KanawatTH/iStock via Getty Images Everywhere you look in today's stock market, it's difficult to escape the pessimism that has infected growth stocks, recent IPOs, the crypto market, and software industry. Figure Technology Solutions ( FIGR ), which went public last
KanawatTH/iStock via Getty Images Everywhere you look in today's stock market, it's difficult to escape the pessimism that has infected growth stocks, recent IPOs, the crypto market, and software industry. Figure Technology Solutions ( FIGR ), which went public last
South Korea’s National Pension Service , one of the world’s largest public pension funds, posted its strongest-ever annual return in 2025 as a semiconductor- and artificial intelligence–driven stock rally boosted performance. The fund, which managed 1,458 trillion won ($1.02 trillion) as of end-2025, returned 18.82% for the year, according to a statement Friday, marking a third straight year of re...
South Korea’s National Pension Service , one of the world’s largest public pension funds, posted its strongest-ever annual return in 2025 as a semiconductor- and artificial intelligence–driven stock rally boosted performance. The fund, which managed 1,458 trillion won ($1.02 trillion) as of end-2025, returned 18.82% for the year, according to a statement Friday, marking a third straight year of record gains. That surpassed its previous high-water mark of 15% set a year earlier and the best result since its establishment in 1988. NPS’s domestic equities portfolio led the gains, surging 82.44%, while overseas stocks returned 19.74%. The record performance comes as the NPS re-calibrated its asset allocation for 2026 last month, raising its target exposure to domestic shares amid the Kospi’s blistering rally. It also decided to trim a planned reduction in overseas equities by about $20 billion. As of end-November, 38.2% of assets were invested overseas, 21.5% in domestic bonds and 17% in domestic stocks. The NPS’s moves are closely watched by investors given its size and its potential influence on markets and the won, which has faced pressure amid heavy outflows from retail investors in favor of US assets. “The NPS will continue to strengthen asset management capabilities with the growing size of the fund,” Chief Executive Officer Kim Sung-joo said in the statement. “The fund will pursue flexible asset allocation, investment strategies, and geographic diversification to maximize stable long term returns.” The benchmark Kospi index has climbed more than 45% this year to surpass 6,000, exceeding President Lee Jae Myung ’s campaign slogan of 5,000. The gauge advanced more than 75% last year, making it one of the world’s top performers. Read more: Failed Day Trader President Steers Korea Market to World’s Best
Earnings Call Insights: Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (CRNX) Q4 2025 Management View CEO R. Struthers stated that "2025 was a breakout year for Crinetics. We're transitioning from building a pipeline to building a business." He highlighted the successful launch of PALSONIFY as the company's first commercial
Earnings Call Insights: Crinetics Pharmaceuticals (CRNX) Q4 2025 Management View CEO R. Struthers stated that "2025 was a breakout year for Crinetics. We're transitioning from building a pipeline to building a business." He highlighted the successful launch of PALSONIFY as the company's first commercial
Japan’s two-year government bond auction passed through smoothly as investors mull the Bank of Japan’s rate-hike path. The bid-to-cover ratio at Friday’s sale was 3.32 versus 3.88 at the last auction and a 12-month average of 3.58. Japan’s bonds held gains after the sale. Shorter-maturity bonds were sold while the yen strengthened Thursday after an interview with BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda in the Yom...
Japan’s two-year government bond auction passed through smoothly as investors mull the Bank of Japan’s rate-hike path. The bid-to-cover ratio at Friday’s sale was 3.32 versus 3.88 at the last auction and a 12-month average of 3.58. Japan’s bonds held gains after the sale. Shorter-maturity bonds were sold while the yen strengthened Thursday after an interview with BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda in the Yomiuri newspaper was seen as reiterating the central bank’s rate-hike path. That reversed moves seen on Wednesday after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi nominated two new monetary policy board members who are seen as dovish. “The auction had decent demand,” said Miki Den , a senior rates strategist at SMBC Nikko Securities. “While the next rate hike by the BOJ is seen as possible, there are growing views that another hike after that would be difficult under the Takaichi administration.” Traders have been trying to gauge Takaichi’s stance on rate hikes after her historic election victory earlier this month — particularly after the Mainichi newspaper reported that she voiced apprehension over further monetary tightening in a meeting with Ueda. The two-year rate, which is sensitive to monetary policy expectations, is hovering around 1.23%, near its highest level since 1996 hit earlier this month. Shorter-dated bonds attract a wider range of investors, from regional banks to asset managers, and demand is underpinned by surplus cash and collateral needs for BOJ operations. The swap market shows about a 70% chance of a rate hike by April. The BOJ’s most hawkish board member Hajime Takata renewed his call for raising the benchmark interest rate on Thursday, describing the nation’s once-frozen inflation trend as heated to the core. What Bloomberg strategists say: The demand for today’s 2-year auction is weaker than the previous month, but just enough to meet the passing grade. Given that Tokyo CPI core inflation was higher than estimated, it is a solid outcome. With dollar-yen calming i...
