Business News Media Man

Business News

Markets, Cryptos and Culture

FinTech, Big Tech, Big Biz

May 7, 2026

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street, New York

Australia Continues To Ring Bells Before The NYC Bell; Who Is The Bell Of Big Balls?! : TKO Neg With Talent/Wrestling With Numbers And Contracts; If The New Price Is Right Mr Wrestling and Ms Wrestling

LinkedIn b2b Business Lifts For Media Man Group and Associates

Media And Broadcasting Legend Ted Turner Dies; Media, Entertainment And Sports Business World Pays Tribute

Alphabet/Google Cracks TIME 100 Cover; Positive Buzz

Beast Industries aka MrBeast TIME Top 100 Influencer;
Post Buzz Continues For TIME Media Darlings

TKO/WWE In And Out Of The Ring Continues; Up and Down Cycle; TKO's Nick Khan Continues To Offer Positive Vibes To US Admin Re Ali Act Amendment; Zuffa Boxing 06 This Weekend; WWE Backlash Weekend

TKO's LinkedIn Continues To Enjoy Strong News Media Buzz; Google LinkedIn Numbers Up; Rio Tinto (Mining) Strong LinkedIn Media Vibes And Buzz

WWE's Danhausen Offers Mega Exposure To Rootless Coffee And WWE Merch; Number 3 Best Seller Of WWE Merch With Human Movies; Very Nice!

Media Man LinkedIn and X Up; TKO News Flashbacks

Road To WWE Backlash: May 9 in Tampa, Florida: Bloodline Themes! Road To WWE SNME

Google/Alphabet Earnings Ultra Bullish

May 7, 2026

(Sydney, Australia To Wall Street, New York)

Markets

ASX 200 futures up 95 points/1.1%: 8892

AUD +0.8% to US72.37¢

Bitcoin $80,989.05 -0.59%

Wall St:
Dow +1.2%
S&P +1.5%
Nasdaq +2%

VIX +0.01 to 17.39
Gold +3% to $US4691.33 an ounce
Brent oil -7.1% to $US102.09 a barrel
Iron ore +1.9% to $US110.60 a ton

10-year yield:
US +4.35%
Australia +4.95%

Coffee 284.85 -5.90

Cocoa 4135 +61

Numbers Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.7230 USD (up $0.0050 USD)
Iron Ore: $110.60 USD (up $2.10 USD)
Oil Price (West Texas): $96.21 USD (down $6.47 USD)
Gold Price : $4,691.26 USD (up $134.13 USD)
Copper Price: $6.1935 USD (up $0.2045 USD)
Dow Jones: 49,910.59 (up 612.34 points)

News (Australia)

ASX up on ceasefire talk; CBA, banks rally

The Australian sharemarket rallied on Wednesday, amid growing hopes of a permanent ceasefire in the Middle East; the S&P/ASX 200 rose 1.3 per cent to close at 8,793.6 points. The Commonwealth Bank was up three per cent at $177.98, DigiCo Infrastructure REIT advanced 25 per cent to $2.95 and Reece finished 1.4 per cent higher at $13.59. However, Woodside Energy was down 2.7 per cent at $31.84 and JB Hi-Fi fell 6.3 per cent to $72.98. (RMS)

News

China hit with punitive 82pc steel tariff

The federal government has imposed tariffs of between 38 per cent and 82 per cent on hot-rolled coil steel products that are imported from China. Industry Minister Tim Ayres approved the new tariffs on Monday, with temporary levies of up 117 per cent having been in place since late 2025 while the Anti-Dumping Commission completed its investigation into claims that China was exporting steel products to Australia at heavily discounted prices. A spokesman for Ayres says that all trade remedies are fully consistent with Australia's obligations under its trade agreements, and the nation's anti-dumping regime does not target any country in particular.

News

Politics/MMA/UFC

Trump Hosts UFC Stars in Oval Office for White House Fight Event

Trump welcomed lightweight champ Ilia Topuria, challenger Justin Gaethje, light heavyweight titleholder Alex Pereira, and heavyweight Ciryl Gane to preview UFC Freedom 250 on June 14. The free event on the South Lawn features a 4,500-seat arena for Topuria vs. Gaethje and Pereira vs. Gane, tying into America's 250th anniversary and Trump's 80th birthday, with overflow crowds on giant screens nearby. Banter flew in the meeting—Trump joked about Pereira's powerful hand, while Topuria teased him lightly—building hype for this historic first pro sports event on White House grounds. (Media Man Peg-On): Win-Win-Win. Even if you lose on whe White House, you also win at the game and biz of MMA! Much respect to all.

News

Cryptos

Altcoins are surging amid a steady rise in BTC price

Market Overview

The crypto market capitalisation has risen by 0.75% over the past 24 hours, reaching $2.69 trillion. The top three performers are Zcash (+29%), Toncoin (+23%) and Filecoin (+16%). The underperformers are Ethereum (-0.4%), Algorand (-0.5%) and Basic Attention Token (-4.6%).

Bitcoin is approaching $81.5K, continuing its movement within an upward channel and hitting new highs since February. This positive momentum can easily be linked to the continued rise in stock indices, which is boosting risk appetite and bringing a more significant technical battle into view. The leading cryptocurrency is approaching its 200-day moving average (currently at $83.3K); a firm consolidation above this level would be a further sign of bullish dominance. We saw the first such sign – consolidation above the 50-day moving average – exactly one month ago. It is quite likely that, as Bitcoin approaches $83K, a short-term profit-taking phase awaits, allowing some of the gains to be taken.

The performance of altcoins clearly shows how BTC’s steady growth is encouraging increased risk-taking. First Toncoin, and today Zcash, have gained nearly 30% over the past 24 hours. The latter has been rising every day since 3 April, gaining 80% during this period; it was one of the first major cryptocurrencies to climb out of the slump at the end of January and reach highs last seen in November of last year. The key pivot zone in 2018 and 2025, near $800, looks well within reach in the coming days.

News Background

The total USDT market capitalisation has increased by $5.9 billion over the last 60 days, whereas prior to March, the market was losing around $2 billion monthly, notes analyst Darkfost. The inflow of capital into the crypto market is boosting asset values.

Morgan Stanley suggests that US banks may be able to hold Bitcoin on their balance sheets in the future, despite current regulatory barriers. The bank recently launched a Bitcoin-based exchange-traded product (ETP). Later this year, Morgan Stanley will launch spot trading in cryptocurrency on its Wealth platform.

The international payment system Western Union has launched its own stablecoin, USDPT, on the Solana blockchain. Integration with SOL will allow the company to speed up settlements and move away from traditional interbank systems, which are prone to delays.

BitMine has increased its Ethereum reserves to $13 billion, purchasing over 100,000 ETH for the third week in a row. The company’s reserves have reached 5,180,131 ETH, or 4.29% of the Ethereum supply.

Toncoin (TON) jumped by 45% amid fee reductions and the reorganisation of TON. Pavel Durov announced that Telegram would take over management of the TON crypto project from the current operator, the TON Foundation. The entrepreneur promised to reduce fees on the TON network sixfold and turn the eponymous token into a mass-market product.

News

Advertising expectations and experience: Australians have their say about AI

The second wave of Ad Standards' Community Sentiment Tracker, which was conducted by Roy Morgan, has found that 72% of Australians are concerned about the use of AI-generated content in advertising, particularly its potential to mislead or deceive people with unrealistic or fake content. Around half are also worried that the use of AI could reduce authenticity and creativity in advertising and promote unrealistic body or beauty standards. Australians believe AI-generated content is already widely used in advertising, with more than half saying that it is used very often (21%) or often (37%). Despite this, confidence in recognising AI-generated content remains low, with one in five Australians saying they are not at all confident they could identify when AI-generated content has been used in an ad. Some 64% of Australians believe it should always be necessary to disclose when advertising contains AI-generated content. The Ad Standards-Roy Morgan Community Sentiment Tracker Survey was conducted online with a cross-section of 1,000 Australians aged 18+ between 19 February and 2 March 2026. (Roy Morgan)

News

Sports/Media/Broadasting

Seven boss flags interest in NRL

Southern Cross Media Group's CEO Rohan Lund has indicated that the Seven Network owner could potentially bid for the NRL's broadcasting rights. Lund says media companies like Seven have an important role in helping audiences and partners to connect with their sports teams. He adds that Seven could be interested in the annual State of Origin series in particular. The Nine Network's current free-to-air rights deal for the NRL expires next year, and the NRL aims to finalise its next deal by the end of July. (RMS)

News

Mining/Energy/Resources

BHP's learning curve after tough negotiations

BHP's chief financial officer Vandita Pant addressed the Macquarie Australia conference on Wednesday. She stated that the resources group was pleased to have concluded commercial negotiations with China Mineral Resources Group regarding iron ore pricing and sales. The recent deal ended a seven-month stand-off, and Pant said the negotiations with state-owned CMRG were "tough". Chinese media reports have suggested that CMRG has secured a 1.8 per cent discount on iron ore from BHP. Pant also stated that BHP's experience in dealing with supply chain disruptions during the pandemic has been invaluable in coping with similar global supply shocks due to the Iran war. (RMS)

News

Pop Culture/Wrestling/WWE/NXT

Shawn Michaels Announces Loaded NXT Card for Next Week

Next Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET on The CW from Orlando's WWE Performance Center, NXT Women's North American Champion Tatum Paxley teams with newcomer Lizzy Rain against Zaria and Nikkita Lyons, fresh off last week's wild brawl. A win in the Kendall Grey vs. Kelani Jordan match earns a title shot, while Japanese star Naraku debuts in the ring and indie signee Sean Legacy joins a six-man tag. Noam Dar returns from injury for a one-on-one with Jackson Drake, as Michaels spotlights rising talents in a buzzing women's reset. (Media Man Peg-On): For Australians enjoy the show on Tuesday morning (Australia) via Netflix! Highlights will appear on YouTube the same day!

News

Ted Turner, CNN Founder and Media Pioneer, Dies at 87

Turner launched CNN in 1980 as the world's first round-the-clock news network, revolutionized cable with superstation WTBS, TNT, and Cartoon Network, and owned the Atlanta Braves during their 1995 World Series win. He built a vast media empire from his family's billboard business, sold it to Time Warner for $7.3 billion in 1996, and gave $1 billion to the United Nations while conserving 2 million acres of land. Tributes highlight his innovations in news and entertainment, with survivors including five children, 14 grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. (Media Man Peg-On): RIP legend. Thank you for what you did for us in our 5 years of Pay TV days at Optus Vision down under.

May 7

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$190.47
+3.53 +1.89%

Alphabet Inc Class A
$398.04
+9.57 +2.46%

NVIDIA Corp
$207.83
+11.33 +5.77%

Meta Platforms Inc

$612.88
+7.92 +1.31%

Heyman Hustle/Paul Heyman - Live At MGM News

Heyman’s involvement ties into his Looking4Larry Agency’s creative work and a broader MGM Studios partnershipMGM Live is the new entertainment/content brand for MGM Resorts International’s Las Vegas properties. It launched on Instagram with a debut reel featuring Paul Heyman and UFC President Dana White together at an EZ Baccarat table at the Live at Park MGM venue on the Las Vegas.

This marks a notable crossover, as UFC and WWE are both under TKO Group Holdings. Park MGM has hosted WWE events (like the 2026 Hall of Fame) and UFC PPVs.

Heyman shot disruptive/late-night content there during WrestleMania week, including:His TikTok debut from Park MGM (talking about Brock Lesnar, WrestleMania, etc.).

"Heyman on Heyman" interview with his son Jacob for HeymanHustleTV.

Multiple Instagram/TikTok reels embracing his "King of New York (and everywhere else)" persona while promoting MGM.

News

(ICYMI)

Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta Platforms Report Q1 2026 Earnings Beating Expectations

Alphabet reported Q1 2026 revenue of $109.9 billion and EPS of $5.11, surpassing estimates, with Google Cloud revenue up 63% to $20 billion.

Microsoft reported fiscal Q3 2026 revenue of $82.89 billion and EPS of $4.27, beating expectations, driven by 39-40% Azure growth.

Amazon reported Q1 2026 revenue of $181.5 billion and EPS of $2.78 exceeding forecasts, with AWS up 28%, while Meta reported Q1 2026 revenue of $56.3 billion and EPS of $10.44 above estimates.

News

Geopolitics has caused the dollar to retreat

The end of Operation Epic Fury is boosting risk appetite.

Japan is likely to continue punishing speculators. The US dollar has lost ground following statements from the White House regarding the conclusion of the two-month ‘Operation Epic Fury’ and progress in negotiations with Iran. Investors are interpreting this as a de-escalation in the Middle East and are selling Brent. At the same time, the dollar index is once again testing the lows of the past two months amid risk-on sentiment in key markets. Optimism could push EURUSD higher. Although its further trajectory will depend on the pace of the fall in oil prices. It will take time to repair the damaged energy infrastructure in the Persian Gulf. Therefore, it is believed that Brent and WTI will not return to the $65–70 levels seen before the conflict in the Middle East this year. This is a pro-inflationary factor. US services PMI indices are signalling the highest price pressure since 2022, while the futures market is ramping up expectations of Fed rate hikes. It will not be easy for Kevin Warsh to fulfil Donald Trump’s wishes for a significant easing of policy. For now, traders’ attention is entirely focused on the Middle East. The end of the conflict is driving the EURUSD up to 1.1760, and this rise will gain momentum with further signs of de-escalation. Conversely, another breakdown in negotiations and a deadlock in US-Iran relations will force the major currency pair to take a step back. And this is not merely a matter of caution, as alongside their conciliatory rhetoric, the US is building up its military presence in the Persian Gulf. The sharp collapse in USDJPY on Wednesday suggests that the government has once again intervened in the forex market. Japan needs to properly deter speculators from using dips in the US dollar to buy it. Rumours of a de-escalation in geopolitical tensions have catalysed a rally of more than 3% in gold, pushing it above $4,700. The fall in oil prices reduces the risk of high inflation becoming entrenched and removes the need for central banks to tighten policy. As a result, the precious metal may see a return to the debasement trade. (FxPro)

News Lead Up

48 Hours Ago

Bitcoin has begun hunting down short sellers

Market Overview

The crypto market capitalisation has continued to hit new highs since early February, reaching $2.67 trillion. This time, the movement was not uniform, consisting of individual surges led by Toncoin (+29%), followed by Algorand (+4.5%) and Basic Attention Token (+4%). The underperformers include Dash (-5.5%), Aptos (-2.1%) and VeChain (-1.6%).

The sentiment index has reached 50, the midpoint of the indicator’s range, where it last stood on 17 January. The market is approaching a significant turning point. Since last October, there have been only brief surges in sentiment to higher levels, but these have provided excellent opportunities for bears to sell at higher prices.

Although Bitcoin faced some pressure midday on Monday, it overcame it on Tuesday, reaching $81K and gaining 1.3% for the day, though, by and large, it covered this ground in just the last 4 hours. We attribute this rally to short squeezes, as the rise occurred during the period of the most aggressive movements ahead of the start of active trading in Asia, when liquidity is at its lowest. Meanwhile, on the stock markets, there was only a slight pullback following the downward momentum. In any case, on the daily charts, Bitcoin is recording its sixth bullish candle, and the entire April uptrend now fits within a new upward channel, with the upper boundary currently at the 200-day moving average.

News Background

The Capriole investment fund has noted a sharp rise in demand for Bitcoin from major players. Institutional investors are buying up more than 500% of the daily mining output of the leading cryptocurrency every day. Historically, such a supply shortage has led to a 24% rise in BTC over the following month.

Bitcoin appears poised for an upward surge. A break above $80K opens up the possibility of reaching $86K–$88K in the coming period, notes MN Trading founder Michael van de Poppe.

Following the latest adjustment, Bitcoin’s mining difficulty has fallen by 2.3% to 132.47 T. According to Glassnode, the network’s average hash rate, smoothed by a 7-day moving average, stands at around 955 EH/s.
Senators Tom Tillis and Angela Olsbrooks have reached a compromise regarding stablecoin yields in the CLARITY Act. This bill regulating the US crypto market may be considered by the Senate Banking Committee in the week following 11 May. (FxPro)

News

BHP's price deal puts minnows, rivals on alert

Rio Tinto's former CEO Sam Walsh believes that the iron ore pricing deal between BHP and China Mineral Resources Group will fail. Few details of the deal to end the long-running dispute between BHP and CMRG have emerged, although reports suggest that BHP has ceded more influence to China in setting iron ore prices; this could potentially lead to more ore being priced in Chinese currency. Geoff Raby, Australian ambassador to China, believes that the key outcome of the deal is BHP's acceptance that the benchmark price of iron ore should be set by China, rather than a price reporting agency based in the US or the UK. (ABIX)

Media Man Peg-On: BHP per ad "We've been called many things". Gonzo journalism in mining and rare earth news lives!
News

UFC/MMA

Chimaev Shares Sparring Clip Ragdolling Strickland Before UFC 328 Title Fight

The undefeated UFC middleweight champion Chimaev (15-0) shared the American Top Team gym session showing him slamming takedowns on a shirtless Strickland (30-7), days ahead of UFC 328 at Newark's Prudential Center where he defends his belt for the first time. Bad blood stems from a group chat spat over Chechen wrestling jokes, escalating to media day barbs like Strickland calling Chimaev 'soft' and daring a parking lot fight, while Chimaev shrugged it off and said security protects Strickland. Odds favor Chimaev at -510, but Joe Rogan spots a real shot for Strickland's boxing and cardio, with Dricus du Plessis warning the first round decides it all. (Media Man: Nothing quite like a good old fashioned blood feud, be it MMA or wrestling. Red turns to green! Sell out on the cards!

