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Tech Weekly: Micron Rises on Latest Results, Trump Media Jumps on TAE Merger

We also break down next week’s catalysts to watch to help you prepare for the week ahead.

In this article:

    This week’s tech sector performance

    US stocks advanced this week amid key economic data releases, with tech leading gains after Micron Technology’s (NASDAQ:MU) results release and easing artificial intelligence (AI) sector pressures.

    The S&P 500 (INDEXSP:.INX) rose 0.02 percent on the week, closing Friday (December 19) at 6,834.5.

    However, tech stock losses earlier in the week kept gains in check. The Nasdaq Composite (INDEXNASDAQ:.IXIC) lost 0.1 percent for the week to close at 23,307.62 on Friday.

    3 tech stocks moving markets this week

    1. Micron Technology (NASDAQ:MU)

    Micron Technology reported earnings for its first fiscal quarter of 2026 on Thursday (December 18), showing strong results driven by surging high-bandwidth memory sales for AI data centers

    Revenue reached US$13.64 billion, up 93 percent from last year and higher than the company’s September revenue projection of US$12.8 billion. Adjusted earnings per share were US$4.78, beating estimates of US$3.95. The company generated strong free cashflow and declared a US$0.115 per share dividend payable on January 14, 2026.

    Looking ahead, Micron adjusted its profit guidance for the upcoming quarter to US$8.42 per share, higher than Wall Street’s US$4.78 consensus, due to continued AI boom momentum.

    Investors responded to the results by sending Micron shares up 10 percent post-earnings. Momentum carried into Friday’s trading session, spilling over into other tech stocks, which have come under pressure in recent weeks over lofty valuations and funding concerns. The company ended the week 0.58 percent higher.

    2. Trump Media & Technology Group (NASDAQ:DJT)

    Trump Media & Technology Group rose nearly 30 percent before Thursday’s opening bell after the company announced plans to merge with fusion power company TAE Technologies.

    The all-stock deal is reportedly valued at more than US$6 billion. Devin Nunes, chair and chief executive of Trump Media, and Dr. Michl Binderbauer, CEO and director at TAE, are set to serve as co-CEOs.

    TAE is a private company with backing from Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) and other companies. The merger is slated to create one of the first publicly traded nuclear fusion companies. “We’re taking a big step forward toward a revolutionary technology that will cement America’s global energy dominance for generations,“ Nunes said.

    Shares of Trump Media closed the week with a gain of 39.53 percent.

    3. Oracle (NYSE:ORCL)

    Oracle shares dropped 5.4 percent on Wednesday (December 17) after a Financial Times report claimed data center investor Blue Owl Capital pulled out of a US$10 billion financing round for one of the AI data centers Oracle is constructing for OpenAI in Michigan. Talks reportedly stalled due to concerns over project delays, tougher debt terms, Oracle’s rising debt load and lease arrangements, per sources cited by the news outlet.

    Oracle disputed the report’s implications, stating that Michigan negotiations are “on schedule” without Blue Owl.

    The company said its project development partner, Related Digital, has chosen “the best equity partner from a competitive group of options, which in this instance was not Blue Owl.” Still, the company finished the week with its share price ahead by 2.18 percent as tech stocks staged an end-of-year comeback.

    Oracle, Micron Technology and Trump Media performance, December 15 to 19, 2025.

    Chart via Google Finance.

    Top tech news of the week

                Tech ETF performance

                Tech exchange-traded funds (ETFs) track baskets of major tech stocks, meaning their performance helps investors gauge the overall performance of the niches they cover.

                This week, the iShares Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXX) declined by 0.94 percent, while the Invesco PHLX Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SOXQ) saw a loss of 0.66 percent.

                The VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) also decreased by 0.61 percent.

                Tech news to watch next week

                Markets will be closed mid-week next week, with low trading volumes likely keeping movement calm.

                Watch for year-end selling in tech stocks, a potential rotation into safer sectors and light data like factory orders and home sales reports. Any comments on future interest rates could move markets somehwat, but expect mostly flat trading unless big news like policy changes breaks through.

                Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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                Editor’s Picks: Silver Price Keeps Running, Breaks All-time High Again

                The silver price was on the rise once again this week — it surged past the US$67 per ounce level on Friday (December 19), hitting a new record before pulling back.

                As for gold, it spent much of the period around the US$4,330 per ounce level, although it rose as high as US$4,360 on Thursday (December 18), approaching its own all-time high.

                Investors were eyeing November US consumer price index (CPI) data, which came out on Thursday. It was up 2.7 percent year-on-year, while core CPI was measured at 2.6 percent.

                Those figures were quite a bit lower than analysts’ estimates, and data collection issues caused by the US government shutdown have left market participants questioning the results.

                Notably, Bureau of Labor Statistics officials had to make ‘certain methodological assumptions’ because the October CPI report was canceled entirely. The bureau also started November data collection later than usual, driving concerns about a rebound in numbers for December.

                US jobs data for both October and November came out this week as well, showing that the unemployment rate for last month rose to 4.6 percent, the highest since 2021.

                While 64,000 jobs were added in November, 105,000 were lost in October, and revisions took 33,000 jobs away from the months of August and September.

                Outside US economic data, it’s worth noting that for silver there’s still a lot of focus on behind-the-scenes actions that could be impacting the price.

                Here’s what Substack newsletter writer John Rubino had to say about that:

                ‘A lot of the discontinuities that we’re seeing in the silver market right now are due to the fact that the big exchanges like Comex may not have enough silver to satisfy the demands of futures contract holders.

                ‘In other words, there are a lot more people out there with long futures contracts that could come in and demand silver than there is silver to satisfy that demand. And the number of people who are standing for delivery on futures contracts is rising, and the amount of silver in these exchanges is shrinking.’

                Bullet briefing — Platinum beats gold, copper hits new record

                Platinum price on the move

                I’d be remiss if I didn’t also take a moment to mention platinum.

                While gold and silver have been making headlines, platinum’s 2025 rise has been quiet, but significant — it’s up over 100 percent year-to-date and nearly hit US$1,980 per ounce this week.

