US retail sales stalled in December, as the value of retail purchases, unadjusted for inflation, was little changed after a 0.6% gain in November. Stuart Paul of Bloomberg Economics has more. (Source: Bloomberg)
US retail sales stalled in December, as the value of retail purchases, unadjusted for inflation, was little changed after a 0.6% gain in November. Stuart Paul of Bloomberg Economics has more. (Source: Bloomberg)
Hello and welcome to the newsletter, a grab bag of daily content from the Odd Lots universe. Sometimes it’s us, Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway, bringing you our thoughts on the most recent developments in markets, finance and the economy. And sometimes it’s contributions from our network of expert guests and sources. Whatever it is, we promise it will always be interesting. If you like chatting ...
Hello and welcome to the newsletter, a grab bag of daily content from the Odd Lots universe. Sometimes it’s us, Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway, bringing you our thoughts on the most recent developments in markets, finance and the economy. And sometimes it’s contributions from our network of expert guests and sources. Whatever it is, we promise it will always be interesting. If you like chatting with us, check out the Odd Lots Discord , where you can hang out and talk with us and with other listeners 24/7. Here’s what Joe is thinking about today It’s Jobs Day eve, and we’re getting more evidence that the labor market is cooling. Today we got the latest version of the NFIB Small Business Optimism Survey and it shows that just 16% of respondents characterize finding quality labor as their most important problem right now. That’s tied for the lowest level it’s been since the pandemic. Meanwhile, we also got the latest reading of the Employment Cost Index, which shows ongoing cooling, with the latest quarterly reading from the BLS coming in at its softest level since the pandemic. I think what’s odd right now is this situation where we seem to be adding more slack in the labor market at the same time that other aspects of the economy are seeing structural tightness. So as mentioned yesterday, we know that a bunch of commodities are booming. Even with the recent volatility in metals, copper prices remain close to record levels. We also know that the cost of shipping freight is back on the rise. Here is one benchmark of costs for moving goods via truck, which is now at its highest level since the bad inflation days of 2021 and 2022, when we were doing tons of episodes on the economics of trucking. One of the big secular themes we’ve been talking a lot about is that atoms are back. Physical stuff is back. And you can see that reflected in markets for various commodities or the companies that move around the physical stuff. Intuitively you’d expect this to translate into j...
Torsten Asmus/iStock via Getty Images Market Review With 2026 underway, a few factors are readily apparent across the global fixed income markets: the slow-going bull market remains in the sweet spot; attractive yield levels should continue to accrue into solid returns over the intermediate to longer term; and the unusual geopolitical backdrop and asynchronous central bank cycles should continue t...
Torsten Asmus/iStock via Getty Images Market Review With 2026 underway, a few factors are readily apparent across the global fixed income markets: the slow-going bull market remains in the sweet spot; attractive yield levels should continue to accrue into solid returns over the intermediate to longer term; and the unusual geopolitical backdrop and asynchronous central bank cycles should continue to create opportunities to add value through active management. Although events like Q1's tariff unveiling and accompanying market swoon created bumps along the way, the ongoing economic expansion with moderate growth and inflation has kept yields generally high and range bound—an environment where the highest-yielding sectors continued to post the highest returns. Although excess returns from spread products were once again positive in 2025—as they have been throughout the three years of the bull market—they were more muted. Spreads are narrower, and the bulk of the capital gains potential from narrowing spreads is well behind us at this point of the cycle. Thanks to the positive yield curve and a slight drop in yields, Treasuries finally outperformed cash and joined the bull market last year. Two prevailing themes from late 2025—renewed divergence across global monetary policy rates and the repricing of term premia—will likely remain at play within developed market rate complexes with 2026 underway. So, while we expect a smaller return contribution from spread product going forward, long-term fixed income should pick up a tailwind from the yield advantage and roll down benefits provided by the newly positive yield curves. In the U.S., the Fed's 25 bp rate cut in December carried a dovish tone, leading to a bull steepening along the curve with only slight movement in the 10-year yield. The narrow move on the 10-year underscored its prevailing low-volatility, range-bound conditions throughout 2025. The low-volatility conditions in the U.S. were further amplified by the sello...
is features writer with five years of experience covering the companies that shape technology and the people who use their tools. In between hobnobbing with royalty and world leaders and abusing children and young women, Jeffrey Epstein appears to have been googling himself regularly. Across several batches of documents related to the convicted sex offender made public, we see Epstein shoot off em...
