The market pendulum swings back to employment this week with a series of new US jobs reports due to be published. Before that, it's a good idea to recap the US economic reports released so far. They reflect the current state of US economy and may have a ripple effect on US stock market, especially when they are less than ideal. New Home Sales. Before US New Home Sales report for September 2025 is out on 13 Jan 2025, enclosed is a recap of what have transpired in 2025. The US Census Board did not get back to reporting after US shutdown ended. For 2025 - January to August as a whole is characterized by choppy growth: (see above) A strong February–April run‑up. A sharp May correction. A flat June–July. And a powerful August snap‑back rather than a smooth, consistent uptrend.​ Despit

In a surprise twist of event, $Alphabet(GOOG)$ closed 2025 as one of Wall Street’s biggest winners after a strong rebound driven by its AI push. Investor confidence improved when GOOG showed that its AI tools complement and support search usage and ad demand, rather than weaken its core business. 2025 Performance Comparison. Among the Magnificent 7, GOOG emerged as the top performer in 2025, with the stock up about +65%, its best year since 2009. (see above) Even AI chipmaker leader, $NVIDIA(NVDA)$ only managed as the next best, rising about +35%. GOOG investors are (now) focused on whether gains in AI products, Cloud demand, and AI infrastructure can keep the AI momentum going. GOOG’s AI Doubles Down. GO

Summary sale / purchase by Ms Cathie Wood : Sold - 139,642 Tesla shares at $192.22 per share. Total sales proceeds - $26.84 Million. Bought - 268,928 Coinbase shares at $66.30 per share. Total purchase costs - $17.83 Million. Bought - 320,557 Block shares at $61.88 per share. Total purchase costs - $19.84 Million. Ark funds forked out additional $10.83 Million to complete above 2 purchases. A few things came to mind when I came across above news article.. The obvious question is “Why did Ms Cathie Wood sell $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$ and used the proceeds to fund additional purchase of $Coinbase Global, Inc.(COIN)$ and $Block(SQ)$ ? Before examining each reason under the

US market on Wed (22 Mar) traded directionlessly until 2:00pm when the FOMC meeting was over with the press conference by Mr Powell, hot on the heels. When the 0.25% interest hike was confirmed, market “reacted positively” initially. It was afterall the much anticipated 0.25% and not the much feared 0.5%. The “euphoria” proved to be short-lived as the press conference pressed on with Mr Powell further confirming that there would be no let down from the central bank in their fight to bring inflation down. Personally I think, it is commendable that the Fed Reserves provides a clear direction of where they are heading without being ambiguous. Doing so minimizes “speculations” of any sorts to be postulated by Wall Street to smoke-screen and “fool” the general public. Agree ? By The Time Market

US market continued to close lower on Wed, 20 Aug 2025. According to Dow Jones Market Data, although S&P 500 index fell for a 4th straight day, it ended Wednesday just -1.1% below its last week’s record closing high on Thu, 14 Aug 2025. By the time mid-week trading was over: (see above) DJIA: +0.04% (+16.04 to 44,938.31). S&P 500: -0.24% (-15.59 to 6,395.78). Nasdaq: -0.67% (-142.095 to 21,172.857). US market continual dip on Wednesday, was largely attributed to: Pressured by a broad decline in tech sector. The Fed’s July 2025 meeting minutes. (1) Tech sell off. Investors continued to take profits on several heavyweight technology and semiconductor stocks over: Concerns about their high valuations. “Real” strength of AI trade over longer term. As a result, the followings happened:

The FAANG stocks, which comprise some of the most influential and profitable tech companies in the world, have disappointed their investors in the latest quarter of 2023. Despite their remarkable growth in previous quarters, the FAANG have: Failed to meet the high expectations of the market. Reported less than perfect earnings results. This has wrong footed many investors who were: Betting on the continued dominance of these tech giants in the post-pandemic era. Hoping that the FAANG’s fantastic results could lift up the US market, given a depressing Sep and Oct 2023. $Meta Platforms, Inc.(META)$, formerly known as Facebook, has “better” its earnings estimates. The company reported: Earnings per share (EPS) of $4.39, well above consensus estimate

Of late, the internet has been flooded with posts by “veterans” dishing out negative news about the US —economy and stock market are on the verge of collapse (see below). When you come across such posts, how do you make sense of them? Personally, it depends who is dishing out such news? For instance, Mr Marko Kolanovic from JP Morgan is high profile when it comes to the US market. How could he not be, coming from $JPMorgan Chase(JPM)$, US #1 international bank. Sometimes he makes sense but many a times, he,…. (fill in the blanks yourself ok).. LOL! Then you have Mr Robert Kiyosaki, accidental writer of best seller “Rich Dad, Poor Dad”. Listen to him is akin to listening to Ms Cathie Woods. Why would anyone listen to him when: He professed that his

