As Meta Platforms Preps to Lay Off 10% of Its Staff, Should You Buy, Sell, or Hold META Stock? Barchart.com

President Donald Trump doesn’t seem to be bending despite signs that U.S. oil and fuel prices could stay higher for longer than expected.

The Good Brigade/DigitalVision via Getty Images Shares of Goosehead Insurance ( GSHD ) have been a poor performer over the past year, losing over half of their value. Shares have been weighed down by concerns about disintermediation from AI as well as the fact that customer retention has been weak, which could pose a long-term challenge. However, shares did rally 10% on Thursday as the company reported solid Q1 results. Additionally, it has made several changes in executive leadership, providing more clarity for investors. Still, I believe caution is merited. Seeking Alpha In the company's first quarter , Goosehead Insurance earned $0.37, which beat estimates by $0.17 as revenue surged 23% to $93 million. Core revenue grew 15%, while contingent commissions surged 141% to $12 million. Adjusted EBITDA jumped 57% to $24 million as AI tools and increased revenue helped the business scale up, with margins hitting 26%, up from 20% a year ago. Employee compensation was up just 4%, speaking to the scalability of its model. During the quarter, it wrote $1.1 billion of premiums, up 13% from last year. The company now has 2 million policies in force, up 14%. Goosehead is an insurance distributor, or agency, that sits in between customers and insurance companies. It focuses exclusively on personal lines, partnering with over 200 insurance companies like Chubb ( CB ), AIG ( AIG ), and others so that consumers can shop for the policy that best meets their needs. As you can see, it primarily focuses on home insurance, followed by auto policies, and then a smattering of other lines (like boats) Goosehead Insurance Goosehead is an independent insurance agency with ongoing franchise growth To drive growth, Goosehead wants to steadily grow the number of affiliated agents that sell insurance to expand market share. It is making progress on this front. Corporate agent headcount was up 13% to 482 while franchise producers grew 3% to 2,150 (note the map below is as of Q4 , which is why th...

ipopba/iStock via Getty Images What's on Our Minds Global equities have weathered an extraordinary sequence of events since the start of this year, including the capture of Venezuela's president, a market sell-off sparked by a viral blog post envisioning an AI-led economic collapse, and the release of new AI tools that brought aspects of that depiction closer to reality. A more consequential development came at the end of February, when US and Israeli airstrikes killed Iran's supreme leader and disrupted energy markets. By mid-March, sentiment deteriorated, leaving the MSCI ACWI Index with a roughly 3% loss. For the first time in many quarters, market returns—both before and after the war—were not concentrated in a narrow group of AI-linked companies. Communication Services, the top-performing sector in 2024 and 2025 (in large part due to its inclusion of Alphabet ( GOOGL ) and Meta Platforms (META)), was among this quarter's biggest laggards. At the same time, the rolling thunder of AI disruption moved beyond software and IT services into other areas of the digital economy, weighing on stocks such as Booking Holdings ( BKNG ). As markets leaned away from digital businesses, asset-intensive companies such as aircraft engine manufacturers, railroads, and waste haulers attracted renewed investor interest. Some investors and market strategists have referred to that shift as the HALO trade, short for "heavy asset, low obsolescence," a description of a loose category of companies whose value rests on essential equipment and resources, making them less vulnerable to technological displacement. That rotation, however, was overtaken in March by the energy shock, the scale of which was historic: Brent crude rose more than 60%, its largest monthly gain on record, while West Texas Intermediate crude settled above $100 a barrel for the first time since 2022. The Energy sector climbed nearly 34% in the quarter. Initial expectations were that the fighting in Iran would be brief a...

Reliance Digital announces limited-period offers on the latest Apple products with significant price drops and consumer finance offers.

Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing stock hit a new all-time high in local trading but American depositary receipts may not follow.

