Stocks staged a relief rally following the temporary ceasefire deal between Iran and the U.S., but it's still prime time for investors to scoop up shares, investors told CNBC's " Halftime Report " on Wednesday. "[President Donald] Trump was clearly looking for an off ramp for the last couple of weeks…I just don't believe we go back to the depths of worries that we had," said Stephen Weiss, chief i...
Stocks staged a relief rally following the temporary ceasefire deal between Iran and the U.S., but it's still prime time for investors to scoop up shares, investors told CNBC's " Halftime Report " on Wednesday. "[President Donald] Trump was clearly looking for an off ramp for the last couple of weeks…I just don't believe we go back to the depths of worries that we had," said Stephen Weiss, chief investment officer of Short Hills Capital Partners. "I think it sets up very positively for the market to move higher." The major averages surged Wednesday after the U.S. and Iran agreed to a two-week ceasefire, pausing a five-week conflict that had spread across the Middle East and roiled global markets. The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared roughly 2.9%, or more than 1,300 points higher, marking its best day since April 2025. Retail investors may be reassessing their defensive portfolio strategies and seeking buying opportunities. Shannon Saccocia, chief investment officer - wealth for Neuberger Berman recommends investors allocate at least some of their portfolio to risk-on assets like technology stocks, particularly ahead of a potentially blockbuster earnings season that is kicking off this month. "Areas like technology and financials and parts of the industrial sector, those are areas where we felt those valuations were vulnerable in June, July [and] August of last year, [but] those have become more attractive, consistent and coincident with continued economic momentum," Saccocia said. There's "an opportunity to potentially move back into some of those names as we start to see the relative attractiveness of U.S. large caps come back to the fore," she added. Joe Terranova, senior managing director at Virtus Investment Partners, highlighted Alphabet and said that the market's action reflected a "growth story." He noted the Google parent is up more than 1% in 2026, making it the highest performing name in the "Magnificent Seven." "We finally have a Mag Seven name that is...
Rangsarit Chaiyakun/iStock via Getty Images A diesel hydrotreater and the control room for multiple hydrotreating units at Valero Energy's ( VLO ) 380K bbl/day Port Arthur, Texas, refinery were destroyed by a March 23 explosion and fire, Reuters reported Wednesday. No injuries were reported following the explosion that set off the fire at the Unit 245 47K bbl/day diesel hydrotreater, company a...
Rangsarit Chaiyakun/iStock via Getty Images A diesel hydrotreater and the control room for multiple hydrotreating units at Valero Energy's ( VLO ) 380K bbl/day Port Arthur, Texas, refinery were destroyed by a March 23 explosion and fire, Reuters reported Wednesday. No injuries were reported following the explosion that set off the fire at the Unit 245 47K bbl/day diesel hydrotreater, company and law enforcement officials said. Valero ( VLO ) has been working to open a temporary control room to enable a restart of the 45K bbl/day Unit 245 gasoline Gulfiner hydrotreater, according to the report; the unit is one of four hydrotreaters run by the control room destroyed in the fire. Repairs to the control room are expected to take several weeks, and it is not known how long it might take to rebuild the diesel hydrotreater, the report said. The Port Arthur refinery accounts for 3.7% of refining capacity in the U.S. Gulf Coast states of Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi but produces 6.1% of distillates in those states, according to the Energy Information Administration. More on Valero Energy Valero Energy Shares Follow Crack Spreads Higher (Rating Upgrade) Valero Is Much More Than Fossil-Based Crack Spreads Valero Energy: Still Pumping Cash, But The Valuation Looks Bloated
The US Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, March 9, 2026. The US Securities and Exchange Commission announced new insider trade rules last month for executives in non-US companies who buy or sell stock in their firms.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission headquarters in Washington, DC, US, on Monday, March 9, 2026. The US Securities and Exchange Commission announced new insider trade rules last month for executives in non-US companies who buy or sell stock in their firms.
California Supreme Court Orders "Rogue" Sheriff To Pause Election Fraud Probe Authored by Jacki Thrapp via The Epoch Times, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco was ordered by the California Supreme Court on April 8 to halt his investigation into 2025 election fraud allegations so the judges can review the legal challenges that his probe faces. Bianco, a Republican who is running for California go...
California Supreme Court Orders "Rogue" Sheriff To Pause Election Fraud Probe Authored by Jacki Thrapp via The Epoch Times, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco was ordered by the California Supreme Court on April 8 to halt his investigation into 2025 election fraud allegations so the judges can review the legal challenges that his probe faces. Bianco, a Republican who is running for California governor, seized more than half a million 2025 election ballots after allegedly receiving complaints from locals. Then, last month he seized an additional 1,000 boxes of election materials. Local election officials told the county Board of Supervisors that his decision to take the ballots was unfounded. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, a Democrat, asked the court to step in and stop the investigation, saying that Bianco did not have authority to take the ballots. Bianco seized another 426 boxes of ballots last week. The top court ordered Bianco and his team to “pause the investigation into the November 2025 special election and preserve all seized items.” “Today’s decision by the California Supreme Court reins in the destabilizing actions of a rogue Sheriff, prohibiting him from continuing this investigation while our litigation continues,” Bonta said in a statement. The Epoch Times has contacted Bianco’s office for comment. Bianco’s career in law enforcement extends 30 years. In 2018 he was elected as the sheriff, coroner, and public administrator of Riverside County. Bianco entered the crowded California gubernatorial race just over a year ago and edges behind fellow Republican, Steve Hilton, in the latest Berkeley IGS poll. Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, who may be eying a presidential bid as he exits his current seat in January 2027, applauded today’s ruling by the court. “Today’s decision is a victory for democracy and the rule of law,” Newsom wrote in an X post on Wednesday. “This rogue sheriff chased conspiracy theories, tried to undermine our elections, and got t...
