Author: Money Mechanics

AXT Inc. (NASDAQ:AXTI) is one of the 10 Stocks Dominating Today’s Market Action. AXT soared to a new all-time high on Thursday, as investors began positioning portfolios before the end of the first quarter of the year, backed by the company’s earlier upbeat outlook for the period, thanks to progress on its export permits. At intra-day trading, AXT Inc. (NASDAQ:AXTI) climbed to its highest price of $58.13 before trimming a few cents to end the session just up by 19.13 percent at $58.09 apiece. Earlier this year, AXT Inc. (NASDAQ:AXTI) posted an optimistic outlook for the first quarter of 2026,…

S&P 500 increasingly tracking oil moves, highlighting rising commodity-driven market sensitivity. Risk-off sentiment persists with negative momentum, elevated VIX, and fragile investor confidence. Extremely high OVX signals oil stress, amplifying volatility spillover into equity markets. The ended slightly lower on Thursday, down 0.25%. But one trend is becoming clear. The index is moving closely with oil prices. On the same day, rose just 0.09%. The more important insight came from how both moved during the day. There was a clear link between oil and the stock market. After 7:30 pm, oil prices started falling. At the same time, the S&P…

Deltec Homes, an Asheville, North Carolina-based builder of prefabricated, round houses, says its designs can withstand the extreme wind loads associated with a Category 5 hurricane. CEO Meg Gore said the company’s circular footprint and roof system reduce pressure points that can lead to structural failure in high-wind events. “Round really works with nature, instead of fighting against it,” Gore told The Builder’s Daily. “The wind flows around the home, instead of building pressure on one flat wall. Also, we have a radial truss system that disperses energy evenly throughout the structure. It doesn’t rely on a single critical failure…

(By Oil & Gas 360) – The oil market is shifting quickly from cautious optimism to supply-driven urgency, as analysts raise price forecasts and physical buyers race to secure crude amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Several banks have lifted their outlook for oil prices this year, citing a sharp increase in geopolitical risk tied to disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz. The upgrades reflect a market that is no longer trading on fundamentals alone but increasingly on the risk of supply loss. Analysts note that even limited interruptions to Middle East flows can quickly tighten balances, particularly…

For decades, the intellectual elite of high finance have dismissed as a non-productive hunk of yellow metal paying no dividend and serving no purpose in a digitized, high-speed economy. But in 2026, this old narrative is starting to wear thin.As the veneer of “king US dollar” is showing some gapping cracks due to a $38+ trillion US federal deficit – now soaring higher, like a firehose with no cut-off value – gold is not just a hedge, it has become the premier exit ramp from a global experiment in fiscal recklessness.The most compelling case for gold today isn’t found in…

CRC Group, a wholesale insurance services provider, is leveraging the insurance-linked securities (ILS) market to bring capacity to support data center capabilities, which comes as the firm has launched a data centers product on its Insurisk platform.According to the firm, the product is aimed at addressing the insurance needs of the global data center sector including owners, operators, and developers as investment and scale increase. “As demand accelerates for hyperscale, colocation, and enterprise data center developments, Insurisk has expanded its specialist capacity and underwriting capabilities to support owners, operators, and developers at every stage of the project lifecycle, from construction…

What is cache on my iPhone? Cache is a collection of temporary files that apps and websites store locally on your device to speed up loading, browsing, and your overall session. For example, Safari saves images or scripts from sites so they don’t have to download again. It’s helpful, but too much cache can slow your iPhone down, so clearing it regularly keeps performance smooth. Also: Cookie pop-ups don’t have to be a fact of life online – how I block them and whyClearing cache only removes temporary data, not your bookmarks, messages, photos, or passwords. Offloading an app also…

Each week in our Ask the Editor series, Joy Taylor, The Kiplinger Tax Letter editor, answers questions on topics submitted by readers. This week she’s looking at five questions on changes to charitable deductions and other tax breaks that first take effect in 2026. (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Tax Letter or subscribe.)1. Charitable deduction for nonitemizersQuestion: I generally claim the standard deduction when I file my Form 1040. I heard that next year I can deduct my charitable gifts even if I don’t itemize on Schedule A. Is this true?Joy Taylor: Yes, but there is a limit.…

(Image credit: Getty Images)Stocks opened lower Friday and stayed there through the close. Amid bare economic and earnings calendars, market participants tracked developments in the Middle East and higher oil prices, which have muddied the outlook for interest rates.At the close, the blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.0% at 45,577, the broader S&P 500 was off 1.5% at 6,506, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was 2.0% lower at 21,647. All three benchmarks notched a fourth straight weekly loss – the Dow’s worst weekly losing streak since February 2023.The small-cap Russell 2000 fell 2.3% to 2,438 – entering correction…

Travel medical insurance is a standard travel coverage that can reimburse you for covered medical expenses while traveling, such as hospital stays, dental procedures, and medical evacuations. This type of insurance typically only covers emergency situations, so you likely wouldn’t be covered for routine doctor or dentist visits, or optional procedures. Learn more: Travel insurance: What it covers, costs, and how to choose the right policy When we talk about travel medical insurance, we may be referring to several different coverage types. Depending on your travel insurance policy, you may have some or all of these types of coverage included:…