                Platinum is somewhat similar to silver in that they both have precious and industrial sides, and they’ve both seen persistent deficits in recent years.

                Platinum’s deficit has definitely helped it rise this year, but looking forward to next year the World Platinum Investment Council is expecting a balanced market. When I saw that, I wondered if that would mean lower prices in 2026. But that may not necessarily be the case.

                Edward Sterck said there are a couple of nuances in the council’s outlook — for example, it’s anticipating profit taking from exchange-traded funds, but if that doesn’t happen, then the platinum deficit may persist. He also noted that balance in 2026 wouldn’t erase years of deficits:

                ‘A balanced market doesn’t solve for the fact we’ve had three years of deficits. It doesn’t in any way, I suppose, rebuild aboveground stocks. And it’s the shortage of aboveground stocks that seems to be one of the major catalysts behind this price action and behind the market tightness.’

                Copper price hits new high

                It’s not only precious metals that have been hitting new highs this year.

                The price of copper has been climbing as well, hitting a new all-time high of close to US$12,000 per metric ton last week on the London Metal Exchange.

                It’s pulled back slightly since then, but market watchers agree the copper outlook remains strong as rising demand meets constrained supply. In fact, I’ve been asking experts what they think the top-performing asset of next year will be, and copper has been a popular pick.

                Lobo Tiggre of IndependentSpeculator.com chose the base metal as his highest-confidence trade of 2025, and he said he’s sticking with it next year.

                Here’s what he had to say about copper:

                ‘Top pick for 2026 is copper. Similar reasons to 2025 —the copper price has been kicked around, up and down by what I think of as sort of extraneous issues. But the fundamentals mean the demand scenario just looks phenomenal, and the supply has been really constrained.’

                Securities Disclosure: I, Charlotte McLeod, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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                Sen Murphy warns ‘people are going to die’ as Congress punts on expiring Obamacare subsidies

                A bipartisan Obamacare fix remains out of reach in the Senate, for now, and lawmakers can’t agree on who is at fault. 

                While many agree that the forthcoming healthcare cliff will cause financial pain, the partisan divide quickly devolved into pointing the finger across the aisle at who owns the looming healthcare premium spikes that Americans who use the healthcare exchange will face. 

                Part of the finger-pointing has yielded another surprising agreement: Lawmakers don’t see the fast-approaching expiration of the Biden-era enhanced Obamacare subsidies as Congress failing to act in time.

                ‘Obviously, it’s not a failure of Congress to act,’ Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told Fox News Digital. ‘It’s a failure of Republicans to act. Democrats are united and wanting to expand subsidies. Republicans want premium increases to go up.’

                Senate Republicans and Democrats both tried, and failed, to advance their own partisan plans to replace or extend the subsidies earlier this month. And since then, no action has been taken to deal with the fast-approaching issue, guaranteeing that the subsidies will lapse at the end of the year.

                A report published last month by Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit healthcare think tank, found that Americans who use the credits will see an average increase of 114% in their premium costs.

                The increase can vary depending on how high above the poverty level a person is. The original premium subsidies set a cap at 400% above the poverty level, while the enhanced subsidies, which were passed during the COVID-19 pandemic, torched the cap.

                For example, a person 60 years or older making 401% of the poverty level, or about $62,000 per year, would on average see their premium prices double. That number can skyrocket depending on the state. Wyoming clocks in at the highest spike at 421%.

                In Murphy’s home state of Connecticut, premiums under the same parameters would hike in price by 316%.

                ‘When these do lapse, people are going to die,’ Murphy said. ‘I mean, I was talking to a couple a few months ago who have two parents, both with chronic, potentially life-threatening illnesses, and they will only be able to afford insurance for one of them. So they’re talking about which parent is going to survive to raise their three kids. The stakes are life and death.’

                Both sides hold opposing views on the solution. Senate Republicans argue that the credits effectively subsidize insurance companies, not patients, by funneling money directly to them, and that the program is rife with fraud.

                Senate Democrats want to extend the subsidies as they are, and are willing to negotiate fixes down the line. But for the GOP, they want to see some immediate reforms, like income caps, anti-fraud measures and more stringent anti-abortion language tied to the subsidies.

                Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who produced his own healthcare plan that would convert subsidies into health savings accounts (HSAs), argued that congressional Democrats ‘set this up to expire.’

                But he doesn’t share the view that the subsidies’ expected expiration is a life-or-death situation.

                ‘I’m not taxing somebody who makes 20 bucks an hour to pay for healthcare for somebody who makes half a million dollars a year, that’s what they did,’ he told Fox News Digital. ‘All they did was mask the increase in healthcare costs. That’s all they did with it.’

                Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., similarly scoffed at the notion, and told Fox News Digital, ‘The Democrat plan to extend COVID-era Obamacare subsidies might help less than half a percent of the American population.’

                ‘The Republican plan brings down healthcare costs for 100% of Americans,’ he said. ‘More competition, expands health savings accounts. That needs to be the focus.’

                Democrats are also not hiding their disdain for the partisan divide between their approaches to healthcare.

                Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, told Fox News Digital that the idea that this ‘is a congressional failure and not a Republican policy is preposterous.’

                ‘They’ve hated the Affordable Care Act since its inception and tried to repeal it at every possible opportunity,’ he said, referring to Obamacare. ‘The president hates ACA, speaker hates ACA, majority leader hates ACA, rank-and-file hate ACA. And so this is not some failure of bipartisanship.’

                While the partisan rancor runs deep on the matter of Obamacare, there are Republicans and Democrats working together to build a new plan. Still, it wouldn’t deal with the rapidly approaching Dec. 31 deadline to extend the subsidies.

                Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., predicted that the Senate would have a long road to travel before a bipartisan plan came together in the new year, but he didn’t rule it out.

                ‘It’s the Christmas season. It would take a Christmas miracle to execute on actually getting something done there,’ he said. ‘But, you know, I think there’s a potential path, but it’ll be heavy lift.’