【有線新聞】日本搖滾樂隊ONE OK ROCK下月初在香港的兩場演唱會取消。 主辦方表示，因為發生藝人與主辦方無法預見且不可抗力的因素，雖然已盡最大努力多方協調，但相關問題仍超出可控制範圍，令演出無法如期舉行，主辦方深表遺憾及向樂迷致歉。 ONE OK ROCK亞洲巡迴演唱會原計劃下月2日及3日在中環海濱活動空間舉行。
【有線新聞】日本搖滾樂隊ONE OK ROCK下月初在香港的兩場演唱會取消。 主辦方表示，因為發生藝人與主辦方無法預見且不可抗力的因素，雖然已盡最大努力多方協調，但相關問題仍超出可控制範圍，令演出無法如期舉行，主辦方深表遺憾及向樂迷致歉。 ONE OK ROCK亞洲巡迴演唱會原計劃下月2日及3日在中環海濱活動空間舉行。
New York Times columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin and CEO and co-founder of Anthropic Dario Amodei speak onstage during the 2025 New York Times Dealbook Summit at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, Dec. 3, 2025. Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday denied Anthropic's request for a stay in its lawsuit against the Department of Defense. The artifici...
New York Times columnist Andrew Ross Sorkin and CEO and co-founder of Anthropic Dario Amodei speak onstage during the 2025 New York Times Dealbook Summit at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York, Dec. 3, 2025. Michael M. Santiago | Getty Images A federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday denied Anthropic's request for a stay in its lawsuit against the Department of Defense. The artificial intelligence startup sought the action to pause its blacklisting by the Pentagon and prevent further monetary and reputational harm as the case unfolds. The ruling comes after a judge in San Francisco federal court late last month, in a separate but related case, granted Anthropic a preliminary injunction that bars the Trump administration from enforcing a ban on the use of Claude. The DOD declared Anthropic a supply chain risk in early March, meaning that use of the company's technology purportedly threatens U.S. national security. The label requires defense contractors to certify that they don't use Anthropic's Claude AI models in their work with the military. "In our view, the equitable balance here cuts in favor of the government," the appeals court said in its decision. "On one side is a relatively contained risk of financial harm to a single private company. On the other side is judicial management of how, and through whom, the Department of War secures vital AI technology during an active military conflict." Anthropic had asked the appeals court to review the Pentagon's determination and argued that it's a form of retaliation that's unconstitutional, arbitrary, capricious and not in accord with procedures required by law, according to a filing . In the ruling on Wednesday, the court acknowledged that Anthropic "will likely suffer some degree of irreparable harm absent a stay," but that the company's interests "seem primarily financial in nature." While the company claimed the DOD was standing in the way of its right to free speech, "Anthropic does not show that it...
Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. shareholders should approve the company’s planned sale to Paramount Skydance Corp. at an April 23 special meeting, according to Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. The $31-a-share offer from Paramount was the result of a competitive sale process that “provides shareholders comfort that the proposed deal is the best available,” the proxy adviser said in a report to c...
Warner Bros. Discovery Inc. shareholders should approve the company’s planned sale to Paramount Skydance Corp. at an April 23 special meeting, according to Institutional Shareholder Services Inc. The $31-a-share offer from Paramount was the result of a competitive sale process that “provides shareholders comfort that the proposed deal is the best available,” the proxy adviser said in a report to clients. Shareholders should reject a “golden parachute” compensation package that will accelerate equity awards valued at over $500 million for Warner Bros. Chief Executive Officer David Zaslav , ISS said in the April 8 report. The compensation for Zaslav, as well as $335 million in potential tax reimbursements, “represents one of the highest golden parachute estimates ever observed,” ISS said. The full vesting of recently-granted shares intended to cover multiple years “represents a windfall.” The Paramount transaction is not conditional on the pay proposal passing.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News California could face tightening fuel supplies in the coming months as disruptions linked to the Iran conflict ripple through global energy markets, particularly affecting shipments from Asia, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The state relies heavily on imported oil and refined fuels, with a significant share tied to supply chains connected to the Middl...
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images News California could face tightening fuel supplies in the coming months as disruptions linked to the Iran conflict ripple through global energy markets, particularly affecting shipments from Asia, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The state relies heavily on imported oil and refined fuels, with a significant share tied to supply chains connected to the Middle East. With Iran's restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz, key suppliers such as South Korea and India are cutting exports, including jet fuel shipments to the U.S. West Coast. Industry executives say current inventories should meet demand in the near term, but shortages could emerge later if disruptions persist. Asian refiners are drawing down stockpiles, and some countries have begun tapping strategic reserves, measures that may only provide temporary relief. California’s exposure is heightened by its dependence on imports and limited access to domestic oil supplies. Declining in-state production and refinery closures over the past two decades have increased reliance on overseas sources, particularly for jet fuel and gasoline. Higher transportation risks and costs are also expected to push fuel prices upward, adding to already elevated gasoline prices in the state. More on State Street® Energy Select Sector SPDR® ETF Stocks From Liberation Day To Iran War 3 Reasons Why There Will Be No Ceasefire In Iran Finding The Opportunities After The Selloff And End Of The War Large-cap energy Quant picks ahead of Q1 earnings Mid-cap energy Quant picks ahead of Q1 earnings