Asian equity markets surged on Wednesday after the US, Iran, and Israel agreed to a two-week ceasefire for negotiations. President Trump delayed planned strikes on Iran, calling it a “double-sided ceasefire". Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks, with transit coordinated with its Armed Forces. South Korean and Japanese shares rose over 5%. Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) climbed above $72,000 i...
Asian equity markets surged on Wednesday after the US, Iran, and Israel agreed to a two-week ceasefire for negotiations. President Trump delayed planned strikes on Iran, calling it a “double-sided ceasefire". Iran will reopen the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks, with transit coordinated with its Armed Forces. South Korean and Japanese shares rose over 5%. Bitcoin ( BTC-USD ) climbed above $72,000 in early April, reaching its highest level in three weeks. Gold prices jumped more than 2% to above $4,800 per ounce on Wednesday. WTI crude futures plunged more than 15% to below $95 per barrel on Wednesday. The benchmark KOSPI surged more than 5% to around 5,800 on Wednesday. The South Korean won strengthened to around 1,480 per dollar, rebounding sharply to its highest level since March. Japan ( NKY:IND ) rose 5.41% to above 55,700, while the broader Topix jumped 3.1% to 3,768 on Wednesday. The Japanese yen appreciated past 158.5 per dollar on Wednesday, rebounding sharply from the critical 160 level touched earlier this week. Japan's nominal wage growth rose by 3.3% year-on-year in February 2026, surpassing expectations of a 2.7% increase and edging up from the previous month's 3% gain. Japan’s current account surplus stood at JPY 3,932.7 billion in February 2026, little changed from JPY 3,938.4 billion a year earlier but exceeding market expectations of JPY 3,549 billion. Japan’s services sector index fell sharply to 42.2 in March 2026 from 48.9 in the prior month, missing market expectations of 48.0. China's ( SHCOMP ) rose 2.35% to 3,947 on Wednesday, while the Shenzhen Component surged 3% to 13,807, both extending their gains from the previous session , and the offshore yuan strengthened to around 6.82 per dollar on Wednesday. In a move to dampen the effects of global energy volatility, the National Development and Reform Commission confirmed that retail gasoline and diesel price controls will remain in effect starting today. Domestically, investors are turning their...
beast01/iStock via Getty Images The Simplify Volatility Premium ETF ( SVOL ) is an actively managed exchange-traded fund designed to provide investors with income through inverse exposure to the Cboe Market Volatility Index ( VIX ) while protecting returns through the use of a call options strategy. SVOL can be best utilized following periods of increased volatility like the present market environ...
beast01/iStock via Getty Images The Simplify Volatility Premium ETF ( SVOL ) is an actively managed exchange-traded fund designed to provide investors with income through inverse exposure to the Cboe Market Volatility Index ( VIX ) while protecting returns through the use of a call options strategy. SVOL can be best utilized following periods of increased volatility like the present market environment. While timing volatility increases can be challenging given the exogenous effects on the market, particularly in today’s high-risk geopolitical environment, taking a short position in volatility may achieve net returns under the assumption that volatility typically remediates down to an average rate. Given the heightened levels of volatility and the earnings potential for SVOL, I recommend SVOL with a "Buy" rating. As a result of the futures derivatives used to capture exposure, SVOL can only target daily exposure in terms of its target performance profile; holding SVOL longer than a single trading day may provide deviation from the -0.2x to -0.3x target range and may compound over time. Trading chart (TradingView) Investment Rationale for SVOL SVOL was designed to capture inverse exposure to VIX while offering protection from losses through the use of a strategic options overlay, limiting total losses by the fund. The strategy was designed to provide -0.2x to -0.3x the performance of short-term VIX futures, which may reduce the volatility of the price of the actual fund, providing a certain degree of stability for investors. Volatility has become a growing risk in recent weeks following the start of the war in Iran. The S&P 500 Index ( SPX ) has returned roughly -4% since the start of the military escalation of the war on February 28, 2026 , exhibiting days of sharp volatility throughout. While the market has made attempts to recover on signs of abating oil prices or an end to combat, positive news has been relatively short-lived, with the market falling back into dec...
