Welcome to the Mideast Money newsletter, I’m Adveith Nair . Join us each week as my team and I chronicle the intersection of money and power in a region that’s become one of the most influential in global finance. You can sign up here . This week: A Saudi prince’s wealth surges on a SpaceX bet , Goldman Sachs lands a crucial Kuwait mandate , and Dubai’s appeal as a commodities hub endures. But fir...
Welcome to the Mideast Money newsletter, I’m Adveith Nair . Join us each week as my team and I chronicle the intersection of money and power in a region that’s become one of the most influential in global finance. You can sign up here . This week: A Saudi prince’s wealth surges on a SpaceX bet , Goldman Sachs lands a crucial Kuwait mandate , and Dubai’s appeal as a commodities hub endures. But first, the latest on the Iran war , which has now crossed the 100-day mark. Iran declared an end to its latest attacks on Israel after US President Donald Trump said the two sides were seeking an immediate ceasefire following tit-for-tat strikes that threatened to derail talks aimed at ending the war. Oil pared earlier gains. The fighting posed the most serious challenge yet to the ceasefire that took effect in early April and highlighted the limits of Trump’s influence over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ahead of Israeli elections later this year. AI Windfall For years, Gulf investors have poured billions of dollars into artificial intelligence, backing everything from startups and chip infrastructure firms to data centers and the industry’s most-sought-after founders. Regional countries raced to become global hubs for the industry, and local entities emerged as the biggest financiers of the AI boom. But while that handed Gulf firms slices of lucrative businesses and furthered countries’ desire to diversify away from oil, the extent of the financial payoff was unclear. The SpaceX IPO may provide some answers. Elon Musk ’s firm is targeting a valuation of about $1.8 trillion in a listing that will both be the biggest new share sale ever and the first major crystallization of value after years of private funding rounds. The deal is poised to make Musk a near-trillionaire while enriching regional investors, including Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal. Alwaleed backed Twitter in 2011, before Musk had even entered the ranks of the world’s billionaires. That stake became a gateway...
Low price points typically indicate high risks, but also, sometimes, great potential. I want to dive into a few stocks with single-digit prices that I think can move higher this year. I think Opendoor Technologies (NASDAQ: OPEN) , Grab Holdings (NASDAQ: GRAB) , and Peloton Interactive (NASDAQ: PTON) can beat the market in 2026. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
Low price points typically indicate high risks, but also, sometimes, great potential. I want to dive into a few stocks with single-digit prices that I think can move higher this year. I think Opendoor Technologies (NASDAQ: OPEN) , Grab Holdings (NASDAQ: GRAB) , and Peloton Interactive (NASDAQ: PTON) can beat the market in 2026. Image source: Getty Images. Continue reading
Dilok Klaisataporn Options markets are painting an unusually calm picture of the economy, with recession risk appearing almost nonexistent according to recent data. Analysis from SocGen Cross Asset Research using Bloomberg data reveals that implied recession probabilities derived from market volatility have collapsed dramatically. The VIX ( VIX )-based measure now indicates just a 9% recession pro...
Dilok Klaisataporn Options markets are painting an unusually calm picture of the economy, with recession risk appearing almost nonexistent according to recent data. Analysis from SocGen Cross Asset Research using Bloomberg data reveals that implied recession probabilities derived from market volatility have collapsed dramatically. The VIX ( VIX )-based measure now indicates just a 9% recession probability, while the MOVE-based measure—tied to Treasury-market volatility—shows 0%. This marks a significant shift from 2022 and 2023, when bond volatility repeatedly flashed stress signals as the Federal Reserve raised interest rates and inflation concerns dominated market sentiment. During that period, the MOVE-implied recession gauge consistently spiked above equity-market signals. Now, the bond market ( SHY ) ( TLT ) appears to be signaling that the macro shock window has closed, despite renewed inflation fears in the face of the Middle East conflict. The important caveat is that low volatility doesn’t mean recession risk is actually zero—it means markets aren’t currently priced for one. After years of recession obsession, options markets have largely moved on. Meanwhile, the odds of a recession this year stood at around 16% on prediction marketplace Kalshi, down from ~35% a few months ago when the Iran war started. SocGen More on the Markets Macro Insights: The 'Dangerous Market' Playbook, 1999 Redux, And Navigating RAMpocalypse Midyear Forum: Speed Meets Scarcity Single Stock Volatility Jumps To A Record Vs. The VIX Index One argument for a rate hike, another for a rate cut, after blowout jobs report Treasury yields jump after May payrolls crush expectations
The bar for a Federal Reserve rate hike is falling as the job market remains robust in the face of stubborn price pressures, according to Collin Martin at the Schwab Center for Financial Research. “If we look at it strictly in a vacuum, the case can be made for a hike right now,” Martin, the head of fixed income research and strategy at the Schwab Center, said Monday on Bloomberg Television’s Surv...