is features writer with five years of experience covering the companies that shape technology and the people who use their tools. In between hobnobbing with royalty and world leaders and abusing children and young women, Jeffrey Epstein appears to have been googling himself regularly. Across several batches of documents related to the convicted sex offender made public, we see Epstein shoot off emails to associates, complaining that his digital footprint includes factual information about his crimes. i want the google page cleaned (November 5th, 2010) mike „ can you olcan up my wiki page (April 18th, 2011) Any way to clean up my wiki page (September 17th, 2013) Epstein regularly directed his gripes at Al Seckel, a fixer type who appears over and over in Epstein files and promises to bury news articles and other content that mentions his abuse. But Seckel didn’t do it alone. Over thousands of documents, it’s clear that many people — SEO consultants, contacts in the sciences, and even unrelated acquaintances — helped to obscure Epstein’s past whenever someone searched for him online. Even after Epstein had pleaded guilty to procuring a child for prostitution, making him a registered sex offender, his network was happy to do him favors and reputation management firms took him on as a client. Reputation management services aren’t necessarily a tool to cover up crimes — it’s a standard public relations practice — but in Epstein’s case, the agencies would have known about his abuse, given that that’s what they were being hired to try to minimize. In October 2010, Seckel laid out an overview of the group’s plan of attack to defend Epstein’s reputation online. The situation, as Seckel described it, was that a search surfaced “over 75+ pages of derogatory material,” and that someone would be “very hard pressed to find any ‘positive’ references.” To “balance the only one-sided negative opinion that has been spread over a wide birth on the Internet,” Seckel said, the team woul...
Company Logo The Dutch digital ad market offers growth through retail media networks, first-party data strategies due to privacy shifts, and expanding CTV/digital audio options. AI tools optimize campaigns amid evolving compliance needs, while curated programmatic buys address quality demand, enhancing advertiser strategies. Dutch Digital Ad Spend Market Dutch Digital Ad Spend Market · GlobeNewswi...
Company Logo The Dutch digital ad market offers growth through retail media networks, first-party data strategies due to privacy shifts, and expanding CTV/digital audio options. AI tools optimize campaigns amid evolving compliance needs, while curated programmatic buys address quality demand, enhancing advertiser strategies. Dutch Digital Ad Spend Market Dutch Digital Ad Spend Market · GlobeNewswire Inc. Dublin, Feb. 10, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Netherlands Digital Ad Spend Market Size & Forecast by Spend Value Across 100+ KPIs by Type of Advertising Channel, Format & Media, Platforms, Pricing Models, Industry, Digital Ecosystem, and Media Buying Method - Databook Q1 2026 Update" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering. The digital ad spend market in Netherlands is expected to grow by 9.0% annually, reaching US$4.11 billion by 2026. The digital ad spend market in the country has experienced robust growth during 2020-2025, achieving a CAGR of 7.7%. This upward trajectory is expected to continue, with the market forecast to grow at a CAGR of 10.1% from 2026 to 2029. By the end of 2029, the digital ad spend market is projected to expand from its 2025 value of US$3.77 billion to approximately US$5.48 billion. The Netherlands' digital advertising market is undergoing a strategic recalibration as regulatory expectations, heightened privacy requirements, and shifting media consumption patterns reshape how brands, platforms, and publishers operate. The sector is transitioning from a data-rich but compliance-light model toward one grounded in privacy, contextual relevance, and measurable performance. Automation, first-party data strategies, retail media expansion, and omnichannel video are becoming core pillars of advertiser planning, while the decline of third-party cookies is prompting a fundamental rethink of audience targeting. Organisations that can demonstrate accountability, secure audience consent, and align spend with verifiable outcomes will...
MTN will be one of the first maritime resellers to distribute Amazon Leo, providing this service across key industry sectors FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Feb. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- MTN, a world-class network operator and pioneer in low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite technology adoption, has finalized an agreement to offer Amazon Leo, Amazon's satellite internet, as an authorized reseller for maritime de...
