The BBC is under fire over its failure to remove a racial slur shouted by John Davidson, who has Tourette syndrome, from its broadcast of the Bafta awards. Davidson was heard shouting the N-word while two stars of the film Sinners, Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan, were on stage. He said controversy over the incident had left him “distraught” and that he had been assured any offensive words would...
The BBC is under fire over its failure to remove a racial slur shouted by John Davidson, who has Tourette syndrome, from its broadcast of the Bafta awards. Davidson was heard shouting the N-word while two stars of the film Sinners, Delroy Lindo and Michael B Jordan, were on stage. He said controversy over the incident had left him “distraught” and that he had been assured any offensive words would be edited out. The BBC has apologised for the error and said producers overseeing the coverage did not hear the slur. Lucy Hough is joined by the Guardian’s assistant opinion editor Jason Okundaye – watch on YouTube Continue reading...
Israel welcomes move described by Palestinian Authority as undermining possibility of an independent state The US will provide on-site consular services in two Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank for the first time, breaking with previous policy, in a move that has been criticised by Palestinian officials as “a clear violation of international law”. In a post on X, the US embassy in Jeru...
Israel welcomes move described by Palestinian Authority as undermining possibility of an independent state The US will provide on-site consular services in two Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank for the first time, breaking with previous policy, in a move that has been criticised by Palestinian officials as “a clear violation of international law”. In a post on X, the US embassy in Jerusalem said that as part of an initiative to mark the 250th anniversary of US independence, it would provide Americans with routine passport services in the West Bank settlement of Efrat on Friday “for one day only”. Continue reading...
Residential buildings in Shanghai. Photo: VCG Shanghai has sharply lowered the bar for non-residents to buy homes in its central districts, stepping up efforts to revive a sluggish property market in China’s financial hub. Five municipal departments, including the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, said Wednesday that starting Thursday, non-Shanghai residents nee...
Residential buildings in Shanghai. Photo: VCG Shanghai has sharply lowered the bar for non-residents to buy homes in its central districts, stepping up efforts to revive a sluggish property market in China’s financial hub. Five municipal departments, including the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, said Wednesday that starting Thursday, non-Shanghai residents need to show proof of social security or individual income tax payments for just one consecutive year — down from three — to purchase a home within the city’s Outer Ring Road. Non-residents who have contributed for three years are now allowed to buy a second home in these core areas.
Emirates Global Aluminium , the United Arab Emirates’ top producer of the metal, is boosting shipments to the US despite stiff tariffs, as growing shortages drive American prices to levels that offset the levies. President Donald Trump last year doubled tariffs on aluminum imports to 50%, a move that prompted producers in Canada and elsewhere to divert supplies away from the US market. With US dem...
Emirates Global Aluminium , the United Arab Emirates’ top producer of the metal, is boosting shipments to the US despite stiff tariffs, as growing shortages drive American prices to levels that offset the levies. President Donald Trump last year doubled tariffs on aluminum imports to 50%, a move that prompted producers in Canada and elsewhere to divert supplies away from the US market. With US demand for the metal used in cans, cars and cabling holding strong, the shortfalls forced American manufacturers into a bidding war to find alternative supplies. While global aluminum prices are set on the London Metal Exchange, US buyers pay additional charges to get cargoes delivered to their plants, and those premiums have now surged to more than 50% of the LME price — meaning overseas producers can once more turn a profit by shipping cargoes to the US. EGA is one company sending more to the US. The Dubai-based firm has a metal recycling facility in the US, and that plant has also benefited from the so-called US Midwest premium . “We have redirected a bit of volumes from Europe to US because as you may have seen from some of our competitors, there’s more metal flowing from Canada to Europe,” EGA Chief Financial Officer Pal Kildemo said in an interview. “The amount of volume is more or less the same, but it’s changed a bit between the regions based on the movements on the geopolitical side.” EGA is expanding its recycling facility in Minnesota, as well as another in Germany, though those make up a small portion of sales compared with the primary metals production at its smelters in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. The company is also building a 750,000 ton smelter in Oklahoma. The producer doesn’t see any sign that US metals tariffs will change this year. A Supreme Court decision last week that struck down some of the Trump administration’s levies doesn’t apply to the tariffs on aluminum, which are subject to sectoral tariffs on national security grounds. Demand for aluminum is set to r...