News

WWE Backlash
May 9, 2026
Benchmark International Arena
Tampa, Florida
Main Event: Roman Reigns vs Jacob Fatu
Rollins vs Breakker
Williams vs Zayn
SKY vs Asuka
Danhausen and Mystery Partner vs Miz and Kit Wilson

News Flashback

WWE NXT/Wrestling

NXT Debuts EVIL, Lizzy Rain, and Will Kroos in Roster Shake-Up

WWE NXT's April 28 episode on The CW featured six debuts, including former NJPW star EVIL's chilling arrival targeting NXT Champion Tony D'Angelo, rocker Lizzy Rain's dominant win over Nikkita Lyons with her Thunderstruck finisher, and indie powerhouse Will Kroos joining a beatdown on D'Angelo. John Cena hyped EVIL with his classic promo quote, while fans praised the secrecy around Kroos and Rain's heavy-metal entrance. Other newcomers like Tristan Angels, Kam Hendrix, and Tate Wilder added to the stacked night, setting up fresh storylines for titles and rivalries. (Media Man Peg-On): NXT needed some fresh faces and new blood to replace some of the WWE main roster call-ups; Shawn Michaels and Robert Stone one again deliver. It's almost a new era kinda feeling and vibe with the shake-ups. Fans pumped for the upcoming main roster debuts of Blake Monroe and Ricky Saints.

News

Google, Meta shift $11b offshore, pay just $140m in tax

Technology firms Meta and Google have come under ongoing criticism over the fact that they seem to pay very little tax on the huge amount of revenue they generate in Australia. The criticism comes in particular from companies that must compete with them, including banks and media companies, while the federal government is set to force them to enter into commercial agreements with Australian news publishers. The criticism regarding the low amount of tax that Google and Meta is not likely to go away, given the revelation that they transferred almost $11 billion to offshore entities in service fees and reseller payments over the past year, but only paid just over $140 million in tax. (RMS)

News

News Lead Up

WWE/Pop Culture

Paul Heyman Praises Lil Yachty Amid WWE Celebrity Backlash

On SmackDown, Yachty celebrated new U.S. Champion Trick Williams' WrestleMania 42 victory over Sami Zayn, but Zayn ambushed them unmasked as a Gingerbread Man with a Helluva Kick. Paul Heyman endorsed Yachty as a respectful crossover star who honors WWE's history and fans, countering backlash from viewers upset over recent talent cuts like Aleister Black and Karrion Kross. While some fans call it unwanted filler, others praise the fun energy as WWE balances celebrities with homegrown stories ahead of Backlash. (Media Man Peg-On): We're going with Heyman on this. Yachty is great and over with the audience for the most part.

News

Pop Culture/Lucha Libre

AAA Announces New General Manager Reveal on May 23

On the April 25 episode of AAA on Fox, President Marisela Peña announced that Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide will get a new General Manager, with the live reveal set for May 23 in Mexico City. This follows her son Dorian Roldán's recent plea for the role, which she decided to open to other candidates after careful thought. Fans are speculating on names like Zelina Vega, Rey Mysterio, or even The Undertaker, amid AAA's growth since WWE's majority stake acquisition last April and its new Fox broadcasts blending lucha action with WWE polish. (Media Man Peg-On): Ariba. Triple A has massive influence from The Undertaker, and it's paying off as far as entertainment value for fans and in other creative and business ways from what we see and hear. Can see see Danhausen in Triple H also? Lucha Hausen!

News Lead Up

April 23

(Wall St, New York) : April 24 (Sydney, Australia)

UFC - MMA Building Stars Again

New York Kind Of Feeling

US Stocks - Black Friday - Black-ish Thursday into Friday

Post WrestleMania; Road To WWE Backlash 2026

WWE Management And Wrestlers Bullish; Wrestling and Boxing

Sports Biz Event Tickets And Merch Drive

Danhausen Lifts WWE Merch Hausen

Traditional Big Tech Sector Takes Big Hit April 23

News

Media Man Group Weekly Series

Pop Culture Dream Matches

New Blood vs New Day vs Old News

GCW Bloodspot vs The Others

MGM Wrestling vs Atlantic City

Bam Bam vs Father Time

UFC vs Outlaw Mud Shows

WBD Wrestling vs Own Goal

Mr Dingo Driver vs Naysayers

New School vs Old School

Paul Heyman and Son and MGM Gamification vs others!

PopWrecked vs Karen

Studio97 vs others: Catfight Rules!

Danhausen def Easy E

x AI vs others!

T. Abbott (Aust) vs Wokes

Netflix vs Paramount Plus vs YouTube - 3 Way Dance! Special Ref: Easy E. Share The Love! Enough For The Big 3!

Ultra A.I vs Human Full Bloods

Ex Machine vs Cave Man

Rudos vs Technicos (Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide)

News

Best Quotes Of The Day

"An investment in ones self is always the best bet" Greg Tingle, Media Man Group

Media Man

Cryptos, FinTech, Big Tech, Big Biz

TKO/WWE Lifts In And Out Of The Ring; Up and Down Cycle; TKO's Nick Khan Offers Positive Vibes To US Admin Re Ali Act Amendment; TKO's LinkedIn Enjoys Strong News Media Buzz

April 27, 2026

(Sydney, Australia)

ASX futures down 3 points/0.03%: 8798
AUD +0.1% at US71.60¢
Bitcoin $79,222.72 +2.34%
Dow -0.2%
S&P +0.8%
Nasdaq +1.6%
Gold +0.3% to $US4709.50 an ounce
Silver 76.540 +0.858
Brent oil +0.3% at $US105.33 a barrel
Iron ore +0.3% at $US107.05 a ton
Coffee 294.90 -5.45

Numbers Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.7130 USD (up $0.0006 USD)
Iron Ore: $107.05 USD (up $0.40 USD)
Oil Price (West Texas): $94.40 USD (down 2.99 USD)
Gold Price : $4,708.69 USD (up $15.67 USD)
Copper Price): $6.0285 USD (up $0.0060 USD)
Dow Jones: 49,230.71 (down 79.61 points

Before The Bell

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$186.50 +0.24 +0.13%

Alphabet Inc Class A
$344.40
+5.51 +1.63%

News

WWE/Pop Culture

Paul Heyman Praises Lil Yachty Amid WWE Celebrity Backlash

News

UFC/MMA

(Australia)

UFC Fight Night in Perth Features Main Event Between Jack Della Maddalena and Carlos Prates

UFC Fight Night is set for Perth, Western Australia, headlined by a welterweight bout between top-ranked fighters Jack Della Maddalena and Carlos Prates. The event, promoted as UFC Perth, airs live on Paramount Plus. (Media Man Peg-On): On paper this Fight Night down under should be stronger/better than some of their previous fight nights are far as match quality.

News

Pop Culture/WWE

Adam Pearce Hypes Stacked WWE Raw in Laredo Tomorrow

WWE Raw hits Sames Auto Arena in Laredo, Texas, tomorrow at 8 p.m. ET exclusively on Netflix, building hype for Backlash with Seth Rollins opening in promo, Becky Lynch returning as three-time Women's Intercontinental Champion, Joe Hendry's first Raw concert, Penta El Zero Miedo vs. Rusev grudge match, Bayley and Lyra Valkyria vs. Roxanne Perez and Raquel Rodriguez, and Roman Reigns responding to Jacob Fatu's title challenge. Pearce teased the action in a fun video, but fans voice frustrations over Kairi Sane's absence and repeated women's tag bouts. Local buzz mentions possible CM Punk spots, though unconfirmed. (Media Man Peg-On): Always pumped for WWE RAW. Fresh meat, men and women, comig in from NXT. Let's F'N Go! Red turns to green baby!

News

Pop Culture/Lucha Libre

AAA Announces New General Manager Reveal on May 23

News

Gunman Tries to Breach Security at White House Correspondents' Dinner, Trump Escapes Unharmed

A 31-year-old man from California, Cole Tomas Allen, rushed a security checkpoint at the annual black-tie event, armed with a handgun, shotgun, and knives; he left a manifesto targeting Trump. One Secret Service agent was hit in his bulletproof vest but not seriously injured, and no other casualties occurred. Trump praised the agents as heroes and renewed calls for a secure White House ballroom, while bipartisan leaders condemned the violence amid criticism of event security lapses. (Media Man Peg-On): Talk about a high risk occupation, and we thought Army and journalism was a tough gig!

April 23

(Wall St, New York) : April 24 (Sydney, Australia)

UFC - MMA Building Stars Again

New York Kind Of Feeling

US Stocks - Black Friday - Black-ish Thursday into Friday

Post WrestleMania; Road To WWE Backlash 2026

WWE Management And Wrestlers Bullish; Wrestling and Boxing

Sports Biz Event Tickets And Merch Drive

Danhausen Lifts WWE Merch Hausen

Traditional Big Tech Sector Takes Big Hit April 23

Media Man Group Weekly Series

News Lead Up

ASX 200 futures down 4 points: 0.1% to 8828
AUD -0.4% to US71.30¢
Bitcoin $78,168.22 +0.52%
Dogecoin $0.09776 +2.24%
Ripple aka XRP $1.4374 +1.48%

Wall St:
Dow -0.4%
S&P -0.4%
Nasdaq -0.9%

VIX +0.39 to 19.31
Gold -1% to $US4694.14 an ounce
Brent oil +4.5% to $US106.44 a barrel
Iron ore -0.6% to $US106.65 a tonne
10-year yield: US 4.32% Australia 5.00%

News Lead Up

April 24 (Sydney, Australia)

Numbers Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.7124 USD (down $0.0036 USD) Iron Ore: $106.65 USD (down $0.45 USD)
Oil Price (West Texas): $97.39 USD (up 4.52 USD)
Gold Price : $4,693.02 USD (down $46.76 USD)
Copper Price: $6.0225 USD (down $0.1145 USD)
Dow Jones: 49,310.32 (down 179.71 points)

News

Bulls control Crude Oil

The conflict in the Middle East has altered the dynamics of the oil market.

The longer the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked, the higher the risks of a Brent rally. Don’t expect things to return to normal. Before the conflict in the Middle East, the oil market was in the hands of the bears. Demand was falling due to the shift towards alternative energy sources, whilst supply was rising. OPEC+ was gradually increasing production to avoid losing market share and investors were talking about a record surplus. Today, the IEA estimates the loss of supply at 12 million barrels per day, which is more than during the Arab oil embargo of 1973–1974 and the Iranian Revolution of 1978–1979 combined. However, it would be rather naive to think that the end of the war will cause prices to plummet. Even after the Strait of Hormuz reopens, it will take months to restore production in the damaged energy infrastructure of the Persian Gulf. At the same time, countries are seriously concerned about energy security and will work hard to boost oil demand. Interestingly, the current decline in demand is preventing Brent from soaring too high. Vitol, a crude oil trader, estimates a demand loss of around 4 million barrels per day due to excessively high prices. If we add Saudi Arabia’s workarounds, the increase in US crude exports, and active purchases by China and India of Russian barrels stranded at sea, then the stabilisation of Brent near $100 starts to look logical. The math suggests that the actual deficit is closer to 5% than 10%. The problem is that the crude on Russian tankers at sea is running out, the US’s ability to ramp up supply is limited by existing infrastructure, and a resumption of fire in the Middle East could lead to the Houthis blocking Saudi Arabia’s alternative routes. With this background, Citi’s forecast of Brent rising to $110 a barrel should the Strait of Hormuz be blocked for another month will seem far too modest. The longer the US and Iran delay reaching a peace agreement, the more devastating the oil crisis risks being for the global economy. However, optimism has not yet faded. Investors are operating on the assumption that ‘it could be worse’. A fragile peace in the form of an indefinite ceasefire is better than war. The transit fee paid to Iran is seen as compensation for the bombing of its territory. (FxPro)

News Flashback

March 2026

plus

Past, Present and Future

News Flashback

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$195.41 +6.21 +3.28%

News Flashback

TKO's WWE Gets John Cena For WrestleMania Vegas 2026

John Cena to host WrestleMania 42

John Cena is stepping back onto The Grandest Stage of Them All as the host of WrestleMania 42. The Greatest of All Time broke the news on social media that he is headed to Las Vegas. The 17-time World Champion retired from in-ring competition last December after his loss to Gunther at Saturday Night's Main Event but is now making his first return to WWE. Don't miss all the action when WrestleMania 42 STREAMS LIVE on Saturday, April 18, and Sunday, April 19, at 6 ET/3 PT on the ESPN App from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

News Flashback

WWE Raw Hits Madison Square Garden with Title Defenses and Big Returns

Penta El Zero Miedo defends the Intercontinental Championship against hometown hero Kofi Kingston, fresh off Kingston's social media challenge. The Usos put the World Tag Team Titles on the line in a Street Fight against Austin Theory and Logan Paul, while Nia Jax and Lash Legend face Bayley and Lyra Valkyria for the Women's Tag Championships. CM Punk confronts Roman Reigns amid their heated feud, Brock Lesnar returns for revenge on Oba Femi, and Finn Bálor addresses a Judgment Day betrayal—all building hype for WrestleMania 42. The show streams live on Netflix at 8 ET from the iconic arena.

News

News Flashback

November 2025

Polymarket Partnership Could Be a Game Changer for TKO Group Holdings (TKO)

Nov 17

(In Case You Missed It)

Polymarket/UFC/TKO

Polymarket recently announced a multi-year partnership making it the Official and Exclusive Prediction Market Partner for UFC and Zuffa Boxing, introducing real-time fan prediction metrics directly into UFC broadcasts and social media experiences.

This collaboration marks the first time major sports organizations have integrated prediction market technology into the live fan experience, creating new ways for audiences to interact and for TKO's sports brands to differentiate themselves.

We'll explore how this innovative fan engagement initiative could strengthen TKO Group Holdings' investment narrative by deepening audience connection and content value.

What Is TKO Group Holdings' Investment Narrative?

To see the value in TKO Group Holdings as a shareholder, you really have to believe in its ability to keep building out top sports entertainment brands like UFC and WWE into global, multi-platform franchises. A lot of the story is about continuing to grow earnings and revenue faster than the overall market, attract loyal audiences, and evolve with changes in media rights, streaming, and digital fan engagement. Recent announcements, such as the multi-year partnership with Polymarket, reflect TKO’s push to unlock new monetization avenues and deepen fan involvement.

However, it’s unlikely this news will materially change the core short-term catalysts, which are still dominated by performance in key international deals, broadcast partnerships, and the rollout of new events. The biggest risks remain legal challenges, compression of media rights value, and questions about board experience. The new fan engagement efforts add differentiation, but don’t directly reduce these core risks for now. On the flip side, investors should pay close attention to ongoing legal proceedings against TKO and UFC.

TKO Group Holdings' shares have been on the rise but are still potentially undervalued by 15%.

Ten retail investors in the Simply Wall St Community produced fair value estimates for TKO ranging from US$63.92 to a very large US$37,618.47. While community views can be widely split, ongoing legal challenges remain a topic several market participants keep circling back to as a concern for TKO’s future performance. Explore these diverse perspectives and see how the risks and opportunities stack up.

Bonus:

TKO Group $200.29 -4.20 -2.05%

News Flashback

Magnificent 7, Markets, Stocks

New York/Wall Street

September 15, 2025

TKO Bullish Mad Monday Off WrestleMania 43 Saudi News: Media Man Edition!

Netflix Inc $1,202.26 +13.82 +1.16%

Alphabet Inc Class A $251.61 +10.81 +4.49%

NVIDIA Corp $177.75 -0.071 -0.040%

Amazon Dotcom Inc $231.43 +3.28 +1.44%

Apple Inc $236.70 +2.63 +1.12%

Meta Platforms $764.70 +9.11 +1.21%

Tesla $410.26 +14.32 +3.62%

Microsoft Corp $515.36 +5.46 1.07%

News

Lead Up

New York/Wall Street

September 12, 2025

TKO Bullish Friday Leading Into Weekend; TKO Bullish Heading To Mad Monday Off WrestleMania 43 Saudi News: Media Man Edition!

Netflix Inc $1,188.44 -15.06 -1.25%
Alphabet Inc Class A $240.80 +0.43 +0.18%
NVIDIA Corp $177.82 +0.65 +0.37%
Amazon Dotcom Inc $228.15 -1.80 -0.78%
Apple Inc $234.07 +4.04 +1.76%

Meta Platforms $755.59 +4.69 +0.62%

Tesla $395.94 +27.13 +7.36%

Bonus:

TKO Group $202.44 +0.060 0.030%

News Flashback

Historical Data and Intel

TKO Group: News

September 13, 2025

Jones Financial Companies Lllp Acquires 77,883 Shares of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. $TKO

Jones Financial Companies Lllp significantly increased its stake in TKO Group Holdings by 149,775%, now owning 77,935 shares valued at approximately $11.9 million.