Xvivo Perfusion AB (publ) press release ( XVIPF ): Q1 GAAP EPS of SEK1.15. Revenue of SEK241M. Organic growth was 23 percent in local currencies. Excluding revenue from heart trials the organic growth was 18 percent in local currencies. Thoracic sales increased by 27 percent in local currencies and by 19 percent excluding revenue from heart trials. Abdominal sales increased by 24 percent in local currencies. Services sales decreased by -10 percent. Total gross margin was 71 percent (73). Operating income ( EBIT ) amounted to SEK 31.9 million (26.6). Operating income before depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) amounted to SEK 51.1 million (43.0), corresponding to an EBITDA margin of 21 percent (20). The underlying EBITDA margin was 24 percent, excluding costs related to US heart go-to-market preparations. Net profit amounted to SEK 36.3 million (-12.4), impacted by currency effects in cash and cash equivalents of SEK 8.5 million (-22.5). Earnings per share amounted to SEK 1.15 (-0.39). Cash flow from operating activities was SEK 65.3 million (-15.3), primarily impacted by an increase in sales. Total cash flow amounted to SEK 7.6 million (-77.2), impacted by investments in R&D projects of SEK -43.0 million. More on Xvivo Perfusion AB (publ) Xvivo Perfusion AB (publ) (XVIPY) Q4 2025 Earnings Call Transcript Xvivo Perfusion AB (publ) 2025 Q4 - Results - Earnings Call Presentation Historical earnings data for Xvivo Perfusion AB (publ) Financial information for Xvivo Perfusion AB (publ)

Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) has spent the past six months drifting in the shadow of its October 2025 peak. After climbing to more than $126,000 amid the presidential election optimism and rising institutional inflows, Bitcoin has slid nearly 40%. Macroeconomic crosscurrents certainly haven't helped the cryptocurrency market either: Persistent inflation, changing tariff policies, and liquidity squeezes triggered waves of deleveraging. While crypto's euphoric narrative of infinite upside suddenly looks speculative again, growth portfolios are rotating toward more tangible earnings stories. Bitcoin, once the darling of the risk-on trade, feels more like a meme trade in a market that prizes reliable cash flow and business resilience. Even though sentiment has cooled, I think Bitcoin could be positioned for an epic run in the second half of 2026. Continue reading

2024年初，一位瑞典研究者搞了一个恶作剧。她编造了一种名为“Bixonimania”的疾病，并将其写入一份漏洞百出的预印本论文中上传。随后，荒诞的一幕出现了，当用户询问自己是不是患了Bixonimania，ChatGPT、Gemini等头部AI产品纷纷确认了这种疾病的存在。 时至今日，随着用户使用AI聊天助手的频率越来越高，很多人发现AI越来越能“胡说八道”了。那些荒诞的、不切实际的答案正在干扰着用户的判断，甚至产生了实际的负面影响。 曾经一位网友让Deepseek推荐楼盘，Deepseek回答得有理有据，连户型都选好了，他非常心动，结果自己一查，根本没有这个楼盘；另一位网友也表示，自己列举了看书的偏好，让豆包给推荐小说，它推荐的小说看简介都很吸引人，可一去搜索，一本也搜不到，“链接都是现编的”。 更令人无奈的是，同一个问题，问不同的AI助手，给出的答案不一，到最后我们只能重新借助传统搜索进行最后验证。这让很多用户怀念起当初那个“百度一下 你就知道”的时代。 信源决定AI内容的准确度 层出不穷的AI幻觉，不断引发用户对AI生成内容的质疑，而给AI“投毒”则进一步放大了幻觉的问题，让用户更加焦虑。 今年3·15，一项名为“GEO（Generative Engine Optimization，生成式引擎优化）”的黑灰产业务被曝光。一款纯虚构的商品，花费几十元，生产十余篇看起来很有专业范的软文，就可以将虚假产品信息成功“投喂”给AI大模型，并在几天内获得推荐，甚至“名列前茅”。 这套业务流程被直白地称为“给AI投毒”，一旦被投毒，AI给出的答案更加不可信。 给AI投毒，是利用生成大模型漏洞、对普通用户进行的一场大规模“收割”，它的影响不单单是误导用户，而是引导用户决策，损害他们的利益。一位用户表示，她在咨询某主流AI大模型“高性价比智能血糖仪推荐”时，AI优先推荐了一款产品，到手后却发现连生产厂家信息都查不到。 AI搜索，或者说AI聊天助手，胜在极致的效率，可它却无法保障生成内容的可信度，这是因为AI大模型在其回答、思考过程中，抓取了大量真假难辨的信息。一篇软文、一则未被证实的传言，甚至是某些自媒体为了博取流量而发布的消息，都可能被AI抓取，从而影响问题的答案。 大模型在复杂信息环境中的理解与判断能力需要更多的时间来提升，而从源头来看，保证真实的、准确的、有权威性的信源...