HOT TOPICS Chinese AI Models Surpass U.S. Usage Weekly usage of Chinese AI models has surpassed that of the U.S. and continues to widen the gap, according to OpenRouter, a global AI model API aggregation platform. From Feb. 16 to 22, the weekly usage of Chinese models surged to 5.16 trillion tokens, while U.S. model usage fell to 2.7 trillion tokens. Four of the top five models on the platform are...
HOT TOPICS Chinese AI Models Surpass U.S. Usage Weekly usage of Chinese AI models has surpassed that of the U.S. and continues to widen the gap, according to OpenRouter, a global AI model API aggregation platform. From Feb. 16 to 22, the weekly usage of Chinese models surged to 5.16 trillion tokens, while U.S. model usage fell to 2.7 trillion tokens. Four of the top five models on the platform are from Chinese vendors: MiniMax’s M2.5, Moonshot AI’s Kimi K2.5, Zhipu AI’s GLM-5, and DeepSeek’s V3.2.
The US military shot down a US government drone with a laser-based anti-drone system, an accident that prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to bar flights on Thursday in an area around Fort Hancock, Texas, congressional aides told Reuters. The Pentagon did not immediately comment, but the FAA cited “special security reasons” in its notice about the restrictions on the airspace near the Me...
The US military shot down a US government drone with a laser-based anti-drone system, an accident that prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to bar flights on Thursday in an area around Fort Hancock, Texas, congressional aides told Reuters. The Pentagon did not immediately comment, but the FAA cited “special security reasons” in its notice about the restrictions on the airspace near the Mexican border. US lawmakers Rick Larsen, Bennie Thompson and Andre Carson, top Democrats on...
Paramount Wins Bidding War For Warner Bros. After Netflix Drops Out Late on Wednesday, we highlighted an aggressive options trade where a call spread buyer in Netflix options had bet $14 million that Paramount would end up buying Warner Brothers after Netflix walks, something which Polymarket had indicated very much since the start of this particular M&A saga... Trader bets $14 million (via NFLX c...
Paramount Wins Bidding War For Warner Bros. After Netflix Drops Out Late on Wednesday, we highlighted an aggressive options trade where a call spread buyer in Netflix options had bet $14 million that Paramount would end up buying Warner Brothers after Netflix walks, something which Polymarket had indicated very much since the start of this particular M&A saga... Trader bets $14 million (via NFLX call spread) that Paramount will end up buying Warner. Polymarket agrees cross-platform arbitrage? pic.twitter.com/lwxgAqPwz7 — zerohedge (@zerohedge) February 26, 2026 ... and 24 hours that unknown trader is richer by about $40 million (and a guaranteed visit by the SEC), because late on Thursday, Paramount emerged victorious in the fight to buy Warner Bros. Discovery after Netflix said it wouldn’t match the David Ellison-led company’s latest offer for the iconic Hollywood property. The news sent Netflix shares soaring 10% after hours, demonstrating what the market thought of the deal (not to mention $2.8 billion breakup fee). With the winds of political change shifting, and the DOJ making it very clear that it preferred Paramount to end up the winner in the contested race, Netflix - which would have had to move regulatory mountains to complete the deal - pulled the plug on its deal soon after the Warner board of directors said it determined Paramount’s $31-per-share offer for the entire company was superior to Netflix’s bid for Warner’s movie and television studios and HBO Max streaming service. “We’ve always been disciplined, and at the price required to match Paramount Skydance’s latest offer, the deal is no longer financially attractive, so we are declining to match,” Netflix Co-CEOs Ted Sarandos and Greg Peters said in a statement. “This transaction was always a ‘nice to have’ at the right price, not a ‘must have’ at any price,” the pair said. Assuming regulators approve, and they will, Paramount will own not only Warner Bros. and HBO, but also many popular cable netwo...