It says something about the times that in February 2022, compared with now, lowering the age bar from 65 to 60 for the HK$2 transport fare subsidy for the elderly, adding 815,000 beneficiaries, didn’t ring more warning bells about sustainability. It was, after all, during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the government was issuing cash vouchers and when public morale and economic confidence were paramo...
It says something about the times that in February 2022, compared with now, lowering the age bar from 65 to 60 for the HK$2 transport fare subsidy for the elderly, adding 815,000 beneficiaries, didn’t ring more warning bells about sustainability. It was, after all, during the Covid-19 pandemic, when the government was issuing cash vouchers and when public morale and economic confidence were paramount. Lowering the bar for people at or near the end of normal working life struck an empathetic...
Angelica Zander/iStock via Getty Images My 2026 Market Outlook article – titled “ The Market Outlook for 2026 Looks Grim – Buckle Up! ” – was published on December 29, 2025. In that article, I issued a ‘sell’ rating for the S&P 500. As a part of the research for this article, I went through and counted the various market outlook articles on the 2026 Market Outlook page to see what the relative dis...
Angelica Zander/iStock via Getty Images My 2026 Market Outlook article – titled “ The Market Outlook for 2026 Looks Grim – Buckle Up! ” – was published on December 29, 2025. In that article, I issued a ‘sell’ rating for the S&P 500. As a part of the research for this article, I went through and counted the various market outlook articles on the 2026 Market Outlook page to see what the relative distribution of various ratings were. By my count, the breakdown was as follows: Source: Created by author As you can see, my ‘sell’ rating on the S&P 500 was very much not the popular position. Nevertheless, this has been the performance of the S&P 500 so far this year: Source: Yahoo Finance In this article, I’m going to make the argument that the bad news is potentially just getting started for S&P 500 investors this year. While I have gestured towards the idea that some investors might even want to short the S&P 500 in previous articles that have touched on my bearishness in relation to that index, I have never given that action what I would deem as a full-throated endorsement. In this article, by contrast, I will argue that now is definitely looking like the time to short the S&P 500 if there ever was one. So, let’s get into the reasons for this high-level of bearish conviction. The US-Israel-Iran Conflict is not “Liberation Day” I’ve heard market commentators mention supposed parallels between the ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict and the “Liberation Day” market sell-off from April of 2025. The relevant supposed analogous idea was that, after sufficient pain in markets, Trump inevitably pulls back under the pressure so as not to send various markets into a state of irreparable damage. People say it was the bond market that forced Trump’s hand in April of last year. They are saying that it’s the oil markets that are forcing Trump’s recent pull-back vis-à-vis Iran . This analogizing of the two periods suggests that Trump has the power to undo damage this time around in a way ...
Roughly a year ago, Spain and Portugal went dark when the electrical grid of the entire Iberian Peninsula failed. While the grid operators did a heroic job of restarting the grid quickly, there were obvious questions about what had led to the blackout in the first place. A preliminary report suggested that a combination of grid-level voltage oscillations and early disconnections was the main facto...
Roughly a year ago, Spain and Portugal went dark when the electrical grid of the entire Iberian Peninsula failed. While the grid operators did a heroic job of restarting the grid quickly, there were obvious questions about what had led to the blackout in the first place. A preliminary report suggested that a combination of grid-level voltage oscillations and early disconnections was the main factor. Over the weekend, the European grid coordinator, ENTSO-e, released its final, detailed report on the event. While it's largely consistent with the preliminary conclusions, the report provides much more detail about what went wrong and, more significantly, offers a clear picture of how the Iberian grid operators could make changes to prevent a similar event in the future. Oscillations The expert committee that prepared the report had access to a wealth of data, including status logs from most of the major hardware on the Spanish and Portuguese grid, often recorded with sub-second precision. There's also data from the two major interchanges between the Spanish grid and those in France and Morocco. The group even obtained data from two manufacturers of the small inverters used for rooftop solar about the performance of their hardware on the day in question. Read full article Comments
HJBC/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Shares of PVH ( PVH ) have been a poor performer over the past year, losing about 4% of their value, given margin pressure from tariffs. I last covered shares in December , when I rated the stock a “ H old.” While concerned about ongoing tariff pressure, I felt shares were sufficiently cheap. This proved overly optimistic, and the stock is down 20% since then...