MTN will be one of the first maritime resellers to distribute Amazon Leo, providing this service across key industry sectors FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla., Feb. 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- MTN, a world-class network operator and pioneer in low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite technology adoption, has finalized an agreement to offer Amazon Leo, Amazon's satellite internet, as an authorized reseller for maritime deployment. MTN will initially provide this service across key maritime industries, including commercial shipping, yachting, offshore, and cruise & ferry, among others. MTN Satellite Communications Amazon Leo is building one of the most advanced satellite communications systems in the world. Powered by a constellation of thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit, the system will provide lower latency and higher transmission capacity than traditional geostationary satellite solutions, enabling real-time applications, telemetry, remote operations, and hybrid network architectures. In the maritime sector, it will help enable fast onboard Wi-Fi, enhanced crew communications, and efficient vessel operations across global waters, from the North Atlantic to the South Pacific. "Being selected as an authorized reseller of Amazon Leo network allows us to stay at the forefront of satellite innovation as we expand our multi-network architecture," said Steve Ritacco, Senior Vice President of Technology and Product Development. "Integrating this new constellation will give us unparalleled flexibility to custom-design network solutions that offer continuous, high-performance service, including in the most challenging environments for maritime customers." "This agreement with MTN will benefit maritime operations worldwide. Using our low-latency satellite network, maritime customers will gain real-time communication capabilities that enable everything from enhanced crew welfare to advanced vessel tracking, remote diagnostics, and seamless integration with shore-based operations," said Trevor...
International Business Machines Corporation’s IBM QRadar Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) and Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR) platforms have been integrated with Criminal IP, the AI-powered threat intelligence and attack surface intelligence platform. This linkup adds external IP-based threat intelligence to QRadar, helping security teams detect threats faste...
International Business Machines Corporation’s IBM QRadar Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) and Security Orchestration, Automation and Response (SOAR) platforms have been integrated with Criminal IP, the AI-powered threat intelligence and attack surface intelligence platform. This linkup adds external IP-based threat intelligence to QRadar, helping security teams detect threats faster and respond more effectively in Security Operations Center (SOC) operations. IBM’s QRadar is a security platform that helps organizations monitor, detect, and respond to cyber threats in real time. This combination enables the QRadar SIEM platform to analyze firewall traffic logs using Criminal IP to assess the risk of IP addresses, which are automatically labeled as High, Medium, or Low risk. Analysts can check suspicious IPs directly in traffic logs and view detailed Criminal IP reports in QRadar, helping them quickly investigate threats and take necessary action. The collaboration also allows the QRadar SOAR platform to automate threat enrichment during incident response. Pre-built playbooks add IP and URL threat details directly to cases, reducing manual work and ensuring efficient response. This will likely help the company better address future cyber threats and expand its customer base. How Are Competitors Performing in the Cyber Security Domain? IBM faces competition from Oracle Corporation ORCL and Microsoft Corporation MSFT. Oracle has strengthened its cybersecurity platform by releasing security updates and expanding its secure cloud services to protect sensitive data. Oracle is working with seQure to offer the AI-driven Ground-Truth cybersecurity and threat detection platform on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure. Microsoft has upgraded its cybersecurity by improving security features across its products and focusing on secure AI adoption. The company has partnered with firms like Rapid7 to enhance threat detection and response across cloud and endpoint systems. IBM’...
Investors in Atlassian Corp (Symbol: TEAM) saw new options become available today, for the May 15th expiration. One of the key data points that goes into the price an option buyer is willing to pay, is the time value, so with 94 days until expiration the newly available contracts represent a possible opportunity for sellers of puts or calls to achieve a higher premium than would be available for t...
Investors in Atlassian Corp (Symbol: TEAM) saw new options become available today, for the May 15th expiration. One of the key data points that goes into the price an option buyer is willing to pay, is the time value, so with 94 days until expiration the newly available contracts represent a possible opportunity for sellers of puts or calls to achieve a higher premium than would be available for the contracts with a closer expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the TEAM options chain for the new May 15th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $75.00 strike price has a current bid of $3.90. If an investor was to sell-to-open that put contract, they are committing to purchase the stock at $75.00, but will also collect the premium, putting the cost basis of the shares at $71.10 (before broker commissions). To an investor already interested in purchasing shares of TEAM, that could represent an attractive alternative to paying $94.73/share today. Because the $75.00 strike represents an approximate 21% discount to the current trading price of the stock (in other words it is out-of-the-money by that percentage), there is also the possibility that the put contract would expire worthless. The current analytical data (including greeks and implied greeks) suggest the current odds of that happening are 80%. Stock Options Channel will track those odds over time to see how they change, publishing a chart of those numbers on our website under the contract detail page for this contract. Should the contract expire worthless, the premium would represent a 5.20% return on the cash commitment, or 20.20% annualized — at Stock Options Channel we call this the YieldBoost. Below is a chart showing the trailing twelve month trading history for Atlassian Corp, and highlighting in green where the $75.00 strike is located relative to that history: Turning to the calls side of the optio...