Oil States International (OIS) shares have started gaining and might continue moving higher in the near term, as indicated by solid earnings estimate revisions.
Oil States International (OIS) shares have started gaining and might continue moving higher in the near term, as indicated by solid earnings estimate revisions.
primeimages/iStock via Getty Images Key Takeaways Markets: In the eventful quarter that closed the books on 2025, the small-cap Russell 2000 and Russell Microcap Indexes were each in positive territory, while the micro-cap index led all the major domestic indexes, solidifying the market leadership that began off the April low. Contributors: Five of the portfolio’s 10 equity sectors made a positive...
primeimages/iStock via Getty Images Key Takeaways Markets: In the eventful quarter that closed the books on 2025, the small-cap Russell 2000 and Russell Microcap Indexes were each in positive territory, while the micro-cap index led all the major domestic indexes, solidifying the market leadership that began off the April low. Contributors: Five of the portfolio’s 10 equity sectors made a positive impact on quarterly performance, led by Health Care, Information Technology, and Financials, with the semiconductors & semiconductor equipment industry especially strong. Detractors: The biggest negative impacts on a sector basis came from Consumer Discretionary, Consumer Staples, and Energy. The specialty retail industry hurt the most. Outlook: The combination of higher forecasted earnings and lower valuations for small-caps compared to large-caps is why we think the Fund is poised for a better 2026 on both an absolute and relative basis. Performance Review Royce Small-Cap Fund ( PENNX ) advanced 1.95% for the quarter, lagging its benchmark, Russell 2000 Index, which was up 2.19% for the same period. The portfolio was lagging the Russell 2000 Index for the year-to-date period ended 12/31/25, up 8.95% versus 12.81%. Five of the portfolio’s 10 sectors made a positive impact on quarterly performance. The sectors making the largest positive contributions were Health Care, Information Technology and Financials while the largest negative impacts came from Consumer Discretionary, Consumer Staples and Energy. At the industry level, semiconductors & semiconductor equipment (Information Technology), health care providers & services (Health Care), and health care equipment & supplies (Health Care) contributed most for the quarter, while specialty retail (Consumer Discretionary), professional services (Industrials), and building products (Industrials) were the largest detractors. The portfolio’s disadvantage versus its benchmark was primarily attributable to stock selection in the qu...
Earnings Call Insights: Atlanta Braves Holdings (BATRK) Q4 2025 Management View Terence McGuirk, Chairman, President & CEO, highlighted the team's optimism for the season, citing a "strong roster in the organizational depth to be competitive this season" and the addition of free agents such as Robert Suarez, Jorge Mateo, Mauricio Dubón, Tyler Kinley, and Joel Payamps. McGuirk emphasized the appoin...
Earnings Call Insights: Atlanta Braves Holdings (BATRK) Q4 2025 Management View Terence McGuirk, Chairman, President & CEO, highlighted the team's optimism for the season, citing a "strong roster in the organizational depth to be competitive this season" and the addition of free agents such as Robert Suarez, Jorge Mateo, Mauricio Dubón, Tyler Kinley, and Joel Payamps. McGuirk emphasized the appointment of Walt Weiss as the new manager and the recovery of key players, stating, "We firmly believe we have all the pieces we need to make a postseason run this year and compete for a World Series title." The CEO addressed the critical new strategy in local media, noting, "With Main Street out of the way, the Braves now have our local TV rights back... we will be stepping into the Main Street role in directly handling the distribution, production and revenue generation." McGuirk announced the launch of "BravesVision" as the new in-house distribution and streaming platform. Derek Schiller, Executive Vice President-Business, expanded on BravesVision and the local media strategy, saying the platform "will serve as the official home of our local television broadcast beginning this season" and highlighted continued partnerships with Gray Media. Schiller also reported "record-breaking regular season ticket sales and sponsorship revenue," with over 1.9 million tickets already sold for 2026 and premium clubs sold out. Mike Plant, President of Development, described The Battery's performance as a "long-term platform that diversifies our business, broadens our audience and supports durable growth over time." Plant noted 9 million visitors in 2025 and tenant sales of approximately $137 million across 30 tenants. Jill Robinson, Executive VP, CFO & Treasurer, stated, "Total revenue in 2025 was $732 million, this was an increase of nearly $70 million from $663 million in 2024." She further reported, "Adjusted OIBDA was $108 million in 2025, an increase of nearly $70 million from $40 mill...