                This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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                On Maduro’s ‘terror island,’ Hezbollah operatives move in as tourists drift out

                From a distance, Margarita Island looks like a Caribbean escape. Palm-lined beaches, duty-free shops, and resort towns sell the image of a tropical playground just off Venezuela’s northeastern coast. But U.S. officials say the Venezuelan outpost has become something else entirely: Hezbollah’s most important base of operations in the Western Hemisphere, strengthened by Iran’s growing footprint and the Maduro regime’s protection.

                That threat, U.S. officials warn, reflects a broader security challenge emerging from the region. ‘The single most serious threat to the United States from the Western Hemisphere is from transnational terrorist criminal groups primarily focused on narcotrafficking,’ Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at an end-of-year press conference at the State Department on Friday.

                ‘Margarita Island might be of significance to the U.S. because of its location and the security dynamics around it,’ Melissa Ford Maldonado, director of the Western Hemisphere Initiative at the America First Policy Institute, told Fox News Digital. ‘It is close to Trinidad and Tobago and Grenada, in an oil-rich part of the Caribbean along key maritime routes, and it has long had a reputation for being a major drug-trafficking hub, possibly because it’s off the mainland and there’s not a lot of law enforcement there.’

                The island’s isolation, she said, has made it attractive to ‘irregular armed groups, foreign intelligence actors and criminal networks that use it as a departure point for boats carrying illicit shipments out of Venezuela.’

                Marshall Billingslea, the former assistant secretary for Terrorist Financing and Financial Crimes in the U.S. Treasury Department, said Margarita Island now serves as Hezbollah’s key foothold in the Western Hemisphere.

                ‘From what I have seen and what I have been told, there is a wide range of activities that Hezbollah and to some extent Hamas are engaged in,’ Billingslea told Fox News Digital. ‘Margarita Island is really the center of gravity for their activities.’

                In written testimony submitted to the Senate Caucus on International Narcotics Control for an Oct. 21 hearing, Billingslea traced the island’s transformation back more than two decades. Under Hugo Chávez, he wrote, Venezuela ‘opened its doors to Hezbollah, allowing the group to establish a major footprint, including a paramilitary training site, on Margarita Island.’

                ‘When Nicolás Maduro seized power,’ Billingslea added, ‘the breadth and depth of Hezbollah’s presence in Venezuela dramatically expanded, as did their ties to the narco-terrorist regime and the Cartel de los Soles.’

                ‘The relationship is very close with the Cartel de los Soles, and it has been so for many, many years,’ Billingslea said, referring to the network of senior Venezuelan officials accused by the United States of drug trafficking.

                Billingslea said Hezbollah has embedded itself into Margarita Island’s economy, exploiting the island’s duty-free status and cross-border access to Colombia to generate revenue through smuggling and drug importation. He said the group operates a wide range of companies on the island and also maintains several training camps there.

                His testimony also detailed how Venezuela’s state apparatus helped embed Hezbollah inside the country. He wrote that former senior official Tareck El Aissami, while overseeing Venezuela’s passport and naturalization agency, ‘was instrumental in furnishing passports and citizenship documents to Hezbollah operatives as well as a large number of people from Lebanon, Syria, and Iran.’ Between 2010 and 2019, Venezuelan authorities issued more than 10,400 passports to individuals from those countries, according to the testimony.

                A May 27, 2020, Justice Department announcement alleged that Diosdado Cabello directed Venezuelan lawmaker Adel El Zabayar to travel to the Middle East to obtain weapons and recruit members of Hezbollah and Hamas for training at clandestine camps inside Venezuela. The filing also describes a subsequent weapons delivery at a hangar controlled by Maduro at the country’s main international airport.

                Recent developments in the Middle East have only increased Margarita Island’s importance, Billingslea said. Israel’s campaign against Hezbollah in Lebanon has damaged the group’s military leadership and financial infrastructure, forcing it to rely more heavily on overseas networks.

                ‘Israeli successes against Hezbollah in Lebanon in particular, including their strikes on the financial infrastructure Al-Qard al-Hassan that operates in Lebanon, are going to have two effects,’ he said. ‘The first is that it is making the fundraising and the revenue generation that comes out of Latin America even more important to the terrorist group. Secondly, we have seen indications that Hezbollah actually has been relocating fighters from Lebanon, several hundred from Lebanon to Venezuela in particular.’

                Asked whether that shift moves the threat closer to the United States, Billingslea said Hezbollah is now operating ‘close to the U.S. and further away from the Israelis.’

                He said Iran’s role in Venezuela has deepened alongside Hezbollah’s. ‘There is a substantial Iranian footprint in Venezuela related to the trade of weapons and drones, in particular, for gold,’ he said. After suffering losses in the Middle East, he added, ‘the Iranians find themselves even more dependent on that supply of gold in exchange for drones and weapons.’

                He said Washington faces a strategic choice. ‘I think the United States has positioned sufficient forces in the Caribbean at this time to take care of the Hezbollah threat,’ he said. ‘But obviously, when you have a terrorist group that has merged into the local population, highly precise intelligence is needed. I believe the Venezuelan opposition possesses a great deal of that intelligence, though it is not clear to me that the United States government is making the best use of that access.’

                For Billingslea, the conclusion is cleaner — eliminating Venezuela’s narco-terrorist regime would significantly strengthen U.S. national security.

                This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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                It’s not just Minnesota; Democrats have created welfare fraud everywhere

                It’s not just Minnesota.

                The past few weeks have made clear that fraudsters stole billions of dollars from states’ welfare programs, much of it from Medicaid. It also appears that Democratic politicians tolerated the heist for their own political benefit. 

                Yet politicians in virtually every state have let waste, fraud and abuse spread like wildfire in Medicaid, putting taxpayers on the hook for an estimated $2 trillion in improper spending over the next decade alone. 

                Thankfully, President Donald Trump and congressional Republicans have given states a reason to clean up this mess and spare taxpayers that pain.

                In a new paper, I show how Democrats have turned Medicaid into one of the most fraud-ridden programs in America — and how Republicans are fixing it. While Medicaid has long been plagued with improper spending, Democrats supercharged this crisis in the Obama years.

                ObamaCare added tens of millions of able-bodied adults to the program, yet that population is much more likely to be ineligible.