神马股份公告，公司于近日收到中国证券监督管理委员会下发的《立案告知书》，因公司涉嫌信息披露违法违规，根据《中华人民共和国证券法》《中华人民共和国行政处罚法》等法律法规，中国证监会决定对公司立案。

mesh cube Intel ( INTC ) surged more than 27% in premarket trading on Friday after delivering a Q1 2026 earnings report that blew past Wall Street's expectations on virtually every metric, its sixth consecutive quarter of beating estimates. The results prompted a broader rally in semiconductor peers, with AMD ( AMD ) and Nvidia ( NVDA ) also moving higher on the read-through. Seeking Alpha analyst Louis Gerard called the results a partial vindication, noting that Intel is "clearing decks, taking the pain now to potentially show a cleaner growth in 2027," while Stone Fox Capital flagged that the stock, now trading in the mid-$70s, is priced at a forward earnings multiple that leaves little room for error given underlying earnings power of just $1–$2 per share. Intel ( INTC ) tops this list of the most expensively valued semiconductor stocks with a market cap above $10 billion, carrying a forward P/E of 120.24, the highest among its large-cap peers. Intel holds the only Strong Buy Quant Rating on the entire list (4.91), yet also commands the richest valuation multiple by a wide margin, reflecting the market pricing in a significant earnings recovery that has yet to fully materialize in GAAP terms. SiTime ( SITM ) and FormFactor ( FORM ) follow with forward P/Es of 108.16 and 80.01 respectively, while Astera Labs ( ALAB ) and Lattice Semiconductor ( LSCC ) round out the top five above 74x. The bottom half of the list, including Monolithic Power Systems ( MPWR ), MACOM ( MTSI ), Teradyne ( TER ), Microchip Technology ( MCHP ), and KLA Corporation ( KLAC ), trades at forward P/Es ranging from approximately 74x down to 49x, with all carrying Hold ratings. The forward price-to-earnings ratio compares a stock's current share price to expected earnings per share over the next twelve months based on analyst consensus estimates. A higher ratio generally implies the market expects stronger future earnings growth. Here is the list: Intel Corporation ( INTC ), P/E fwd ratio: 120....

mesh cube Intel ( INTC ) surged more than 27% in premarket trading on Friday after delivering a Q1 2026 earnings report that blew past Wall Street's expectations on virtually every metric, its sixth consecutive quarter of beating estimates. The results prompted a broader rally in semiconductor peers, with AMD ( AMD ) and Nvidia ( NVDA ) also moving higher on the read-through. Seeking Alpha analyst Louis Gerard called the results a partial vindication, noting that Intel is "clearing decks, taking the pain now to potentially show a cleaner growth in 2027," while Stone Fox Capital flagged that the stock, now trading in the mid-$70s, is priced at a forward earnings multiple that leaves little room for error given underlying earnings power of just $1–$2 per share. Intel ( INTC ) tops this list of the most expensively valued semiconductor stocks with a market cap above $10 billion, carrying a forward P/E of 120.24, the highest among its large-cap peers. Intel holds the only Strong Buy Quant Rating on the entire list (4.91), yet also commands the richest valuation multiple by a wide margin, reflecting the market pricing in a significant earnings recovery that has yet to fully materialize in GAAP terms. SiTime ( SITM ) and FormFactor ( FORM ) follow with forward P/Es of 108.16 and 80.01 respectively, while Astera Labs ( ALAB ) and Lattice Semiconductor ( LSCC ) round out the top five above 74x. The bottom half of the list, including Monolithic Power Systems ( MPWR ), MACOM ( MTSI ), Teradyne ( TER ), Microchip Technology ( MCHP ), and KLA Corporation ( KLAC ), trades at forward P/Es ranging from approximately 74x down to 49x, with all carrying Hold ratings. The forward price-to-earnings ratio compares a stock's current share price to expected earnings per share over the next twelve months based on analyst consensus estimates. A higher ratio generally implies the market expects stronger future earnings growth. Here is the list: Intel Corporation ( INTC ), P/E fwd ratio: 120....

