syahrir maulana/iStock via Getty Images By Catherine Yoshimoto, Director, Product Management, Benchmark Product Development Every benchmark is an index, but not every index is a benchmark. That’s particularly true when the index methodology considers investment strategies or investor needs. And it’s especially relevant for the recent debate over the quality of US small capitalization stocks. Confu...
syahrir maulana/iStock via Getty Images By Catherine Yoshimoto, Director, Product Management, Benchmark Product Development Every benchmark is an index, but not every index is a benchmark. That’s particularly true when the index methodology considers investment strategies or investor needs. And it’s especially relevant for the recent debate over the quality of US small capitalization stocks. Confusing headlines on US small caps Recent US small-cap headlines have a familiar rhythm. When small caps lag the broader equity market, the story is “small cap is broken”. When small caps start to rebound, the story often shifts to “small cap is back, but only the better smaller companies”. In some recent advisor-facing commentary, that second narrative is frequently paired with a benchmark debate: is the Russell 2000® Index “lower quality” because it includes a meaningful share of unprofitable companies? And are other competing indexes “better” because they apply a quality screen, such as company profitability, to constituents? This is a useful moment to separate two different questions that are often mixed up to the detriment of understanding. First, what does the benchmark represent? Second, what characteristics do you want to tilt toward within that benchmark’s opportunity set? Those are not the same decision—and investors should consider the two questions separately. What the Russell 2000 is built to represent At a high level, the Russell 2000 is designed to represent the investable US small-cap segment, drawing from the whole US equity universe. To get into that universe , a company must meet certain standards. It needs US nationality, its shares must trade on an eligible exchange, and it must pass minimum share price, market capitalization, free float and voting rights thresholds. To build the Russell indexes, we then rank stocks in the eligible universe by market cap. In our framework, the Russell 3000® Index represents the broad market, the Russell 1000® Index represe...
Key Points Microsoft is rapidly converting artificial intelligence (AI) into a recurring revenue stream through Copilot subscriptions. Adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot and GitHub Copilot is accelerating. The company’s distribution advantage will make it easier to monetize AI software. 10 stocks we like better than Microsoft › Over the past couple of years, artificial intelligence (AI) investing h...
Key Points Microsoft is rapidly converting artificial intelligence (AI) into a recurring revenue stream through Copilot subscriptions. Adoption of Microsoft 365 Copilot and GitHub Copilot is accelerating. The company’s distribution advantage will make it easier to monetize AI software. 10 stocks we like better than Microsoft › Over the past couple of years, artificial intelligence (AI) investing has focused mostly on companies supplying chips, servers, and cloud infrastructure. However, the next phase of the AI cycle can reward companies that successfully monetize AI use, especially through recurring software revenue. Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) appears well positioned to benefit from this transition. In addition to building AI-optimized Azure cloud infrastructure, the company is offering services to build AI agents. Microsoft has also integrated AI-powered assistants and other AI tools across its core software offerings. Hence, the company is now monetizing AI through paid subscriptions and enterprise software products. Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue » Here's why that opportunity can become even larger in 2026. Copilot is quickly becoming a source of recurring revenue Microsoft's AI assistant, Copilot, is already seeing strong traction. In the second quarter of fiscal 2026 (ending Dec. 31), paid Microsoft 365 Copilot seats increased by more than 160% year over year to reach roughly 15 million. Enterprise (business) deployments are accelerating, with the number of organizations that are deploying more than 35,000 Microsoft 365 Copilot seats tripling year over year in the second quarter. Microsoft reported a tenfold year-over-year increase in daily active users of Microsoft 365 Copilot, while the average number of conversations per user doubled. These adoption trends are reflected in th...
Andrey Semenov/iStock via Getty Images I have been bullish on IREN Limited ( IREN ) since the stock traded around $14 , primarily due to their early recognition that AI infrastructure would be one of the key drivers of power-dense data centers. The thesis has worked well so far. However, their ATM equity raise, which equates to approximately 50% of their market capitalization makes me slightly les...