                The Obama administration refused to rigorously check eligibility, and the Biden administration adopted the same policy, deliberately hiding an explosion in waste, fraud and abuse. Meanwhile, states refused to police their Medicaid programs, confident that the federal government would look the other way and cover the tab.

                The first Trump administration found that 27.4% of federal Medicaid spending was improper in 2020, or about $120 billion at the time. The administration also found that four out of every five improper payments were the result of eligibility errors. This money flowed to people who shouldn’t have been on Medicaid and therefore diverted money and care away from its intended recipients. Five years later, it’s highly likely that at least one in five Medicaid dollars is still wrongly spent.

                Call this what it is — an assault on taxpayers. It’s also a clear violation of federal law. States are legally required to reimburse the federal government for Washington’s share of Medicaid payments if their improper payment rates are above 3%, a far cry from the 27.4% rate in 2020.

                The Trump administration is once again conducting eligibility checks, but even without that info, it’s all but certain that every state already exceeds the 3% threshold. The only reason they’ve avoided a budget blowout is by receiving so-called ‘good faith waivers’ from Washington. Essentially, states have promised that they’ll tackle fraud and abuse, even when they have no intention of doing so.

                Republicans called time on this rigged game in the law President Trump signed July 4. They effectively eliminated good-faith waivers and told states that, starting in 2030, they will be forced to cover the federal share of any improper payments above 3%. While five years may seem like an eternity, it’s an acknowledgment that states have a mountain to climb to bring their error rates into the low single digits. 

                Consider Ohio. In 2019, it had an improper payment rate of nearly 45%, giving the Buckeye State the worst record in the nation for waste, fraud and abuse. Based on its most recent spending levels, Ohio would be on the hook for $9.7 billion, equal to roughly 15% of its current state budget. Illinois, with a 35.4% rate, would pay $6.4 billion, a tough ask given the state’s famous fiscal woes. Even states with lower improper payment rates, like Pennsylvania, Michigan and Missouri, would still be looking at annual costs of more than $1 or $2 billion.

                Without reform, I estimate that states will pay a combined $100 billion in penalties beginning in 2030. Their only hope to avoid this fiscal pain is to immediately start rooting out waste, fraud and abuse. In the state legislative sessions that start in January, lawmakers should focus on several key reforms.

                First, stop allowing Medicaid recipients to self-attest their income, address and other personal information. Using the honor system invites abuse.

                Second, review recipients’ eligibility at least twice a year for able-bodied adults and once a year for everyone else, thereby removing ineligible individuals early and often.

                Third, cross-check Medicaid data with easily accessible information such as wage, hiring and tax records; returned mail and changes of address; out-of-state food stamp transactions; and prison and death records. These basic good government measures can quickly identify people wrongly receiving taxpayer money.

                Waiting to tackle Medicaid fraud is the most foolish thing states can do. So is hoping that Democrats get their wish and successfully repeal Republicans’ Medicaid reforms. That won’t happen while Trump is president. And if states wait to see the outcome of the 2028 election, they may be disappointed. At that point, they’d face an even steeper hill with barely a year to get their act together.

                There’s no avoiding the reality that Democrats broke Medicaid — in Minnesota and everywhere else — or that Republicans have given states an urgent mandate to finally root out the waste, fraud and abuse.

                 Michael Greibrok is a Senior Research Fellow at the Foundation for Government Accountability.

                This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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                Putin says Russia won’t launch new attacks on other countries ‘if you treat us with respect’

                Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that Moscow would refrain from launching new attacks on other nations provided his country is treated ‘with respect.’

                The Kremlin made the remarks during his annual televised press conference in Moscow as concerns persist among European nations that Russia poses a security threat, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.

                ‘Will there be new special military operations? There will be no operations if you treat us with respect, if you observe our interests, just as we have constantly tried to observe yours,’ Putin said.

                Putin uses the phrase ‘special military operation’ to describe Russia’s offensive in Ukraine, according to AFP.

                He added there would be no further Russian invasions ‘if you don’t cheat us like you cheated us with NATO’s eastward expansion,’ according to the BBC.

                The Russian leader also claimed he was ‘ready and willing’ to end the war in Ukraine ‘peacefully,’ though he offered few details suggesting a willingness to compromise, the BBC reported.

                The yearly news conference, which typically runs at least four hours, features questions from reporters and members of the public across Russia. 

                More than 2.5 million questions were submitted for this year’s event, which focused heavily on the war in Ukraine, Reuters reported.

                Putin also noted during the event that the nation’s ‘troops are advancing’ and expressed confidence that Russia will accomplish its objectives through military means if Ukraine does not assent to Russia’s terms during peace talks, according to The Associated Press.

                ‘Our troops are advancing all across the line of contact, faster in some areas or slower in some others, but the enemy is retreating in all sectors,’ Putin declared.

                As the war drags on, the European Union has just agreed to provide Ukraine with a loan of over $105 billion.

                Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.

                This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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                New Epstein documents include photos of Bill Clinton shirtless in hot tub, socializing with Michael Jackson

                A photo of former President Bill Clinton topless in a dimly lit hot tub with his arms folded behind his head was included in a massive trove of Jeffrey Epstein files released Friday by the Department of Justice (DOJ).

                In another photo, Clinton is seen wading in a pool next to Ghislaine Maxwell and a woman whose face was redacted by authorities.

                Subsequent photos showed Clinton posing with American pop stars Michael Jackson and Diana Ross and seated on a plane next to a female wearing an American flag pin whose face was redacted.

                He was also seen smiling arm-in-arm with the late disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Epstein at what appeared to be a dinner party, wearing a festive shirt.

                The locations where the photos were taken were not included, and no context was provided.

                White House deputy press secretary Abigail Jackson took to social media Friday afternoon to comment on the never-before-seen photos of the former POTUS.

                ‘Here is Bill Clinton in a hot tub next to someone whose identity has been redacted. Per the Epstein Files Transparency Act, DOJ was specifically instructed only to redact the faces of victims and/or minors,’ Jackson wrote. ‘Time for the media to start asking real questions.’

                Clinton’s deputy chief of staff, Angel Ureña, accused the White House of trying to ‘hide [things] forever,’ in a statement on X, implying President Donald Trump continued a relationship with Epstein after his crimes were revealed.