Investors in NICE Ltd (Symbol: NICE) saw new options become available today, for the April 17th expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the NICE options chain for the new April 17th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $110.00 strike price has a current bid of $5.20. If an investor was to...
Investors in NICE Ltd (Symbol: NICE) saw new options become available today, for the April 17th expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the NICE options chain for the new April 17th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $110.00 strike price has a current bid of $5.20. If an investor was to sell-to-open that put contract, they are committing to purchase the stock at $110.00, but will also collect the premium, putting the cost basis of the shares at $104.80 (before broker commissions). To an investor already interested in purchasing shares of NICE, that could represent an attractive alternative to paying $114.25/share today. Because the $110.00 strike represents an approximate 4% discount to the current trading price of the stock (in other words it is out-of-the-money by that percentage), there is also the possibility that the put contract would expire worthless. The current analytical data (including greeks and implied greeks) suggest the current odds of that happening are 64%. Stock Options Channel will track those odds over time to see how they change, publishing a chart of those numbers on our website under the contract detail page for this contract. Should the contract expire worthless, the premium would represent a 4.73% return on the cash commitment, or 26.16% annualized — at Stock Options Channel we call this the YieldBoost. Below is a chart showing the trailing twelve month trading history for NICE Ltd, and highlighting in green where the $110.00 strike is located relative to that history: Turning to the calls side of the option chain, the call contract at the $120.00 strike price has a current bid of $5.60. If an investor was to purchase shares of NICE stock at the current price level of $114.25/share, and then sell-to-open that call contract as a "covered call," they are committing to sell the stock at $120.00. Considering the call seller will also ...
Investors in Broadcom Inc (Symbol: AVGO) saw new options become available today, for the February 25th expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the AVGO options chain for the new February 25th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $330.00 strike price has a current bid of $6.75. If an inves...
Investors in Broadcom Inc (Symbol: AVGO) saw new options become available today, for the February 25th expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the AVGO options chain for the new February 25th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $330.00 strike price has a current bid of $6.75. If an investor was to sell-to-open that put contract, they are committing to purchase the stock at $330.00, but will also collect the premium, putting the cost basis of the shares at $323.25 (before broker commissions). To an investor already interested in purchasing shares of AVGO, that could represent an attractive alternative to paying $347.50/share today. Because the $330.00 strike represents an approximate 5% discount to the current trading price of the stock (in other words it is out-of-the-money by that percentage), there is also the possibility that the put contract would expire worthless. The current analytical data (including greeks and implied greeks) suggest the current odds of that happening are 69%. Stock Options Channel will track those odds over time to see how they change, publishing a chart of those numbers on our website under the contract detail page for this contract. Should the contract expire worthless, the premium would represent a 2.05% return on the cash commitment, or 49.77% annualized — at Stock Options Channel we call this the YieldBoost. Below is a chart showing the trailing twelve month trading history for Broadcom Inc, and highlighting in green where the $330.00 strike is located relative to that history: Turning to the calls side of the option chain, the call contract at the $350.00 strike price has a current bid of $11.00. If an investor was to purchase shares of AVGO stock at the current price level of $347.50/share, and then sell-to-open that call contract as a "covered call," they are committing to sell the stock at $350.00. Considering the call se...
Investors in Pegasystems Inc (Symbol: PEGA) saw new options become available today, for the April 17th expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the PEGA options chain for the new April 17th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $40.00 strike price has a current bid of $1.45. If an investor ...