The bar for a Federal Reserve rate hike is falling as the job market remains robust in the face of stubborn price pressures, according to Collin Martin at the Schwab Center for Financial Research. “If we look at it strictly in a vacuum, the case can be made for a hike right now,” Martin, the head of fixed income research and strategy at the Schwab Center, said Monday on Bloomberg Television’s Surveillance . “We have inflation that’s been high for five years and counting and moving in the wrong direction.” The catalysts for higher rates are strengthening even as President Donald Trump renews his calls for looser monetary policy on the eve of the first Fed policy meeting led by new Chairman Kevin Warsh , on June 16-17. Last week’s US employment print showed May job growth topped all forecasts, prompting a selloff in Treasuries and leading traders to fully price in a quarter-point increase in the Fed’s key rate by year-end. “With last Friday’s labor market report, the bar keeps coming down,” Martin said, adding his base case is for an “extended pause” amid a lot of uncertainty. “We want to see how the next few months play out.” Trump nominated Warsh to lead the Fed after a relentless public campaign directed at predecessor Jerome Powell to cut borrowing costs. The president said in an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, which was recorded Friday and aired Sunday, that “there’s no reason to raise interest rates,” demanding instead that policymakers lower them. Some analysts are coming around to the idea that the Federal Open Market Committee may need to recalibrate its stance on policy this year. Economists at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. on Friday scrapped their forecast for a Fed interest-rate cut in December, pushing the timing for easing into 2027. Martin said an initial step could be for the FOMC to shift its so-called bias to neutral from easing. A continuation of the Iran war could at some point push the committee still further. “If we continue to see the conflict g...
AstroNova (NASDAQ:ALOT) reported higher fiscal first-quarter revenue and improved profitability, driven primarily by strength in its Aerospace segment, as management said the company is benefiting from commercial aircraft demand, growing orders and internal cost controls. On the
AstroNova (NASDAQ:ALOT) reported higher fiscal first-quarter revenue and improved profitability, driven primarily by strength in its Aerospace segment, as management said the company is benefiting from commercial aircraft demand, growing orders and internal cost controls. On the
We're booking some profits in two hot stocks. Shortly after open, we'll sell 20 shares of Goldman Sachs at roughly $1,051 each, leaving Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust with 150 shares of GS and reducing its weighting in the Club portfolio to 4% from 4.5%. We'll also sell 70 shares of Qnity Electronics at roughly $146, leaving the Trust with 780 shares of Q and reducing its weighting to 2.9% from 3.1...
We're booking some profits in two hot stocks. Shortly after open, we'll sell 20 shares of Goldman Sachs at roughly $1,051 each, leaving Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust with 150 shares of GS and reducing its weighting in the Club portfolio to 4% from 4.5%. We'll also sell 70 shares of Qnity Electronics at roughly $146, leaving the Trust with 780 shares of Q and reducing its weighting to 2.9% from 3.12%. We're raising some cash into Monday's market rebound. Our concern — as Jim Cramer explained in his Sunday column — is that the market will struggle to absorb supply from three upcoming mega initial public offerings (IPOs) and potentially additional funding-raising stock sales from hyperscalers. The market selloff accelerated last Friday after the Financial Times reported that Meta Platforms is considering raising tens of billions of dollars in a stock offering to fund its AI investments. The company dismissed the report as "pure speculation," but it is hard not to think that Meta, along with Microsoft and Amazon , are at least evaluating stock sales after the success of Alphabet 's historic $85 billion capital raise last week. Investors participating in these offerings typically need to sell other holdings to free up capital, which helps explain the market volatility around these deals. We're trimming two Club positions — Goldman Sachs and Qnity — that have outperformed the broader market this year and may be vulnerable to giving back some of those gains if we experience another session like last Friday. These are short-term moves to reposition the portfolio, though we remain long-term bulls around the AI buildout. From the Goldman sale, we will realize an average gain of about 84% on stock purchased in December 2024 and January 2025. From the Qnity sale, we will realize an average gain of about 61% on stock purchased in August and October of 2023. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long GS, Q, META, MSFT, AMZN, GOOGL. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscr...