                ‘The White House hasn’t been hiding these files for months only to dump them late on a Friday to protect Bill Clinton. This is about shielding themselves from what comes next, or from what they’ll try and hide forever,’ Ureña wrote in the post. ‘So they can release as many grainy 20-plus-year-old photos as they want, but this isn’t about Bill Clinton. Never has, never will be. Even Susie Wiles said Donald Trump was wrong about Bill Clinton.

                ‘There are two types of people here,’ he continued. ‘The first group knew nothing and cut Epstein off before his crimes came to light. The second group continued relationships with him after. We’re in the first. No amount of stalling by people in the second group will change that. Everyone, especially MAGA, expects answers, not scapegoats.’

                The DOJ dumped thousands of documents and hundreds of photos on its website Friday, all supposedly obtained by authorities during investigations into Epstein and Maxwell’s sex trafficking cases. 

                Other photos showed interior and exterior views of Epstein’s properties, personal photos of Epstein with various people and heavily redacted potential victim exhibits.

                While more than a dozen politically known individuals appeared in the files, Clinton and other notable figures’ inclusion in the files does not necessarily imply wrongdoing.

                The document drop was triggered by the Epstein Files Transparency Act, which required the DOJ to make the files public 30 days from its Nov. 19 signing by President Donald Trump.

                Some files may be withheld by the DOJ if disclosure would jeopardize an ongoing investigation or prosecution, to safeguard victims’ privacy or to avoid publishing sensitive child sexual abuse material.

                Ross’ communications teams did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s requests for comment.

                This post appeared first on FOX NEWS

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                Palladium Price Forecast: Top Trends for Palladium in 2026

                The palladium price surged upward in 2025 after three years of trending down and sideways.

                More than 80 percent of palladium demand comes from the auto sector, where it is used in the production of catalytic converters. Platinum and palladium are mostly interchangeable for this end use, and typically swapped for each other as their prices fluctuate.

                Strong growth in demand for electric and hybrid vehicles in recent years has placed downward pressure on palladium prices. On the supply side, Russia is one of the world’s top suppliers of palladium and other platinum-group metals.

                In 2025, palladium prices soared by more than 83 percent as of mid-December on supportive demand signals from slowing electric vehicle (EV) adoption trends and concerns about Russian supply reliability.

                The price of the metal reached a year-to-date high of US$1,675.50 per ounce on December 17.

                What’s the outlook for palladium in 2026? Let’s see what the experts have to say.

                Platinum demand depends on auto sector

                As for China, data from the China Passenger Car Association shows retail auto sales fell by 8.1 percent in November and dropped by 1.1 percent month over month; however, exports rose 52 percent to a record high of 601,000 units.

                “New-energy vehicle sales grew only 4.2 percent year over year, undershooting expectations and reinforcing the theme that the domestic EV momentum is cooling faster than previously assumed,” said Hasan.’The export boom, however, keeps Chinese production elevated and sustains global palladium demand through foreign-market supply chains.”

                The global slowdown in EV sales is also beneficial to palladium’s demand prospects. Reuters reported that global EV sales rose by just 6 percent in November on flat sales out of China and a 42 percent drop in North America after the Trump Administration ended the EV tax credit scheme. That’s the slowest growth rate since February of 2024.

                “Slower electrification limits the speed of substitution away from palladium-heavy combustionengines, extending the life cycle of auto catalyst demand at a time when supply growth remainsan open question,” Hasn stated.

                Looking into 2026, S&P Global sees the outlook for light-vehicle production being dependent on changing US trade policies and emissions standards. Consumer demand could be weighed down by the extra costs brought about by tariffs.

                “The broader pattern suggests flattish global production trends for 2026, a scenario that keeps palladium demand growth steady but not spectacular,” Hasn explained.

                Another factor that may impact palladium demand in the coming year is the premium reversal and the potential for auto makers to swap platinum for palladium in autocatalysts. Historically, for the most part palladium has traded at a premium to platinum; however, this trend reversed in late 2025 as the platinum market is facing a large supply deficit for the year.

                In its September 2025 market update, the World Platinum Investment Council (WPIC) reported at that time that platinum prices over the preceding twelve months were trading at an average premium of US$59 per ounce to palladium prices. The WPIC said it “expects reverse substitution (i.e. palladium for platinum) to reach 250 koz by 2029f. With palladium now benefitting from reverse substitution, palladium will also relatively benefit (versus platinum) from China 7 emission legislation which we have added into our forecasts from 2028f.”

                As of December 17, platinum is trading at a premium of more than US$250 compared to palladium.

                Palladium supply facing challenges

                Palladium’s price peaks in 2025 are not all related to demand. Production and logistics challenges are also driving prices for the metal. The two geographic regions to watch for supply side trends are Russia and South Africa, by far the two biggest palladium producing countries. Together, they account for more than three-quarters of global palladium production. In Russia, palladium is mainly a by-product of nickel and copper mining, whereas in South Africa the metal is mined as a by-product or co-product of platinum.

                In South Africa, platinum and palladium mining operations have been plagued by heavy rain and flooding in 2025. The nation’s mining industry has already been suffering under an energy crisis marked by frequent power outages. To further compound the supply problem, maturing deposits are becoming more expensive to mine and a lack of significant capital investment has led to a dearth of new projects.

                In Russia, palladium output is traditionally dependent upon the economic and operational viability of its nickel mines. Since the country’s invasion of Ukraine, logistical challenges have erupted all along the palladium supply chain from mining to export as sanctions and trade restrictions have tightened. This includes the removal of Russian refiners from the London Platinum and Palladium Market ‘Good Delivery Lists’.

                Another supply side challenge came in mid-2025 when American palladium producer Sibanye-Stillwater (NYSE:SBSW) headed up a petition requesting that the US International Trade Commission (ITC) investigate anti-dumping and countervailing duties on Russian unwrought palladium. Russian palladium represents about 40 percent of US imports of the metal.