HJBC/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Shares of PVH ( PVH ) have been a poor performer over the past year, losing about 4% of their value, given margin pressure from tariffs. I last covered shares in December , when I rated the stock a “ H old.” While concerned about ongoing tariff pressure, I felt shares were sufficiently cheap. This proved overly optimistic, and the stock is down 20% since then. With the company set to report earnings shortly and with such an uncertain macro environment, now is a good time to revisit shares and determine how to position ahead of the release. Seeking Alpha Q3 results were mixed with European sales a concern Now, before looking forward, it is worth first recapping third-quarter r esults. The company earned $2.83 per share, which was down 6% from the prior year despite a 2% rise in revenue. Gross margins fell by 210bps to 56.3%, and the company has struggled to pass on all tariff-related costs. Relative to other retailers, its ability to mitigate tariffs has been weak. While the Supreme Court has blocked reciprocal tariffs, I believe the Administration will use other measures to keep the effective tariff rate similar this year to last year. Within regions, I was disappointed to see European sales decline on a constant currency basis to $1.1 billion, though profits rose 5.5% to $211 million. This region is nearly half of the company’s sales, making it the most important even as PVH operates well-known American brands, Calvin Klein and Tommy Hilfiger. This fading momentum in Europe is particularly concerning for me, given the inflation outlook I will discuss below. In North America, revenue was up a solid 2% to $683 million, but profits were cut in half to $45 million due to tariff costs. I expect similar margin pressure in Q4, but after that, we should see improvement, given easier comparisons. Asian sales were flat on a constant currency basis, and we should see continued improvement as pressure from the Chinese regulatory environme...
Nokia (NYSE:NOK), a mobile, fixed, and cloud network solutions provider, closed Tuesday at $8.25, up 2.36%. The stock moved as investors reacted to [Overnight] pressure in Helsinki trading, while watching 5G momentum and North American telecom spending trends next.
Nokia (NYSE:NOK), a mobile, fixed, and cloud network solutions provider, closed Tuesday at $8.25, up 2.36%. The stock moved as investors reacted to [Overnight] pressure in Helsinki trading, while watching 5G momentum and North American telecom spending trends next.
US officials on Tuesday played down speculation that distracted air traffic controllers might have contributed to a deadly collision between an Air Canada jet and a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Two pilots were killed in the runway crash late on Sunday, which crushed the cockpit of the Bombardier plane and heavily damaged the emergency vehicle. Media reports said investigators were i...
US officials on Tuesday played down speculation that distracted air traffic controllers might have contributed to a deadly collision between an Air Canada jet and a fire truck at New York’s LaGuardia Airport. Two pilots were killed in the runway crash late on Sunday, which crushed the cockpit of the Bombardier plane and heavily damaged the emergency vehicle. Media reports said investigators were investigating whether airport traffic controllers were distracted by an odour issue on a United...
FedEx is launching same-day delivery through a partnership with OneRail, a final-mile platform. The post FedEx to compete in same-day delivery with Amazon, Walmart and UPS appeared first on FreightWaves.
FedEx is launching same-day delivery through a partnership with OneRail, a final-mile platform. The post FedEx to compete in same-day delivery with Amazon, Walmart and UPS appeared first on FreightWaves.
Tom Werner/DigitalVision via Getty Images Shares of Azenta, Inc. ( AZTA ) have fallen to fresh lows again amidst quite some corporate developments taking place. By now, shares have fallen to the $20 mark, levels first broken to the upside in 2017, with Azenta briefly being a >$100 stock in 2021, but that was only temporary. Following a stronger end to the fiscal year 2025, the company started its ...
