwan among emerging markets is debatable. South Korea has been considered a developed country by S&P since 2001, and Taiwan surpassed it in GDP per capita in 2025 . Both countries are ahead of the E.U., U.K., and Japan in GDP at purchasing power parity per capita . The fund has 27.5% of assets in technology, while other sectors are below 15%. FDEM offers a more balanced sector breakdown than EEM, by downplaying technology and financials. FDEM sector breakdown (chart: author; data: Fidelity, iShares) Almost 11% of asset value is in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing ( TSM ), but risks related to other indivi...
The Dietary Guidelines released this year recommend higher levels of this essential nutrient. But protein needs are personal. Here's how to assess yours. (Image credit: a_namenko/iStockphoto)
The Dietary Guidelines released this year recommend higher levels of this essential nutrient. But protein needs are personal. Here's how to assess yours. (Image credit: a_namenko/iStockphoto)
The Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday on whether all children born in the United States can continue to automatically receive citizenship. (Image credit: Jim Watson)
The Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday on whether all children born in the United States can continue to automatically receive citizenship. (Image credit: Jim Watson)
All children, regardless of immigration status, have the right to a free K-12 public education. But without birthright citizenship, access to schools and colleges could get complicated.
All children, regardless of immigration status, have the right to a free K-12 public education. But without birthright citizenship, access to schools and colleges could get complicated.
Chinese AI companies are focused less on being cutting edge and more on attracting customers. That means holiday promotions, and making chatbots useful in everyday life. (Image credit: ADEK BERRY/AFP via Getty Images)
Chinese AI companies are focused less on being cutting edge and more on attracting customers. That means holiday promotions, and making chatbots useful in everyday life. (Image credit: ADEK BERRY/AFP via Getty Images)
The Canadian government awarded three long-term support contracts worth about C$1.5 billion ($1.1 billion) to L3Harris Technologies Inc. and Airbus SE as part of its push to increase defense spending. The agreements provide in-service support for Canada’s new CC-330 Husky fleet , which will be used for air-to-air refueling, passenger transport, medical evacuation and strategic missions. L3Harris’ ...
The Canadian government awarded three long-term support contracts worth about C$1.5 billion ($1.1 billion) to L3Harris Technologies Inc. and Airbus SE as part of its push to increase defense spending. The agreements provide in-service support for Canada’s new CC-330 Husky fleet , which will be used for air-to-air refueling, passenger transport, medical evacuation and strategic missions. L3Harris’ military aircraft solutions unit received two contracts totaling C$1.1 billion for maintenance services, while Airbus’ defense and space unit received a C$374 million contract to supply engineering and airworthiness support, according to a government news release. Canada announced the purchase of nine Husky aircraft in 2023 — four new Airbus A330 Multi Role Tanker Transport aircraft and five converted A330-200s, for a total cost of C$3.6 billion. The fleet will replace the aging CC-150 Polaris aircraft, with a first delivery expected in 2027. The new support contracts have the potential to create and maintain 720 jobs in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta, and will ensure the fleet can “respond to evolving threats, safeguard our sovereignty, and uphold Canada’s enduring commitments to our allies — whenever and wherever required,” Procurement Minister Joel Lightbound said in the statement. Last week, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced the government increased defense spending enough in 2025 to reach NATO’s target of allocating 2% of its gross domestic product. Canada has also committed to reaching the alliance’s 5% benchmark by 2035. Read More: Canada Spends 2% of GDP on Defense For First Time in Decades
Watch: EU Parliament Told Continent Is "On Track For Civil War" Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, Europe’s ruling class has spent decades importing chaos under the banner of “diversity,” and now the bill is coming due in the most explosive way possible. A major conference held inside the European Parliament has heard stark warnings that the continent is barreling toward civil war as mas...