Spokesperson for Rolling Stones tells Guardian band did not liaise with Marc Beckman and his team on use of Gimme Shelter in first lady documentary A source close to Mick Jagger has cast doubt on a claim by Melania producer Marc Beckman that his team was closely involved with the singer over the use of a Rolling Stones song in the film. The film, which follows the first lady in the 20 days leading...
Spokesperson for Rolling Stones tells Guardian band did not liaise with Marc Beckman and his team on use of Gimme Shelter in first lady documentary A source close to Mick Jagger has cast doubt on a claim by Melania producer Marc Beckman that his team was closely involved with the singer over the use of a Rolling Stones song in the film. The film, which follows the first lady in the 20 days leading up to Donald Trump’s second inauguration in January 2025, opens with a sequence in Mar-a-Lago soundtracked to the Rolling Stones’ Gimme Shelter. Despite being owned by music company ABKCO , Beckman told Variety that Jagger “was actually involved” and “gave us his blessing”. Continue reading...
Jonathan Ferro, Lisa Abramowicz and Annmarie Hordern speak daily with leaders and decision makers from Wall Street to Washington and beyond. No other program better positions investors and executives for the trading day. (Source: Bloomberg)
Jonathan Ferro, Lisa Abramowicz and Annmarie Hordern speak daily with leaders and decision makers from Wall Street to Washington and beyond. No other program better positions investors and executives for the trading day. (Source: Bloomberg)
The S&P 500 Index ($SPX ) (SPY ) today is up +0.64%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DOWI ) (DIA ) is up +0.46%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX ) (QQQ ) is up +1.15%. March E-mini S&P futures (ESH26 ) are up +0.60%, and March E-mini Nasdaq futures...
The S&P 500 Index ($SPX ) (SPY ) today is up +0.64%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ($DOWI ) (DIA ) is up +0.46%, and the Nasdaq 100 Index ($IUXX ) (QQQ ) is up +1.15%. March E-mini S&P futures (ESH26 ) are up +0.60%, and March E-mini Nasdaq futures...
Alexey_Fedoren/iStock via Getty Images The Magnificent Seven stocks reached an absolute and relative high on Oct. 29, 2025. The last four months or so have featured a welcome diversification and dispersion trade among investors not solely focused on the mega-cap U.S. glamour stocks. Indeed, the Defiance Large Cap ex-Mag 7 ETF ( XMAG ) has beaten its de facto rival, the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ...
Alexey_Fedoren/iStock via Getty Images The Magnificent Seven stocks reached an absolute and relative high on Oct. 29, 2025. The last four months or so have featured a welcome diversification and dispersion trade among investors not solely focused on the mega-cap U.S. glamour stocks. Indeed, the Defiance Large Cap ex-Mag 7 ETF ( XMAG ) has beaten its de facto rival, the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF ( MAGS ), over the past month, three months, and six months. This comes after years of Mag 7 strength, although investors seem to have forgotten that the so-called “Other 493” sharply outperformed during the 2022 bear market. Of course, over the past five years, the Mag 7 has led by a wide margin, thanks to enormous gains in NVIDIA ( NVDA ) amid the AI boom. Looking ahead, however, EPS growth is expected to converge between the two groups. All told, I have a "B uy" rating on XMAG. Given the relative strength and decent valuation, I think the Other 493 are a reasonable play this year. I’m not thrilled about the 2x PEG, nor is the technical chart a screaming buy. Still, the good outweighs the bad enough. Ex-Mag 7 Leads The Mag 7 Over Multiple Timeframes WisdomTree Funds The Mag 7 Have Beaten The Other 493 All Years Except 2022 JPMAM Mag 7 Leading Last Five Years Augur Infinity Mag 7, Other 493 EPS Growth Converging BlackRock According to the issuer , XMAG is the first ETF designed to provide investors with exposure to the S&P 500, excluding the “Magnificent 7” (Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta, and Tesla). XMAG offers a unique opportunity for investors to access the broader market while reducing concentration risk in these dominant tech stocks. This approach seeks more diversified exposure, aiming to mitigate the overconcentration risk associated with the market’s most dominant firms. XMAG is a small but growing ETF, now with $138 million in assets under management as of Feb. 23, 2026. I’ll note later that volume has increased significantly in recent month...