Tom Werner/DigitalVision via Getty Images Shares of Azenta, Inc. ( AZTA ) have fallen to fresh lows again amidst quite some corporate developments taking place. By now, shares have fallen to the $20 mark, levels first broken to the upside in 2017, with Azenta briefly being a >$100 stock in 2021, but that was only temporary. Following a stronger end to the fiscal year 2025, the company started its fiscal year 2026 on a softer note, and while the company sticks to its full-year guidance, there are risks to that. However, I like what I see here, between collapsing expectations, with operating assets trading far below sales. While building conviction is hard, low expectations and a net cash cushion provide some support here. Other, higher conviction ideas, including growth plays in life science segments, can be found at Value In Corporate Events . Many Developments Recent developments at Azenta have been numerous, and as these impact the future investment thesis, let's quickly run through them. Early in March, the company announced the acquisition of UK Biocentre Limited, a provider of sample management and storage, a transaction valued at GBP 20.5 million, excluding a very modest contingent consideration. The deal adds some GBP 15.3 million in sales, yet it is dilutive to 2026 EBITDA margins by 35 basis points. The deal should be accretive to earnings growth and EBITDA margins from next year onwards. Analyzing this deal in growth at length is not necessary, this being a bolt-on deal in the grand scheme of things here. This deal follows a disappointing first-quarter report, announced in February, with revenues up 1% to $149 million but revenues down 7% on a sequential basis. Organic growth came in at minus 1%, with non-GAAP earnings of 9 cents being down 3 cents on the year before and down 12 cents on a sequential basis, while GAAP losses were reported simultaneously at the same time. The company operated with $571 million in net cash, this being a formidable position; ...
If you want to invest in Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) , you have two options: the cryptocurrency itself or a Bitcoin ETF. The SEC approved the first group of Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, and they've accumulated over $90 billion in assets under management (AUM) as of March 20, 2026. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. The right choice depends on how much control you want over your cryptocurrency a...
If you want to invest in Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) , you have two options: the cryptocurrency itself or a Bitcoin ETF. The SEC approved the first group of Bitcoin ETFs in January 2024, and they've accumulated over $90 billion in assets under management (AUM) as of March 20, 2026. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. The right choice depends on how much control you want over your cryptocurrency and your investment time horizon. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
Oil fell and US equity futures climbed as optimism grew over Washington’s efforts to end the nearly month-long Middle East conflict. West Texas Intermediate crude slid as much as 4.9% in early Asian trading after the New York Times reported the US had sent Iran a 15-point plan, following a separate report by Israel’s Channel 12 that Washington was seeking a one-month ceasefire. S&P 500 futures cli...
Oil fell and US equity futures climbed as optimism grew over Washington’s efforts to end the nearly month-long Middle East conflict. West Texas Intermediate crude slid as much as 4.9% in early Asian trading after the New York Times reported the US had sent Iran a 15-point plan, following a separate report by Israel’s Channel 12 that Washington was seeking a one-month ceasefire. S&P 500 futures climbed after the index pared losses to close 0.4% lower. Contracts for Sydney and Tokyo shares pointed higher, while those for Hong Kong were little changed. “Crude remains the tip of the spear in this headline-driven market,” said Rebecca Babin , a senior energy trader at CIBC Private Wealth Group. “Reports that a potential 30-day ceasefire may be in the works are easing worst-case pricing scenarios and concerns around demand destruction. Details remain limited and headlines are fluid, but signs there may be an off-ramp are reducing some of the risk premium in the market.” President Donald Trump signaled that Iran had offered a “present” as a show of good faith in negotiations, noting it was related to Strait of Hormuz flows. The US and regional mediators are discussing the possibility of holding high-level peace talks as soon as Thursday, but await a response from Tehran, Axios reported . As the conflict that’s upended markets raged on, Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance alongside special envoys are involved in negotiations. Still, the US is planning to deploy about 3,000 troops from the 82nd Airborne Division to the Middle East, the Wall Street Journal reported . Iran has started charging transit fees on some commercial vessels passing the Strait of Hormuz, people familiar with the matter have said, the latest sign of its control over the most-important maritime energy route. Yet Tehran said non-hostile foreign ships are allowed to cross the waterway on its terms. “It all comes down to the re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz,” said Matt Ma...