Several institutional investors, including Vanguard and Invesco, have also raised their stakes in TKO Group, indicating a strong interest in the company, which is now 89.79% owned by institutional investors.

TKO Group recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.76, up from $0.38, reflecting a strong return for investors despite a high dividend payout ratio of 125.62%.

Jones Financial Companies Lllp increased its position in shares of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. by 149,775.0% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,935 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 77,883 shares during the period. Jones Financial Companies Lllp's holdings in TKO Group were worth $11,909,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in TKO Group by 425.0% during the 1st quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 168 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. N.E.W. Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in TKO Group during the first quarter worth $26,000. Sentry Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in TKO Group during the first quarter worth $25,000. Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of TKO Group in the first quarter worth $27,000. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of TKO Group by 129.8% in the first quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.79% of the company's stock.

News Flashback

Insider Buying and Selling at TKO Group

In related news, Director Nick Khan sold 45,168 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, July 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $170.82, for a total value of $7,715,597.76. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 156,494 shares in the company, valued at $26,732,305.08. This represents a 22.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 73,725 shares of company stock valued at $12,767,807. Corporate insiders own 61.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TKO has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Baird R W raised TKO Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, September 5th. Zacks Research upgraded TKO Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 2nd. Bank of America upped their target price on TKO Group from $200.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 12th. Robert W. Baird began coverage on TKO Group in a report on Friday, September 5th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $225.00 target price for the company. Finally, Roth Capital raised their target price on TKO Group from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $192.21.

TKO Group Stock Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:TKO traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $202.33. 897,072 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 683,611. TKO Group Holdings, Inc. has a 52-week low of $114.01 and a 52-week high of $204.10. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $178.94 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $165.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 1.30 and a current ratio of 1.30. The company has a market capitalization of $40.12 billion, a PE ratio of 83.61 and a beta of 0.79.

TKO Group (NYSE:TKO) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The company reported $1.17 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.23 by ($0.06). TKO Group had a net margin of 5.40% and a return on equity of 2.82%. The business had revenue of $1.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.23 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 53.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that TKO Group Holdings, Inc. will post 3.88 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

TKO Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, September 15th will be paid a $0.76 dividend. This is an increase from TKO Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.38. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, September 15th. This represents a $3.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. TKO Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 62.81%.

TKO Group Profile

TKO Group Holdings, Inc operates as a sports and entertainment company. The company produces and licenses live events, television programs, and long-form and short-form content, reality series, and other filmed entertainment on digital and linear channels and via pay-per-view. It is involved in the merchandising of video games, apparel, equipment, trading cards, memorabilia, digital goods, and toys, as well as sale of travel packages and tickets.

News Flashback

Mag 7 Markets Lead Up

Historical Data and Intel

Trades

New York/Wall Street

September 9, 2025

TKO Bullish Friday And Weekend Media Man Edition!

Netflix Inc $1,263.25 +18.49 +1.49%

Alphabet Inc Class A $239.63 +5.59 +2.39%

NVIDIA Corp $170.76 +2.45 +1.46%

Amazon Dotcom Inc $238.24 +2.40 +1.02%

Apple Inc $234.35 -3.53 -1.48%

Meta $765.70 +13.40 +1.78%

Tesla $346.97 +0.57 +0.16%

Microsoft Corp $498.41 +0.21 0.042%

Bonus:

TKO Group $196.43 -4.07 -2.03%

News Flashback

TKO Group Holdings, Inc. is an American sports and sports entertainment company. Established on September 12, 2023, the public company was formed by a merger between Endeavor subsidiary Zuffa—the parent company of mixed martial arts promotion Ultimate Fighting Championship —and the professional wrestling promotion World Wrestling Entertainment. TKO is led by CEO Ari Emanuel and president Mark Shapiro, both of Endeavor; Dana White and Nick Khan retained their roles as CEOs of UFC and WWE respectively upon the merger, while WWE co-founder Vince McMahon served as executive chairman until resigning from the company in January 2024 amid a sex trafficking scandal. The merger marked the first time that WWE has not been solely and primarily majority-controlled by the McMahon family, which founded the company and owned it for over 70 years. As of 2024, the UFC and WWE were the two most valuable combat sports organizations in the world according to Forbes. UFC was listed as the most valued mixed martial arts company with a revenue of $1.406 billion and WWE being the most valued professional wrestling promotion with a revenue of $1.398 billion in 2023. (Wikipedia)

TKO owns iconic properties including UFC, the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization; WWE, the global leader in sports entertainment; and PBR, the world’s premier bull riding organization. Together, these properties reach 210 countries and territories and organize more than 500 live events year-round, attracting more than three million fans.

TKO also services and partners with major sports rights holders through IMG, an industry-leading global sports marketing agency; and On Location, a global leader in premium experiential hospitality. (Credit: TKO Group)

News

Best Quotes Of The Day

"An investment in ones self is always the best bet" Greg Tingle, Media Man Group

Cryptos, FinTech, Big Tech, Big Biz

TKO/WWE Lifts In And Out Of The Ring; Up and Down Cycle; TKO's Nick Khan Offers Positive Vibes To US Admin Re Ali Act Amendment; TKO's LinkedIn Enjoys Strong News Media Buzz

April 23 (Wall St, New York) : April 24 (Sydney, Australia)

UFC - MMA Building Stars Again

New York Kind Of Feeling
US Stocks - Black Friday - Black-ish Thursday into Friday
Post WrestleMania; Road To WWE Backlash 2026
WWE Management And Wrestlers Bullish; Wrestling and Boxing
Sports Biz Event Tickets And Merch Drive
Danhausen Lifts WWE Merch Hausen
Traditional Big Tech Sector Takes Big Hit April 23

Media Man Group Weekly Series

U.S, Australia, Europe, World

April 23, 2026

Netflix Inc $92.82 -0.42 -0.45%
Alphabet Inc Class A $338.89 -0.43 -0.13%
NVIDIA Corp $199.64 -2.86 -1.41%
Amazon Dotcom Inc $255.08 -0.28 -0.11%
Apple Inc $273.43 +0.26 +0.095%
Meta Platforms $659.15 -15.57 -2.31%
Tesla $373.72 -13.79 -3.56%
Microsoft Corp $415.75 -17.17 -3.97%

News

ASX 200 futures down 4 points: 0.1% to 8828

AUD -0.4% to US71.30¢

Bitcoin $78,168.22 +0.52%

Dogecoin $0.09776 +2.24%

Ripple aka XRP $1.4374 +1.48%

Wall St:
Dow -0.4%
S&P -0.4%
Nasdaq -0.9%

VIX +0.39 to 19.31
Gold -1% to $US4694.14 an ounce
Brent oil +4.5% to $US106.44 a barrel
Iron ore -0.6% to $US106.65 a tonne
10-year yield: US 4.32% Australia 5.00%

News

April 24 (Sydney, Australia)

Numbers Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.7124 USD (down $0.0036 USD)
Iron Ore: $106.65 USD (down $0.45 USD)
Oil Price (West Texas): $97.39 USD (up 4.52 USD)
Gold Price : $4,693.02 USD (down $46.76 USD)
Copper Price: $6.0225 USD (down $0.1145 USD)
Dow Jones: 49,310.32 (down 179.71 points)

News

Bulls control Crude Oil

The conflict in the Middle East has altered the dynamics of the oil market.

The longer the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked, the higher the risks of a Brent rally.

Don’t expect things to return to normal. Before the conflict in the Middle East, the oil market was in the hands of the bears. Demand was falling due to the shift towards alternative energy sources, whilst supply was rising. OPEC+ was gradually increasing production to avoid losing market share and investors were talking about a record surplus. Today, the IEA estimates the loss of supply at 12 million barrels per day, which is more than during the Arab oil embargo of 1973–1974 and the Iranian Revolution of 1978–1979 combined. However, it would be rather naive to think that the end of the war will cause prices to plummet.

Even after the Strait of Hormuz reopens, it will take months to restore production in the damaged energy infrastructure of the Persian Gulf. At the same time, countries are seriously concerned about energy security and will work hard to boost oil demand. Interestingly, the current decline in demand is preventing Brent from soaring too high.

Vitol, a crude oil trader, estimates a demand loss of around 4 million barrels per day due to excessively high prices. If we add Saudi Arabia’s workarounds, the increase in US crude exports, and active purchases by China and India of Russian barrels stranded at sea, then the stabilisation of Brent near $100 starts to look logical. The math suggests that the actual deficit is closer to 5% than 10%.

The problem is that the crude on Russian tankers at sea is running out, the US’s ability to ramp up supply is limited by existing infrastructure, and a resumption of fire in the Middle East could lead to the Houthis blocking Saudi Arabia’s alternative routes. With this background, Citi’s forecast of Brent rising to $110 a barrel should the Strait of Hormuz be blocked for another month will seem far too modest.

The longer the US and Iran delay reaching a peace agreement, the more devastating the oil crisis risks being for the global economy. However, optimism has not yet faded. Investors are operating on the assumption that ‘it could be worse’. A fragile peace in the form of an indefinite ceasefire is better than war. The transit fee paid to Iran is seen as compensation for the bombing of its territory. (FxPro)

News Flashback

March 2026

plus

Past, Present and Future

News Flashback

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$195.41 +6.21 +3.28%

News Flashback

TKO's WWE Gets John Cena For WrestleMania Vegas 2026

John Cena to host WrestleMania 42

News Flashback

WWE Raw Hits Madison Square Garden with Title Defenses and Big Returns

News

News Flashback

November 2025

Polymarket Partnership Could Be a Game Changer for TKO Group Holdings (TKO)

Nov 17

(In Case You Missed It)

Polymarket/UFC/TKO

We'll explore how this innovative fan engagement initiative could strengthen TKO Group Holdings' investment narrative by deepening audience connection and content value.

What Is TKO Group Holdings' Investment Narrative?

TKO Group Holdings' shares have been on the rise but are still potentially undervalued by 15%.

Bonus:

TKO Group $200.29 -4.20 -2.05%

News Flashback

Magnificent 7, Markets, Stocks

New York/Wall Street
September 15, 2025

TKO Bullish Mad Monday Off WrestleMania 43 Saudi News: Media Man Edition!

Netflix Inc $1,202.26 +13.82 +1.16%
Alphabet Inc Class A $251.61 +10.81 +4.49%
NVIDIA Corp $177.75 -0.071 -0.040%
Amazon Dotcom Inc $231.43 +3.28 +1.44%
Apple Inc $236.70 +2.63 +1.12%
Meta Platforms $764.70 +9.11 +1.21%
Tesla $410.26 +14.32 +3.62%
Microsoft Corp $515.36 +5.46 1.07%

News

Lead Up

New York/Wall Street

September 12, 2025

TKO Bullish Friday Leading Into Weekend; TKO Bullish Heading To Mad Monday Off WrestleMania 43 Saudi News: Media Man Edition!

Netflix Inc $1,188.44 -15.06 -1.25%
Alphabet Inc Class A $240.80 +0.43 +0.18%
NVIDIA Corp $177.82 +0.65 +0.37%
Amazon Dotcom Inc $228.15 -1.80 -0.78%
Apple Inc $234.07 +4.04 +1.76%
Meta Platforms $755.59 +4.69 +0.62%
Tesla $395.94 +27.13 +7.36%

Bonus:

TKO Group $202.44 +0.060 0.030%

News Flashback

Historical Data and Intel

TKO Group: News

September 13, 2025

Jones Financial Companies Lllp Acquires 77,883 Shares of TKO Group Holdings, Inc. $TKO

Jones Financial Companies Lllp significantly increased its stake in TKO Group Holdings by 149,775%, now owning 77,935 shares valued at approximately $11.9 million.

TKO Group recently declared an increased quarterly dividend of $0.76, up from $0.38, reflecting a strong return for investors despite a high dividend payout ratio of 125.62%.

News Flashback

Insider Buying and Selling at TKO Group

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

TKO Group Stock Up 0.0%

TKO Group Increases Dividend

TKO Group Profile

News Flashback

Mag 7 Markets Lead Up

Historical Data and Intel

Trades

New York/Wall Street

September 9, 2025

TKO Bullish Friday And Weekend Media Man Edition!

Netflix Inc $1,263.25 +18.49 +1.49%
Alphabet Inc Class A $239.63 +5.59 +2.39%
NVIDIA Corp $170.76 +2.45 +1.46%
Amazon Dotcom Inc $238.24 +2.40 +1.02%
Apple Inc $234.35 -3.53 -1.48%
Meta $765.70 +13.40 +1.78%
Tesla $346.97 +0.57 +0.16%
Microsoft Corp $498.41 +0.21 0.042%

Bonus:

TKO Group $196.43 -4.07 -2.03%

News Flashback

September 2, 2025

Market regime change: Microsoft weakening whilst Alphabet strengthens Nvidia and OpenAI have become synonymous with the AI revolution, each offering its own breakthrough solutions. This has made Nvidia the most valuable company on the market. OpenAI remains private for now. However, the old guard of IT giants, such as Microsoft and Alphabet, are not standing on the sidelines of the AI race, although they are conducting it in different ways, which is affecting their shares differently.

Microsoft owns a stake in OpenAI, giving it access to the latest developments, but integrates them into its own programmes, including chatbots. For a long time, betting on Microsoft was an indirect bet on OpenAI with their well-known ChatGPT. This approach paid off earlier this year, as the share price recovered faster than many competitors after the April slump. From its lows at the start of April to its highs at the end of July, the stock soared 55%, already making its way to historic highs since the beginning of June.

For a long time, Alphabet shares lagged their competitor in terms of share price growth over the past five years. They were also weaker in their recovery after the April correction, adding 40% to their lows before peaking at the end of July.

However, since August, the markets have clearly shifted into a different mode, with MSFT falling 7.5% against GOOG's 13% growth. This divergence began even before the release of GPT-5, the latest model, which faced widespread criticism from users, forcing the company to revert to GPT-4, originally announced over two years ago. Negative sentiment was also fuelled by comments from OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who acknowledged that the market is currently in a bubble due to inflated expectations.

Google Gemini is steadily developing and gradually gaining consumer support due to its convenient integration into the company's extensive ecosystem. This aspiration resonates with investors. It seems that market participants are seeking to diversify their bets on AI agents, creating demand for Alphabet shares at the expense of Microsoft.

September marks the end of the financial year in the US, and investors often use August and September to switch to new trends or restart existing ones. September is historically the worst month for stock indices, but it can also be a good entry point during a downturn.

It is only important to understand whether we are seeing the start of a trend reversal or a temporary correction. Signals of this should be sought in MSFT's dynamics. Technically, with the stock trading at $506, it remains within a corrective pattern as long as it stays above the $450–$470 range. The upper bound aligns with last year's peak and the 61.8% Fibonacci retracement of the rally from the April lows to the July highs, while the lower boundary corresponds to the 200-day moving average. A break below this level would signal a deeper trend reversal.

GOOG shares are close to local overbought conditions, as the RSI on daily timeframes is approaching 75, near which the shares have experienced local corrections over the past six years. Therefore, there is a high chance that both shares will soon experience increased selling pressure; the only question is how deep this correction will be. (FxPro)

News

Best Quotes Of The Day

"An investment in ones self is always the best bet" Greg Tingle, Media Man Group

Markets, Shares, Cryptos, Miners, Social Media and Culture

Wrestling With Numbers In WrestleMania Week!

NBA Ballers In Vegas Get Bullish! Bet On Pop Culture Biz!

April 15, 2026

Tuesday Rises In New York
Wednesday Down Under

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street, New York, and beyond the Blackstump and Internet Matrix Of Things!

