To The Moon

Lucrative bets that anticipated Trump's policy surprises warrant scrutiny, experts sayExperts see trades as unusual, suspiciousTrades involved options, commodities futures and prediction marketsOversight of prediction markets in flux as popularity growsBy Douglas Gillison, Saqib Iqbal Ahmed and Anirban Sen

President Trump has moved markets with sudden shifts in policy, from tariff U-turns to military strikes. On several occasions, unusual trades hit the tape ahead of his announcements.Most recently, there was a mysterious flurry of trading activity in oil and S&P 500 futures about 15 minutes before Trump de-escalated tensions with Iran with a Monday morning post on Truth Social, which sent oil prices tumbling and stocks rallying.Critics of the president promptly inferred that someone was profiting from advance knowledge of the post. "Who was it?This is corruption. Mind blowing corruption," Sen. Chris Murphy said on X.There is no evidence of leaks or insiders making trades ahead of Trump's post on Monday, or in any of the previous incidents. In a statement, White House spokesman Kush Desai said, "All federal employees are subject to government ethics guidelines that prohibit the use of nonpublic information for financial benefit. However, any implication that Administration officials are

Investors would have been better off in microcap stocks than in the oldest source of safety.This should be the time for gold to shine. The yellow metal has the perfect opportunity to demonstrate its...

With the Iran war entering its 21st day on Friday, the Trump administration has touted an array of plans to lower the price of crude oil.These include initiating talk of a U.S. Navy escort for oil...

The repercussions of the Iran war that began on Feb. 28 might last longer than expected, even if military operations end in a few weeks. This risk isn't fully priced into oil, equities, or options volatility.Investors must contemplate the potential of violent price fluctuations if the shipping industry fails to quickly return to normal tempos. That could cause the markets to pull back on fears oil prices could surge even more.Iran has already surprised some military and intelligence strategists by shuttering the Strait of Hormuz, the world's most important oil choke point. It was expected to allow ships to pass because some 80% of Iran's revenue comes from oil sold to China via that shipping lane. The income is vital because Iran's economy is weak, yet Goldman Sachs estimates that reported vessel traffic is down 97%.As often happens when difficulties arise beyond Wall Street's control, investors are crying out for gover

The Pentagon is moving a Marine expeditionary unit to the Middle East, as Iran steps up its attacks on the Strait of Hormuz, according to two U.S. officials. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has...

The AI trade has definitely become more fraught. But at least one constant remains: Investors are choosing the companies on the receiving end of big tech's spending spree.So far, 2026 has been a rough year in general for tech stocks. By Friday's close, the Nasdaq composite logged a 1% loss, compared with a 4% gain for the Dow. Even more telling, the S&P 500 Equal Weight Index is up around 5%, compared with a 1% gain for the standard S&P 500. The equal-weight index essentially nullifies the outsize influence of eight tech giants, whose combined market capitalization takes up more than a third of the S&P 500's total.The declines have been driven by what can only be described as a schizophrenic mood regarding artificial intelligence. New AI coding tools from companies such as Anthropic have made investors question the future of software companies, while the tech giants that are spending vast sums to enable those tools are also being punished.The only somewhat safe place is proving to be t