包括Zara创始人Amancio Ortega在内的超级富豪以及他们的投资公司，正在加强对1万亿美元商业地产市场的掌控，而机构投资者则落在了后头。 数据显示，西班牙首富Ortega去年扩大了其全球商业地产投资组合，在北美和欧洲至少收购了10处物业，总额超过15亿美元。房产经纪公司莱坊在其2026年财富报告中表示，其他富豪同样持续聚焦这一资产类别，推动私人资本去年向写字楼、物流设施和租赁住宅的市场投入了创纪录的4640亿美元。 该公司补充说，同期机构投资者投入了3470亿美元。这是富裕人群、家族办公室和非上市公司的投资额连续第四年更胜一筹，凸显了他们在全球金融市场日益增长的影响力。 Ortega家族办公室Pontegadea的代表不予置评。Pontegadea去年11月在温哥华市中心以约7.8亿美元的价格，买入被亚马逊租下的一座双塔大厦。根据彭博亿万富豪指数，凭借所持Zara母公司Inditex SA的多数股权，90岁的Ortega的净值高达1310亿美元。 “过去十年，私人投资者的成熟度有所变化，”总部位于伦敦的莱坊的全球资本市场主管Nick Braybrook在一份声明中表示。“机构买家正在重返房地产市场，但私人资本仍然走在前面。” 责任编辑：刘明亮

联合国大会4月22日结束为期两天的下一任联合国秘书长候选人网络互动对话。4名候选人围绕全球治理、气候变化、多边主义等议题阐述愿景，引发国际社会对“谁将领导联合国迈向2027年后”的广泛关注。尽管两位女性候选人符合区域轮换要求且履历突出，但遴选结果仍存变数。联合国会员国可在7月底前继续提名或撤回候选人，安理会的意向投票亦不具约束力。不过有分析认为，如果拉美地区会员国团结一致支持女性候选人，且安理会常任理事国未行使否决权，联合国有望在今年迎来首位女性秘书长。这一突破不仅将改写历史，更可能为全球治理带来新视角。（央视新闻）

本周（4月20日至4月24日），A股三大指数涨跌互现。截至周五收盘，上证指数累计上涨0.7%，深证成指累计上涨0.37%，创业板指累计下跌0.29%。 板块方面，氟化工、磷化工、光刻机等热门概念表现突出，涨幅位居前列；而猪肉、生物医疗等概念板块迎来阶段性调整，表现相对疲软。 个股方面，本周有2024只个股涨幅为正，3431只个股下跌。其中，华特气体（688268.SH）表现尤为抢眼，本周累计涨幅达94.59%，登顶本周个股涨幅榜；安诺其（300067.SZ）、怡达股份（300721.SZ）等个股紧随其后，累计涨幅分别为58.43%、48.10%，表现同样可圈可点。 盘面另一大特征在于，多只此前表现强势的个股在周五集体降温，迎来分歧调整。走出四连板行情的金螳螂（002081.SZ）周五意外跌停，连板节奏就此中断；苏州高新（600736.SH）冲击4连板未果，周五尾盘大幅跳水回落；除此以外，华电辽能（600396.SH）、安诺其（300067.SZ）等三连板标的，也在周五同步走弱。 成交金额方面，本周沪深两市交投活跃度进一步提升。统计数据显示，本周沪深两市日均成交额达到25987亿元，市场交易活跃度持续提升。 指数全景 指数层面，本周A股主要指数走势分化，涨跌互现。其中，科创50、上证50的表现相对较强，本周累计涨幅分别为2.13%、1.17%，沪深300与上证指数同样录得周度正收益；反观北证50走势偏弱，本周累计回落2.46%。从年内表现来看，创业板指领跑各大指数，累计涨幅达到14.51%，深证成指以10.46%的累计涨幅紧随其后。值得注意的是，北证50、上证50年内依然承压，累计涨幅仍为负值 量能跟踪 市场量能方面，本周沪深两市日均成交额达到25987亿元，市场交投活跃度较上周明显升温。单日成交走势分化，周初三个交易日两市成交额平稳运行在25000亿元附近，依次录得 25788亿元、24085亿元、25598亿元；周四市场明显放量，成交额攀升至28045亿元，周五稍有回落，单日成交额降至26419亿元。 板块聚焦 板块方面，本周涨幅居前的概念板块分别是染料、氟化工概念、化肥、磷化工、光刻机，累计涨幅分别为4.16%、3.53%、3.11%、3.02%、2.85%。 本周排在跌幅榜前排的概念板块分别是猪肉、生物疫苗、托育服务、牙科医疗、移动支付，累计跌幅分别为4.29...