Thrive Capital, a venture investor in some of Silicon Valley’s most successful businesses, has seen the value of its portfolio companies surge over the past 15 years, with its 2011 fund recently increasing nearly sixfold, documents show. That fund, which included Instagram and Warby Parker, was worth more than $200 million as of last summer, or almost six times what its limited partners initially ...
Thrive Capital, a venture investor in some of Silicon Valley’s most successful businesses, has seen the value of its portfolio companies surge over the past 15 years, with its 2011 fund recently increasing nearly sixfold, documents show. That fund, which included Instagram and Warby Parker, was worth more than $200 million as of last summer, or almost six times what its limited partners initially invested, according to the documents and a person familiar with the matter, giving rare insight into a famous VC firm’s returns over time. Thrive declined to comment. Even as Thrive’s holdings have gained in value, those increases don’t always result in an imminent payout to investors, the documents show. That’s partly because so many startups are staying private for longer, holding off on initial public offerings or sales to would-be acquirers. That in turn deprives VCs and the limited partners on whose behalf they invest of a speedy return on investment. While the value of the 2011 fund — launched in Thrive’s earliest days — surged, the payout was lower than at some comparable funds. By that metric, known in VC parlance as distributed paid-in capital, the 2011 fund returned investors 1.3 times their money, or $1.30 for every dollar invested as of last summer, placing it below the median in terms of returns, according to Cambridge Associates data. Thrive’s subsequent fund, launched in 2012, also lagged the median in terms of distributions for that year, according to the documents. Thrive’s 2018 fund was above the median of other funds raised at that time, but in the lower quartile as of last summer. Several of its funds raised between 2021 and 2022 are at par with its peers, as of last summer, in not yet returning capital because of how young the funds are. Most venture funds take between 10 to 12 years to return capital, a time frame that is growing because of companies staying private longer. At the same time, all of Thrive’s funds are outperforming recent benchmarks in ...
FilippoBacci The S&P 500 ( SP500 ) is exhibiting signs of tightening price action as it hovers just below record territory, a pattern that market historians often describe as range compression. According to data highlighted by Schaeffer’s Investment Research, the benchmark index has now logged roughly 20 consecutive trading sessions within 3% of its all-time high without pushing to a fresh peak. W...
FilippoBacci The S&P 500 ( SP500 ) is exhibiting signs of tightening price action as it hovers just below record territory, a pattern that market historians often describe as range compression. According to data highlighted by Schaeffer’s Investment Research, the benchmark index has now logged roughly 20 consecutive trading sessions within 3% of its all-time high without pushing to a fresh peak. While the lack of upside follow-through may appear notable, similar stretches in the past have not necessarily signaled imminent weakness. Instead, these consolidation phases are typically characterized by sideways movement, as buyers and sellers reach a temporary equilibrium. Historically, such periods have tended to persist for around 30 trading days before the market ultimately resolves the stalemate with either a decisive breakout to new highs or a pullback that resets positioning. For now, the index’s behavior reflects digestion rather than deterioration. With volatility relatively contained and price swings narrowing, investors appear to be recalibrating expectations while awaiting a catalyst capable of driving the next directional move in U.S. equities. See the chart below provided by Schaeffer’s Investment Research: S&P 500 (Schaeffer’s Investment Research) S&P 500 Funds: ( SPY ), ( VOO ), ( IVV ), ( RSP ), ( SSO ), ( UPRO ), ( SH ), ( SDS ), ( SPXU ), ( FXAIX ), ( VFIAX ), ( VFFSX ), and ( SWPPX ). More on markets ETFs heavily tied to Nvidia prepare for potential volatility as earnings loom AI, tariffs, Taiwan, and beyond: What prediction markets expect from Nvidia’s earnings call Apollo warns that market structure is growing increasingly fragile S&P 500: Supreme Court Ruling On Tariffs Increases Market Volatility SPY: Tariff Troubles (And Other Developments) Dampen Some Optimism