                The ITC found that dumped and subsidized Russian palladium imports do pose a threat to the US palladium industry. The Department of Commerce is now conducting a full investigation into the dumping margins and subsidies of Russian unwrought palladium. A determination is expected in January 2026, followed by the final phase of the ITC investigation to be completed in May 2026.

                Sterck said the outcome could have an impact on the substitution of platinum for palladium in catalytic converters. “I think going into next year, we should get greater clarity on these investigations, and it’s certainly something that we’ll be watching in terms of trying to inform our estimates for 2026 as a whole,” he added.

                In its September 20205 market update, the WPIC projected that the palladium market will likely post supply deficits for 2025 and 2026 before moving into a surplus. That’s with palladium mine supply forecast to decline by 1.1 percent CAGR between 2024 and 2029.

                “Notably, the forecast of palladium going into surplus is entirely contingent on recycling supply growth. If this does not materialise then palladium could remain in a deficit for the foreseeable future, which could materially alter palladium value expectations,” stated the report.

                Palladium price forecast for 2026

                The palladium market is notoriously volatile and highly sensitive to economic swings and supply disruptions. All of this makes forecasting palladium prices challenging.

                Precious metals industry service provider Heraeus Precious Metals’ 2026 palladium price forecast is representative of the uncertainty prevalent in this segment of the market. The firm is projecting that prices for the metal will trade in a range of US$950 to US$1,500 next year.

                Palladium may face a widening surplus as battery electric vehicles gain market share,” said Henrik Marx, Head of Trading at Heraeus Precious Metals. This would likely place downward pressure on palladium price. However, the firm’s report points out that the metal’s price may receive a boost from a rally in platinum prices.

                New York-based precious metals dealer Bullion Exchanges has a base case of US$1,300 to US$1,600 per ounce for palladium in 2026. If EV adoption grows faster than expected, its bearish case for the metal comes in at US$1,100 per ounce. If the supply deficit deepens and Russian palladium faces further sanctions, the firm sees a more bullish case for palladium to soar above US$1,800 per ounce.

                Securities Disclosure: I, Melissa Pistilli, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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                Crypto Market Update: CLARITY Act Set for January Senate Markup, Selig Confirmed as CFTC Chair

                Here’s a quick recap of the crypto landscape for Friday (December 19) as of 9:00 pm UTC.

                Get the latest insights on Bitcoin, Ether and altcoins, along with a round-up of key cryptocurrency market news.

                Bitcoin and Ether price update

                Bitcoin (BTC) was priced at US$88,004.97, up by 3.6 percent over 24 hours.

                Bitcoin price performance, December 19, 2025.

                Chart via TradingView

                Ether (ETH) was priced at US$2,991.30, up by 7.2 percent over the last 24 hours.

                Altcoin price update

                • XRP (XRP) was priced at US$1.91, up by 5.7 percent over 24 hours.
                • Solana (SOL) was trading at US$126.85, up by 7.6 percent over 24 hours.

                Today’s crypto news to know

                MetaPlanet’s US expansion and OTC trading debut

                American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) of BTC treasury company Metaplanet (TSE:3350,OTCQX:MPJPY) began trading today on the US OTC market under the ticker symbol MPJPY, replacing the previously unsponsored MTPLF ticker, according to an announcement from the company.

                This step builds on earlier US expansions. The company, which is based in Tokyo, established a wholly-owned subsidiary called Metaplanet Treasury in Miami, Florida, in May 2025 to handle BTC accumulation and treasury operations with up to US$250 million in capital.

                The launch is intended to enhance US investor participation in MetaPlanet’s BTC strategy.

                Poland’s parliament approves MiCO-aligned crypto bill over veto

                Poland’s lower house of parliament, called the Sejm, approved a crypto-asset market bill today, overriding President Karol Nawrocki’s prior veto. It now heads to the Senate for review, where it potentially faces another veto.

                President Nawrocki vetoed the bill earlier in December, citing threats to civil liberties like easy website blocks. Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government resubmitted the bill, unchanged. It passed with 241 votes.

                The bill aligns Poland with the EU’s MiCA regulation by designating the Financial Supervision Authority (KNF) to oversee crypto exchanges, impose sanctions, and introduce criminal liability for offenses.

                US Senate confirms Mike Selig as CFTC Chair

                The US Senate has confirmed Mike Selig as the next chair of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), bringing permanent leadership back to an agency that has operated for months in near-limbo.

                Selig’s confirmation passed 53–43 as part of a broader package of federal appointments. The CFTC had been functioning with a single commissioner, Acting Chair Caroline Pham, after multiple resignations hollowed out the five-member panel.

                While Pham kept the agency operational, the lack of a Senate-confirmed chair constrained long-term planning, staffing, and coordination with other regulators.

                That gap was especially acute as lawmakers debated expanding the CFTC’s role in overseeing spot crypto markets.

                CLARITY Act heads for Senate markup in January

                The Digital Asset Market Clarity Act is set to enter Senate markup in January, according to White House crypto and AI adviser David Sacks, putting the bill on a formal path toward passage.

                ‘We had a great call today with Chairmen @SenatorTimScott and @JohnBoozman who confirmed that a markup for Clarity is coming in January. Thanks to their leadership, as well as @RepFrenchHill and @CongressmanGT in the House, we are closer than ever to passing the landmark crypto market structure legislation that President Trump has called for,’ Sacks posted on X. ‘We look forward to finishing the job in January!’

                Senate Banking Chair Tim Scott and Agriculture Chair John Boozman have agreed on the timeline. The bill, which cleared the House earlier this year, aims to settle long-running jurisdiction disputes by spelling out when a token is a security versus a commodity.

                Lawmakers are expected to focus amendments on asset classification tests, investor protection standards, and how quickly platforms must register under the new regime.

                Another key issue will be how the SEC and CFTC coordinate oversight during the transition period.

                If the schedule holds, Congress could finalize a reconciled version later during the year.

                Bybit re-enters UK Market via FCA-approved promotion route

                Crypto exchange Bybit has resumed operations in the UK after a two-year absence triggered by tighter rules on crypto marketing and promotions.

                The platform has restarted spot trading with 100 pairs, using a compliance structure designed to meet the Financial Conduct Authority’s (FCA) financial promotion standards.

