JD.com Earnings Review JD.com (JD US and 9618 HK) released Q1 financial results after the Hong Kong close that beat estimates on the big three: revenue, adjusted net income, and adjusted EPS. JD’s new food delivery business appears to be off to a strong start, though it will raise concerns about expenses and the firm’s desire to build market share at the expense of profits. JD’s E-Commerce focus on electronics and home appliances increased sales by +17.1% to RMB 144.3 billion ($19.884 billion). Revenue increased +15.8% to RMB 301.1 billion ($41.5 billion) from RMB 260 billion, versus expectations of RMB…

I get it: For many CEF people, the rough start to 2025 conjures (painful!) memories of 2022. It’s an easy comparison to make. But we must resist doing so. Because unlike in 2022, today’s volatility is caused by panic alone. That’s the kind of situation we contrarians love! Nonetheless, I get it if you still want to be cautious. With that in mind, I’ve got a fund that gives us full market exposure with a key “hedge”—and a growing 8.1% dividend, too. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s first talk about what’s causing this “Chicken Littleism” in the first…

Politics and science have combined to wipe $225 an ounce off the price of gold in three weeks with worse to come if peace takes hold in war zones and if an experiment in man-made gold moves out of its laboratory phase. The fall from a peak of $3433 an ounce on April 22 to around $3208/oz today was caused largely by the promise of peace in Ukraine and Gaza and an easing of tariffs in the U.S. v China trade war. But, in Europe the attention of gold investors turned to the results of an experiment at the European…

Life seemed much easier for business leaders when they could just complain about what they perceived to be excessive and inconsistent sustainability regulations. Complex, global disclosure requirements – some mandatory, some voluntary – elaborate supply chain due diligence processes, greenhouse gas emissions reporting: they all seemed challenging enough. But when the regulators themselves started changing, editing, simplifying and clarifying already agreed upon sustainability mandates, and adjusting course on associated policy, that’s when things got really complicated. Regulatory Uncertainty Sends Mixed Signals In the European Union (EU), for example, recently leaked documents have revealed continued disagreement among EU Member States over…

Key News Asian equities cheered the initial positive comments concerning the US-China trade meeting over the weekend and the India-Pakistan truce, as the Renminbi appreciated nearly +0.5% versus the US dollar. Indonesia, Thailand, and Singapore were closed for Vesak Day, celebrating the birth, Enlightenment, and death of the Buddha. After Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Mainland China’s Shanghai and Shenzhen markets closed today, Hong Kong stocks went vertical once the 3 pm local time press conference from Treasury Secretary Bessent and US Trade Representative Greer revealed the larger than expected 90-day drop in US tariffs on Chinese goods from 145%…

A 446% gain in Palantir Technologies Inc. (PLTR) propelled Christy Anderson to a victory in the 2024-2025 running of Dorfman’s Three-Stock Derby, an annual stock-picking contest. Anderson, a resident of Las Vegas, Nevada, is chief operating officer for a small company that makes radio frequency amplifiers with military applications. As such, she became familiar with Palantir, an analytical software company whose Gotham platform is used by the U.S. military and Western-allied nations. Her company doesn’t do business with Palantir, and she doesn’t own the stock. In fact, Anderson doesn’t own any stocks. “The stock market to me is just gambling,”…

Interest rates have been held steady as the Federal Open Market Committee have held three of its eight scheduled meetings of 2025. Markets expect that the FOMC will cut rates from their current level of 4.25% to 4.5% by December, probably to under 4%. However, any potential cuts are now expected for interest rates depending on how the economy performs. Expectations For Interest Rate Cuts Prior expectations were for the first interest rate cut of 2025 to perhaps come in June, but based on recent comments from policymakers, a July or September cut is now more likely. The challenge is…

Throughout my 60+ year investing experience, I have seen numerous attempts to use technology to make successful investment decisions. While all the technology advances were welcome tools, they could never replace the human brain. Why not? Because the relevant areas, necessary ingredients and proper logic for making accurate investing analysis, outlooks and decisions are forever changing. But AI knows more and thinks faster, right? Nope. It does not “know,” nor does it “think.” That is why the many AI teams cannot stop their programs from producing “hallucinations” – i.e., wildly incorrect results. The teams are now trying to get those…

While vanilla income investors limit their search to mere “common” dividends, we contrarians know where the real payout party is at—with preferred stock divvies. Let’s talk about three preferred-stock vehicles that pay from 6.9% to 9.4%. All three of these funds dish monthly dividends. And these payouts receive preferential treatment over common-stock dividends, making them safer than the common payouts offered by regular ol’ equities. There are four main ways to buy preferreds, and three of them have some serious headaches and drawbacks: Individual preferred stocks: Research resources for individual preferred shares are few, far between and often require expensive…

Michael Saylor is hands down one of the fiercest Bitcoin advocates on the planet. Earlier this year, the Strategy founder predicted Bitcoin could reach $13 million by 2045. Even his so-called “bear case” puts the price at $3 million. That’s a far cry from where we are now. Although Bitcoin has taken big strides during this month’s rally, it’s still well below the all-time highs hit after President Trump’s inauguration — let alone Saylor’s long-term targets. Saylor has a theory for what’s holding it back: a massive rotation among Bitcoin holders that’s weighing on price. “I think we’re going through…