巴基斯坦官员称，预计美伊将举行第二轮会谈。 WTI原油日内跌幅达2.0%，报93.9美元/桶。 布伦特原油日内跌幅达1.5%，报103.41美元/桶。 纳斯达克100指数期货延续涨势，日内涨幅达1.6%，触及盘中高点。 欧洲斯托克600指数抹去跌幅。 美国国债延续涨势，各期限收益率触及日内低点。 现货白银日内涨幅达1.0%，报76.19美元/盎司。 现货黄金5分钟内上涨8.09美元/盎司，报4715.28美元/盎司。 墨西哥比索和南非兰特升至日内高点。

sommart Flagstar Bank ( FLG ) posted its second straight quarter of profit on Friday, as the company continued its shift to commercial and industrial lending, focused on fundamentals, improved credit quality, increased deposits, and reduced its level of troubled loans. Credit quality improved, with non-accrual loans falling 11% Q/Q and criticized/classified loans dipping 3% Q/Q. Commercial real estate exposure fell further with CRE par payoffs of $1.1B. The bank, however, trimmed its 2026 adjusted EPS guidance to $0.60-$0.65 (midpoint $0.63 vs. $0.53 consensus) from $0.65-$0.70 and its NII full-year guidance to $1.950B-$2.050B (midpoint $2.00B vs. $2.13B consensus) from its prior view of $2.15B-$2.20B. Adjusted operating expense for the year is now expected to be $1.700B-$1.750B, compared with its previous guidance of $1.75B-$1.80B. Flagstar also reduced its 2027 guidance for adjusted EPS to $1.80-$1.90 from its previous outlook of $1.90-$2.00 (midpoint $1.95 vs. $1.61 consensus) and for its net interest income to $2.600B-$2.700B (midpoint $2.650B vs. consensus of $2.629B) from $2.800B-$2.900B. Its long-term targets remain at 10.5%-11.5% for CET1 ratio, 11%-12% for return on average tangible common equity, and 1%+ for return on average assets. Flagstar ( FLG ) stock edged up 0.1% in premarket trading. Q1 adjusted EPS of $0.04, in line with the average analyst, fell from $0.06 in Q4 2025 and increased from -$0.23 in last year’s Q1. Q1 total revenue of $498M, trailing the $553M consensus, decreased from $557M in the prior quarter and rose from $490M a year ago. "Our strategy to diversify our loan portfolio by increasing our C&I lending is gaining momentum," said Chairman, President, and Chief Executive Officer Joseph M. Otting. "During the quarter, we delivered strong growth in C&I lending, as demand from business customers remained healthy and our bankers continued to deepen relationships across our footprint." C&I loans grew by $1.4B, or 9%, with growth becoming mor...

格隆汇4月24日｜当地时间4月24日，据巴基斯坦政府消息人士称，伊朗外长阿拉格齐24日晚将率团抵达伊斯兰堡。

表面是数据之争，实则是数据如何被连接与流动的规则之争。 最近具身智能的数据战打得火热。 前有腾讯发布Tairos具身智能开放平台，后京东又上线了具身智能数据交易平台，还要发动60万人采集1000万小时。 不久前，百度也推出具身智能数据超市，想要解决困扰行业已久的数据质量参差不齐、格式标准不一、使用成本高等痛点。 上周亦庄的人形机器人马拉松大赛，更是把具身智能的热度推向高潮。 荣耀机器人「闪电」跑完21公里，净用时50分26秒，打破了人类男子半马世界纪录。一时间，评论区沸腾，“历史性时刻”，“部署态元年”到来！ 但仔细研究，会发现这更像一场“机械能力”的突破，而非“AI能力”的突破。「闪电」之所以能跑出这个成绩，靠的是 0.95 米大长腿、自研液冷系统、电机关系从 420Nm 提升到 600Nm。 这些都是工程能力的积累，是荣耀把过去十几年消费电子里的轻量化和结构设计能力，迁移到了机器人上。如果把同一套算法塞进另一台机器人，大概率跑不出这个成绩。 问题不在算法， 而在“具身智能”这个词，装了太多含义。 连续跑21公里是一件事；能帮你干活，是另一件事；能在产线上连续工作8小时不停机，又是完全不同的一件事 而这三件事，对应的是三种完全不同的数据需求。 “缺数据”喊了三年，但没人说清到底缺什么 “整个互联网上能训练的数据一共就没有多少T，现在已经快不够用了。”国内某头部大模型厂商创始人在采访中说，“现在大家更多是用检索增强来落地B端，C端还是需要基座模型的进化才能突破。” 这是大模型（LLM）领域的真实焦虑。 如今， LLM的“数据焦虑”正蔓延到具身智能。 去任何一场机器人相关的论坛，几乎所有人都在说，数据不够，是最大的瓶颈。 但如果再往下追问， 到底缺的是什么数据？答案却千差万别。 LLM之所以能够跑通规模定律（Scaling Law），有一个不能忽视的大前提： 互联网文本本身就是一个“闭环系统”。 一句话里同时包含意图、语义、甚至隐含的推理路径。模型要做的，便是不断从这些闭环中提取规律。 所以 你只需要“多喂”，模型“悟”得越多，能力就会自然涌现。 但 具身智能没有这样的闭环。 你可以采集100万小时的人类生活视频，但里面并没有机器人应该如何控制关节的信息；你可以构建1000万个仿真场景，但它们往往缺少真实世界里的噪声与长尾分布；你也可以通过遥操作积累10万条任务数据，...