As the curtains draw on a historic 2025, $MP Materials Corp.(MP)$ (in my humble opinion) stands as the centerpiece of a high-stakes geopolitical drama. After a year defined by a staggering +228.8% surge in share price, the company is not merely resting on its laurels. Instead, MP is preparing for a "Phase II" breakout in 2026, fueled by the commissioning of the West’s first heavy rare earth facility and a unique $1.1 billion government-backed pricing safety net. Before we look at MP materials in 2025 retrospectively, below are posts I have shared previously - Enjoy ! 14 Jul 2025 - AAPL pushed $MP to $62 Intraday. OMG! 11 Jul 2025 -

Over the past months, I have shared two ‘super growth’ US listed stocks - $CoreWeave, Inc.(CRWV)$ and $NEBIUS(NBIS)$. Click on the links to read: 25 Nov 2025 - CRWV, A Time Bomb. Don't Dip Buy ! Get Out ? 26 Aug 2025 - CoreWeave the NEW Palantir. Not so fast ! CoreWeave. In H1 2025, CRWV was indeed a Wall Street darling following its March 2025 IPO, with the AI-hyperscaler’s stock price soaring nearly +370% to a peak of $187 by late June 2025. (see above) This status has faded since as the stock crashed over -60%, a downfall precipitated by a combination of: Wid

Eve of Inflation Report. On the eve of US Consumer price index (CPI) report release for July 2025, general consensus is pointing to an uptick in US inflation. US consumers probably experienced a slight pickup in underlying inflation in July as retailers gradually raised prices on a variety of items subject to higher import duties. US - YoY CPI & Core CPI with July 2025 estimates Economists’ Estimates. According to Bloomberg’s survey of economists, US core CPI, widely regarded as a measure of underlying inflation because it strips out volatile food and energy costs, will rise by +0.3% in July. This will be a creep up from June 2025’s core CPI that has also edged up +0.2% from the prior month. While that would be the biggest gain since the start of 2025, Americans who drive, will find so

With 2025 officially over, EV ‘titan’ $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$ finds itself at a precarious crossroads. While the broader markets have enjoyed a year defined by AI fervor, TSLA’s impending Q4 2025 earnings report is shaping up to be a sobering "reality check" for his fan-base investors. Far from the "to the moon" narrative often peddled by its leadership, recent data suggests continual significant disconnect between its valuation and fundamental performance. The Vanishing US$2.9 Billion Fortune: The L&F Warning The most damning evidence for a disappointing Q4 lies in the collapse of TSLA's supply chain relationships, with L&F Co., the South Korean producer of high-nickel cathodes. On 29 Dec 2025, L&F disclosed a staggering regulatory updat

$Tesla Motors(TSLA)$ released its Q2 2023 earnings on Wed 19 Jul 2023 after US market closed. This was followed by a press conference to answer queries that analysts, wall street professionals may have. Reactions on the following 2 days - Thu, 20 Jul & Fri, 21 Jul best summed up Wall Street sentiments. They did not like all the negatives stemming from the clarifications session. Does this signal the beginning of another Tesla correction? Below are some possible catalysts that I think might spur decline: (1) Q3 2023 EV volume will be reduced. During Q2 earnings press conference, mr musk announced that in Q3 2023, the giga factories will shutdown for factory improvements. (see above). Meaning output and delivery will be affected. Coupled with co

In Retrospect. $Netflix(NFLX)$ has been one of the biggest growth stories in recent years. Its humble beginnings harked back to 1998 with the launch of its website. In 1999, it started its first subscription services, renting out DVDs. In May 2002, NFLX went public via an initial public offering (IPO) at $15 per share. “Real” turning point came in 2007 when it began to offer streaming services. In 2016, Netflix launched its streaming service in 130 countries, and there's been no looking back since for the entertainment giant. Past Stock Splits. 14 Nov 2025 would be NFLX 3rd forward stock splits. Prior to that, there were 2 others: 12 Feb 2004: a 2-for-1 forward split. 15 Jul 2015: a 7-for-1 forward split. Latest Split. NFLX has announced a 10-for-