Pop Culture themes

"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" (Cannonball Adderley)
"Gold" (Spandau Ballet)
"The Wall Street Hustle" (10cc)
"Bulls on Parade" (Rage Against the Machine)
"Down Under" (Men at Work)
"From Dusk Till Dawn" (Tito & Tarantula)

Markets

ASX 200 futures up 43 points/0.5 per cent: 9047

AUD flat to US71.26¢

Bitcoin $74,131.87 -0.86%

Wall St:

Dow +0.7%
S&P +1.21%
Nasdaq +2.0%

VIX down 0.68 to 18.44
Gold +2.2% to $US4,844.23 an ounce
Silver 79.285 -0.19
Brent oil -4.2% to $US95.21 a barrel
Iron ore -1.1% to $US103.50 a ton
10-year yield: US 4.26% Australia 4.95%

Coffee 296.25 -1.35

Cocoa 3623.13 - 22.86

Numbers Double Check

April 15, 2026 (Sydney, Australia)

Australian Dollar: $0.7120 USD (up $0.0028 USD)
Iron Ore: $103.50 USD (down $1.10 USD)
Oil Price (West Texas): $92.07 USD (down $5.90 USD)
Gold Price : $4,841.42 USD (up $100.18 USD)
Copper Price: $6.0815 USD (up $0.0805 USD)
Dow Jones: 48,535.99 (up 317.74 points)

News

ASX up, traders hopeful of further Iran talks

The Australian sharemarket posted a solid gain on Tuesday, with the S&P/ASX 200 adding 0.5 per cent to close at 8,970.8 points. Investor sentiment was bolstered by indications that the Trump administration could seek further peace talks with Iran before the temporary ceasefire ends next week. BHP was up 3.2 per cent at $56.10, Deep Yellow rose nine per cent to $1.93 and WiseTech Global advanced 3.8 per cent to $38.56. However, Santos was down 0.9 per cent at $7.96 and Westpac fell 2.6 per cent to $41.48. (RMS)

News Lead Up (24 Hours Ago)

ASX ends lower as Hormuz blockade weighs

The Australian sharemarket lost ground on Monday, with the S&P/ASX 200 shedding 0.4 per cent to close at 8,926 points. Energy and coal stocks rallied after the Trump administration's threat to blockade the Strait of Hormuz boosted the price of Brent crude oil; Woodside Energy rose 2.6 per cent tp $34.15 and Whitehaven Coal was up 2.6 per cent at $8.33. However, Evolution Mining fell 2.4 per cent to $13.22, Life360 shed 8.1 per cent to end the session at $17.91 and EML Payments was down 35.7per cent at $0.37. (RMS)

News

Biz/Industry (Australia)

'We may be out of business': suppliers issue plea for help

Bundaberg Brewed Drinks CEO John McLean says the company's diesel fuel bill has increased by nearly 40 per cent since the start of the Iran war. He adds that Bundarberg may ask customers such as Coles and Woolworths to accept a temporary surcharge that can be removed quickly when the situation improves. McLean emphasises that Bundaberg wants to avoid any increases in the price of its products for consumers. However, he warns that Bundaberg and many other businesses may no longer be viable unless they can recover the rising cost of fuel and other inputs. (RMS)

News

PwC, Viva red-faced as ASIC spots $25m error

Fuel refiner and petrol station owner Viva Energy Group included $559m worth of impairment charges associated with its retail outlets in its financial accounts for calendar 2025. However, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission has reviewed Viva Energy's full-year accounts and found that it had made an error in how it accounted for a $25 million impairment expense; as a result, the company will have to book an extra $25 million in write-downs for the year. Viva Energy's auditor, PwC, has indicated that it does not comment on client work. (RMS)

News

Shares: NYSE

Alphabet Inc Class A
$332.91
+11.60 +3.61%
Lead Up
$321.24
+3.97 +1.25%
Lead Up
$317.26
-1.21 -0.38%

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$195.37 -0.100 -0.051%
Lead Up
$195.47
-1.90 -0.96%
Lead Up
$197.37
+0.30 +0.15%

Netflix Inc
$106.24
+3.08 +2.99%
Lead Up
$103.16
+0.15 +0.15%
Lead Up
$103.03
+0.94 Today +0.92%
(0.17%)+0.18
After Hours: $103.21

Tesla Inc
$364.16
+11.74 +3.33%
Lead Up
$352.42
+3.42 +0.98%

Palantir Technologies Inc
$135.70
+3.33 +2.52%
Lead Up
$132.37
+4.26 +3.33%

Wynn Resorts Ltd
$105.59
+2.53 +2.45%
Lead Up
$103.06
-0.94 +0.90%

Rio Tinto Ltd
$173.82
-0.470.27%
(ASX)

Elders Ltd
$7.43
-0.12 -1.59%
Lead Up
$7.64
+0.040 Today +0.53%
(ASX): Australian Stock Exchange

Paramount Skydance Corp
$11.08
+0.35 +3.26%
Lead Up
$10.73
+0.11 +1.04%

Warner Bros Discovery Inc
$27.37
-0.020 -0.073%
Lead up
$27.39
-0.050 -0.18%

Media Man Peg-On: Play the long game. TKO and Netflix are staples of entertainment/media, and audience numbers, media and marketing creative will help keep them at the high level in most regards. Tesla has the Musk magic and X factor. Aussie miners are frequently strong given the nature of the biz. Gina R took a financial hit re legal as per Australian Financial Review news story. Media remains volitile.R

News

Sports/MMA

Ulberg Knocks Out Procházka on One Leg to Win UFC Title

At UFC 327 in Miami's Kaseya Center, underdog Ulberg overcame a likely ACL tear from Procházka's leg kicks, hobbling through Round 1 before countering with a signature strike at 3:45 for the knockout. Procházka later called his 'stupid mercy' moment—easing off and taunting—the reason he lost, vowing to destroy that part of himself and return stronger. Ulberg dismissed the excuse, saying he never counted himself out, while his 9-12 month recovery delays any rematch talk. The upset has fans debating warrior honor versus no-mercy fighting. (Media Man: The power of the human spirit. Never say die. It ain't over till it's over sport)!

News

Combat Sports/UFC/Trump

Trump Cheers Ulberg's Shocking UFC 327 Title Win in Miami

At a packed Kaseya Center, underdog Ulberg claimed UFC gold at 3:45 of the first round despite a mid-fight knee injury, marking one of the promotion's most unlikely victories. Paulo Costa stormed back for a third-round TKO over Azamat Murzakanov, then leaped the cage to thank cageside President Trump, who grinned and joked about his looks. Trump arrived with Dana White, Marco Rubio, and family for his first public sports event since the U.S.-Israel conflict, while Josh Hokit upset Curtis Blaydes to earn a White House fight announcement against Derrick Lewis on June 14. (Media Man Peg-On): It's a Win-Win-Win!

News

Sports/Entertainment/WWE

Joe Tessitore's Top 5 Breakout Stars for WrestleMania 42

ESPN's Joe Tessitore ranks Oba Femi No. 1 for his raw power, including a big win over Brock Lesnar, followed by Trick Williams' charisma, Je'Von Evans' high-flying at age 21, Lash Legend's athletic tag team reign, and Dominik Mysterio's heel evolution. The NXT-heavy list highlights WWE's youth movement ahead of the two-night event at Allegiant Stadium on April 18-19. Stephen A. Smith joked about turning down an on-screen manager role, comparing himself to Pat McAfee. (Media Man Peg-On): Seems like Joe Tess is too much of a nice guy than to turn heel like Pat McAfee. Just saying.

News

Gaming/Pop Culture/Vegas Strip

$10 Billion Vegas Arena Complex Proposed Near the Strip

Starr Vegas Development revealed plans Sunday for a 63-acre complex two miles south of the Strip, featuring a convertible arena for NBA, hockey, soccer, and concerts, plus a casino resort, 752-foot tower with 2,605 hotel and condo units, retail, offices, and halls of fame for boxing and combat sports. CEO Chuck Haifley of Big Vision LLC announced $6 billion in private funding with no taxpayer money needed, backed by partners like ticketing exec Lou Weisbach and local landowners. The bid arrives as the NBA explores expansion to Las Vegas by 2028-29 amid seven competing proposals, with fans excited about the city's sports growth and skeptics noting tourism challenges and soccer rivalries. (Media Man Peg-On): Good to see that at least a few folks are still bullish on and in Vegas. NBA is the thick of things. Big Balls-Ers!

News

Pop Culture/WWE RAW/Wrestling

CM Punk Faces Roman Reigns in Final Raw Showdown Before WrestleMania 42

Fans gear up for Monday Night Raw in Sacramento, where World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk meets Royal Rumble winner Roman Reigns ahead of their Night 2 title clash at Las Vegas' Allegiant Stadium on April 18-19. The rivalry ignited when Reigns won the 2026 Rumble in Saudi Arabia, leading to heated exchanges like Punk's pipe bombs and Reigns' intense stares. Night 1 brings Brock Lesnar vs. Oba Femi, an Intercontinental ladder match with Bron Breakker, Rey Mysterio, and Dragon Lee, plus title bouts, as one devoted fan pushes through health challenges to attend in Kevin Owens gear.

Pop Culture/WWE/Gaming

WWE 2K26 Season 2 Launches with Borderlands Crossover and Free Stars

Ringside Pass Season 2 drops April 15 for WWE 2K26, featuring a bold Borderlands crossover that transforms Rhea Ripley into a cybernetic dominator, CM Punk into a spiked Psycho mask-wearer, and Becky Lynch into a fiery Firehawk. Free additions include NXT powerhouse Oba Femi with his tribal beads and commanding entrance, plus Kelly Kelly's nostalgic return in pink Diva gear that Barbie Blank herself hyped. While some fans love the creative mashup for custom modes, others call it mismatched slop and crave pure wrestling content.

News

WWE/Lucha LIbra AAA Worldwide/TKO Group

Two El Grande Americanos Brawl into Mask vs. Mask Showdown

At Lucha Libre AAA's Mexico City event on April 11, WWE's Chad Gable returned as the original El Grande Americano, unmasking Octagon Jr. before sparking a wild post-match brawl with Ludwig Kaiser, who took over the character after Gable's injury. Kaiser suplexed Gable through the barricade amid refs and security pulling them apart, then grabbed the mic to challenge him to a Mask vs. Mask match. The high-stakes clash, overseen by Triple H and The Undertaker, is reportedly set for AAA's May 30 event in Monterrey, where the loser unmasks in lucha libre tradition. Fans and insiders hailed the electric brawl as one of the year's best angles.

News

WWE/Pop Culture

Liv Morgan Drops 'Trouble' Music Video Ahead of WrestleMania 42

WWE released the 2:35 music video on YouTube Sunday, where the 2026 Women's Royal Rumble winner teases her title match against champ Stephanie Vaquer. The pop track matches Morgan's troublemaker vibe with wild lyrics, leather jackets, and high-energy dancers in gritty urban settings. Fans split between praising the fun visuals and roasting the vocals, as their heated feud builds to WrestleMania 42 this weekend. (Media Man Peg-On): Hot. Eye Ball Grabber!

News

Becky Lynch Launches AMO Coffee at WWE World

After teasing a big announcement, WWE superstar Becky Lynch announced her AMO coffee brand launches at WWE World powered by Fanatics, inviting fans to her booth for the first taste and priority box access. The playful promo matches her boastful style, linking to her 'Greatest Female Wrestler of All Time' T-shirt and tying into WrestleMania 42 season amid her feud with AJ Lee. Built with husband Seth Rollins, AMO positions itself as the top brew, drawing excited replies from fans ready to grab a cup. (Media Man Peg-On): Cheers Seth and Becky, so, I guess we have no choice but to now cover the news via our Cafe News Media brand also. Cheers to hard and smart work.

News

News/Pop Culture/Sports Business/Streaming

Netflix Announces Fury vs. Joshua Heavyweight Clash This Autumn

Netflix announced Saturday that Fury and Joshua will fight this autumn in the UK, live exclusively on the streaming service, right after Fury's unanimous decision victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Fury, back from retirement with a 36-1-1 record, demanded the long-teased all-British showdown, while Joshua, 28-5 and seated ringside, dismissed him as a 'clout chaser' but hinted at readiness on his terms. No exact date or venue is set yet—Wembley is speculated—but Fury insists it's Joshua or nothing, capping a decade of buildup between the rivals. (Media Man Peg-On): This match up has the potential to break some sort of streaming records, maybe just outside Mike Tyson sort of numbers.

News

Pop Culture/Gaming/WWE

Fortnite Teases Stone Cold Steve Austin Skin for WWE Crossover

Epic Games dropped a hype video showing WWE legend Steve Austin in his iconic gear, grabbing a green canister for a Fortnite-style stunner before chugging beers amid shattering glass and fireworks. The skin arrives in the Item Shop on April 16, 2026, with the v40.20 update, joining past WWE stars like John Cena and Roman Reigns in this Wave 3 bundle that may include Liv Morgan. Fans love the nostalgic nod to Austin's Attitude Era catchphrase, complete with skull back bling and beer bash emotes, priced around 1,500-2,000 V-Bucks. (Media Man Peg-On): The gamification of sports and pop culture legends like Stone Cole continues. Stuns the gaming world is a good way.

News

Pop Culture/WWE/Wrestling

Sami Zayn Faces Boos and Lays Out Lil Yachty on SmackDown

On Friday's SmackDown, United States Champion Sami Zayn shrugged off heavy boos and vowed to defend his title against Trick Williams at WrestleMania 42 unchanged, no matter the fan backlash. Tensions peaked when Lil Yachty, Williams' celebrity ally, yanked Zayn from ringside only to take a Helluva Kick over the barricade, helping Williams win his match. Meanwhile, Carmelo Hayes revealed plans to rehab his knee injury and skip WrestleMania for a second straight year, drawing fan frustration over WWE's direction for homegrown stars.

News

Pop Culture Dream Matches: Fantasy Booking

Trump vs The Hood
Jake Paul vs Dana White
Sami Zayn vs WWE Universe
Danhausen vs Cody Rhodes
Killer vs The Missing Link
The Masked Superstar vs Mr X
Michael Saylor vs Bears
Mr FOX vs Mr VOX
Joe Tessitore vs Pat McAfee: Special ref: Michael Cole (fantasy booking)
Claudio CSRO vs Seth Rollins - Cafe Shop Brawl For All
Becky Lynch vs Alexa Bliss - Cafe Shop Brawl - Special Ref: CSRO. Special Enforcer: John Cena
Team TKO vs TEAM WWE

News

AI News (Aust)

Attorney-General Michelle Rowland has told an event hosted by the media and creative sectors at Parliament House that Australia's existing copyright regime has served it well for many years. She said the federal government had said for some time that it has no plans to weaken copyright protections when it comes to artificial intelligence, while Australia's creative and media sector have made it clear that they are prepared to do licence deals with AI firms, and that existing copyright laws enable them to do just that. (RMS)

News

The miners to own in diesel crisis

Bell Potter's survey of Australian-listed mining companies concluded that diesel fuel accounted for up to 15 per cent of their operating costs prior to the start of the Iran war. Stuart Howe from Bell Potter says the war and the surge in crude oil prices will result in higher costs for much of the mining sector, while production could be impacted by the availability of diesel. Bell Potter recommends that investors rotate into mining stocks that are less exposed to diesel prices. Analysts note that miners with large-scale open-cut operations are most at risk of a supply crisis due to their heavy reliance on diesel-powered truck fleets. (RMS)

News

Batteries, coal push out east coast LNG shortage to 2029

The Australian Energy Market Operator now expects any gas supply shortage in the south-eastern states to occur in 2029, compared with its previous forecast of 2028. AEMO says gas shortfalls in 2029 are now regarded as a risk only during "extreme peak day demand conditions". It has cited a number of factors for its revised forecast, including expectations of lower demand for gas for power generation, an extension of the Eraring coal-fired power station's operating life and the estimated 30 gigawatts of battery storage projects that are currently being developed. Energy Minister Chris Bowen says the improved outlook shows that the federal government's "balanced" energy plan is working. (RMS)

News Lead Up

Streaming News Watercooler

Netflix CEO allegedly won’t speak to Meghan Markle on phone without lawyer

Meghan Markle is caught in a fresh Netflix storm with rumors claiming CEO Ted Sarandos is refusing to take her calls without a lawyer. Netflix denies everything but whispers of canceled deals and rising tension have fans questioning the truth!

News

A.I News

Australia

Watchdog warns against 'dangerously' positive AI advice amid crypto trading spike

The Australian Securities and Investments Commission has expressed concern about the growing tendency for young Australians to use artificial intelligence platforms like ChatGPT for financial advice. Its figures show young people are following 'dangerously' positive AI recommendations about investing in risky investments such as crypto, with their faith in what has been referred to as 'unverified, risk-averse digital advice' occurring as many Australians are struggling with major cost of living pressures; ASIC's figures also show that 23 per cent of Gen Z now hold crypto assets – up from just 9 per cent in 2023. (RMS)

News

Resources

Drill, baby, drill: Boom for mineral, petroleum explorers

Advisory firm BDO has calculated that ASX-listed mineral and petroleum explorers raised a record $5.63 billion in the final quarter of last year. It broke the previous record for fund raising of $3.75 billion that was set in the same period in 2021, with the $5.63 billion in fund raising leaving mineral and petroleum explorers with record cash reserves of $12 billion. It comes as the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported that spending on mineral exploration hit a two-year high in the final quarter of 2025, while spending on petroleum exploration was at a decade high. (RMS)

News

A.I News

Global giants join Australia in fight to make AI companies pay for content

Both the US and the UK appear to be backing the stance of the federal government of wanting AI companies pay for their use of content that has been produced by artists, musicians and journalists. In a document released on Friday that was titled 'Respecting Intellectual Property Rights and Supporting Creators', the White House stated that US copyright laws - under which content theft for the training of AI models, or any other use, is illegal - will remain. For its part, the UK government stated last week that it no longer had a "preferred option" on copyright reform, which comes after it last year endorsed a proposal that would have allowed tech companies to use copyrighted work without permission unless rights holders 'opted out' of the process. Its change of stance follows a longrunning campaign – led by artists including Elton John and Thom Yorke from Radiohead – which warned that the unlicensed use of copyrighted material for training AI models was threatening the livelihoods of people working in the creative industries. (Roy Morgan Summary)

News

Bitcoin News Byte

Despite a 47% Price Drop, Bitcoin Traders Aren’t Selling:

A survey of U.S. Bitcoin holders and crypto subreddit posts found that despite anxiety and market turbulence, most investors (69%) held onto their Bitcoin, with only 8% panic selling.