Andrey Semenov/iStock via Getty Images I have been bullish on IREN Limited ( IREN ) since the stock traded around $14 , primarily due to their early recognition that AI infrastructure would be one of the key drivers of power-dense data centers. The thesis has worked well so far. However, their ATM equity raise, which equates to approximately 50% of their market capitalization makes me slightly less bullish on the company than I had been . While the company is clearly in a position to grow very quickly, the level of dilution becomes an even more relevant part of the thesis. Value Creation for Whom? The real question is no longer whether or not IREN is creating value. It is for whom. From my perspective, the most uncomfortable reality about IREN today is that enterprise value creation and shareholder value creation are no longer moving in lockstep. The company can say that they have secured power, they have customer demand, they have access to capital, and they have a broader development pipeline and that is all true. The company now has more than 4.5 gigawatts of secured power , still only using a fraction of that secured power portfolio to achieve the company’s end of 2026 ARR target. The Sweetwater 1 project is still on track for an April 2026 energization, and that is an important project as it opens the next great corridor of monetization rather than simply extending the existing story in the slide deck. Q2 FY2026 The problem is that I have trouble reconciling the depth of the company’s assets with the company’s financing posture. The company has already shown a willingness to float stock aggressively and the new $6 billion offering ATM is simply too large of a program to dismiss as simply management wanting flexibility. Management will always argue in a capital-intensive build-out of an AI platform that the capital they are raising at high stock prices is going into high-return assets and sometimes that is true. However, the problem is that the more they do it, ...
A Virgin Australia flight from Brisbane to Melbourne was met by firefighters after smoke was seen coming from a vape on board. Flight VA 328 landed safely and all passengers disembarked normally after a vape “activated” in the cabin shortly before landing at about 4pm on Sunday afternoon in Melbourne, Melbourne airport said. A passenger is understood to have alerted the crew when vapour and smoke ...
A Virgin Australia flight from Brisbane to Melbourne was met by firefighters after smoke was seen coming from a vape on board. Flight VA 328 landed safely and all passengers disembarked normally after a vape “activated” in the cabin shortly before landing at about 4pm on Sunday afternoon in Melbourne, Melbourne airport said. A passenger is understood to have alerted the crew when vapour and smoke was seen coming from the device. The crew then commenced the process of containing the unit. The Boeing 737’s pilots had declared a “pan”, a Melbourne airport spokesperson said. Pan calls are used to signify a situation less urgent than a mayday but which still requires an aircraft to receive expedited arrival. Firefighters followed the aircraft to the gate as a precaution and removed the device from the plane. A Virgin Australia spokesperson said the safety of the airline’s guests and crew was its “highest priority, and we thank our crew for their swift response in containing the device”. Vapes contain small lithium batteries which can spark fires when damaged or overheating, known as “thermal runaway”. According to Virgin Australia’s website, vapes and e-cigarettes are termed portable electronic devices and must be held in carry-on luggage only. In July, a power bank ignited in a backpack in an overhead locker on board a Virgin Australia flight from Sydney to Hobart. The incident triggered a change in the airline’s safety policy, with power banks now only stowable in the seat pocket, under the seat in front or in people’s hands. It is understood all Virgin aircraft carry equipment on board to suppress fire damage from lithium batteries in thermal runaway. Dr Adam Best, who specialises in advanced lithium battery technologies at the CSIRO, said vape batteries are far more prone to failure than those in power banks. “The quality of the batteries that are used in these devices are typically far worse than what we see in power banks,” he said, given most vapes are designed to...
Chinese women face ‘invisible screening’ and new AI threats in the workplace, Reports Show 00:00 00:00 /00:00 您的浏览器不支持 audio 标签。 Listen to this article 1x A man and a woman look out a window in an office. Photo: VCG The workplace environment for Chinese women is showing incremental progress, though significant hurdles remain. China’s overall gender gap index stands at 68.6%, up 0.2 percentage poin...
