Week in Review Asian equities were nearly all higher this week except for Australia and Korea. A slew of economic data released on Monday showed significant improvements in manufacturing demand, vehicle sales, and real estate sales from October to November. The dates of the Central Economic Work Conference (CEWC) were confirmed this week to be December 11th and December 12th. Xinhua, an important China-based global news publication, published an editorial on Thursday highlighting the recent increase in domestic consumption and the need to keep stimulating the economy, pointing out that the double-digit increases in home appliance sales in recent months…

I know that plenty of our readers are self-directed investors who love nothing more than to build—and run—their own portfolios. Digging into a fund’s prospectus and annual reports is something they look forward to. But if you’re like many people, you look to a wealth manager to oversee at least some of your investments for you, or at the very least help with things like tax optimization, financial planning and setting up an estate plan. There are, however, a few things we need to bear in mind when selecting one. For starters, while many wealth managers can help their clients…

The e-commerce company is undervalued and positioned for high long-term growth although some risks still remain By Oliver Rodzianko Summary Shopify is moderately undervalued with a margin of safety of 14.7% and offering a potential 11% CAGR in enterprise value over 15 years, making it a long-term opportunity. Shopify’s low-code/no-code tools position it to capitalize on the creator economy’s projected growth from $191B in 2025 to $528B by 2030, empowering SMBs and independent creators globally. Risks include competition from established tech giants entering the creator space and sensitivity to economic downturns, but long-term trends like automation and potential UBI could…

Flowers Foods, has been named to the Dividend Channel ”S.A.F.E. 25” list, signifying a stock with above-average ”DividendRank” statistics including a strong 4.3% yield, as well as a superb track record of at least two decades of dividend growth, according to the most recent ”DividendRank” report. According to the ETF Finder at ETF Channel, Flowers Foods, Inc. is a member of the iShares S&P 1500 Index ETF (ITOT), and is also an underlying holding representing 0.26% of the SPDR S&P Dividend ETF (SDY), which holds $55,806,626 worth of FLO shares. Flowers Foods made the “Dividend Channel S.A.F.E. 25” list because…

What could be stranger than realizing a commonly understood and accepted truth is in effect nonsense? Imagine if the Aztecs, who happily sent their young up the pyramid to be horrible killed for a bunch of mythical lizards, realized their sacrifices were for naught. Or imagine the reaction of those that believed the world was flat or perched on the back of a giant turtle if suddenly they were clued in to the fact that our planet is a ball of warm rock travelling at incredible speeds though a huge ancient void filled with stuff thrown out by a giant…

The education technology sector is facing unprecedented transformation driven by two powerful forces: the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence and the return of Trump-era education policies. These dual disruptions are forcing companies to radically rethink their business models and market approaches. AI’s Revolutionary Impact on Education Artificial intelligence is fundamentally reshaping how education is delivered and consumed. Traditional educational models are being upended by AI-powered tools that can provide instant tutoring, grade assignments, and create personalized learning paths. The technology is capable of analyzing student performance in real-time, adapting content difficulty, and providing immediate feedback – functions that traditionally required…

It’s a tradition unlike any other! Move over, Masters. In these contrarian pages we select one dividend stock (or fund) for the year ahead. Last year we bet on a “safe, somewhat-secret” 7.4% dividend from Jamie Dimon & Co with iShares JP Morgan USD Emerging Markets Bond ETF (EMB). EMB’s payout plus price gains combined for a 12% total return. Nice. This is exactly what we look for as income investors. A high-yield investment that will pay us our divvies—and gain a bit in price. But this year we are flipping the script. My favorite divvie stock for next year…

Gold-backed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) experienced rare outflows in November as Europeans liquidated their holdings, according to the World Gold Council (WGC). Global funds lost 29 tonnes of the yellow metal last month, which pushed total holdings to 3,215 tonnes. Collective outflows were worth $2.1 billion. This was the first month of outflows since April, the WGC said. November’s drop, combined with a fall in the gold price, meant total assets under management (AUMs) declined 4% month on month, to $274.3 billion. Bullion values slipped around 4% over the course of November. This was thanks in large part to a resurgent…

Key News Asian equities were mixed but mostly higher overnight as Pakistan and Malaysia outperformed and Hong Kong underperformed. Xinhua had an editorial on China’s expanding domestic demand, stating that it is an important factor in overall economic growth. The editorial also noted that sales of household appliances surged by +30.2% year-over-year in October, driven by the trade-in subsidies. The editorial did not say that this would lead to an uptick in GDP growth, which the bears highlighted along with a Bloomberg article citing the piece. Investors are awaiting the Central Economic Work Conference (CEWC) next week for more clarity…

With bitcoin bumping up against $100,000, crypto enthusiasts are once again frothing at the mouth. The election has given a boost to crypto sponsors, miners, and owners—and anyone else who has a vested interest in that corner of DeFi. Although bitcoin has never really proven itself to be a reliable medium of exchange given its extraordinary volatility, it has shown itself to be an alternate store of value similar to gold. Every time it gets clobbered (and boy does it get clobbered: it lost nearly 80% of its value in 2022), every big step down has been followed by several…