Bitcoin faced a dramatic market correction in early 2026, plunging 46% from its $126,000 all-time high and briefly dipping below $61,000 on February 6.

The drop erased over $1 trillion in market value and prompted headlines warning of a defining crypto moment. Social media feeds filled with reactions, yet most holders remained on the sidelines.

A survey by Oobit of 1,006 American Bitcoin holders and sentiment analysis of 117,630 posts across 10 major crypto subreddits reveals that fear did not translate into widespread selling.

News

X Newsfeed

WWE

Cody Rhodes and Matt Cardona Dish on Indie-to-WWE Return

WWE Champion Cody Rhodes hosted Matt Cardona on 'What Do You Wanna Talk About?', where Cardona detailed his path back to WWE after six years as the 'Indy God.' It started with his wife Chelsea Green nudging President Nick Khan during a TNA spot on NXT, leading to Cardona's direct text and a January 2026 SmackDown deal. They fantasy-booked a fun ladder match in WWE 2K26, and Cardona shouted out indie standouts Big Trouble Ben Bishop and Richard Holliday as future WWE stars, sparking excitement online about their friendship and the indie-WWE bridge. Media Man Peg-On: Cardona'a indi matches and feud with Killer Kross was excellent. Our Cardona indy highlight. Vs Holliday was great too, as was Kross vs Holliday.

News

25 Years Since WCW Nitro's Final Episode Ended Monday Night Wars

On March 26, 2001, WCW Monday Nitro aired its last show from Panama City Beach, Florida, capping five and a half years of intense competition with WWF Raw. Key moments included Booker T winning the world title, a dramatic simulcast announcement of WWF purchasing WCW's assets for $4.2 million, and Sting defeating Ric Flair in the main event that echoed the show's debut. Fans today share live memories of the surreal night, clips of the McMahon surprise, and thoughts on WCW stars like Booker T and Sting who later succeeded in WWE.

News Flashback

Last Week

Gold News

Gold is back in focus as markets react to geopolitics

The market is fixated on the threat of accelerating inflation driven by high energy prices. As a result, central banks are expected to adopt a tighter monetary policy, keeping rates at high levels or even raising them. This has a positive impact on fiat currencies and strips gold of its key feature as a store of value amid currency debasement. It is no surprise that the precious metal, which had got off to a strong start, has been losing out to Bitcoin and the US dollar since the start of the armed conflict in the Middle East. Although gold is generally regarded as a safe-haven asset, in the early stages of financial market turmoil, investors often choose to flee to liquidity. They favour fiat currencies and are far more willing to buy US dollar-nominated short-term treasuries.

Gold prices usually recover only if market shocks worsen, fears of recession or stagflation rise, and central banks start adding liquidity. Bank of America believes that the markets are still underestimating the scale of the potential consequences of geopolitical tension. They are fixated on the threat of accelerating inflation and are not considering a global economic downturn. Therefore, the longer the conflict between the US, Israel and Iran lasts, the better it is for the precious metal.

UBS Global Wealth Management notes that gold serves as a hedge against currency devaluation, rising budget deficits and recession. All of these could result from a geopolitical shock. The firm therefore maintains its bullish outlook on gold. In its view, the precious metal could rise to the $5,900-$6,200 range before the end of this year. However, gold must first weather the storm of numerous central bank meetings. The RBA has already raised its cash rate to 4.15%. Investors now expect ‘hawkish’ rhetoric from the rest. The ECB and the Bank of Japan are ready to tackle inflation, and the futures market expects them to tighten monetary policy. The Fed and the Bank of England are most likely to talk about prolonged pauses in their cycles.

Thus, gold appears to be a win-win option. It will gain if the conflict in the Middle East drags on, and will not lose if it ends. Investors just need to be patient for a little while. (FxPro)

News

Roy Morgan wins Media Man 'Media Services Company Of The Month' award

The Australian Financial Review wins Media Man 'Newspaper Of The Month' award; Runner-up: The Australian

Google wins Media Man 'Search Engine Of The Month' award

Netflix wins Media Man 'Streaming Service Of The Month' award

WWE wins Media Man 'Wrestling Promotion Of The Month' award

UFC wins 'Combat Sports Brand Of The Month' award; Runner-ups: Most Valuable Promotions, Everlast, BKFC

Mack Trucks wins Media Man 'Truck Brand Of The Month' award

CAT wins Media Man 'Heavy Industry Brand Of The Month' award

Dynasty: The Murdochs wins 'Streaming Show Of The Month' award (Netflix)

Media Man

Markets, Shares, Cryptos, Miners, Social Media and Culture

March 23, 2026

Mad Monday

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street. New York, and beyond the Blackstump and Internet Matrix Of Things!

Pop Culture themes

"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" (Cannonball Adderley)
"Gold" (Spandau Ballet)
"The Wall Street Hustle" (10cc)
"Video Killed the Radio Star" (The Buggles)
"I Don't Like Mondays" (The Boomtown Rats)
"Monday, Monday" (The Mamas & the Papas)

Markets

ASX 200 futures down 156 points/1.8%: 8343

AUD -0.9% to US70.23¢
Bitcoin $67,584.42 -1.97%
Dow -1%
S&P -1.5%
Nasdaq -2%
VIX +2.72 to 26.78
Gold -3.4% to $US4492.43 an ounce
Silver 65.686 -2.065
Brent oil +3.9% to $US112.86 a barrel
Iron ore +1% to $US108.25 a tonne
10-year yield: US 4.38% Australia 5.02%

News

Numbers Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.6999 USD (down $0.0084 USD) Iron Ore: $108.25 USD (up $0.80 USD)
Oil Price: $98.23 USD (up $3.45 USD)
Gold Price: $4,494.10 USD (down $159.14 USD)
Copper Price: $5.3020 USD (down $0.218 USD)
Dow Jones: 45,577.47 (down 443.96 points)

News

Streaming News Watercooler

Netflix CEO allegedly won’t speak to Meghan Markle on phone without lawyer

News

MMA/UFC Watercooler

Dana White responds to Jon Jones' claims about $15 million offer

Dana White has doubled down on his stance about Jon Jonesnever being a part of the White House plan.

Jones is not fighting at the UFC White Housecard in June despite having tried for a spot ever since the event was first mentioned. Jones recently claimed that he was willing to fight Alex Pereirafor much less than he had demanded to fight Tom Aspinalllast year. However, the UFC was allegedly not willing to offer more than $15 million to Jones, who didn't think it was enough.

"Was ready, willing and physically able to step in," Jones wrote on X. "I was willing to take substantially less than the Aspinall ask but they wouldn't budge one dollar over $15m. I felt like our fight was worth more."

No Way in Hell

White responded to Jones' claims at the UFC Londonpost-fight press conference on Saturday. White maintains that Jones was never a part of the plan for the White House card.

"How many f--ing times I gotta say this?" White said. "He was never fighting on the White House card… There was no way in hell I was putting him on that card, no matter what the money was. Jon Joneswas never gonna fight in the White House card."

Jones (28-1) kept the heavyweight division hanging for over a year, while White kept promising fans that "Bones" would fight interim champion Aspinall. However, Jones retired in June 2025 without fighting Aspinall. Jones would return to the drug testing pool just weeks later, after plans for the White House card were mentioned. Jones kept rallying for a spot on the card, even pleading with White.

When Jones missed out, White claimed that he was never a part of the plan. However, the former UFC double champ lashed out on social media, hinting at lengthy negotiations with the promotion about fighting at the White House. Jones has since called for his release from the UFC.

News

Social Media

The Metaverse Is Dead

In a move that signals the end of a highly publicized digital era, Meta announced this week that its flagship social virtual reality platform, Horizon Worlds, is being completely removed from Quest headsets by June 15. The app will survive solely as a mobile experience, repositioning itself to compete with established gaming platforms like Roblox and Fortnite rather than fulfilling its original vision of an all-encompassing virtual universe.Virtual Worlds

The shutdown of the VR component of Horizon Worlds is the clearest signal yet that the much-hyped pivot to the metaverse has been quietly unwound by the tech giant.

When Mark Zuckerberg famously renamed Facebook to Meta in 2021, he described the metaverse as “the next frontier” for human interaction. Yet, despite being the center of that massive corporate bet, the platform never drew more than a few hundred thousand monthly active users—a staggering underperformance for a project that consumed billions.

To put the financial toll into perspective, Reality Labs, the division at Meta responsible for VR and metaverse development, has accumulated an astonishing $80 billion in losses since 2020. In the fourth quarter of last year alone, it posted an operating loss of over $6 billion.

The Heyman Hustle is taking the position that this strategic retreat is entirely driven by the explosive rise of Artificial Intelligence.

When ChatGPT arrived in late 2022 and fundamentally shifted the tech landscape, Meta quickly pivoted its public messaging. Leveraging its highly respected AI research division led by Yann LeCun, the company found a new, credible foundation. As a result of prioritizing AI over empty digital rooms, ad revenue improved, the stock aggressively recovered, and by 2024, Meta had nearly tripled in value from its 2022 lows.

While Meta executives claim they have not abandoned VR entirely—pointing to upcoming hardware and the massive success of their AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses—the closure of the flagship Horizon Worlds VR experience marks the end of a multi-billion dollar dream. (THH)

Full article and coverage via The Heyman Hustle

News

A.I News

Australia

Watchdog warns against 'dangerously' positive AI advice amid crypto trading spike

News

Resources

Drill, baby, drill: Boom for mineral, petroleum explorers

News

A.I News

Global giants join Australia in fight to make AI companies pay for content

News

Bitcoin News Byte

Despite a 47% Price Drop, Bitcoin Traders Aren’t Selling:

A survey of U.S. Bitcoin holders and crypto subreddit posts found that despite anxiety and market turbulence, most investors (69%) held onto their Bitcoin, with only 8% panic selling.

Bitcoin faced a dramatic market correction in early 2026, plunging 46% from its $126,000 all-time high and briefly dipping below $61,000 on February 6.

The drop erased over $1 trillion in market value and prompted headlines warning of a defining crypto moment. Social media feeds filled with reactions, yet most holders remained on the sidelines.

A survey by Oobit of 1,006 American Bitcoin holders and sentiment analysis of 117,630 posts across 10 major crypto subreddits reveals that fear did not translate into widespread selling.

News

Media (Australia)

Kyle and Jackie 'O' win some, lose some

The first official radio ratings survey for 2026 shows that KIIS FM's Kyle & Jackie O show had an audience share of 12.7 in the Sydney breakfast slot, unchanged from the last survey for 2025. However, 2GB's talkback program hosted by Ben Fordham won the Sydney breakfast slot, with its audience share rising from 14.9 per cent to 16.6 per cent. Meawhile, 3AW won the Melbourne breakfast timeslot, although the audience share of Ross Stevenson and Russel Howcroft dipped to 18.9 per cent; the Kyle and Jackie O Show was ranked eighth in the Melbourne breakfast, with its audience share edging up to 5.1 per cent. The long-running show hosted by Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson has been axed by KIIS FM owner ARN Media. (RMS)

News

Social Media (Australia)

Firms face fines as kids beat the ban

The eSafety commission has declined to release updated figures on how many social media accounts of children under the age of 16 have been closed since the federal government implemented its world-leading ban. It had claimed in January that 4.7 million accounts had been closed since early December, but those figures were called into question, with it being claimed that they had been heavily inflated. The commission says it will provide updated figures on the ban at the end of March and that tech companies found guilty of non-compliance with it will soon face fines, while many children are claiming that beating the ban is easy. (Roy Morgan Summary)

News

Mining/Energy/Resources: Australia and World)

McEwan braces for exits as Craig takes BHP helm

Nearly 43 per cent of BHP's staff are female, and there were some who expected that Mike Henry would be replaced as CEO by an internal female candidate. Minerals Australia president Geraldine Slattery and chief development officer Catherine Raw were viewed as two such candidates, but BHP gave the job to mining engineer Brandon Craig. Asked if his appointment could mean the loss of skilled female executives who were overlooked for the job of CEO, BHP chairman Ross McEwan said he would not be surprised if unsuccessful candidates chose to leave the company. (RMS)

News

New coal mines at greenfield sites to be banned in NSW

NSW Minerals Council CEO Stephen Galilee has described a decision by the state government to ban new coal mines on greenfield sites as "disappointing". The government announced the ban on Thursday as part of a new strategy aimed at managing the NSW coal sector until 2050, while it also announced new rules requiring major coal mines in NSW to reduce methane emissions caused by their operations; NSW coal mines produce around 30 per cent of the state's methane emissions and contribute around 11 per cent of total greenhouse gas emissions. (RMS)

News

Qatar strike deepens LNG supply crisis

It had been forecast as recently as January that the global liquefied natural gas market could be facing a glut, which would have seen prices tumble and new products delayed. However, the Iranian conflict has changed those predictions, with LNG prices having almost doubled since the initial strikes on Iran on 28 February. Iran's attack on Qatar LNG's Ras Laffan facilities could see a further rise in prices and impact significantly on supply, with Ras Laffan being the world's largest LNG export plant; MST Marquee energy analyst Saul Kavonic says the attack "could cause a lasting global gas shortage". (RMS)

News

Cryptos

Crypto: the bulls may have their horns broken

Market Overview

The crypto market cap has fallen to $2.42 trillion, under pressure from sellers alongside risk assets, as the Fed pushes the next rate cut further into the future, boosting the dollar’s appeal. The decline also coincided with the upper boundary of the corrective rebound being touched. It is possible that cryptocurrencies were simply unable to ignore the significant deterioration in external sentiment, but they may soon return to outperforming other assets. Overall, however, we maintain a more pessimistic view, anticipating the bear market will continue, with bulls likely to be beaten soon, not least due to macro factors.

Bitcoin has fallen by 8.4% from its latest peak on Tuesday morning and briefly dipped below 70 at the start of the day on Thursday. At these levels, BTC is testing the 50-day moving average from above. As we have repeatedly warned previously, the upward momentum will face significant resistance at the boundary of a typical correction from the latest downward impulse. The leading cryptocurrency has more room to move within the $65K–$75K range.

Breaking out of this range may require more momentum to determine the market’s direction for the coming days or weeks.

News Background

Investment bank Citigroup has lowered its 12-month price targets for Bitcoin and Ethereum amid delays in the adoption of US cryptocurrency legislation. The forecast for Bitcoin has been lowered from $143,000 to $112,000, and for Ethereum from $4,304 to $3,175. In a negative scenario, BTC risks falling to $58,000 and ETH to $1,198.

Bitcoin still has two-thirds of its bear cycle ahead, said Willy Wu, co-founder of the Bitcoin Vector project, urging investors to remain cautious. In his view, it is premature to expect sustained growth without an improvement in market liquidity.

Ethereum developers are testing the Fast Confirmation Rule (FCR), which will speed up transfers between the mainnet and the second layer from 13 minutes to 13 seconds. (FxPro).

Media Peg-On (as seen burning up the LinkedIn and X newsfeeds with web traffic spikes)

Media Man Peg-On: Having your horns broken is one step better than having your you know what broken. Ball breaking headlines that hit you right between the Eye Ball! BTC for the true believers, for better or worse. A labor of love and for those who keep the dream alive. Remember our saying, "Bullish is a mindset", right Mr Michael Saylor of Strategy. MC is always good fodder for the crypto and tech media fodder and website traffic generation. MC, the media darling you love to hate! So, when's the running of the bulls then? Red flag to a bull!