                Rather than holding its own UK authorization, Bybit is operating under an arrangement with London-based exchange Archax, which is licensed to approve crypto promotions for unauthorised firms.

                This route has previously been used by other major exchanges seeking access to British users.

                Securities Disclosure: I, Meagen Seatter, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                Securities Disclosure: I, Giann Liguid, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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                Top 5 Canadian Mining Stocks This Week: Pacific Empire Metals Gains 200 Percent on Drill Results

                Statistics Canada released November’s consumer price index (CPI) data on Monday (December 15). The data showed all-items inflation rose 2.2 percent compared to November 2024 and 0.1 percent on a monthly basis compared to October.

                One contributor to the rise was a 4.7 percent year-over-year increase in grocery prices, higher than the 3.4 percent annual increase in October and the biggest since the 4.7 percent increase in December 2023.

                On the other hand, gasoline prices decreased 7.8 percent year-over-year and natural gas decreased by 16.5 percent, although both drops were slightly lower than their respective 9.4 percent and 17 percent declines recorded in October.

                StatsCan also released October’s monthly mineral production survey on Friday (December 19). The data reported that mineral production increased across a wide range of metals month-on-month, with iron concentrate the only one seeing a slight decline.

                Gold production increased to 18,470 kilograms compared to 16,978 kilograms in September. Meanwhile, copper production rose to 41.34 million kilograms from 36.23 million kilograms, and silver production jumped to 31,522 kilograms from 28,384 kilograms.

                Shipments, however, decreased broadly in October. Gold shipments fell to 15,563 kilograms from 19,025 kilograms, and silver shipments sank to 31,502 kilograms from 33,296. Copper shipments fell more considerably to 36.22 million kilograms from 44.04 million kilograms.

                Also this week, the Canadian Government approved the merger between mining giants Teck Resources (TSX:TECK.A,TECK.B,NYSE:TECK) and Anglo American (LSE:AAL,OTCQX:NGLOY) on Monday.

                The move clears a major regulatory hurdle for the C$70 billion deal. Federal Industry Minister Mélanie Joly said that as part of the approval process, the companies agreed to spend C$4.5 billion in Canada over five years and employ 4,000 Canadian workers.

                Once the deal is finalized, the combined company will be called Anglo-Teck and will be headquartered in Vancouver, making it the largest company in British Columbia’s history.

                For more on what’s moving markets this week, check out our top market news round-up.

                Markets and commodities react

                Canadian equity markets were mixed this week.

                The S&P/TSX Composite Index (INDEXTSI:OSPTX) was little changed, gaining just 0.14 percent over the week to close Friday at 31,755.77, while the S&P/TSX Venture Composite Index (INDEXTSI:JX) fared a little better, rising 1.04 percent to 977.98.

                On the other hand, the CSE Composite Index (CSE:CSECOMP) fell 8.37 percent to close at 168.68 after rising significantly last week.

                The gold price continued an upward trend following last week’s rate cut from the US Federal Reserve. It gained 1.36 percent on the week to reach US$4,338.24 per ounce on Friday at 4 p.m. EST.

                Meanwhile, the silver price continued to set new records with another substantial weekly gain of 5.75 percent, reaching a new high of US$67.45 per ounce in morning trading on Friday before slipping to end the day at US$67.18.

                In base metals, the COMEX copper price ended the week up 0.73 percent at US$5.50 per pound.

                The S&P Goldman Sachs Commodities Index (INDEXSP:SPGSCI) fell 1.47 percent to end Friday at 542.19.

                Top Canadian mining stocks this week

                How did mining stocks perform against this backdrop?

                Take a look at this week’s five best-performing Canadian mining stocks below.

                Stocks data for this article was retrieved at 4:00 p.m. EST on Friday using TradingView’s stock screener. Only companies trading on the TSX, TSXV and CSE with market caps greater than C$10 million are included. Mineral companies within the non-energy minerals, energy minerals, process industry and producer manufacturing sectors were considered.

                1. Pacific Empire Minerals (TSXV:PEMC)

                Weekly gain: 200 percent
                Market cap: C$30.36 million
                Share price: C$0.15

                Pacific Empire is a gold and copper exploration company focused on its flagship Trident property in central British Columbia, Canada.

                Trident consists of a land package covering 6,618 hectares within the Quesnel Terrane and has a history of exploration dating back to its discovery in 1969. The property hosts porphyry mineralization of copper, gold, and silver, with historic drill results at the site including one 102 meter interval grading 0.59 percent copper and 0.24 grams per metric ton (g/t) gold.

                Shares in the company gained significantly this week after it released assay results from the upper portion of the first hole of its 2025 winter diamond drill program.

                Results from the hole started at a depth of 9 meters and hosted continuous copper-gold mineralization to a depth of 192 meters.

                The broad 183 meter interval returned average grades of 0.77 percent copper, 0.51 g/t gold and 3.4 g/t silver over 183 meters. Within that were intervals of 71 meters grading 1.06 percent copper, 0.83 g/t gold and 4.6 g/t silver, and 14.8 meters grading 1.23 percent copper, 0.75 g/t gold and 5.5 g/t silver.

                Pacific Empire said the result was the most substantial copper-gold mineralization recorded at Trident to date and that it advances the geological understanding and exploration model for what could be significant porphyry system.

                Assays for the lower portion of the first hole and the remaining five holes drilled as part of the campaign are pending.

                2. US Copper (TSXV:USCU)

                Weekly gain: 72.22 percent
                Market cap: C$17.75 million
                Share price: C$0.155

                US Copper is an exploration company working to advance its Moonlight-Superior project in Northeast California, United States.

                The project covers approximately 13 square miles of patented and unpatented federal mining claims in the Lights Creek Copper District, near the Nevada border.

                A preliminary economic assessment released on January 6 demonstrated a post-tax net present value of US$1.08 billion with an internal rate of return of 23 percent and a payback period of 5.3 years, assuming a copper price of US$4.15 per pound.

