Market Reports

• Australian Market Report: Australia’s sharemarket posted its fifth day in a row of gains on Friday, after a start to the year that has included rising speculation the US could attack Iran, US military intervention to remove Venezuela’s leader.... [more]

• U.S. Market Report: Wall Street's main indexes were higher on Friday as chipmakers returned to the ​driver's seat in a volatile week that also marked the start of the fourth-quarter earnings season..... [more]

• European Market Report: European stocks were flat to slightly lower on Friday as investors monitored ongoing geopolitical events and earnings news. Greenland worries returned to the fore, with media reports suggesting that European troops are landing.... [more]

• Asian Market Report: Asian stocks ended mixed on Friday despite Wall Street snapping a two-day losing streak overnight. Regional chip stocks ended mostly higher on revived AI-driven growth optimism after TSMC posted record quarterly profits.... [more]

Australian Business News

• Australian life insurance consumers have been the subject of repeated double digit increases in their premiums and life insurers should explain why, according the Financial Advice Association of Australia (FAAA)..... [more]

• Wellnex Life Ltd (ASX:WNX, AIM:WNX) shares jumped by a third to 10p after the consumer healthcare group pointed to a sharp improvement in profitability and said it is now operating at breakeven..... [more]

• Top 10 alternative asset funds of 2025 and the standout performer up 58%. Here are the standout performers and what drove the gains..... [more]

• Driven by particularly strong selling activity in South Australia, downsizer contributions grew by more than eight per cent in 2025 to reach a record total of over $94 million.... [more]

• Jeff Bezos’ Amazon Web Services empire will buy the first batches of a purportedly less water and emissions intensive copper cathode from Rio Tinto to build US data centres..... [more]

• Dalaroo Metals jumps +35% as it turns to Greenland for REEs.... [more]

• Aurum Resources is sharpening its boardroom edge with the appointment of capital markets veteran Richard Simpson as non-executive chairman, effective at the start of February..... [more]

• Ora Banda eyes production boost as high-grade gold pours in at Davyhurst.... [more]

• 1414 Degrees (ASX:14D) shares were trading +80% higher in Friday trades – up to 3.1 cents per share – after the electricity regulator AEMO greenlit the company’s proposed 140MW battery energy storage system.... [more]

• Catalyst Metals Shares (CYL) Hit Record High To Lead ASX 200.... [more]

• Endeavour Group’s (EDV) half-year update, released on Tuesday, landed as another reality check for a company that has struggled to rebuild investor confidence, and the numbers explain why. The guidance disappointed consensus .... [more]

• Proteomics International has just scored another key patent win as it ramps up efforts to detect the early signs of esophageal adenocarcinoma (EAC), an aggressive form of throat cancer that’s often linked to chronic acid reflux..... [more]

• Embattled telco Optus is offering fewer deals compared with major rivals despite its battered reputation following last year’s fatal triple-0 outage..... [more]

• A popular Australian fashion retailer has confirmed it is shutting down, but says it’s not goodbye but “see you soon.” The hugely popular Sass & Bide confirmed its closure on its Instagram story on Thursday.... [more]

• Troubled denim retailer Jeanswest has been mocked by social media users for posting content on its website and social media that has been created using generative artificial intelligence..... [more]

• Comment/Opinion - Mark LaMonica: Investing in the age of passive: Market evolution or looming disaster? Assessing the claims of passive investing critics..... [more]

• Comment - The Economist: Big tech’s Frankenstein finance and BYO energy for data centres are inflating the AI bubble.... [more]

• Opinion/Analysis - Leigh Gant: Why superannuation tied only to property and cash could fail retirees. Superannuation built only on property and cash may struggle..... [more]

World Business News

• U.S. President Donald Trump suggested Friday that he may punish countries with tariffs if they don’t back the U.S. controlling Greenland, a message that came as a bipartisan Congressional delegation sought to lower tensions.... [more]

• Dealmakers predict an uptick in mergers and IPOs for retailers and consumer goods companies this year after punishing tariffs on imports to the U.S. had sidelined activity in the industry for the first half of 2025..... [more]

• Hundreds of millions of dollars that the United States is raising from the sale of Venezuelan oil is being sequestered in Qatar. It’s an indirect path that could speed the flow of much-needed money to Venezuela,.... [more]

• Why Nvidia’s stock isn’t partying like other parts of the chip sector this year.... [more]

• BofA shares the 'perfect' investing strategy to hedge an AI bubble.... [more]

• BlackRock's new AI warning.... [more]

• This week, Bank of America, Citi, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo released fraught earnings reports as President Trump’s threatened cap on credit card rates loomed large..... [more]

• Netflix's (NFLX.O), plans to accelerate revenue growth by buying Warner Bros will be in focus on Tuesday when it reports fourth-quarter results, as the streaming pioneer battles Paramount.... [more]

• JPMorgan downgrades 3M as it sees limited upside in stock.... [more]

• Despite the S&P 500's scorching 39% rally since April, there are still pockets of the market that investors are undervaluing, Morningstar says..... [more]

• Trump and northeastern governors push for massive electricity auction to make tech giants defray costs.... [more]

• Canadian housing starts rose 5.6% in 2025 as December beats expectations.... [more]

• Breaking with the United States, Canada has agreed to cut its 100% tariff on Chinese electric cars in return for lower tariffs on Canadian farm products, Prime Minister Mark Carney said Friday..... [more]

• A court in Moscow on Friday began considering a lawsuit filed by the central bank against Euroclear, the Brussels-based clearing house that holds the bulk of Russian assets frozen by the European Union..... [more]

• Sterling rose on Friday, and was set for its fifth consecutive weekly rise against the euro, after data this week showed that the British economy grew more strongly than expected in November..... [more]

• BP has warned it expects to book up to five billion dollars (£3.7 billion) in write-downs across its gas and low-carbon energy division as it also said oil trading had been weak in its final quarter..... [more]

• Sacked TikTok workers in UK launch legal action over ‘union busting’. Moderators accuse social media firm of unfair dismissal after it fired hundreds in UK just before vote to form union.... [more]

• Novo Nordisk shares rise 5% after Wegovy obesity pill has ‘solid’ launch.... [more]

• Kuaishou Technology plans to raise a combined US$2 billion from a dual-currency bond sale as the short-video platform operator taps the overseas debt market for the first time to strengthen its businesses..... [more]

• China Clamps Down on High-Speed Traders, Removing Servers.... [more]

• Alibaba: the AI kingmaker. China’s Alibaba has deeper exposure across multiple AI facets and layers than any of America’s tech giants.... [more]

• Taiwan aims to be strategic AI partner in US tariff deal.... [more]

• India's markets regulator on Friday notified the final rules aimed at making it easier for sovereign-backed and overseas retail funds to access the local markets, a move expected to ease access.... [more]