Investors in Pegasystems Inc (Symbol: PEGA) saw new options become available today, for the April 17th expiration. At Stock Options Channel , our YieldBoost formula has looked up and down the PEGA options chain for the new April 17th contracts and identified one put and one call contract of particular interest. The put contract at the $40.00 strike price has a current bid of $1.45. If an investor was to sell-to-open that put contract, they are committing to purchase the stock at $40.00, but will also collect the premium, putting the cost basis of the shares at $38.55 (before broker commissions). To an investor already interested in purchasing shares of PEGA, that could represent an attractive alternative to paying $42.24/share today. Because the $40.00 strike represents an approximate 5% discount to the current trading price of the stock (in other words it is out-of-the-money by that percentage), there is also the possibility that the put contract would expire worthless. The current analytical data (including greeks and implied greeks) suggest the current odds of that happening are 64%. Stock Options Channel will track those odds over time to see how they change, publishing a chart of those numbers on our website under the contract detail page for this contract. Should the contract expire worthless, the premium would represent a 3.62% return on the cash commitment, or 20.06% annualized — at Stock Options Channel we call this the YieldBoost. Below is a chart showing the trailing twelve month trading history for Pegasystems Inc, and highlighting in green where the $40.00 strike is located relative to that history: Turning to the calls side of the option chain, the call contract at the $50.00 strike price has a current bid of 15 cents. If an investor was to purchase shares of PEGA stock at the current price level of $42.24/share, and then sell-to-open that call contract as a "covered call," they are committing to sell the stock at $50.00. Considering the call seller wi...
Thomas Morgan had told the jury he had left Jensen-Lee in the living room to let the dogs out of the kitchen door. He noticed the dog had "been to the toilet in the house" and proceeded to clean up the mess with antibacterial spray and a mop.
Thomas Morgan had told the jury he had left Jensen-Lee in the living room to let the dogs out of the kitchen door. He noticed the dog had "been to the toilet in the house" and proceeded to clean up the mess with antibacterial spray and a mop.
Key Points Micron's earnings popped by 167% year over year in its fiscal first quarter, and its gross margins continued to expand. Demand for its memory chips could push prices higher this year. Alphabet and Meta Platforms will nearly double their artificial intelligence infrastructure spending in 2026. 10 stocks we like better than Micron Technology › While Micron Technology(NASDAQ: MU) stock has...
Key Points Micron's earnings popped by 167% year over year in its fiscal first quarter, and its gross margins continued to expand. Demand for its memory chips could push prices higher this year. Alphabet and Meta Platforms will nearly double their artificial intelligence infrastructure spending in 2026. 10 stocks we like better than Micron Technology › While Micron Technology(NASDAQ: MU) stock has become popular with some tech enthusiasts, the company is not as widely known among investors as many other tech giants. Certainly it doesn't have the name recognition of other leading artificial intelligence (AI) chip stocks like Nvidia. But Micron stock is up 309% over the past year, and could continue to surprise investors in 2026 as spending on AI infrastructure surges. Here's why picking up some shares of Micron could be a smart move right now. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » Micron is tapping into heavy demand for memory Micron designs and manufactures memory chips, including those used in artificial intelligence data centers. Its dynamic random access memory (DRAM) and NAND flash memory lines are its two main growth drivers. Soaring AI infrastructure spending last year -- totaling about $400 billion from the top tech companies alone -- has resulted in strong financial performances from Micron. In the company's fiscal 2026 first quarter (which ended Nov. 27), sales increased 56% to $13.6 billion, and non-GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) earnings spiked by 167% to $4.78 per share. Those figures would be impressive enough on their own, but it's worth noting that the company's gross margins increased too, rising by 11 percentage points to 56%. And management thinks there's even more room for improvement: Its guidance is for gross margins to reach 67% in its fiscal second...
mohd izzuan Philips ( PHG ) is up 10% in Tuesday morning trading after reporting Q4 2025 net income that rose compared to the year-ago period, as well as proposing a new shareholder dividend. In the quarter, the Dutch company reported non-GAAP EPS of EUR 0.60, compared to EUR 0.50 in Q4 2024. Overall net income was EUR 397M compared to a net loss of EUR (333M) in the year-ago period. While Philips...
mohd izzuan Philips ( PHG ) is up 10% in Tuesday morning trading after reporting Q4 2025 net income that rose compared to the year-ago period, as well as proposing a new shareholder dividend. In the quarter, the Dutch company reported non-GAAP EPS of EUR 0.60, compared to EUR 0.50 in Q4 2024. Overall net income was EUR 397M compared to a net loss of EUR (333M) in the year-ago period. While Philips saw a modest year-over-year increase in revenue, it was helped in the quarter by comparative sales increases of, respectively, 4% and 7% in its two largest segments, diagnosis & treatment and connected care. The company also suggested a dividend of EUR 0.85 per share. More on Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (PHG) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Koninklijke Philips N.V. 2025 Q4 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation Koninklijke Philips: Macro Set-Up Favors And AI Tailwinds Philips outlines 2026 sales growth of 3%–4.5% and margin expansion amid strong North America demand Philips reports Q4 results, proposes €0.85 dividend