Reclaiming Labour’s internationalist heart could also stop disillusioned voters drifting towards LibDems and Greens If Keir Starmer wants to win back disillusioned voters deserting his party for the Liberal Democrats or the Greens, he could do worse than rediscover Labour’s longstanding moral commitment to international development. Since cutting the overseas aid budget to fund higher defence spen...
Reclaiming Labour’s internationalist heart could also stop disillusioned voters drifting towards LibDems and Greens If Keir Starmer wants to win back disillusioned voters deserting his party for the Liberal Democrats or the Greens, he could do worse than rediscover Labour’s longstanding moral commitment to international development. Since cutting the overseas aid budget to fund higher defence spending – losing the excellent Anneliese Dodds in the process – Labour has had little to say on the subject, aside from the fact that 0.3% of national income is the new normal. Continue reading...
15 February 2026, Bavaria, Munich: The logo of the Munich Security Conference can be seen on the chairs in the main hall. Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa (Photo by Sven Hoppe/picture alliance via Getty Images) Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images Many European policymakers appear to still be smarting from U.S. Vice President JD Vance's tough words about the region at last year's Munich Securit...
15 February 2026, Bavaria, Munich: The logo of the Munich Security Conference can be seen on the chairs in the main hall. Photo: Sven Hoppe/dpa (Photo by Sven Hoppe/picture alliance via Getty Images) Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty Images Many European policymakers appear to still be smarting from U.S. Vice President JD Vance's tough words about the region at last year's Munich Security Conference. So, it's perhaps not too surprising that U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio's comments on Saturday at this year's event underscoring the U.S. and Europe's common heritage, goals and challenges have come as something of a relief in European capitals. "[Rubio] delivered a speech which still assured us that we stand together in this partnership between Europe and the United States," German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul told CNBC in an interview on the sidelines of the conference. "Of course, there are some questions which we will have to discuss, but in the end of the day, his message was clear that we were so successful in the past, and we should do the job once again with new threats, with new tests in the 21st century." On Saturday, Rubio said the U.S. has no intention of abandoning its deep alliance with Europe and wants the region to succeed. "We want Europe to be strong," he told the gathering of defense and security officials in the German city. "We believe that Europe must survive, because the two great wars of the last century serve, for us, as history's great reminder, that ultimately, our destiny is, and will always be, intertwined with yours." Contrast that to Vance's message to the same crowd last year, when he spoke of the "retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America." He lambasted his audience about the health of their democracies, their migration policies and freedom of speech. While Rubio's tone might have been more conciliatory than Vance's, the underlying issues remained the sa...
Khanchit Khirisutchalual/iStock via Getty Images Introduction: Closed-end funds offer an attractive investment class that covers various asset classes and promises high distributions to income investors. They can also offer reasonable total returns if the distributions are reinvested, but generally lag the performance of the S&P 500. They are not for everyone but are particularly appealing to reti...
Khanchit Khirisutchalual/iStock via Getty Images Introduction: Closed-end funds offer an attractive investment class that covers various asset classes and promises high distributions to income investors. They can also offer reasonable total returns if the distributions are reinvested, but generally lag the performance of the S&P 500. They are not for everyone but are particularly appealing to retirees and income investors. However, it will be best to diversify into 7 to 10 CEFs covering many different asset classes and market segments. During the last decade, the mega- and large-cap stocks have outperformed the small- and mid-cap stocks. Also, the S&P 500 or U.S.-based domestic funds have outperformed almost every other country during the last 10 years, except in 2025. More recently, the foreign stocks have started outperforming the domestic US market. Also, there has been some momentum building in mid-cap and small-cap stocks. Will this trend continue in 2026 and beyond? It is difficult to predict, but it is likely, primarily due to the valuation gaps. Today's fund, Sprott Focus Trust Fund ( FUND ), is heavily tilted towards mid-cap and small-cap stocks. In addition, it has nearly 40% of foreign stocks; however, North America accounts for more than 80% of the share. Will this help this fund in the coming year and beyond? Well, in this backdrop, we think the "FUND" may be worth considering, as it provides significant exposure to non-U.S. markets as well as the small- and mid-cap segment. This fund can provide the necessary diversification to a portfolio that is highly concentrated in large- and mega-cap stocks or funds. Fund's Background Sprott Focus Trust ( FUND ) is a closed-end fund with a long history and trades on the NASDAQ. The fund invests with a long-time horizon and seeks to deliver superior performance to its investors by investing in high-quality businesses with strong balance sheets that may be trading at attractive valuations, in the opinion of the fun...