Watch: EU Parliament Told Continent Is "On Track For Civil War" Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news, Europe’s ruling class has spent decades importing chaos under the banner of “diversity,” and now the bill is coming due in the most explosive way possible. A major conference held inside the European Parliament has heard stark warnings that the continent is barreling toward civil war as mass migration erodes trust, creates no-go zones, and fractures societies along ethnic lines. Professor David Betz of King’s College London cut straight to the point, telling the assembled lawmakers and experts: “Europe is on track for civil war”. European Parliament Hosts “Civil War? Europe at Risk” Conference Amid Rising Social Tensions MEPs Mikael Weimers and Marion Maréchal convene experts warning that eroding social cohesion from mass immigration could push Europe toward civil conflict, with Prof. David Betz… pic.twitter.com/80RUypdOqB — Washington Eye (@washington_EY) March 25, 2026 The event, titled Civil War: Europe at Risk? , was hosted by French populist-right leader Marion Maréchal and Sweden Democrats MEP Charlie Weimers. It also launched a new report documenting up to a thousand no-go zones across Europe based on public data including crime rates, sexual violence, youth gangs, unemployment, school performance, antisemitism, homophobia, mosque density, attacks on firefighters, and NGO presence. Maréchal opened the conference by reflecting that formerly peaceful and stable societies are “rapidly transforming before our eyes into societies of violence and mistrust”, stating that “the main basis of trust between citizens is cultural homogeneity”, which is now fast eroding. She warned Europe is already under a great strain of “diffuse guerrilla activity”, which takes various forms, including “riots, looting, random attacks, anti-white racism, and terrorist attacks”. Weimers echoed the assessment, noting the impact of mass migration on cultural cohesion. The Swedish MEP...
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. is targeting profits to increase by about a third as it seeks growth without large acquisitions, a shift from its appetite for deals that had driven billion-dollar transactions in recent years. Japan’s second-largest lender is aiming for ¥2 trillion ($12.5 billion) in profit and a 13% return on tangible equity in three years, Chief Executive Officer Toru Nakash...
Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. is targeting profits to increase by about a third as it seeks growth without large acquisitions, a shift from its appetite for deals that had driven billion-dollar transactions in recent years. Japan’s second-largest lender is aiming for ¥2 trillion ($12.5 billion) in profit and a 13% return on tangible equity in three years, Chief Executive Officer Toru Nakashima said in an interview. To achieve that, the banking giant that has snapped up targets from India to Vietnam is looking to build on areas such as sales and trading through its tie-up with Jefferies Financial Group Inc. and transaction banking. “Inorganic growth is not high on our mind for the next three years,” Nakashima said. “We are in an environment where we can make solid growth organically.” Sumitomo Mitsui has been one of the most aggressive dealmakers in Asia along with its domestic rivals. The firm and its core banking subsidiary have announced about $10 billion of financial deals since 2020, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. It has sought to establish a full range of financial services in four overseas countries including India where it announced a landmark acquisition last year. The bank expects to post a record annual net income of ¥1.5 trillion for the year ending in March, helped by rising interest rates in Japan, and Nakashima said the bank can further boost earnings in coming years. The lender is set to report results in May, when it’ll also unveil a new three-year growth plan. Nakashima said these target figures may change if economic conditions drastically worsen in coming weeks. Japanese shares have been hard hit in recent weeks by the fallout from the Iran war and as the outlook for further rate hikes gets trickier to predict. Nakashima said the lender’s joint venture in Japan with Jefferies will be one of the key growth drivers for its new strategy starting in April. The partnership with the Wall Street firm to run stock research, sales and trad...
(RTTNews) - SUSS MicroTec SE (SESMF, SMHN.F) shares were losing around 3 percent in Germany after the manufacturer of equipment and process solutions for the semiconductor industry on Monday reported lower earnings and orders for fiscal 2025, even though sales were higher. Furthe
(RTTNews) - SUSS MicroTec SE (SESMF, SMHN.F) shares were losing around 3 percent in Germany after the manufacturer of equipment and process solutions for the semiconductor industry on Monday reported lower earnings and orders for fiscal 2025, even though sales were higher. Furthe
Torsten Asmus European equity markets started the week mostly unchanged. Investor caution grew as tensions with Iran continued, and President Trump mentioned potentially seizing Iran’s oil resources, and Houthi militants targeted Israel, contributing to rising oil prices and inflation concerns. Oil prices surged to their highest since 2022. London ( UKX ) +0.74% at 10,042.12 . Germany ( DAX:IND ) ...