News

Betting on Americas and keeping BHP whole

BHP has ended long-running speculation about succession planning after announcing that Brandon Craig will succeed CEO Mike Henry. The BHP veteran has ruled out demerging assets such as the resources group's copper mines during his tenure, which will start on 1 July. Craig says he believes that a diversified model is still superior, especially in the mining sector. He argues that BHP's ability to use its flagship iron ore division to fund projects such as copper and potash mines differentiates it from rivals. Craig says BHP may be open to mergers and acquisitions, although he says any such opportunities would need to be compelling to compete with its internal growth options. He has also indicated that BHP's focus will shift to the Americas, where many of its growth projects are located. (RMS)

News

A most powerful, anonymous miner

South African-born Brandon Craig has quietly risen through BHP's ranks since joining the resources group in 1999; he also has a much lower profile than top industry leaders and the other internal candidates who had been tipped to replace outgoing CEO Mike Henry. Meanwhile, Craig has used his first press conference as BHP's incoming CEO to confirm that BHP will shift its focus to the Americas under his leadership; he was previously BHP's president of the Americas, a role that included copper mines in South America and potash mining in Canada. (RMS)

News

Woodside taps insider amid energy turmoil

Woodside Energy's chairman Richard Goyder has praised new CEO Liz Westcott, stating that she was the "outstanding candidate" to succeed Meg O'Neill. Westcott has been the acting CEO since O'Neill resigned in late 2025 to take the helm at BP. Westcott joined Woodside in 2023, and has previously worked at ExxonMobil and EnergyAustralia. Westcott says she will hold meetings with Woodside's partners, investors, shareholders, employees and government officials across its global operations over the next several months. (RMS)

News

Alphabet Inc Class A
$301.00 -6.13 -2.00%

Lead Up Price
$307.13 -0.56 -0.18%

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$188.38 -8.94.53%

Lead Up Price
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Netflix Inc
$91.82 +0.080 +0.087%

Lead Up Price
$91.74 -2.96 -3.13%

Caterpillar Inc
$680.88 -7.77 -1.13%

Lead Up Price
$688.65 -4.97 -0.72%

Tesla Inc
$367.96 -12.34 -3.24%

Lead Up Price
$380.30 -12.48 -3.18%

Wynn Resorts Ltd
$99.98 -3.18 -3.08%

News

X Newsfeed

Trump Declares Victory Over Iran, Targets Democrats as New Enemy

The conflict, now in its third week, began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iranian nuclear sites like Natanz and targets in Tehran, including residential areas. Iran hit back with ballistic missiles breaching Israel's Iron Dome, injuring at least 175 in Arad and Dimona near a nuclear facility, while Israel bombed east Tehran blocks. Netanyahu urged world leaders to join the fight after Iran's missile toward Diego Garcia, though U.K. and NATO officials questioned the claims; Trump demands Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz in 48 hours or face more strikes, as oil prices soar over 50%. Skeptics like former official Joe Kent note U.S. intelligence saw no imminent Iranian nuclear bomb, and Pope Leo XIV decried the civilian toll.

Media Man Peg-On: The Art Of War Continues! All's fair in love and war, and politics?!

News

Trump Endorses Donalds at Mar-a-Lago Amid Iran Tensions and GOP Rift

President Trump arrived at his Palm Beach estate on Friday with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, hosting supporters at what appeared to be a fundraiser where he backed Donalds, the frontrunner to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis. The event unfolded against U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran's Kharg Island oil hub and Iran's Strait of Hormuz restrictions, which Trump sidestepped with a quip about his plans. GOP tensions flared when candidate James Fishback claimed he was barred for criticizing Israel and the Iran conflict, prompting Candace Owens to joke about better vibes at Taco Bell, while highlighting divides between hawkish and isolationist Republicans.

News

WWE

Rhea Ripley Shuts Down Physique Trolls Ahead of WrestleMania Title Match

The WWE star fired back at online critics mocking her body, daring them to post their own photos while reminding them they know nothing about her life or mental health. Her post drew massive support from fans and wrestlers like Bully Ray, who called her 'OVAH,' though some questioned why she engages trolls at all. This comes as Ripley, fresh off winning the 2026 Women's Elimination Chamber, gears up to challenge champion Jade Cargill at WrestleMania 42 amid a heated feud with body jabs and a recent three-on-one ambush by Cargill's allies. Marking five years since her main roster debut, Ripley stays focused on the gold.

Wrestling/WWE/Pop Culture

Jade Cargill Calls Out Rhea Ripley in Heated SmackDown Face-Off

On Friday's SmackDown, WWE Women's Champion Jade Cargill challenged Rhea Ripley directly, boasting she doesn't need the title or fans to be 'that b*tch.' Ripley, fresh from her Elimination Chamber win for a title shot, stood ready to strike back amid a roaring crowd. The intense promo ramps up their WrestleMania 42 rivalry, with fans praising Cargill's star power while craving the first brawl. Both bring unmatched athleticism and attitude to the collision course. Media Man Peg-On: Ripley our Uncrowned Women's Champion, belt or not! She's Got IT! NXT's Zaria shares some of the same attributes, as does Z's rival, Sol Ruca.

News Lead Up

March 19

Dread for Australian investors as $51 billion wipe out ravages the ASX after tit-for-tat strikes on energy assets send oil prices soaring

Australians are despairingly watching the stock market tumble once again after massive strikes on energy infrastructure in the Middle East sent oil prices surging. (Sky News Australia)

News

Gold News

Gold is back in focus as markets react to geopolitics

Thus, gold appears to be a win-win option. It will gain if the conflict in the Middle East drags on, and will not lose if it ends. Investors just need to be patient for a little while. (FxPro)

News

Roy Morgan wins Media Man 'Media Series Company Of The Month' award

The Australian Financial Review wins Media Man 'Newspaper Of The Month' award; Runner-up: The Australian

Google wins Media Man 'Search Engine Of The Month' award

Netflix wins Media Man 'Streaming Service Of The Month' award

WWE wins Media Man 'Wrestling Promotion Of The Month' award

UFC wins 'Combat Sports Brand Of The Month' award; Runner-ups: Most Valuable Promotions, Everlast, BKFC

Mack Trucks wins Media Man 'Truck Brand Of The Month' award

CAT wins Media Man 'Heavy Industry Brand Of The Month' award

Dynasty: The Murdochs wins 'Streaming Show Of The Month' award (Netflix)

Markets, Shares, Cryptos, Miners, Social Media and Culture

March 21, 2026

Friday Into The Weekend Edition

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street. New York, and beyond the Blackstump and Internet Matrix Of Things!

Pop Culture themes

"Mercy, Mercy, Mercy" (Cannonball Adderley)
"Gold" (Spandau Ballet)
"The Wall Street Hustle" (10cc)
"I've Got Friday On My Mind" (The Easybeats)
"Thursday’s Child" David Bowie)
"Thursday" (Pet Shop Boys)
"Working for the weekend" (Loverboy)
"Video Killed the Radio Star" (The Buggles)
"Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)" (Elon John)

Markets

ASX 200 futures down 156 points/ 1.8%: 8343
AUD -0.9% to US70.23¢

Bitcoin $70,732.76 +0.34%

Wall St:
Dow -1%
S&P -1.5%
Nasdaq -2%
VIX +2.72 to 26.78
Gold -3.4% to $US4492.43 an ounce
Silver 67.596 -5.19
Brent oil +3.9% to $US112.86 a barrel
Iron ore +1% to $US108.25 a tonne
10-year yield: US 4.38% Australia 5.02%

News

Bitcoin News Byte

Despite a 47% Price Drop, Bitcoin Traders Aren’t Selling:
A survey of U.S. Bitcoin holders and crypto subreddit posts found that despite anxiety and market turbulence, most investors (69%) held onto their Bitcoin, with only 8% panic selling.

Bitcoin faced a dramatic market correction in early 2026, plunging 46% from its $126,000 all-time high and briefly dipping below $61,000 on February 6.

The drop erased over $1 trillion in market value and prompted headlines warning of a defining crypto moment. Social media feeds filled with reactions, yet most holders remained on the sidelines.

A survey by Oobit of 1,006 American Bitcoin holders and sentiment analysis of 117,630 posts across 10 major crypto subreddits reveals that fear did not translate into widespread selling.

News Lead Up

ASX wipes $50b in 1.7pc plunge; miners drop

The Australian sharemarket slumped on Thursday, falling to its lowest level since late November; the S&P/ASX 200 finished 1.7 per cent lower at 8,497.8 points. Gold stocks were sold down after a sharp fall in the price of bullion, with Northern Star Resources shedding 9.5 per cent to end the session at $18.96 and Ora Banda Mining down 14.1 per cent at $1.28. However, energy and coal stocks rallied in response to an airstrike on a major gas field in the Middle East; Woodside Energy was up 7.2 per cent at $33.70 and Yancoal Australia rose 6.8 per cent to $8.03.

News

Media (Australia)

Kyle and Jackie 'O' win some, lose some

News

Social Media (Australia)

Firms face fines as kids beat the ban

News

Mining/Energy/Resources: Australia and World)

McEwan braces for exits as Craig takes BHP helm

News

New coal mines at greenfield sites to be banned in NSW

News

Qatar strike deepens LNG supply crisis

News

Cryptos

Crypto: the bulls may have their horns broken

Market Overview

Breaking out of this range may require more momentum to determine the market’s direction for the coming days or weeks.

News Background

Ethereum developers are testing the Fast Confirmation Rule (FCR), which will speed up transfers between the mainnet and the second layer from 13 minutes to 13 seconds. (FxPro).

Media Peg-On (as seen burning up the LinkedIn and X newsfeeds with web traffic spikes)

News

Finance/Business/Banking

The dollar is back on the offensive

The Fed’s intention to keep rates steady is helping the greenback

The Bank of Japan's measured tone has helped steady the yen, preventing a sharper selloff.

Rising oil prices and the Fed’s hawkish rhetoric have allowed the US dollar to continue its advance. Israel has struck the world’s largest gas field, South Pars. In response, Iran attacked a fuel hub in Qatar. Brent soared above $112 a barrel, spurring EURUSD’s decline. Donald Trump claimed that he was allegedly unaware of the Israelis’ intentions. They will not do this again. The US President is clearly unhappy with the surge in oil prices, and this is not the only problem for him.

Even those FOMC officials who previously supported cutting rates changed their view in March. The median estimate pointed to a single rate cut in 2026, which generally agrees with markets’ pricing on this matter. Moreover, the continuation of the conflict in the Middle East may convince investors that there will be no easing of monetary policy. According to Jerome Powell, the Fed has faced a tariff shock, a pandemic, and now an energy shock. All of this could fuel inflationary expectations. The FOMC’s upward revision of its forecast for the personal consumption expenditure price growth from 2.4% to 2.7% y/y suggests that the Fed is more likely to keep rates on hold than to cut them. The US dollar is a relatively high-yield currency. The longer borrowing costs remain at their current level, the more comfort the EURUSD bears feel. The Bank of Japan has kept its overnight rate at 0.75%, a 30-year high. However, its previous mantra that it is ready to raise rates further if forecasts are met gave the Yen a lifeline in current conditions. If the conflict in the Middle East continues and oil prices rise further, inflation risks spiralling out of control. Such a background helped USDJPY to retreat from its recent high. On top of this, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama is resorting to increasingly frequent verbal interventions, saying the government is monitoring the yen’s movements with a strong sense of urgency and ready to act at any moment. The Fed’s focus on keeping interest rates has triggered a fresh downward trend in gold prices. The precious metal does not generate interest income. Consequently, it struggles when borrowing costs remain high, and the dollar strengthens. (FxPro)

Media Man Peg-On

What was that about Trump Trade and No wars? Oh, that was last year. Times change. Darwinism 101 required on a few fronts. The Art Of The Deal meets The Art Of War!

News

Betting on Americas and keeping BHP whole

News

A most powerful, anonymous miner

News

Woodside taps insider amid energy turmoil

News

Alphabet Inc Class A
$301.00 -6.13 -2.00%

Lead Up Price
$307.13 -0.56 -0.18%

TKO Group Holdings Inc
$188.38 -8.94.53%

Lead Up Price
$197.31 -3.72 -1.85%

Netflix Inc
$91.82 +0.080 +0.087%

Lead Up Price
$91.74 -2.96 -3.13%

Caterpillar Inc
$680.88 -7.77 -1.13%

Lead Up Price
$688.65 -4.97 -0.72%

Tesla Inc
$367.96
-12.34 -3.24%

Lead Up Price
$380.30 -12.48 -3.18%

Wynn Resorts Ltd
$99.98 -3.18 -3.08%

Lead Up Price
$103.16 +1.54 +1.52%

Warner Bros Discovery Inc
$27.42 -0.21 -0.76%

Arafura Rare Earths Ltd
$0.28 +0.015 +5.66%
(ASX)

Mp Materials Corp
$50.60 -2.50 -4.71%

Palantir Technologies Inc
$150.68 -5.00 -3.21%

NVIDIA Corp
$172.93 -5.63 -3.15%

http://Amazon.com Inc
$205.37 -3.40 -1.63%

News

X Newsfeed

Trump Endorses Donalds at Mar-a-Lago Amid Iran Tensions and GOP Rift

News

Wrestling/WWE/Pop Culture

Jade Cargill Calls Out Rhea Ripley in Heated SmackDown Face-Off

News Lead Up

March 19

Dread for Australian investors as $51 billion wipe out ravages the ASX after tit-for-tat strikes on energy assets send oil prices soaring

Australians are despairingly watching the stock market tumble once again after massive strikes on energy infrastructure in the Middle East sent oil prices surging. (Sky News Australia)
News

Gold News

Gold is back in focus as markets react to geopolitics

Thus, gold appears to be a win-win option. It will gain if the conflict in the Middle East drags on, and will not lose if it ends. Investors just need to be patient for a little while. (FxPro)

News Lead Up

Crypto Market Tests Breakout Above Key Resistance
Market Overview

Crypto market capitalisation increased by a further 2.7% in the last 24 hours, reaching $2.54 trillion. At its peak earlier in the day, the market climbed to $2.58 trillion, its highest since early February. This indicates a period of consolidation above the 50-day moving average, an attempt to break free from the correction pattern following the decline, and a move above the 61.8% retracement level of the initial movement.

The sentiment index gained 5 points to reach 28 for the day, breaking out of the extreme fear zone and hitting its highest level since late January. This indicator's positive signal complements the favourable technical picture.

Bitcoin rose to $76K, later retreating to $74K, where it is trading as the European session begins. The market is currently testing the rally's stability. Meanwhile, sentiment in traditional markets has shifted: gold and stock indices closed higher on Monday, while the dollar index dived back below 100.

News Background

According to CoinShares, global investment in crypto funds rose by $1.1 billion last week, marking the third week of inflows after five weeks of outflows.

Investments in Bitcoin increased by $793 million, in Ethereum by $315 million, in Solana by $9 million, and in Chainlink by $3 million.

Since the beginning of the Iranian crisis, the total assets under management (AuM) in global crypto ETFs have grown by 9.4% to $140 billion, according to CoinShares.

Over the past 30 days, users have withdrawn more than 32,060 BTC from crypto exchanges. Only 2.44 million BTC remain on the balance sheets of trading platforms, the lowest figure in recent years, according to Crypto Patel.

Ethereum has outpaced Bitcoin in growth rates amid the return of institutional investors. According to Arkham, Erik Voorhees, the former CEO of the ShapeShift crypto exchange, purchased 24,968 ETH worth $56.5 million after a one-year hiatus.

Strategy bought a further 22,337 BTC ($1.57 billion) last week at an average price of $70,946 per coin. This is the largest bitcoin purchase since November 2024. Strategy now owns 761,068 BTC, bought for $57.61 billion at an average price of $75,696 per bitcoin.

BitMine acquired approximately 60,000 ETH over the past week. The company's reserves now total 4.59 million ETH, representing 3.81% of the Ethereum market supply. BitMine aims to accumulate 5% of all ether. (FxPro)

News

News Flashback/Lead Up

March 16

Middle East/World Biz News

Central banks are trying to get back into the spotlight

A flurry of central bank meetings is coming up this week

Gold is under pressure due to the shift in the outlook for Fed rates

Confidence in the Fed is growing, but this is not saving the central banks. The conflict in the Middle East has pulled the blanket over itself.

It has become the main driver of pricing in the financial markets. The federal judge’s ruling that the Justice Department’s subpoenas to Jerome Powell were unlawful has provided yet another reason to buy the US dollar. If the Fed is under protection, it is not possible to put pressure on it to cut rates. The US President has come up against a brick wall with the Supreme Court and the Federal Court in cases concerning tariffs, as well as against Jerome Powell. The chances of him succeeding in dismissing FOMC Governor Lisa Cook are also slim. A blitzkrieg against Iran is not working out either. Tehran has no intention of surrendering, however much Trump tries to convince the markets otherwise. The plan to release 400 million barrels from strategic reserves is failing. It will take time to implement. The maximum that IEA members can put on the market is 3 million bpd. Even by the most optimistic estimates, the loss of global supply due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz amounts to 10 million bpd. Oil prices continue to rise, and as Brent rallies, central banks’ hopes of regaining their role as the main newsmakers in the Forex market are fading. It has been a while since we’ve seen such a packed five-day schedule of central bank meetings. Whilst the Fed is certain to discuss the two-way risks posed by the conflict in the Middle East to the US economy, the ECB and the Bank of Japan are likely to hint at near-term rate rises.

