NKE Q2 Earnings Preview: The Market Has Only Three Fixations — Margins, Channels, and China Global sportswear giant $Nike(NKE)$   is set to release its Q2 FY2026 earnings report after the bell on December 18. While the baseline expectation is for continued year-over-year declines in both revenue and gross margins, the sentiment reversal following $Lululemon Athletica(LULU)$   's earnings last week has raised the market's hopes for Nike. Key Financial Metrics ~Revenue: Market consensus is $12.208 billion, down 1.18% YoY but up 4.16% QoQ. Company guidance projects a "low single-digit" decline year-over-year. ~Gross Margin: Comp

Options Market Statistics: Oracle Falls 5.4% on Scrapped $10B Data Center Financing $Oracle(ORCL)$   ranked fifth with a bearish put/call ratio of 1.19 and a high IV rank of 50.44%, signaling downside anticipation as volume hit 0.67 million contracts against 2.39 million in open interest. Shares declined 5.4% amid reports that Blue Owl Capital backed out of a planned financing deal for Oracle's $10 billion Michigan data center project, citing concerns over the company's debt load and aggressive spending pace.   $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$   led options volume with a neutral put/call ratio of 0.55 and a low IV rank of 9.61

Forget the Sell-Off: Micron Proves the AI Feast Is Just Beginning $Micron Technology(MU)$  , the US memory hegemon, the world's third largest DRAM maker, and fourth largest NAND manufacturer, released its FY2026 Q1 earnings after the bell. Although the market reaction to $Oracle(ORCL)$   and $Broadcom(AVGO)$   was poor last week, Micron handed in a report and guidance that far exceeded market expectations. Three Things to Watch Management Raises 2028 HBM Market Forecast, Hitting the $100 Billion Mark Two Years Early Since HBM is often bundled with A

Top-Performing U.S. Stocks of the Year: Will the Rally Continue in 2026? In 2025, the U.S. stock market continued its strong momentum amidst volatility and fervor, with the three major indices frequently reaching new historical highs. As of December 16th, the $DJIA(.DJI)$   has accumulated a nearly 14% increase for the year, the $NASDAQ(.IXIC)$   has surged over 19%, and the $S&P 500(.SPX)$   has also risen nearly 16%. At the macro level, "tariffs" and "rate cuts" became the main themes of trading throughout the year. After Trump's retur

BNPL: From Wild Growth to Being Scrutinized—Why Is It Still Rising Under Tighter Regulation? $Affirm Holdings, Inc.(AFRM)$   ' share price surged recently after it renewed a five-year partnership with Amazon. Changes in BNPL regulation this year and the move to include BNPL in credit scoring systems are having a profound impact on the industry. Regulatory trends—easing federal pressure, but increasingly fragmented oversight Toward the end of the Biden administration, the CFPB sought to regulate BNPL in a “credit card–like” manner. In May 2024, the CFPB issued an interpretive rule finding that certain BNPL products offered through electronic accounts trigger key rights and obligations under the credit card f

Medline Soars Over 41% in First Day of Trading This year's largest U.S. IPO has officially landed—Medline Inc. has raised $6.26 billion. $Medline Inc(MDLN)$   opened more than 20% higher in its Nasdaq debut under the ticker symbol “MDLN” and finished the session up 41%. The IPO followed an upsized offering priced at the top of its marketed range at $29 per share, with 216 million shares issued. Data shows that in the past decade, only five companies have raised over $5 billion in a U.S. IPO. Medline, with its $6.26 billion raise, joins this exclusive club alongside $Uber Technologies (UBER.US)$ , $Lineage (LINE.US)$, $Rivian Automotive (RIVN.US)$, and $Arm Holdings (ARM.US)$. What is Medline? Founded in 1966 and headquartered in Northfie

Amazon, Nvidia, Tesla, Apple, Netflix Short Volume Dip Short sellers targeting Big Tech took a brief breather Tuesday as they assessed whether there's room for declines for investor favorites $NVIDIA(NVDA)$  , $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$  , $Apple(AAPL)$  , Amazon and $Netflix(NFLX)$   or if they could be due for a rebound.  $Amazon.com(AMZN)$   shares rose Wednesday amid reports that OpenAI is

Bullish on Amazon and PDD, Downside Risk Builds in Google Since last Thursday, the Nasdaq has fallen for five consecutive trading sessions. The previously crowded AI trade has clearly cooled, weighing on the broader technology sector as the market gradually moves into a phase of profit-taking and risk re-pricing.  Based on option premium flows, V/OI ratios, and structural positioning, institutional activity points to a bullish medium-term view on $Amazon.com(AMZN)$   , heightened short-term defense on $Alphabet(GOOG)$   $Alphabet(GOOGL)$  &n

Can CoreWeave, Nebius, and IREN Win If Oracle Slows Its AI Buildout? On Dec. 17, the Financial Times reported that Blue Owl's talks with lenders and Oracle to fund a planned 1GW Michigan data center for OpenAI have stalled, derailing a deal that could have included up to $10B of financing plus a large equity investment. The financing disruption spotlights rising strain in Oracle's AI-infrastructure funding. Why neoclouds get punished first That headline lands on a market that has already turned suspicious of “AI infrastructure at any price.” In that context, neoclouds are getting hit for one simple reason: AI demand isn't the only variable anymore. The market is now pricing the cost and certainty of delivering that demand—construction timelines, financing terms, counterparty risk, and the