Key PointsThis thriving business continues to report impressive financial performance, with off-the-charts demand.

格隆汇4月24日｜市场消息成，美国后勤和安全团队已在伊斯兰堡，将参与和平谈判。

格隆汇4月24日｜纳斯达克100指数期货延续涨势，升至日内高点，涨幅达到1.5%。

(RTTNews) - U.K. stocks slipped on Friday, sliding for a fifth straight session, weighed down by lingering concerns about tensions in the Middle East. Shares from mining and banking sectors were among the notable losers around noon.

【巴基斯坦消息人士：伊朗外长今晚将率团抵达伊斯兰堡】财联社4月24日电，据巴基斯坦政府消息人士当地时间4月24日称，伊朗外长阿拉格齐24日晚将率团抵达伊斯兰堡。 (央视新闻)

纽约期金站上4730美元/盎司，日内涨0.16%。

Sarah Breeden predicts ‘adjustment’ due to elevated risk including private credit and highly valued AI stocks Business live – latest updates Record-high global stock markets do not reflect the risks in the global economy, and will fall back, a deputy governor at the Bank of England has warned. Sarah Breeden, deputy governor for financial stability at the Bank, fears that macroeconomic risks are not fully priced into equity markets. Continue reading...

Good morning . AI optimism returns. Building a podcast empire is hard, just ask Alex Cooper. And kids are clamoring for the 21st century version of the tin can phone. Listen to the day’s top stories . — Angela Cullen Market Snapshot S&P 500 Futures 7,170.25 +0.4% Nasdaq 100 Futures 27,282.25 +1.3% Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index 1,197.35 -0.2% Market data as of 07:27 AM ET. Data is subject to provider delays. Resurgent optimism around AI’s economic promise is eclipsing Iran war worries into the week’s end, with chipmakers doing the heavy lifting on the back of strong results from Intel and SAP . The conflict still looms : Washington is increasing pressure on Tehran to return to the negotiating table, but Donald Trump’s brash social media posts are getting in the way, officials say. Eight weeks in, Wendy Sherman—architect of the 2015 nuclear deal—warns the current situation is harder, riskier and strategically misjudged . AI rivalry barrels on. China’s DeepSeek rolled out previews of its new flagship model, touting it as the most powerful open-source platform yet, a year after jolting Silicon Valley. Meanwhile, Washington is moving to block Chinese developers from leveraging US models in its first major response to claims China is piggybacking on American AI advances . And China is telling private tech firms, including some of the country’s AI pioneers, to reject capital of US origin in funding rounds without government approval, people familiar said. That sets up a tense backdrop for Trump’s visit to China next month, if the Iran war doesn’t delay it again. The DOJ charged two Chinese nationals accused of running a major scam compound in Myanmar that targeted Americans with cryptocurrency schemes . Prosecutors say they oversaw operations at Shunda Park, where trafficked workers were forced to carry out so-called “pig butchering” operations—cultivating online relationships before steering victims into bogus crypto investments that siphoned large sums of money. Here’s how...