                The included mineral resource estimate shows a total indicated resource of 2.5 billion pounds of copper, 21.7 million ounces of silver and 140,042 ounces of gold from 402.83 million metric tons of ore with a grade of 0.31 percent copper, 1.85 parts per million (ppm) silver and 0.012 ppm gold. The majority is hosted at its Moonlight and Superior deposits.

                US Copper has not released news since October 14 when it announced the closing of a non-brokered private placement for gross proceeds of C$750,000.

                3. Euromax Resources (TSXV:EOX)

                Weekly gain: 66.67 percent
                Market cap: C$18.87 million
                Share price: C$0.025

                Euromax Resources is a development and exploration company working to advance its Ilovica-Shtuka copper project in the southeast of North Macedonia, Europe.

                The advanced stage project is composed of two concession agreements that cover 17.1 square kilometers and hosts mineralized deposits of copper and gold.

                The most recent feasibility study for the Ilovica-Shtuka project, released in 2016, demonstrated a sulphide mineral resource with measured and indicated quantities of 2.6 million ounces of gold and 1.2 billion pounds of copper, with additional oxide quantities of 280,000 ounces of gold.

                Shares in Euromax gained this week after it announced on Monday its intention to issue 122.1 million common shares through a non-brokered private placement, generating proceeds of C$3.97 million.

                4. Lode Gold Resources (TSXV:LOD)

                Weekly gain: 54.67 percent
                Market cap: C$10.61 million
                Share price: C$0.325

                Lode Gold Resources is an exploration company with projects located in Canada and the United States, including its Fremont gold project in California, US, which hosts a past-producing high-grade gold mine.

                The mine sits on 3,351 acres in Mariposa County, which has been mined since the start of the California gold rush in the 1840s.

                On March 5, Lode Gold released a technical report for the property, which included an updated mineral resource estimate demonstrating an indicated resource of 120,000 ounces with an average grade of 4.13 g/t gold from 910,000 metric tons of ore, with an additional inferred resource of 1.9 million ounces with a grade of 3.96 g/t from 8.53 million metric tons of ore.

                The most recent news from the project came on December 9, when Lode announced that it had entered into a letter of intent with an unnamed mining company to begin work advancing the Freemont project toward production.

                As part of the deal, the parties agreed to a 45 day standstill period during which Lode will work to raise capital and repay outstanding debts.

                Additionally, Lode announced on December 12 that it was appointing David Swetlow as Lode’s new CFO. He has previously worked as CFO for Lode’s subsidiary, Gold Orogen, which was created to spin off its Yukon and New Brunswick properties.

                The spin-off was announced in July 2024 as part of Lode’s restructuring bid and would include its Golden Culvert, Win, and McIntyre Brook properties.

                5. Canadian Chrome (CSE:CACR)

                Weekly gain: 50 percent
                Market cap: C$24.71 million
                Share price: C$0.015

                Formerly KWG Resources, Canadian Chrome is a chromite and base metals exploration company focused on moving forward at its Ring of Fire assets in Northern Ontario, Canada. It does business as the Canadian Chrome Company.

                The firm’s properties consist of the Fancamp and Big Daddy claims, along with the Mcfaulds Lake, Koper Lake and Fishtrap Lake projects. All are located within a 40 kilometer radius, and according to the company are home to feeder magma chambers containing chromite, nickel and copper deposits.

                Canadian Chrome is currently working with local First Nations to improve transportation to the region by developing road and rail links. The company announced on November 7 that it had signed a memorandum of agreement with AtkinsRéalis Canada in its capacity as a contractor representing the Marten Falls and Webequie First Nations.

                The agreement will allow AtkinsRéalis temporary access rights over some mineral exploration claims in support of work permits for an environmental assessment for the design, construction and operation of a multi-use, all-season road between the proposed Marten Falls community access road and the proposed Webequie supply road.

                Once completed, the link will provide improved access to communities and mining companies in the region.

                On September 11, Canadian Chrome signed an additional agreement with AtkinsRéalis that will provide the firm access rights to parts of the claims for 13 borehole locations for geotechnical investigations and aggregate source testing.

                The most recent news from the company came on December 11, when it set the terms of a C$25 million non-brokered private placement originally proposed on August 26. Changes to the original terms were made following the inclusion of chromium as a critical mineral in the Canadian federal budget announced on November 4, which allows investments in chromium projects to qualify for additional tax credits.

                The new terms state that, with every 10 flow-through shares subscribed, five flow-through share purchase warrants will be issued, each entitling the holder to purchase one additional flow-through share for C$2.50 at any time within one year.

                FAQs for Canadian mining stocks

                What is the difference between the TSX and TSXV?

                The TSX, or Toronto Stock Exchange, is used by senior companies with larger market caps, and the TSXV, or TSX Venture Exchange, is used by smaller-cap companies. Companies listed on the TSXV can graduate to the senior exchange.

                How many mining companies are listed on the TSX and TSXV?

                As of May 2025, there were 1,565 companies listed on the TSXV, 910 of which were mining companies. Comparatively, the TSX was home to 1,899 companies, with 181 of those being mining companies.

                Together, the TSX and TSXV host around 40 percent of the world’s public mining companies.

                How much does it cost to list on the TSXV?

                There are a variety of different fees that companies must pay to list on the TSXV, and according to the exchange, they can vary based on the transaction’s nature and complexity. The listing fee alone will most likely cost between C$10,000 to C$70,000. Accounting and auditing fees could rack up between C$25,000 and C$100,000, while legal fees are expected to be over C$75,000 and an underwriters’ commission may hit up to 12 percent.

                The exchange lists a handful of other fees and expenses companies can expect, including but not limited to security commission and transfer agency fees, investor relations costs and director and officer liability insurance.

                These are all just for the initial listing, of course. There are ongoing expenses once companies are trading, such as sustaining fees and additional listing fees, plus the costs associated with filing regular reports.

                How do you trade on the TSXV?

                Investors can trade on the TSXV the way they would trade stocks on any exchange. This means they can use a stock broker or an individual investment account to buy and sell shares of TSXV-listed companies during the exchange’s trading hours.

                Article by Dean Belder; FAQs by Lauren Kelly.

                Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                Securities Disclosure: I, Lauren Kelly, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.

                This post appeared first on investingnews.com

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