BoJ Is Pulling Back Cheap Money — How Is Wall Street Responding? The recent fatigue in US Tech raises an uncomfortable question: Is the Bank of Japan quietly siphoning the liquidity fueling our growth portfolios? Heading into the December 18-19 meeting, the narrative is nuanced. While the acute panic of an August-style "Black Monday" crash has dissipated—with markets fully pricing in a 25bp hike—the risk hasn't disappeared; it has evolved. The suspense isn't about what they will do, but what they will say about where the finish line is. More importantly, is how is this pivot affecting the our portfolios. Macro Backdrop: "Green Light" to Hike The economic preconditions for a rate hike have been met. The BoJ is expected to raise the policy rate to 0.75%—a move unanimously supported by dimini

S-REITs Full Year Recap | How Rate Easing and Operational Strength Redefined S-REITs in 2025? Looking back at the end of 2025, this year stands out as a "bumper year" for Singapore Real Estate Investment Trusts (S-REITs). Fueled by robust operational fundamentals and a favorable shift in interest rates, the sector staged a powerful rally, marking its strongest annual performance since 2019. Data from the SGX as of mid-December reveals that the iEdge S-REIT Index surged 9.3% in price, delivering a staggering 14.7% total return when dividends are included. This performance stands in sharp contrast to recent years, nearly approaching the benchmark set in 2019 when the index hit a 27.5% total return. The breadth of this year's gain is particularly noteworthy, with 29 out of 33 index constituen

One word to describe my experience in holding these 2 bank stocks is "steady" especially $DBS Group Holdings(D05.SI)$

Santa Claus might not come this year. I will stay in cash and wait for pull pullback rather than being fully invested.  Cash is power.

Options Market Statistics: Pfizer Falls 3.4% on Below-Consensus 2026 Guidance $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$   led overall volume with a neutral put/call ratio of 0.59 and a low IV rank of 9.05%, suggesting steady positioning as volume totaled 2.59 million contracts against 7.70 million in open interest. Shares climbed 3.1% to $489.88, surpassing its previous 2024 closing peak, fueled by positive coverage from Wedbush's Dan Ives and updates on Tesla's robotaxi service rollout in Austin, Texas. $Broadcom(AVGO)$   ranked sixth with a neutral put/call ratio of 0.51 and an IV rank of 14.03%, indicating balanced volatility expectations as

Options Market Statistics: Tesla Rallies 3.6% on Analyst Praise and Robotaxi Launch $Tesla Motors(TSLA)$   led options volume with a neutral put/call ratio of 0.59 and a low IV rank of 9.05%, suggesting steady trader positioning as volume hit 2.59 million contracts against 7.70 million in open interest. Shares bucked the market trend to rise 3.6% to a 2025 peak, propelled by Wedbush analyst Dan Ives' favorable note and reports of Tesla initiating robotaxi operations in Austin, Texas.   $Broadcom(AVGO)$   ranked third with a neutral put/call ratio of 0.44 and a low IV rank of 6.47%, indicating subdued volatility exp

Nasdaq Sinks 2% on Broad AI-Led Selloff After a strong recent run, major U.S. equity indexes retreated sharply on Friday, with selling pressure intensifying across the market. AI-related stocks emerged as the primary drag in the latest pullback. The $Dow Jones Industrial Average (.DJI.US)$, which earlier in the session was on track to post its largest three-day outperformance versus the Nasdaq since March 10 and reach fresh record highs, reversed course and ended down 283 points, or 0.6%. At the same time, the S&P 500 fell 1.3%, while losses in the Nasdaq Composite widened to 2%, highlighting a broad tech-led selloff, with $Broadcom (AVGO.US)$ down 11%, $Micron Technology (MU.US)$ falling 6%, $Advanced Micro Devices (AMD.US)$ sliding 5%, $Palantir (PLTR.US)$ off 4%, and $NVIDIA (NVDA.U

I am optimistic about the long term potential of the AI sector. I will choose to stay on for now, will add if more dropped or opportunities come.

Google Parent Alphabet, Amazon Bulls Keep the Faith Despite Bubble Fears The AI trade has taken a beating, putting to the test the conviction of deep pocketed investors and speculators who have piled onto the Magnificent Seven stocks. Two big block trades signal continued confidence in $Alphabet(GOOGL)$   and $Amazon.com(AMZN)$  .  An active seller collected a $9.68 million premium for put options that give their holder the right to sell 125,000 Amazon shares at $290 each in 770 days. That trade could be profitable for the seller should the stock price climb above that strike price over the next two years, allowing the cont

Options Market Statistics: Despite Strong Earnings, Broadcom Stock Falls 11.4% $Broadcom(AVGO)$   saw elevated activity with a put/call ratio of 0.6 and an IV rank of 20.37%, suggesting steady positioning as volume reached 1.6 million contracts against open interest of 2.36 million. Despite reporting earnings after the bell Thursday that beat analyst expectations, AVGO shares slipped 11.43%. Some market watchers speculated that the decline was due to concerns about margin compression. $Oracle(ORCL)$   ranked fourth with a put/call ratio of 0.73 and a IV rank of 45.52%, suggesting volatility as volume reached 0.86 million con

Visa and Citi Attract $100M in Calls Signaling Further Upside In the latest round of unusual options activity, $Visa(V)$   and $Citigroup(C)$   saw large blocks of call options executed within nearly the same time window, with total premium exceeding $100 million. The scale, timing, and structure of these trades strongly suggest that institutional investors are positioning for upside in both stocks over the coming quarters. Such transactions go well beyond typical speculative activity and instead point to deliberate, medium-term bullish exposure being built through the options market amid ongoing macro uncertainty. Visa: ~$58.7 Mi