Bonjour et Bienvenue to the Paris Edition. I’m Bloomberg Opinion columnist Lionel Laurent . If you haven’t yet, subscribe now to the Paris Edition newsletter . Money Talks Luxury real estate has long been a magnet for the uber-wealthy – and the uber-shady. Part pied-a-terre, part safety deposit box, the money-laundering risks posed by the sector are regularly flagged by financial-crime detectives and anti-corruption campaigners calling for tougher sanctions and less opacity. And the French Riviera has long been an area of interest: In 2024, the principality of Monaco was put on an international “ gray list ” for not doing enough to tackle illicit money flows. It’s since been deemed to have made “progress” but there’s still more to do. That is evident from my colleagues’ latest piece about the city-state, focusing on Mareterra, an exclusive waterfront development that officially opened its doors in late 2024. Its 114 homes were initially sold for between 16 million and almost 500 million euros, with one of the transactions, involving Ukraine’s richest man, distinguishing itself as the most expensive single-property deal of all time. Other interested parties included billionaire Jim Ratcliffe and Formula 1 star Max Verstappen. The development also attracted, despite vetting hurdles, a lot of Russia-linked wealth. A cache of emails puts faces on some of the people involved. There are the little-known Russian-born aviation executives with Irish passports looking to buy four of ten available villas each; the son of a former Rosneft executive who bought — then tried to resell — properties after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine; the steel tycoon and his daughter who planned property deals involving a Cypriot company and Swiss bank account. There’s no suggestion of wrongdoing from anyone involved but the internal back-and-forth shows the size and scale the flows, and why concern is growing within Monaco over illicit money. Many prospective buyers had to be turned down. Monaco’s...

A suspected Chinese underwater drone hauled out of Indonesian waters this month has sharpened global focus on a security race that analysts say has been years in the making across South and Southeast Asia: undersea surveillance. The torpedo-shaped device was found near the Lombok Strait, one of the few deepwater channels through which submarines can transit submerged between the Pacific and Indian oceans and a passage closely watched by the United States and Australia. Beijing said it did not...

近日，国家知识产权局、公安部、国家市场监督管理总局联合制定了《知识产权代理行业“整治规范年”行动方案》，并予以公布。 关于印发知识产权代理行业“整治规范年”行动方案的通知 我们观察发现，这次“整治规范年”，真正要整治的不是代理行业的某些乱象， 而是知识产权进入创新体系之前的入口质量。 入口不干净，权利就不可信；权利不可信，知识产权就很难成为创新发展的基础设施。 一、整治代理，就是修复创新入口 知识产权代理行业，表面上是服务行业， 实质上是创新成果进入制度体系的第一道入口。 一项技术能不能被准确表达，一项发明能不能形成稳定权利，一件商标能不能真实承载市场识别功能，很大程度上取决于代理服务的质量。 如果代理行业鱼龙混杂，低价拼量、挂证借壳、虚假申请、恶意抢注成为常态，知识产权制度就会被大量低质量甚至虚假的权利占用。 这带来的不是行业内部问题，而是创新体系的基础性风险。 真正的高价值赋能，必须建立在高质量权利基础之上。 没有可信权利，就没有可信交易；没有可信交易，就没有真正的转化运用。 二、“瘦身健体”，是行业发展逻辑切换 方案提出，到2026年底，要推动代理违法违规行为和不规范执业行为得到全面遏制，专利造假、不正当交易黑灰产业链得到有效铲除，代理行业准入质量显著提升，行业规模实现“瘦身健体”。 “瘦身健体”四个字，是这次行动中最值得重视的信号。 它说明监管并不追求代理行业简单扩张，而是要清理虚胖、压缩低质供给、提升真实服务能力。 过去，一些代理机构靠低价竞争、批量申请、挂证扩张、异常业务维持生存。这种规模不是能力，而是对制度资源的消耗。 代理行业未来的竞争，不会再是谁能报得更便宜、做得更多，而是谁能把技术说清楚、把权利做扎实、把风险判断准。 三、打掉黑灰链条，才能守住权利信用 这次方案把“专利造假黑灰产业链”放在突出位置，要求重点摸排伪造申请人信息、弄虚作假编造专利、出租专利代理资质、违规业务招揽等线索，同时对商标恶意抢注、囤积、恶意“撤三”、伪造地理标志史料等行为进行治理。 这说明，代理乱象已经不只是个别机构的执业失范，而是可能形成申请人、代理机构、交易中介、指标需求之间的链条化运作。 专利造假的危害，不只是多出几件低质量专利。更严重的是，这些“空心权利”可能进入项目申报、企业评价、融资估值、政府奖补、技术交易等环节，变成看似合规的制度凭证。 一旦虚假权利进入创新评价...