Author: Money Mechanics

Key Takeaways China’s government has approved several Chinese tech companies to buy Nvidia’s H200 chips, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.The Trump administration gave the green light to Nvidia to sell the chips late last year for a 25% cut of revenues. America’s AI chip leader Nvidia is getting closer to being able to sell more chips in China. China’s government has given clearance to a few big tech companies in the country including ByteDance and Alibaba (BABA) to start placing orders for Nvidia’s (NVDA) H200 AI chips, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. The initial approval would allow the…

Key Takeaways Starbucks earlier today reported comparable-store and transaction growth in the last quarter of 2025 that signaled continued progress in its turnaround effort.The company said an Investor Day event set for tomorrow will detail its long-term growth plan. People are going, if you’ll forgive the joke, back to Starbucks. The phrase is doing triple duty there: It’s the name of the coffee giant’s turnaround plan, but it’s also what was visible in the company’s latest financial results, reported earlier today. And it’s what investors are doing—today, but also this year—with the stock, too. Why This Matters to Investors Investor…

Key Takeaways Amazon said Wednesday it is laying off another 16,000 corporate employees, after cutting 14,000 jobs in October.Many of Amazon’s big tech peers have also laid off workers recently. Amazon’s corporate ranks are about to get smaller. The tech giant said Wednesday that it is laying off another 16,000 corporate employees, after cutting 14,000 jobs in October. Amazon Senior Vice President of People Experience and Technology Beth Galetti said in a statement that the move is part of the company’s ongoing efforts to “strengthen our organization by reducing layers, increasing ownership, and removing bureaucracy.” The timing of the cuts…

Key Takeaways The Nasdaq Composite approached a fresh record high Wednesday as semiconductor stocks rallied following strong results from chip manufacturing equipment supplier ASML Holdings.The Nasdaq last closed at a record in late October, right before Big Tech earnings reports fueled debate on Wall Street about an AI bubble.Investors will be hoping to see evidence that massive AI investments are paying off when Microsoft and Meta report results after the bell Wednesday. The Nasdaq Composite came within a hair’s breadth of a new high on Wednesday when several earnings reports suggested the AI infrastructure boom isn’t slowing down anytime soon—and…

KEY TAKEAWAYS The ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ is expected to create serious tax savings and increase refunds when taxpayers file their 2025 taxes this year.These changes, however, cut into Social Security funding.With fewer taxes coming in to pay for Social Security benefits, the timeline for benefit cuts has accelerated. When taxpayers file with the IRS this year, most will see either a lower tax bill or a higher refund. While the increased tax savings will feel good for now, the consequences will affect future Social Security benefits. Lower tax brackets originally established under the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act…

Key Takeaways Dollar weakness is a “tailwind” for gold prices, Morgan Stanley’s metals and mining strategist says.Precious metals experts see gold’s rally continuing, but they see a chance of near-term volatility as investors take profits. One asset’s weakness can be another’s strength. That concept has added fresh complexity to rising investor demand for gold. Case in point: Spot gold prices continue to rally, breaking past $5,300 on Wednesday following a drop in the greenback yesterday. While it has regained some ground today, the Dollar Index—which tracks the currency against a basket of foreign counterparts—recently dropped to its lowest level in…

Key Takeaways The Federal Reserve held borrowing costs steady after three consecutive quarter-point cuts to its key interest rate.Simmering inflation and a cooling job market are pulling the Fed’s policy in opposite directions.The Fed is resisting political pressure from the Trump administration to sharply reduce rates. Borrowing costs are set to hold steady for the time being, as the Federal Reserve has returned to a wait-and-see mode to determine whether inflation or unemployment poses the greater threat to the economy.The Fed’s policy committee voted to keep its key interest rate flat Wednesday at a range of 3.5% to 3.75%, keeping…

Winter Storm Fern has eclipsed Kazakhstan’s Tengiz restart, with up to 2 million b/d of U.S. crude output curtailed—yet Brent remains pinned near $66. Arctic Fern vs. America: A Winter Brawl in the Energy Markets – Arctic Storm Fern has curbed electricity supply to millions of people across the eastern two-thirds of the United States, slashing oil supply by 2 million b/day, gas production by more than 10 bcf/day and sending power prices skyrocketing. – Day-ahead electricity prices in the PJM Interconnection area, the most impacted by the cold blast, soared almost 550% to $638 per MWh, the highest since…

The Federal Reserve’s January FOMC meeting is unlikely to bring any interest rate cuts. Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s press conference could still move markets. Investors will scrutinize Powell’s comments for hints on the timing of the next rate cut and inflation trends. Markets are bracing for a pivotal Fed meeting on Wednesday, with the widely expected to hold steady at 3.50%–3.75%. But the real suspense isn’t about rates, it’s about Chairman Jerome Powell’s post-meeting comments and the political drama swirling around the central bank as his term nears its end. Expect Powell to choose his words with surgical precision. For…

I’m here to draw your attention to something alarming happening in currencies at the moment. Here is a picture of the US Dollar, which has lost a huge amount of value in the past year. Now, before certain ones of you get all excited and say that this proves Trump is ruining the dollar and forcing foreigners to vamoose out of the United States, take a look at the Euro. I’m not going to tease you too much with this. The first chart is just the dollar in terms of ounces of gold; the second is the Euro in terms…