Author: Jordan

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz has laid bare the world’s economic dependence on the narrow waterway leading out of the Persian Gulf. Nearly three months into the Iran war, it is well known that around one-fifth of the world’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) and petroleum products normally passes through the strait. Rising energy prices might be just the first harbinger of a truly global crisis, though. Despite a U.S.-Iran cease-fire, the ongoing Hormuz blockade is straining supplies of the other critical yet overlooked ingredients of the world economy that are downstream from fossil fuels, including sulfur, helium, nitrogen,…

Investing.com — Bernstein told investors in a note on Thursday that it sees $75 per barrel as a reasonable long-term oil price assumption for equity valuation, citing a new survey of the 50 largest listed oil and gas companies globally that points to rising marginal costs and a declining reserves outlook. Analyst Neil Beveridge estimated that the global oil marginal cost fell 2% in 2025 to $69 per barrel, driven largely by a 14% drop in production costs. However, Bernstein expects that figure to climb to $77 per barrel in 2026 as higher spot prices and a tighter physical market…

A New York-based broker-dealer is being sanctioned in a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for making mutual fund recommendations and providing clients with investment plans that didn’t adhere to rules requiring firms to put clients’ interest first. The SEC settled charges with the firm, David Lerner Associates, Inc. (DLA), for failing to comply with the conduct rules known as Regulation Best Interest (RegBI) in two areas. According to the SEC’s order, between June 30, 2020 and Sept. 15, 2024, the firm’s reps violated RegBI requirements when they recommended to clients that they sell front-load mutual funds…

Jessica Fiur, Editor-in-Chief Before I started at this company almost 15 years ago, I came from children’s publishing. My only experience with real estate was trekking out to Queens to look at apartments to rent. (You’d be surprised how many one-bedrooms close to the subway are cramped or dark or definitely haunted.) Now, I could talk your ear off about how data centers are a huge, evolving asset class or why developers are looking to the Sun Belt or how artificial intelligence is transforming commercial real estate. And, because of my background, I can write about it in terms that…

Architect Financial Technologies announced it has acquired IMX Health, a U.S. Designated Contract Market (DCM), and plans to launch the American Innovation Exchange, described as the first CFTC-regulated U.S. derivatives exchange purpose-built for the artificial intelligence economy. The new platform, referred to as the AI Exchange, will support futures and options trading tied to compute costs across multiple GPU vendors and models, along with other components of the AI supply chain, pending regulatory review. The exchange is designed to serve datacenters, neocloud providers, hyperscalers, chip manufacturers, AI model companies, and lenders seeking hedging and risk management tools tailored to the…

Industrial companies are in a unique position when it comes to artificial intelligence (AI), as they can face short-term volatility but also become long-term winners for investors. For instance, if AI spending slows, it will also stall much of the new revenue growth that certain industrial companies have experienced over the last several years. Moreover, any broad sell-off in AI stocks can also hurt the pick-and-shovel plays connected to it. Still, the global AI market is expected to climb from about $390 billion in 2025 to over $3.4 trillion by 2033, according to Grand View Research. That means, despite the…

Sen. Elizabeth Warren is seeking answers from Bilt on recent payment problems, The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Thursday (May 28). Bilt, known for its rent rewards program, introduced new cards in February after the end of its partnership with Wells Fargo, the report said. Cardholders soon began to complain on social media about issues such as delayed rent payments and difficulty contacting customer service. “Bilt’s systems appear to have failed many customers attempting to make rent and mortgage payments,” Warren of Massachusetts wrote in a letter to Bilt Rewards CEO Ankur Jain, according to the report. Warren, the top…

Recent reports suggest the gap between London house prices and other UK cities is now at its narrowest level since 2009, with regional markets continuing to attract attention from investors.With new opportunities for landlords across UK cities, current conditions are prompting investors to take a closer look at the structure of their portfolio and their longer-term investment plans outside of the capital. How London and regional markets are operating differentlyThe London property market has faced pressure from stretched affordability, higher borrowing costs and weaker international demand. At the same time, several regional cities have continued to show price growth, supported by…

Germany shifts on EU oversight of financial services Financial Times Source link

By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer The average long-term U.S. mortgage rate rose again this week, reaching its highest level in nine months, another setback for prospective homebuyers. The benchmark 30-year fixed rate mortgage rate rose to 6.53% from 6.51% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. Despite the latest increase, the average rate remains below 6.89%, where it was a year ago. When mortgage rates rise they can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers, reducing their purchasing power. Rates have been mostly trending higher since the war with Iran began, disrupting the passage of tankers ferrying…