Chinese women face ‘invisible screening’ and new AI threats in the workplace, Reports Show 00:00 00:00 /00:00 您的浏览器不支持 audio 标签。 Listen to this article 1x A man and a woman look out a window in an office. Photo: VCG The workplace environment for Chinese women is showing incremental progress, though significant hurdles remain. China’s overall gender gap index stands at 68.6%, up 0.2 percentage points from the previous year, according to the World Economic Forum’s 2025 Global Gender Gap Report. The slight improvement was driven primarily by gains in political empowerment and health and survival equality. You've accessed an article available only to subscribers Subscribe today for just $.99. VIEW OPTIONS Unlock exclusive discounts with a Caixin group subscription — ideal for teams and organizations. Subscribe to both Caixin Global and The Wall Street Journal — for the price of one. Share now and your friends will read it for free!
Indonesia’s stocks and government bonds fell on concern Prabowo Subianto ’s administration is moving closer to removing the long-held deficit ceiling for the state budget. The Jakarta Composite Index of shares slid as much as 3.1% to an eight-month low after ministers said in a cabinet meeting on the weekend that the budget deficit limit of 3% of gross domestic product is difficult to maintain as ...
Indonesia’s stocks and government bonds fell on concern Prabowo Subianto ’s administration is moving closer to removing the long-held deficit ceiling for the state budget. The Jakarta Composite Index of shares slid as much as 3.1% to an eight-month low after ministers said in a cabinet meeting on the weekend that the budget deficit limit of 3% of gross domestic product is difficult to maintain as the Iran war pushes up oil prices. Prabowo said he would only consider temporarily exceeding the deficit cap for emergency situations, speaking in an interview with Bloomberg on Saturday. “They’re saying the 3% budget deficit cap is hard to keep,” said John Foo , founder of Valverde Investment Partners Pte. in Singapore. “Something has to give. You either increase the gap, or cut back on growth. Whatever happens, it’s not good.” Transport and property stocks were among the biggest losers in the benchmark index, which is heading for a fourth day of losses. The nation’s 10-year bond yield jumped 11 basis points to its highest level in 10 months, while the rupiah weakened 0.2% to 16,985 per dollar. Here are some comments from analysts about Indonesian assets and its fiscal situation. Felix Darmawan , Panin Sekuritas “The surge in oil prices could add strain to the fiscal outlook if it stays above the levels assumed in the state budget” With the long Eid holiday period coming up, investors tend to hold back and wait for clearer signals, which adds to the selling pressure “Transaction value has been noticeably lower in the past few days and the market feels quieter than usual, another sign that investors are stepping back and waiting for clarity” Suryaputra Wijaksana , PT UOB Kay Hian Sekuritas Indonesia “For fixed-income investors, yield risk is materializing” and foreign outflows from bonds are intensifying and could accelerate if global risk sentiment deteriorates further “The combination of rising global yields, worsening risk perception following outlook downgrades from rat...
Singapore home sales fell in February as the Lunar New Year holiday kept buyers and developers on the sidelines during one of the property market’s traditionally quieter months. Developers sold 246 new private units in February, according to figures released Monday by the Urban Redevelopment Authority. That compares with 1,597 units sold in the same month last year, when the holiday period started...
Singapore home sales fell in February as the Lunar New Year holiday kept buyers and developers on the sidelines during one of the property market’s traditionally quieter months. Developers sold 246 new private units in February, according to figures released Monday by the Urban Redevelopment Authority. That compares with 1,597 units sold in the same month last year, when the holiday period started in January and two major project launches drove transactions. A softening of Singapore’s housing market rally is clouding the outlook for developers, which are also bracing for the effects of the Middle East conflict. Shares of Singapore real estate firms tumbled on Monday as fears about the economic impact of the US-Israel war with Iran led JPMorgan Chase & Co. analysts to downgrade some of the country’s largest developers. Shares of City Developments Ltd. dropped as much as 6.8%, the most in almost a year after JPMorgan cut the firm to neutral from overweight. Analysts cited the impact of the Iran conflict on tourism and its hotel segment, as well as potential delays in divestments. UOL Group Ltd. slid as much as 7.5%, the most since 2018. Real estate shares had reached multi-year highs in Singapore in recent months, propelled by the housing boom. The Lunar New Year typically curtails showroom visits and transaction activity. The slowdown comes after almost 11,000 private homes were sold in all of 2025, the most in years, even as price growth eased to 3.3% . Still, transactions are due to pick up this month. Almost 500 new units have been sold in March so far, according to separate data published by the URA, with the bulk of them in a new project being built in River Valley, a rising middle-class enclave on the city center fringe.