The RBA is even ready to raise the cash rate to 4.15%, which provides a tailwind for the Australian dollar. The Federal Reserve, the Bank of England, the Swiss National Bank, and the Bank of Canada intend to extend the pause in their policy-easing cycles until the end of the year. The higher the rates, the greater the appeal of currencies and bonds denominated in them. Gold must now forget about debasement trading, which served it faithfully in 2025 and early 2026. The precious metal feels out of its depth against the backdrop of the Fed’s rate cut prospects being pushed back from June to September and derivatives losing their illusions of two federal funds rate cuts in 2026. (FxPro)

News

Roy Morgan wins Media Man 'Media Series Company Of The Month' award

The Australian Financial Review wins Media Man 'Newspaper Of The Month' award; Runner-up: The Australian

Google wins Media Man 'Search Engine Of The Month' award

Netflix wins Media Man 'Streaming Service Of The Month' award

WWE wins Media Man 'Wrestling Promotion Of The Month' award

UFC wins 'Combat Sports Brand Of The Month' award; Runner-ups: Most Valuable Promotions, Everlast, BKFC

Mack Trucks wins Media Man 'Truck Brand Of The Month' award

CAT wins Media Man 'Heavy Industry Brand Of The Month' award

Dynasty: The Murdochs wins 'Streaming Show Of The Month' award (Netflix)

Gaming News Casino News Technology News Mining News Media News Marketing News News

Sports Business

Markets, Crypto and Culture

January 2026

Sin City Sydney Australia to Wall Street, New York

Friday Energy, Mining, Media and Intel

Digital Bush Telegraph

Jan 9

ASX 200 futures up 26 points/0.3 per cent to 8716

AUD -0.4% to US66.95¢

Bitcoin $91,020.37 -0.34%

Wall St:
Dow +0.5%
S&P -0.1%
Nasdaq -0.6%

VIX +0.19 to 15.57

Gold +0.1% to $US4459.27 an ounce
Brent oil +4.3% to $US62.55 a barrel
Iron ore -0.7% to $US108.25 a tonne
10-year yield: US 4.18% Australia 4.66%

News

Crypto fails to find support for a breakout

Market Overview

The crypto market remained under pressure throughout Wednesday and early trading on Thursday, losing about 4% of its capitalisation to $3.08 trillion over the day. The market once again confirmed its cautious sentiment, retreating from the upper boundary of the consolidation range of the last eight weeks. The retreat of the stock markets created an unfavourable backdrop, and cryptocurrencies were unable to move from a rebound mode after the decline to a full-fledged recovery.

Bitcoin plunged below $90K on Thursday morning after bears seized the initiative at the end of the day on 5 January. At its lowest point, BTC approached the 50-day moving average, above which it climbed at the start of the year. The end of the week will bring an answer to the question of whether this curve has become a support level or whether we saw a false breakout at the start of the year.

News Background

Bitcoin could reach a new all-time high this year, said Bill Miller, investment director at Miller Value Partners. According to him, major Wall Street players are once again showing interest in the asset.

Institutional investors are again buying more Bitcoin through ETFs than miners are mining per day, notes analyst Charles Edwards. On-chain demand is still weak, but there are signs of a return of liquidity on Binance.

The main catalyst for Ethereum's growth in the new year will be crypto neobanks, not speculative traders, according to http://Ether.fi. Such platforms are capable of attracting many more crypto users than spot ETFs.

On 7 January, Ethereum developers implemented the Blob Parameter-Only (BPO) fork on the main network, which increases the BLOB object limit from 15 to 21. This will allow more transactions to be processed simultaneously, increasing the efficiency of the blockchain without the direct risk of overload.

Ripple has announced that it has no plans to go public, despite Wall Street's $40 billion valuation. Ripple's strong institutional support and overall treasury size have virtually eliminated the need for additional funding.

Privacy is a critical feature necessary for the development of global finance on the blockchain, which is why it will become a major focus in the crypto industry in 2026, according to a16z crypto. (FxPro)

News

Numbers Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.6693 USD (down $0.0027 USD)
Iron Ore: $108.25 USD (down $0.75 USD)
Oil Price : $58.22 USD (up $2.02 USD)
Gold Price: $4,456.72 USD (down $0.58 USD)
Copper Price: $5.7915 USD (down 0.0565 USD)
Dow Jones: 49,235.09 (up 239.01 points)

Media Man Favs

TKO Group Holdings Inc $202.09 -0.85 -0.42%

Tesla Inc $435.80 +4.39 +1.02%

Rio Tinto Ltd $144.53 -8.10 -5.31% (ASX)

Netflix Inc $90.53 -0.19 -0.21%

Porsche Automobile Holding SE Unsponsored Germany ADR $4.45 -0.020 -0.45%

Mercedes Benz Group ADR $17.42 -0.11 - 0.63%

Volvo ADR (Parent of Mack Trucks) $33.31 -0.100 -0.30%

Microsoft Corp $478.11 -5.36 -1.11%

Wynn Resorts Ltd $118.27 +1.90 +1.63%

MGM Resorts International $35.15 +1.03 +3.03%

News

Australia

ASX gains on tech and health; Ansell dives 6pc

The Australian sharemarket posted a modest gain on Thursday, with the S&P/ASX 200 adding 0.3 per cent to close at 8,72.8 points. WiseTech Global was up 2.2 per cent at $68.28, CSL advanced 2.6 per cent to $174.45 and Monadelphous Group finished 2.2 per cent higher at $27.37. However, BHP fell 0.8 per cent to end the session at $47.34, Beach Energy was down 1.4 per cent at $1.07 and takeover target BlueScope Steel shed 1.6 per cent to close at $29.40. (RMS)

News

Employment Hero settles with rival Seek

Human resources technology company Employment Hero has dropped its legal action against recruitment firm Seek, which is both an investor in Employment Hero and a rival. Employment Hero launched its action after Seek cut off access to its application program interface (API), which is a tool that permits companies such as Employment Hero to directly post job ads to Seek and to manage job candidate applications. Employment Hero had claimed that Seek's action amounted to anti-competitive conduct, but the two firms have advised that the matter has been resolved. Employment Hero's access to Seek's API will be permanently reinstated, and a three-week hearing scheduled for September will not go ahead. (RMS)

News

Nvidia's platform to slash AI costs

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has used the CES, the world's biggest consumer electronics show in Las Vegas, to announce the release of a new hardware platform. Known as Rubin, it promises to reduce the cost of operating large scale artificial intelligence models by 90 per cent, while Huang also announced that Nvidia has entered into a partnership with Mercedes to create the world's first ‘thinking' and 'reasoning' car; he says Nvidia's vision is that every car and truck will be autonomous at some stage in the future (RMS)

News

Sports

As Aussies seal Ashes victory, economists hit Bazball for six

England's aggressive batting style known as 'Bazball' is under renewed scrutiny after losing the 2025-26 Ashes series 4-1. E61 Institute economists Adit Maitra and Matthew Maltman have analysed England's performance in Test matches since Bazball was introduced by incoming team coach Brendon McCullum in 2022. They found that England had initial success, winning 13 Tests during the first 18 months of the Bazball era; the team lost four matches and just one resulted in a draw. However, England's win rate has fallen sharply since the 2023 Ashes series, as opposing teams have adjusted their own playing style in response to the Bazball tactics; it should also be noted that England did not tour Australia or India - two of the highest-rated Test nations - during the initial phase of the Bazball era. (RMS)

News

Resources/Energy

Defence demand tipped to boost copper stampede

S&P Global has forecast that worldwide demand for copper will top 42 million tonnes by 2040, compared with 28 million tonnes in 2025. However, the firm warns that the demand-supply deficit could reach 10 million by 2040 unless there is a big increase in copper production. Carlos Pascual from S&P Global emphasises that copper supply is now a national security issue, given its importance to industries such as defence and artificial intelligence, and the fact that copper processing is now dominated by China. BHP, Rio Tinto and Fortescue are amongst the big miners that are ramping up their exposure to copper. (RMS)

News

'Like a sauna': World's hottest location

While 40-degree temperatures in Victoria this week amounted to a near record for that state, such temperatures are commonplace in Western Australia's Pilbara region. It is home to much of WA's $150 billion resources sector, but extreme heat there is becoming a material risk and is forcing mining companies to put in measures to protect their assets and their workforces. Dee Egan, who is a resident of the Pilbara town of Onslow, which has endured 45-degree heat for the better part of the past week, says living there feels like you are in a sauna all day. (RMS)

News

Oil stocks are cheap for a reason

Shares in Woodside Energy, Santos and Beach Energy have fallen in value by between eight per cent and 44 per cent over the last five years. In contrast, shares in the world's biggest oil companies have risen by up to 161 per cent over this period. Sharemarket experts contend that there are a number of reasons why Australian oil producers are trading at a discount; they include government policy headwinds and the fact that takeover bids are unlikely, as well as company-specific issues. Meanwhile, analysts say the Trump administation's military action in Venezuela is likely to drive the crude oil price lower, while rebuilding the nation's oil industry is expected to take years. (RMS)

News

Jan 8

ASX miner cheers Trump's 'involvement' in Greenland

Energy Transition Minerals' MD Daniel Mamadou contends that the potential for increased US involvement in Greenland is a "positive", and that it will benefit companies which operate in the Danish self-governed territory. Energy Transition Minerals is engaged in a long-running dispute with the Greenland government over its Kvanefjeld rare earths project; the deposit also contains uranium, and the government banned uranium mining in 2021. Kvanefjeld is estimated to contain up to one billion tonnes of rare earth minerals, including terbium. Energy Transition Minerals' share price rose 44.9 per cent to $0.145 on Wednesday. (RMS)

News

Nickel price offers respite for last few Australian mines

The price of nickel has risen to $US18,785 per tonne in London trading, which is its highest level since October 2024. The rally follows Vale's decision to suspend nickel production in Indonesia until the nation's government approves its annual production plan. Meanwhile, Fitch Ratings subsidiary BMI has downgraded its nickel price forecast for 2026 due to expectations that the global surplus will rise; the firm now expects the nickel price to average $US15,000 per tonne. However, BMI is upbeat about the longer-term price outlook, contending that rising demand for nickel will reduce the glut. (Roy Morgan Summary)

News

The Lead Up

January 8, 2026

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street, New York

ASX 200 futures down 4 points/0.1%: 8680
AUD -0.2% to US67.27¢
BTC $91,005.03 -1.57%

Wall St:
Dow -0.7% S&P -0.2% NAS +0.3%
VIX +0.24 to 14.99
Gold -0.8% to $US4457.23 an oz
Oil -0.9% to $US60.16 a b
Iron ore +2.4% to $US109.00 a ton

10-yr yield:
US 4.13%
AUS 4.76%

News

NYSE: News

On January 7, markets were mixed with some retreat from records as momentum cooled, but no major downturn reported.

Markets showed strength early in 2026, driven by AI optimism, chip sector gains, and positive sentiment around technology.

Latest Closes (January 6-7, 2026 session data)

Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA): Closed at a record 49,462.08 (up ~0.99% on January 6), briefly surpassing 49,000 for the first time before minor pullback.

S&P 500: Closed at a record 6,944.82 (up ~0.62% on January 6), with intraday highs on January 7.

Nasdaq Composite: ~23,547.17 (up ~0.65% on January 6).

NYSE Composite Index: ~22,570.82 (up ~0.62% on January 6). Key Drivers:

Semiconductor and AI-related stocks (e.g., Nvidia commentary at CES 2026, memory/storage chipmakers hitting records).

Broader market optimism despite geopolitical headlines (e.g., Venezuela developments affecting oil).
Early 2026 gains built on strong 2025 performance, with chip indexes up significantly year-to-date. (Grok)

News

Best Quotes Of The Day

Media Man

Cryptocurrency, Finance and World

"Volatility is Satoshi’s gift to the faithful." - Michael Saylor

"Bitcoin is a tool for freeing humanity from oligarchs and tyrants, dressed up as a get-rich-quick scheme." — Naval Ravikant

"We have elected to put our money and faith in a mathematical framework that is free of politics and human error." — Tyler Winklevoss

"You can't stop things like Bitcoin. It will be everywhere, and the world will have to readjust. World governments will have to readjust." — John McAfee

"Bitcoin is the most important invention in the history of the world since the Internet." — Roger Ver

"Cryptocurrency is such a powerful concept that it can almost overturn governments." — Charles Lee

"In the future, national currencies will become obsolete. Bitcoin will become the single global currency." — Jack Dorsey

"The future of finance is crypto, whether it’s in payments, contracts, or savings." — Changpeng Zhao

"Crypto offers freedom to the unbanked and hope to the underprivileged." — Elizabeth Stark

"The new frontier of innovation is in decentralization. Blockchain leads the charge." — Don Tapscott

"Digital currency is here to stay, and it’s only a matter of how long before governments embrace it." — Brad Garlinghouse

Pop Culture

Dream Matches: Fantasy Booking

Santa vs Grinch
Bulls vs Bears
Crypto King vs Mr World Bank
Citizens vs NWO
Neo vs Agent Smith
John McAfee vs You Know Who!
TKO vs Naysayers
Jake Paul, Polymarket and BETR vs Naysayers
Pro Boxing vs Newspaper Reports
VKM vs The World
Paul Bros vs Mainstream Wokes
Mr X vs Mr Bluesky
Chris Jericho vs Dirtsheets
NFL vs everyone
Zuffa vs MVP
Netflix vs World
Meta vs Australia

Markets, Crypto And Culture

January 2026

Jan 7

Sydney, Australia

Mood: Bullish

AUD +0.3% to US67.34¢
Bitcoin $93,010.79 +1.21%

Wall Street: By Mr Wolf

Dow +1.1%
S&P +0.6%
Nasdaq +0.6%
VIX -0.19 to 14.71
Gold +0.7% to $US4481.38 an ounce
Brent oil -1.9% to $US60.61 a barrel
Iron ore +0.7% to $US106.55 a ton

10-year yield:
US 4.17%
Australia 4.79%

News

Numbers/Data Double Check

Australian Dollar: $0.6730 USD (up $0.0015 USD) Iron Ore: $106.55 USD (up $0.75 USD) Oil Price: $56.89 USD (down $1.41 USD) Gold Price: $4,484.96 USD (up $44.37 USD) Copper Price: $6.0535 USD (up 0.0515 USD) Dow Jones: 49,487.98 (up 510.80 points)

The Lead Up

Jan 6

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street, New York, USA

Bullish Today

ASX 200 futures up 30 points/0.3 percent to 8746
AUD +0.3% to US67.17¢

Bitcoin $94,149.31 +3.17%

Wall St:

Dow +1.4%
S&P +0.7%
Nasdaq +0.7%
VIX +0.46 to 14.97
Gold +2.6% to $US4445.21 an ounce
Brent oil +1.7% to $US61.77 a barrel
Iron ore +0.4% to $US105.80 a ton

10-year yield:
US 4.16%
Australia 4.79%

News

Double Check On Numbers

Australian Dollar: $0.6715 USD (up $0.0029 USD) Iron Ore: $105.80 USD (up $0.40 USD) Oil Price: $58.30 USD (up $0.98 USD) Gold Price: $4,440.59 USD (up $108.23 USD) Copper Price: $6.0020 USD (up 0.3040 USD) Dow Jones: 49,102.86 (up 720.47 points)

News

ASX swings as mining rally offsets tech drop

The Australian sharemarket posted a slight gain on Monday, with the S&P/ASX 200 adding 0.0092 per cent to close at 8,728.6 points. BHP was up 1.6 per cent at $46.48, Paladin Energy advanced 7.1 per cent to $10.85 and Northern Star Resources ended the session 2.1 per cent higher at $24.95. However, Beach Energy was down 2.1 per cent at $1.14 and Zip Co fell 5.7 per cent to $3.16. (RMS)

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Mining
Australia

Geologists uncover Earth's largest iron ore deposit ever recorded, worth $5.7 trillion

It was previously thought that the Pilbara Craton's iron ore bodies were formed at least two billion years ago. However, new dating techniques applied at key sites in the Hamersley Basin have concluded that these ore bodies were formed between 1.4 and 1.1 billion years ago; the new age range has been confirmed across multiple ore bodies in the region. The research has also found that the Pilbara Craton may contain about 55 billion metric tonnes of ore; this would be worth more than $5.7trn based on the current price of iron ore. (RMS)

News

Bullish start to the year in crypto

Market Overview

The cryptocurrency market added 3.6% to its capitalisation over the past seven days and approximately 0.6% in 24 hours, reaching $3.14 trillion.

At the start of trading on Monday, there was a slight decline to $3.18 trillion, but a return to monthly highs attracted local buyers. Active growth since the beginning of the year has not only pushed the market away from the ‘bottom’ where prices had been hovering for two weeks prior, but also ensured a break above the 50-day moving average, which we have not seen in almost three months. In the near term, we are closely monitoring the market’s attempts to consolidate at $3.20T. An increase in selling will confirm the shift to a bear market. The ability to grow will indicate the end of a long and relatively deep correction, setting the stage for a rapid approach to highs above $4T. By default, we are in favour of a bearish scenario until proven otherwise.

Bitcoin surpassed the $92K mark, marking its fifth consecutive daily growth candle today and reaching its highest level since December 12th. Last month, market participants actively sold off the first cryptocurrency in the $92–95K range, halting attempts to form a rebound after the October-November sell-off. Has the market changed during this time? It is unlikely that it has become stronger, with no prospects for accelerated economic growth or more dovish monetary policy sentiment.

News Background

Retail investors actively bought Bitcoin in the second half of last year, while large players were passive or took profits at October highs. Santiment calls this dynamic alarming. At the same time, there has been a decline in interest in the asset in the media and on social networks.

In December, large holders sold 20,000 BTC. However, the volume of leveraged positions grew by $2.4 billion, despite a 40% decline in trading activity, notes analyst Crazzyblockk. The current market situation does not signal that the bottom has been reached.