"Prepare Your Colon": HelloFresh Serves Up Anal-Sex-Themed Pride Month Ad Struggling meal-kit delivery company HelloFresh made a Pride Month joke in an official statement loaded with innuendo, using phrases that could easily be seen as sexualized rather than humorous. The ad only suggests the company's marketing team still does not understand that this kind of culture-war marketing can alienate pa...
"Prepare Your Colon": HelloFresh Serves Up Anal-Sex-Themed Pride Month Ad Struggling meal-kit delivery company HelloFresh made a Pride Month joke in an official statement loaded with innuendo, using phrases that could easily be seen as sexualized rather than humorous. The ad only suggests the company's marketing team still does not understand that this kind of culture-war marketing can alienate parts of its potential customer base, especially as the stock listed in Germany has crashed. Anti-woke crusader Robby Starbuck pointed out HelloFresh's new marketing ad, saying, " Ready for one of the most disturbing marketing campaigns you've ever seen?" He continued, " HelloFresh wants you to know that they have food for you to prepare your colon for receiving anal sex during Pride Month. Yes, this is real. No sane person should use this insane company. " Ready for one of the most disturbing marketing campaigns you’ve ever seen? @HelloFresh wants you to know that they have food for you to prepare your colon for receiving anal sex during Pride Month. Yes, this is real. No sane person should use this insane company. pic.twitter.com/R0Cy8JIOAC — Robby Starbuck (@robbystarbuck) June 7, 2026 What were those loaded phrases? "Eating isn't always a top priority this month" "For those of you who are… prepping…" "High-fiber recipes" HelloFresh's marketing team appears to be making a wink-wink Pride Month joke: if you are "prepping" for sex, HelloFresh has high-fiber meals to help. " If Hello Fresh wanted to alienate a good amount of their potential customer base, they did so right there. Whoever is in charge of their social media account needs to be fired ," Paul Szypula, a popular MAGA influencer, wrote on X. If Hello Fresh wanted to alienate a good amount of their potential customer base they did so right there. Whoever is in charge of their social media account needs to be fired. Good grief. — Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) June 7, 2026 Alienating the customer base might not...
Amprius Technology is on track to set a new all-time high later this year after it reports Q2 results and guidance. Short interest suggests a squeeze is possible.
Amprius Technology is on track to set a new all-time high later this year after it reports Q2 results and guidance. Short interest suggests a squeeze is possible.
Broadcom, Palo Alto Networks, and Planet Labs each reported strong results and offer potential upside as investors position for the second half of 2025.
Broadcom, Palo Alto Networks, and Planet Labs each reported strong results and offer potential upside as investors position for the second half of 2025.
Eoneren/E+ via Getty Images The iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF ( USMV ) is a passively managed exchange-traded fund designed to provide investors with exposure to an equity portfolio strategy designed to exhibit low volatility. With the broader market indices facing a potential decline following multiple months of substantial growth driven by the AI growth theme, I believe that investors can ...
Eoneren/E+ via Getty Images The iShares MSCI USA Min Vol Factor ETF ( USMV ) is a passively managed exchange-traded fund designed to provide investors with exposure to an equity portfolio strategy designed to exhibit low volatility. With the broader market indices facing a potential decline following multiple months of substantial growth driven by the AI growth theme, I believe that investors can benefit from managing volatility across their equity holdings, offsetting some of the risk across the tech sector. Given the potential to outperform during a more volatile market environment, I am recommending USMV with a Buy rating. TradingView Investment Thesis for USMV The broader equity markets have faced significant declines in the last week following multiple months of near-parabolic price appreciation driven by the AI theme. While I believe that the AI theme remains durable given increasing capital spending for AI development and infrastructure, stocks associated with advancements in AI may face some gyration in the near future following the significant run-up in share price that has resulted in somewhat stretched premiums. From an investment standpoint, the rapid ascent in share price may result in increased volatility as the market digests these elevated trading premiums, particularly when considering that the path to premium normalization may be 2-5 years out as operations catch up to market capitalizations. While I do not believe that there has been a structural shift in the theme, I do believe that the market may experience greater volatility given that the majority of the 1-year performance has only occurred in the last 3 months. TradingView As a result of this expectation, USMV could be an appealing investment strategy given the ETF’s broader allocation strategy. With risk less concentrated across the major AI names like Microsoft Corporation ( MSFT ), NVIDIA Corporation ( NVDA ), and Broadcom, Inc. ( AVGO ), USMV could help investors remain positioned in equi...