At a Munich Security Conference drinks reception this week, a seasoned Chinese observer who has been coming to Bavaria for more than a decade said China had long felt like an observer on the periphery. China was mentioned mainly to be blamed, they said – but things flipped last year when, instead of taking Beijing to task, US Vice-President J.D. Vance targeted Europe. Later in the weekend, the eve...
At a Munich Security Conference drinks reception this week, a seasoned Chinese observer who has been coming to Bavaria for more than a decade said China had long felt like an observer on the periphery. China was mentioned mainly to be blamed, they said – but things flipped last year when, instead of taking Beijing to task, US Vice-President J.D. Vance targeted Europe. Later in the weekend, the event’s CEO Benedikt Franke praised the China Centre for Globalisation – a Beijing think tank – for...
Italian authorities have opened a new tax investigation into Amazon, conducting searches at the company’s Milan headquarters and at the homes of senior managers. The inquiry focuses on Amazon’s tax affairs in Italy and comes as the group’s European operations face increased regulatory attention. Amazon, listed as NasdaqGS:AMZN, has criticized the actions as aggressive and disproportionate, highlig...
Italian authorities have opened a new tax investigation into Amazon, conducting searches at the company’s Milan headquarters and at the homes of senior managers. The inquiry focuses on Amazon’s tax affairs in Italy and comes as the group’s European operations face increased regulatory attention. Amazon, listed as NasdaqGS:AMZN, has criticized the actions as aggressive and disproportionate, highlighting tensions between the company and Italian tax authorities. For you as an investor, this...
ARKK is having a rough start to 2026. After closing 2025 with a 35.49% return that crushed the S&P 500, Cathie Wood’s flagship innovation fund has stumbled 9.58% lower year-to-date as of early February. The pullback has been swift and concentrated, driven by weakness in the fund’s largest holdings and a broader repricing of growth ... ARKK ETF Update
ARKK is having a rough start to 2026. After closing 2025 with a 35.49% return that crushed the S&P 500, Cathie Wood’s flagship innovation fund has stumbled 9.58% lower year-to-date as of early February. The pullback has been swift and concentrated, driven by weakness in the fund’s largest holdings and a broader repricing of growth ... ARKK ETF Update
Germany's "Two-Speed Europe" Proposal Is The EU's Adaptation To Great Power Geopolitics Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack , German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil recently declared that “Now is the time for a two-speed Europe. Germany, together with France and other partners, will therefore now take the lead in making Europe stronger and more independent. As the six biggest economies in Euro...
Germany's "Two-Speed Europe" Proposal Is The EU's Adaptation To Great Power Geopolitics Authored by Andrew Korybko via Substack , German Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil recently declared that “Now is the time for a two-speed Europe. Germany, together with France and other partners, will therefore now take the lead in making Europe stronger and more independent. As the six biggest economies in Europe, we can now be the driving force.” Apart from those two, this exclusive tier will also include Italy, Spain, the Netherlands, and Poland. The goal is to optimize decision-making by going around the EU’s consensus requirement. According to the Washington Post , Klingbeil also sent a letter to his counterparts from the aforesaid countries announcing his intent for them to prioritize “a savings and investment union to improve financing conditions for businesses; strengthening the euro’s role as an international currency; better cooperation on defense spending; and securing resilient supply chains for critical raw materials.” His “two-speed Europe” proposal essentially functions as the EU’s adaptation to Great Power geopolitics. Trump returned this approach to the fore of International Relations after authorizing the capture Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and the seizure of a Russian-flagged tanker in the Atlantic. The resumption of Great Powers prioritizing their national interests without being concerned anymore about accusations of violating international law bodes ill for the EU’s interests. After all, the US now wants EU member Denmark’s territory of Greenland , and the EU can’t stop the US even if it really wanted to. This newfound self-consciousness of EU powerlessness has been brewing for a while, especially since the bloc was coerced by Trump’s tariff threats into agreeing to a lopsided trade deal with the US last summer, apparently inspired its de facto German leader to finally take action to rectify it to a degree. To be sure, the EU will probably never be ab...