Torsten Asmus European equity markets started the week mostly unchanged. Investor caution grew as tensions with Iran continued, and President Trump mentioned potentially seizing Iran’s oil resources, and Houthi militants targeted Israel, contributing to rising oil prices and inflation concerns. Oil prices surged to their highest since 2022. London ( UKX ) +0.74% at 10,042.12 . Germany ( DAX:IND ) +0.04% to 22,324.61 . France ( CAC:IND ) +0.36% to 7,729.84 . In other parts of Europe, in February 2026, retail trade in Spain increased by 2.2% year-on-year, down from 3.8% in January and below analysts' predictions. Sweden's retail sales rose by 2.4%, less than the previous month's 3.9%. Switzerland’s KOF Economic Barometer fell to 96.1 in March, the lowest since June 2025. The pan-European Stoxx 600 ( STOXX) traded 0.42% higher to 577.70 . European natural gas futures rose to €55.5 per MWh on Monday, a 73% surge so far in March, putting it on track for the strongest monthly gain since September 2021. Investors also turned their attention to a wave of key economic data due this week, including March inflation flash estimates from Europe’s major economies. Market sentiment has shifted sharply on ECB policy, with traders now pricing in at least two interest rate hikes this year. In the bond market , the yield on the US 10-year Treasury was slightly changed to 4.388%. The UK's 10-year yield was slightly changed to 4.951%. Germany's 10-year yield was slightly changed to 3.08% 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 EUR/USD Found Support Above 1.1495, Potential Push Up Towards 'Expanding Wedge' Range Resistance GBP/USD Chart Alert: Bull Flag Pattern In Play Ahead Of Retail Sales Data Logical Skepticism For Peace Pulls The Petrodo...
Veronika Dul/iStock via Getty Images By Joseph V. Amato There will be multiple twists and turns over days, weeks and months, but a de-escalation in the Middle East conflict is more likely than not. March is typically the month when many of us follow college basketball and the “March Madness” of watching exciting men’s and women’s games. Not this year. As we enter the fifth week of the Gulf war, al...
Veronika Dul/iStock via Getty Images By Joseph V. Amato There will be multiple twists and turns over days, weeks and months, but a de-escalation in the Middle East conflict is more likely than not. March is typically the month when many of us follow college basketball and the “March Madness” of watching exciting men’s and women’s games. Not this year. As we enter the fifth week of the Gulf war, all eyes are on energy markets and geopolitical risks. What seems surprising is that risk markets have held up better than expected since the conflict ignited, causing a fissure in the geopolitical landscape of the Middle East and forcing the effective closure of the most important energy chokepoint in the world. At the time of writing, the MSCI ACWI index is down about 8% since the conflict began on February 28 and down about 5% year-to-date. The U.S. rates market has also moved about 50 basis points higher, while credit spreads have remained relatively contained during the war. Global markets appear, therefore, to be rationalizing developments across a wide range of outcomes and arriving at a measured conclusion: de-escalation is the most likely path forward. The Strait of Hormuz is simply too important geopolitically and economically for its effective closure to persist. At the same time, the lower oil intensity of the global economy today has helped drive a more measured market response to the war. A Local Chokepoint of Global Importance Despite the lower oil intensity, the commodity is still critical to world economic activity. Approximately 20 million barrels of oil per day (around 20% of global supply) transit through the Strait, with large volumes of helium, liquified natural gas (LNG), refined fuels, petrochemical feedstocks and fertilizers also needing to move through, highlighting the channel's centrality to global industrial supply chains. The duration of this shock and the extent of the energy shortages remain the key variables. Even if a ceasefire is declared in...