Midnight Studio U.S. President Donald Trump said his planned trip to China later this month may be postponed as Washington pushes Beijing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, highlighting a renewed flashpoint in an already fragile bilateral relationship. In an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, Trump said he expected China to help unblock the strait before he travels to Beijing for a su...
Midnight Studio U.S. President Donald Trump said his planned trip to China later this month may be postponed as Washington pushes Beijing to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz, highlighting a renewed flashpoint in an already fragile bilateral relationship. In an interview with the Financial Times on Sunday, Trump said he expected China to help unblock the strait before he travels to Beijing for a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, which had been scheduled for March 31 to April 2. Trump added that the two weeks to the meeting were a “long time” and that Washington wanted clarity before then. “We may delay,” Trump told the FT, without elaborating on timing. The remarks came as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met his Chinese counterpart, He Lifeng in Paris for talks about the planned summit. Beijing has yet to confirm the dates and typically announces such plans closer to their scheduled start. Trump said Sunday aboard Air Force One that China sourced about 90% of its oil through the strait, framing Beijing’s cooperation on Hormuz as a matter of self-interest. He has suggested other countries could help escort tankers through the waterway, naming nations including China, France, Japan, and South Korea. Iran effectively shut the strait after the U.S. and Israel launched attacks against it more than two weeks ago. About a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz , a narrow passage of water between Iran and Oman. Brent crude ( CO1:COM ) was up 1.3% at $ 104.47 a barrel in Asian trade on Monday, and U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate ( CL1:COM ) also advanced, trading around $99.31. Dear Readers: We recognize that politics often intersect with the financial news of the day, so we invite you to click here to join the separate political discussion. More on markets, etc. CXSE: Ex-State-Owned China Stocks Offer Less Alpha These Days U.S. Energy Chokehold: How Interventions In Venezuela And Iran Are Reshaping China's G...
ZenSaBi/E+ via Getty Images Article Thesis My last article about Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ( AMPH ) was in July, last year. This is a small pharma company with a combined portfolio of generic and proprietary drugs, which I found undervalued last year, and my strategy was twofold. I had a small bull Put position through options (partially covered 22.5 Put) expiring this April, but this week I...
ZenSaBi/E+ via Getty Images Article Thesis My last article about Amphastar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. ( AMPH ) was in July, last year. This is a small pharma company with a combined portfolio of generic and proprietary drugs, which I found undervalued last year, and my strategy was twofold. I had a small bull Put position through options (partially covered 22.5 Put) expiring this April, but this week I decided to roll it down (to 17.5 Put expiring September), with enough credit from this rolling to still target a nice profitability with the stock above $17.5 until September (more details below), even with the stock significantly down. I also had a small stock position, at an average cost of $26.03 (in February-April last year) as described in my article, which is down ~30% today, and I must say that this is probably the first strategical mistake that I had in the last about 18 months. We could say that we should wait at least three years for better assessing a long-term position. Even in less than a year a lot of up and down swings can happen. For example, my position in Advanced Micro Devices ( AMD ), initiated at ~$99, briefly went down to ~$80 before surging and it’s about double today (and still holding most of it). Or my position in Teradyne ( TER ), initiated at ~$109, went down to around $80 when I added more, then I sold it for about 80% return in less than a year (and today it would have been even more). However, I think there are some structural differences for Amphastar, which I will try to detail below, together with other examples when buying shares was the right strategy. On the other hand, I don’t want to imply that I was otherwise perfect, that I didn’t have any other mistake in about one year and a half. For example, my small position in Cormedix ( CRMD ) is down even more, about 40%, from my average cost of $10.81, following a bleak short-term outlook post-TDAPA (Transitional Drug Add-On Payment Adjustment). But in that case, I argue that buying shares ...