This is how I see the US “bigger” banks in the coming months and into 2024. It is based off an accumulation of: March 2023 US banking debacle that has brought down 3 US banks - (a) Signature Bank, (b) Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and finally, (c) First Republic. News articles that I have come across in recent months. Extract of Mr Powell’s testimony with Senate Banking Committee on Thu, 22 Jun. This is how I see it. Summary. US banking sector is facing a challenging outlook in the second half of 2023 and into 2024, as it: Grapples with the aftermath of the March banking debacle. Adheres to the FDIC's latest levy. Explores the Fed's new credit requirement and Enforces credit tightening within the industry. Below is analysis of each factor and its implications to the US bigger banks. (1) Th

On the eve of Chinese New Year’s Eve (Thu, 08 Feb 2024), US stocks were moving in different directions. There were some outsized gains seen in semiconductor stocks, as investors looked ahead to the annual consumer-price index revision due on Fri, 09 Feb 2024. As noted by Morgan Stanley economist Diego Anzoategui: Last year’s revision was large, showing much weaker disinflation throughout 2022 and added uncertainty ahead. However, do not expect another big change for impending release. By the clock chimed at 4:00pm US time: DJIA: +0.13% (+48.97 to 38,726.33). S&P 500: +0.06% (+2.85 to 4,997.91). Shy of the 5,000 market. Nasdaq: +0.24% (+37.07 to 15,793.72). Stocks that bolstered the Indexes included: Monolithic Power Systems, Inc. (MPWR): +14.20% Walt Disney (DIS): +11.50%. ON Semicondu

Looking back, the S&P 500 index has had a strong performance in 2023. As of Fri, 14 Jul 2023, it has gained +17.82% year-to-date (YTD), see below. S&P 500 - YTD performance Of the index’s 500 companies, Technology sector has been the best performing sector; rising by +21.65% by Q1 2023. Some of the biggest gainers include: $NVIDIA Corp(NVDA)$. $Meta Platforms, Inc.(META)$. $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$. $Salesforce.com(CRM)$. These companies have benefitted from: Strong earnings. Semiconductor industry performance. Artificial intelligence (AI) applications. Cloud computing services. However, analysts are sounding alarms on

In my post on Tue, 02 May 2023 (click here to read ! and give a “Like”), I have shared my worries about US debt limit impasse may further weaken US stock market, that is still reeling from the US regional bank crisis contagion. US Debt clock Above is the latest snapshot of US debt clock: Figures in “red” represent expenses / money spent. Figures in “green” represent revenue / money received. So many red items and so few greens ! Latest Development: President Biden has invited Republican House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to meet at the White House on Tue, 9 May 2023. This will be the first meeting between the two leaders to discuss the issue since it first surfaced on 13 Jan 2023 when US Treasury Secretary, Ms Janet Yellen sent

On Wed, 17 Sep 2025, it finally came true. US Federal Reserves implemented its first interest cut of 2025, a -0.25% trim to the Fed Funds rate. With that, the new revised rate stands at 4.00% - 4.25%. Funnily enough, on Wednesday after the FOMC conference where Fed chair Mr Powell gave a summary, the $S&P 500(.SPX)$ actually fell by -6.4 points ending the day lower at 6,600.35. However, on Thu, 18 Sep 2025 it closed the day at 6,631.96 - yet another ‘new’ high. (see below) Even before the effect of a post interest-cut has settled, market has already shifted attention to when the next interest cut might be. Dot Plot - September 2025 version. For that, would have to defer to the Fed’s latest September 2025’s dot plot. The chart within the Fed’s

At the start of the week, the Dow fell more than 1,200 points. Attacks on Powell have picked up as: Central bank officials express concerns that Trump’s tariffs have sparked higher inflation expectations and could lead to price growth that’s more than just a one-time uptick. The uncertainty generated by Trump’s tariffs to businesses and more importantly to the US economy in the coming months., leading to the Fed taking a wait-and-see approach on cutting the Fed funds rate that stands at 4.25% - 4.5%. Wall Street got worried whether President Donald Trump’s attacks on the Federal Reserve chair were more than just bluster. By the time market closed: DJIA: -2.48% (-971.82 to 38,170.41. S&P 500: -2.36% (-124.50 to 5,158.20). Nasdaq: -2.55% (-415.55 to 15,870.90). One of the “surprises” of

Michael Burry of ‘The Big Short’ fame has updated his stock portfolio, focusing on defensive equities, selective exits, and an evolving take, on Chinese technology (giants) stocks. Sharing the 3rd update on Burry's investments, that offer insights into how gurus like himself or Mr Buffett see the market's future, while considering current events. Previous posts: 19 Jan 2025 - Burry's Investment: Tale of Gains & Losses. (click on title to read) 01 Jan 2024 - Burry's stocks pick HPP, STLA +5 more... Hits or Miss ? (click on title to read) Overall, Mr Burry’s defensive tilt could not have been more obvious in his : Increased allocation into heal