Tariffs on U.S. goods and services could further limit cuts to interest rates in 2025. There’s now a small chance that interest rates could rise in 2025 according to the CME FedWatch Tool which measures the implied assessment of fixed income markets on interest rate decisions. That’s because tariffs on imports from China, Canada and Mexico are expected to raise prices for consumers. Retaliatory tariffs and strategic decisions from firms may complicate the economic picture, too. Even before the recently announced tariffs, the Federal Open Market Committee argued that more progress towards its 2% inflation goal was needed and the…

The effect of President Trump’s announced tariffs sent shock waves throughout the world. As I began writing this, the tariffs were scheduled to be implemented at 12:01 Tuesday morning. As I finished this article, Trump announced a pause on tariffs on Mexico for one month. Regardless, this is a pause and not a retraction of the tariffs, so it is still worth exploring. Are tariffs inflationary? How do tariffs work? Who will shoulder the increased cost? Will tariffs cause a recession? How do tariffs affect different products? What’s the end game or goal of the Trump administration? The Mighty U.S.A.…

On 2/5/25, Schlumberger will trade ex-dividend, for its quarterly dividend of $0.285, payable on 4/3/25. As a percentage of SLB’s recent stock price of $40.28, this dividend works out to approximately 0.71%, so look for shares of Schlumberger Ltd to trade 0.71% lower — all else being equal — when SLB shares open for trading on 2/5/25. 10 Stocks Going Ex-Dividend » Below is a dividend history chart for SLB, showing historical dividends prior to the most recent $0.285 declared by Schlumberger: In general, dividends are not always predictable; but looking at the history above can help in judging whether…

Last year, momentum stocks were up 46%, growth stocks 36% and value stocks only 12%. As a long-time value investor, I find those figures (from S&P Dow Jones Indices) discouraging, yet also instructive. Let’s define our terms: Momentum stocks are rising in price faster than the overall market. Growth stocks display rapidly rising earnings. Value stocks are cheap relative to a measure of intrinsic worth, such as the company’s earnings. If you believe in the value style, you might want to seek out stocks that show both value and momentum. Here are five stocks that in my judgment display both.…

This week’s AI panic has opened up a rare bargain window in big tech names that were disposed of with the DeepSeek bathwater. Nosebleed Nvidia (NVDA) is a “stay away.” But there are tech dividends worth exploring, with some paying us up to 13% a year. Investors have been herded into the same AI and technology names that have been at the forefront for years, and—shockingly—those shares have largely been priced for perfection. Chinese AI upstart DeepSeek has shown that deep pockets are not needed to build smart AI models. This should have come as no surprise, as China is…

Biotech investing can be tricky. Often, the drugs that these fledgling companies produce don’t pan out, and shareholders take a drubbing. But at OSE Immunotherapeutics, which aims to prevent cancers via vaccines, the news is encouraging. The French company recently announced that it has launched a global Phase 3 trial for its cancer vaccine, Tedopi, which is taking place in the U.S., United Kingdom, Canada and Europe. The trial brings OSE a step closer to regulatory approval for cancer immunization treatment. (There are four phases in the approval process.) OSE in April secured a $9.3 public funding for Tedopi. Meanwhile,…

The Trump election and inauguration effects on Trump Media’s stock appear to be over. So now Trump Media’s business activities and results take on more importance. By the end of February, the company will furnish its 2024 annual report. Besides the revenues, earnings, cash flow, and other material information, investors should expect fulsome descriptions of management’s views, strategies, and outlooks. However, management has provided little such information in the past quarterly reports. That absence makes the coming annual report especially important. Will it finally reveal actual growth results? One possible potential indicator of the answer is the stock’s performance -…

BlackRock is making changes to some of its highest-yielding funds. Today we’re going to zero in on a 13%-yielder that’s at the center of the action: the tech-focused BlackRock Innovation and Growth Term Trust (BIGZ). Yes, the fund focused on tech. So the pullback in American AI stocks on news that Chinese AI chatbot DeepSeek, which was launched earlier this month, can rival the latest version of Open AI’s ChatGPT, factors in here, too. BIGZ is a closed-end fund (CEF) with nearly $2 billion in assets under management—enormous for a CEF (The “BIG” is right in the ticker, after all).…

PIMCO recently cut the dividends of two of its popular closed-end funds (CEFs). Shareholders took a bath and, honestly, none of this was a surprise to us careful contrarians. The payout cuts themselves were not the reason for the bludgeoning. PIMCO Strategic Income Fund (RCS) reduced by 22% but still yields 7.4%. PCM Fund (PCM) cut by 20% yet it pays 11.5% post-chop. Yet shareholders down 13% and 12% respectively in the past month are now searching for meaning in their empty dividend lives. Fast double-digit losses are obviously not what these income-hopeful investors signed up for. Alas, hope is…

On February 1, 2025, the United States is set to impose tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico. President Donald Trump has justified this move as a strategy to address three key issues: curbing illegal immigration, reducing fentanyl trafficking, and correcting trade imbalances with these neighboring countries while at the same time restoring U.S. manufacturing prowess. The truth is that we won’t know the potential impact of tariffs on all parties until we know the policy. Even then, the future policy could change at a moment’s notice. The current base case is for a universal import tariff of 25% that…