The president who yearned for a Nobel Peace Prize and once revelled in the appearance of solving conflicts turned to the language of annihilation as he struggled to find a resolution to his war of choice in Iran. US President Donald Trump’s latest threat over the Iran war hit a new extreme on Tuesday as he warned “A whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again”, if Iran fail...
The president who yearned for a Nobel Peace Prize and once revelled in the appearance of solving conflicts turned to the language of annihilation as he struggled to find a resolution to his war of choice in Iran. US President Donald Trump’s latest threat over the Iran war hit a new extreme on Tuesday as he warned “A whole civilisation will die tonight, never to be brought back again”, if Iran failed to make a deal that included reopening the vital Strait of Hormuz. The Republican president’s...
Twenty years is a long time. In 2006, nobody had an iPhone. Streaming wasn't a verb. AI meant Allen Iverson. And a lot of the companies that dominate retail investors' portfolios today were either tiny, private, or barely public. The investors who have won in the past two decades haven't always done so by picking the flashiest stocks. Many were picking businesses with durable models and growing ma...
Twenty years is a long time. In 2006, nobody had an iPhone. Streaming wasn't a verb. AI meant Allen Iverson. And a lot of the companies that dominate retail investors' portfolios today were either tiny, private, or barely public. The investors who have won in the past two decades haven't always done so by picking the flashiest stocks. Many were picking businesses with durable models and growing markets, and using patience to let years of compound growth do its work. Here are two tickers I'd recommend considering for 20-year holding periods. Continue reading
Up to 80 per cent of Hong Kong’s fishing vessels have suspended operations nearly a month ahead of a planned moratorium, according to a sector representative, as the doubling of “red oil” prices caused by the war in the Middle East has made going out to sea untenable for operators. Representatives for local transport and maritime sectors welcomed the two-week ceasefire announced by the US and Iran...
Up to 80 per cent of Hong Kong’s fishing vessels have suspended operations nearly a month ahead of a planned moratorium, according to a sector representative, as the doubling of “red oil” prices caused by the war in the Middle East has made going out to sea untenable for operators. Representatives for local transport and maritime sectors welcomed the two-week ceasefire announced by the US and Iran and the subsequent reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, but called for targeted, temporary government...
North Korea fired several ballistic missiles towards the sea off its east coast on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said, following a separate launch detected a day earlier as Pyongyang doused Seoul’s hopes of an easing in tensions. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the unidentified short-range missiles were launched at around 8.50am from near Wonsan on the North’s east coast. The mi...
North Korea fired several ballistic missiles towards the sea off its east coast on Wednesday, South Korea’s military said, following a separate launch detected a day earlier as Pyongyang doused Seoul’s hopes of an easing in tensions. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said the unidentified short-range missiles were launched at around 8.50am from near Wonsan on the North’s east coast. The missiles flew 240km (150 miles), the JCS said, adding that South Korean and US authorities were...
Larger than any dog, let alone a house cat, the beast swaggered through the Dartmoor mist. My schoolfriends and I were entranced – until the adults who had slept through everything told us we were lying I was 11, with a handful of friends on a school trip to Dartmoor. We’d set up our tents near the edge of a camp, which was mostly empty. The first morning, our tent woke before the teachers. We sto...
Larger than any dog, let alone a house cat, the beast swaggered through the Dartmoor mist. My schoolfriends and I were entranced – until the adults who had slept through everything told us we were lying I was 11, with a handful of friends on a school trip to Dartmoor. We’d set up our tents near the edge of a camp, which was mostly empty. The first morning, our tent woke before the teachers. We stole out to find another group of boys already on the dewy grass, standing hands in pockets, together in nature. The sun was just coming up. The last of the night-time mist was peeling away. Continue reading...