Long-term Bitcoin holders have stopped selling for the first time since July, according to VanEck. The current sideways movement of Bitcoin against the backdrop of record growth in gold and silver is comparable to the ‘calm before the storm,’ which is usually followed by a rally in the crypto market, a Bull Theory analyst hopes.

According to Lookonchain, an investor with $11 billion in assets has opened long positions on futures for the three leading cryptocurrencies worth $749 million. In October, he correctly predicted the market crash.

In the near future, Bitcoin and Ethereum are expected to receive a significant influx of capital due to the end of the rally in the precious metals market, according to Garrett Jean, former CEO of the now-defunct BitForex exchange.

According to Etherscan, the Ethereum network set a new record of 2.2 million transactions processed per day. Transaction costs fell to historic lows ($0.17).

Bitcoin has now turned 17. The anonymous creator of Bitcoin, under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto, launched the network for the first cryptocurrency on January 3rd 2009. It was on this day that the very first block in the network was created, known as the genesis block, which contained 50 BTC. (FxPro)

News

Forex runs to safe havens

Growing political risks in Britain are putting pressure on European currencies

Geopolitics are reviving investor interest in gold The rise in geopolitical risks against the backdrop of the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by the US has increased demand for the US dollar as a safe-haven currency. Coupled with expectations of a prolonged pause in the Fed's monetary expansion cycle and political turmoil in Europe, this has allowed EURUSD bears to mount a counterattack and push the pair below 1.17. The futures market estimates the chances of a cut in the federal funds rate at the January FOMC meeting at 17% and 48% at the March meeting. The Fed intends to sit on the sidelines until at least spring. This plays into the hands of the US dollar. It is strengthening against major world currencies amid a wide spread between US bonds and their European and Asian counterparts. Moreover, there are signs of trouble brewing in Europe. Keir Starmer's approval rating has fallen to its lowest level among all British prime ministers in the last half-century. It is worse than that of Liz Truss, who is known for her quick resignation due to turmoil in the financial markets. As a result, the Labour Party is discussing a change of leader. Keir Starmer warns that his removal from power will plunge the country into complete political chaos and open the door to Nigel Farage, who is leading in the polls, for a new prime minister. The rise in political risks in Britain is putting pressure not only on the pound but also on other European currencies. Following GBPUSD, EURUSD is falling off a cliff. Politics and geopolitics are forcing investors to seek safe havens. The best option appears to be gold, which shone in 2025. The precious metal managed to rebound from local lows thanks to a spectacular operation by US special forces in Venezuela. Investors successfully bought up the dip in the XAUUSD pair. However, the market may quickly come to the conclusion that events in Latin America will have a muted impact on both the global economy and oil. Venezuela, with its production falling from 3.5 million bpd in the 1970s to 1 million bpd today, is only the 18th largest producer of black gold in the world. If investors decide that the regime change in Caracas will not lead to turmoil, they will dump safe-haven assets. At the same time, pressure on gold may come from the strengthening of the US dollar amid a prolonged pause in the Fed's cycle of monetary policy easing. The Australian dollar appears to be the favourite thanks to expectations of a key rate hike by the Reserve Bank and the Chinese economy's adaptation to US tariffs. (FxPro)

News

Media Man Favs

Jan 5 towards Jan 6

TKO $203.72 -3.11 -1.50%

Alphabet Inc Class A $316.21 +1.06 +0.34%

Netflix Inc $91.47 +0.48 +0.52%

Paramount Skydance Corp $13.00 -0.19 -1.40%

Porsche Automobile Holding SE Unsponsored Germany ADR $4.57 -0.11 -2.35%

Mercedes Benz Group ADR $17.68 -0.38 -2.10%

Formula One Group Series A $90.10 +1.03 +1.16%

Caterpillar Inc $616.86 +18.48 +3.09%

Volvo ADR (Owner of Mack Trucks) $32.64 +0.30 +0.92%

Tesla $451.67 +13.60 +3.10%

Microsoft Corp $472.85 -0.090 -0.019%

Mineral Resources Ltd $55.81 +0.37 +0.67% (ASX)

Rio Tinto Ltd $149.59 +1.90 +1.29% (ASX)

BHP Group Ltd $46.48 +0.72 +1.57% (ASX)

The Lead Up

Jan 5

Sydney, Australia

ASX futures up 11 points/ 0.1%: 8718
AUD +0.3% at US66.93¢
Bitcoin $91,320.85 +0.79%
Dow +0.7% S&P +0.2%
NAS flat
Gold +0.3% to $US4332.29 an ounce
Brent oil -0.2% at $US60.75 a barrel
Iron ore +0.3% at $US105.40 a ton

News

Double Check On Numbers

Australian Dollar: $0.6686 USD (up $0.0016 USD)
Iron Ore: $105.40 USD (up $US1.40 USD)
Oil Price: $57.32 USD (down $0.10 USD)
Gold Price: $4,332.36 USD (up $6.92 USD)
Copper Price: $5.6980 USD (up 0.0040 USD)
Dow Jones: 48,382.39 (up 319.10 points)

News

Australia/ASX

ASX to grind higher as rate talk dominates

Future pricing on Friday night suggested that Australian equities will gain around 0.1 per cent when the market opens on Monday. Stephen Miller from GSFM expects equity markets to 'grind' slightly higher in 2026; he adds that there will eventually be a correction, but contends that the US military operation in Venezuela is unlikely to provide the catalyst for a major pullback. Meanwhile, the upcoming release of Australia's monthly CPI data for November will be a key focus for local investors in the coming week, and may influence the Reserve Bank's interest rate decision in February. The S&P/ASX 200 rose 0.15 per cent to 8,727.8 points on Friday. (RMS)

News

Paspaley family's hospitality pivot as pearling profits lose their lustre

Filings with the corporate regulator show profits at Pearl Corporation of Australia were at $13.5 million in the 12 months to 30 June, down from $27.8 million a year earlier. The Pearl Corporation of Australia is one of the major vehicles of the Paspaley family, one of Australia's most noted pearling dynasties. With an estimated fortune of $1.52 billion, the family has been moving away from its historical roots towards hotels and luxury cruising operations, as pearl sales take a hit. (RMS/AFR)

News

Curious case of Fortescue's copper target

Iron ore miner Fortescue is set to acquire Alta Copper in a deal worth more than $151 million, with Fortescue having held a stake of almost 20 per cent in the South American explorer for almost six years. By the time it announced its bid for Alta in December, Fortescue had lifted its stake to nearly 36 per cent, while disclosures made by Alta to the Toronto Stock Exchange in the last few days before Christmas show that Fortescue had made three prior overtures to acquire the company over the past four years. (RMS)

News

Snapshot/Profile: TKO Group

TKO is a media and live event company that owns the popular WWE and UFC brands. The company’s third-quarter fiscal 2025 earnings report showed revenue of $1.12 billion, adjusted EBITDA of $360 million (with a 32% margin), and increased full-year guidance to an upward range of $4.72 billion and $1.58 billion for revenue and adjusted EBITDA, respectively.

It’s no wonder TKO shares are up 53% so far this year – and they could rise more. MoneyFlows data shows how Big Money investors are betting heavily on the stock.

TKO Group Draws Institutional Interest

Institutional volumes reveal plenty. In the last year, TKO has enjoyed strong investor demand, which we believe to be institutional support.

Plenty of discretionary names are under accumulation right now. But there’s a powerful fundamental story happening with TKO Group.

TKO Group Fundamental Analysis

Institutional support and a healthy fundamental backdrop make this company worth investigating. As you can see, TKO has had strong sales growth:

1-year sales growth rate (+67.4%)

3-year sales growth rate (+38.3%)

Source: FactSet

Also, EPS is estimated to ramp higher this year by +155.8%.

Now it makes sense why the stock has been generating Big Money interest. TKO has a track record of strong financial performance.

TKO Group Price Prediction

The TKO action isn’t new at all. Big Money buying in the shares is signaling to take notice. Given the historical gains in share price and strong fundamentals, this stock could be worth a spot in a diversified portfolio.

News

NYSE

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and broader US markets are open today (Monday, January 5, 2026) for regular trading hours (9:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. ET).

This is the second full trading week of the year, following the New Year's holiday closure on January 1 and the first trading session on January 2.

Recent Market Performance

The first trading day of 2026 (Friday, January 2) saw mixed but mostly positive results:S&P 500: Closed slightly higher (up ~0.19% to around 6,858), supported by gains in semiconductors.

Dow Jones Industrial Average: Ended higher, snapping a prior losing streak, with boosts from chips (e.g., Nvidia, Intel) and industrials like Boeing.

Nasdaq Composite: Closed nearly flat (down ~0.03%), despite intraday gains in tech.

Advancers outnumbered decliners on the NYSE, with semiconductor stocks rallying (Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up ~4%).

Notable movers included furniture retailers (e.g., Wayfair +6%, RH +8%) after delayed tariff hikes on certain categories.

Key Context and Outlook for 2026

2025 was a strong year: S&P 500 up ~16-17%, Nasdaq ~21%, Dow ~14% — marking three consecutive years of double-digit gains.

Wall Street analysts are optimistic for 2026, with average S&P 500 year-end targets around 7,600–8,000 (implying 11–16% upside).

Expectations include continued AI-driven growth, potential Fed rate cuts (possibly more dovish under new leadership), and moderate economic expansion.

Upcoming catalysts: December jobs report (recently released or imminent), Q4 earnings season starting mid-January (e.g., JPMorgan on Jan. 13), and ongoing focus on tariffs, inflation, and Fed policy.

News

The Lead Up

Summary and In-Depth Option

Media Man Biz Watercooler

Jan 3

Sydney, Australia to Wall Street, New York

AUD +0.3% to US66.89¢

Bitcoin +1.9% to $US89,854

Wall St:
Dow +0.7%
S&P +0.2%
Nasdaq -0.04%
VIX -0.34 to 14.61
Gold -0.00% to $US4319.21 an ounce
Brent oil -0.1% to $US60.77 a barrel
Iron ore +0.3% to $US105.40 a ton
10-year yield: US 4.19% Australia 4.83%

News Flashback

The Lead Up

Media Man Favs

Jan 2

TKO $206.94 -2.06 -0.99%

Alphabet Inc Class A $315.15 +2.15 +0.69%

Netflix Inc $90.99 -2.77 -2.95%

Paramount Skydance Corp $13.18 -0.22 -1.64%

Porsche Automobile Holding SE Unsponsored Germany ADR $4.68 +0.080 +1.74%

Mercedes Benz Group ADR $18.06 +0.49 +2.79%

Formula One Group Series A $89.07 -0.31 -0.35%

Caterpillar Inc $598.41 +25.54 +4.46%

Volvo ADR (Owner of Mack Trucks_ $32.34 +0.40 +1.25%

Tesla $438.07 -11.65 -2.59%

Microsoft Corp $472.94 -10.68 -2.21%

Mineral Resources Ltd $55.44 +1.06 +1.95% (ASX)

Rio Tinto Ltd $147.69 +0.87 +0.59% (ASX)

BHP Group Ltd $45.76 +0.27 +0.59% (ASX)

News

NYSE

New York Stock Exchange

The NYSE floor was active on January 2, with traders marking the start of trading in the new year

The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) resumed trading on January 2, 2026, after being closed on New Year's Day (January 1). Markets kicked off the new year on a positive note, snapping a four-day losing streak from the end of 2025.Key Market Performance on January 2, 2026:The S&P 500 closed slightly higher, supported by gains in semiconductor stocks.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average ended higher, boosted by names like Nvidia, Intel, and Boeing.

Chip stocks led the rally, with the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index up around 4%.

Overall, U.S. markets started 2026 positively amid optimism for continued tech-driven growth, though no "Santa Claus rally" materialized at the end of 2025.

2025 Year-in-Review Highlights:

The S&P 500 finished 2025 up 16.4%, marking its third consecutive year of gains over 15%.

Tech and AI-related stocks dominated performance in 2025.

Notable Stock Movements and News:

Semiconductor and AI-related shares (e.g., Nvidia, Applied Materials, Western Digital) rallied strongly on January 2.

Tesla shares dipped after Q4 deliveries missed estimates, but analysts remain bullish on its autonomous and robotics potential for 2026.

Software stocks like Salesforce and CrowdStrike faced pressure.

Upcoming Focus for 2026:

Investors eye Federal Reserve policy, interest rate cuts, and corporate earnings growth.

Expectations for further market gains persist, with AI and tech themes continuing to drive sentiment.

News

ASX

As of January 3, 2026, the S&P/ASX 200 (commonly referred to as the ASX 200) is trading around 8,729.60 points, up approximately 0.18% (+15.30 points) during the session.

Market Status: The ASX is open today (Saturday is not a trading day; normal hours are Monday to Friday, 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM AEDT).

Recent Performance:

Closed 2025 at approximately 8,714 points (December 31, 2025).

First trading day of 2026 (likely January 2) saw modest gains, with reports of the index closing or trading around 8,728–8,730 points amid thin holiday liquidity.

The index tracks the performance of the 200 largest companies listed on the Australian Securities Exchange by float-adjusted market capitalization, serving as Australia's primary stock market benchmark.

News/Overview

Mag 7

These companies collectively represent about one-third of the S&P 500's market capitalization and have significantly influenced broader market trends.

In 2025, performance diverged: Alphabet and Nvidia were top performers (with Alphabet leading strongly in Q4), while others like Amazon lagged (single-digit gains). The group as a whole outperformed the average S&P 500 stock but showed rotation toward AI-focused names.Heading into 2026, analysts see continued potential from AI investments, though risks include high valuations, competition, and regulatory scrutiny. There's also an ETF for equal-weight exposure: the Roundhill Magnificent Seven ETF (MAGS).

The Magnificent Seven (Mag 7) refers to a group of seven leading U.S. tech stocks that have dominated market performance in recent years, driven by innovation in AI, cloud computing, e-commerce, and more.

As of early 2026, the standard list remains:

Apple (AAPL)
Microsoft (MSFT)
Alphabet (GOOGL/GOOG) (Google's parent)
Amazon (AMZN)
Meta Platforms (META) (Facebook's parent)
Nvidia (NVDA)
Tesla (TSLA)

News

Tech Stock News

Major Tech Stock Overview as of January 3, 2026

Markets were closed on January 1, 2026 (New Year's Day), and the first trading day was January 2, 2026 (a Friday).

On that day, major indices showed mixed performance with a boost from semiconductor stocks:

S&P 500: Closed up 0.19% at approximately 6,858.
Nasdaq Composite: Closed down slightly at 23,236.
Dow Jones Industrial Average: Closed higher, snapping a prior losing streak.

Tech stocks, particularly chips, led gains amid ongoing AI enthusiasm, while some software names pulled back.

Key "Magnificent Seven" Tech Stocks

These are the leading large-cap tech companies (Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet/Google, Amazon, Nvidia, Meta Platforms, Tesla).

Exact closing prices for January 2 aren't detailed in reports, but highlights include:

Nvidia (NVDA): Up ~1.5%, continuing strong momentum as the AI leader.

Semiconductor-related names like Micron and AMD rose significantly (Micron +7%, AMD +3%), lifting the sector.

Overall, tech remains a dominant theme entering 2026, with analysts optimistic about AI-driven growth but noting high valuations and potential for rotation to other sectors.

Broader Tech Sector Trends

AI and chips are expected to drive gains in 2026, with capex from Big Tech projected at massive levels.

Analysts' top picks often include Nvidia, Microsoft, and others from the Magnificent Seven.

Risks: Elevated valuations and potential AI "bubble" concerns

News

Bulls And Bears def

Bull and bear refer to market trends and investor sentiment: a bull market signifies rising prices, optimism, and growth (like a bull thrusting horns up), while a bear market means falling prices, pessimism, and contraction (like a bear swiping paws down), with investors buying in bull markets and selling in bear markets, influencing overall market direction.

News

The Lead Up

ASX futs down 33 pnts/0.4% to 8674
AUD +0.2% at US66.80¢
BTC $89,838.67 +1.90%
Dow +0.2%
S&P -0.2%
NAS -0.4%
Gold -0.1% to $US4314.82 an ounce
Brent oil -0.4% at $US60.62 a barrel
Iron ore +0.3% to $US105.40 a ton

News

Gold And Silver

Gold spot price is trading around $4,330–$4,350 per troy ounce, extending gains from a remarkable 2025 where it rose over 64% year-over-year, marking its strongest annual performance in decades.Silver spot price is around $72–$74 per troy ounce, up significantly after surging more than 144% in 2025, driven by industrial demand and safe-haven flows.

The gold/silver ratio currently sits near 59–63, meaning it takes about 60 ounces of silver to buy one ounce of gold—lower than historical averages, reflecting silver's stronger relative performance lately.

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Fun Facts

Silicon Valley

Silicon Valley is home to iconic tech giants with sprawling campuses:

Apple

Apple Park (the "Spaceship" in Cupertino).

Google (Alphabet)

Googleplex in Mountain View.
Meta (Facebook) in Menlo Park.

Nvidia, Intel, Cisco, and more.
News

Best Quotes