US-based equipment manufacturer Caterpillar has completed the acquisition of Australian mining software company RPMGlobal Holdings. The financial details of the deal remain undisclosed. This move aims to enhance Caterpillar's range of data-driven technologies and software solutions for the mining sector, supporting customers in more efficient site planning, operation and management. Caterpillar Resource Industries group president Denise Johnson said: “Acquiring RPMGlobal is a notable milestone supporti ...

Quick Read Consumer Staples ETF (XLP) returned 15.2% year-to-date. XLP’s top three holdings Walmart, Costco and P&G represent 28.73% of assets. Walmart posted 20.2% year-to-date returns. Costco gained 18.3% and PepsiCo added 15.6% while P&G lagged. Retail sales grew 3.3% to $735B in December despite consumer sentiment at a pessimistic 52.9. A recent study identified one single habit that doubled Americans’ retirement savings and moved retirement from dream, to reality. Read more here. The consum ...

Soybeans are trading with 3 to 7 cent gains across the front months on Wednesday morning. Futures rounded out the Tuesday session with contracts fractionally to 1 ¼ cents higher. Open interest suggested new buying interest, up 22,504 contracts on Tuesday. The cmdtyView national average Cash Bean price was up 1 1/4 cents at $10.68 1/2. Soymeal futures were a dime to $3.40 lower in the front months, with Soy Oil futures 21 to 44 points higher. The latter is up another 100 points this morning. Strength in the ...

Corn price action is up fractionally to 1 ½ cents so far on Wednesday. Futures closed Tuesday with contracts falling 5 to 6 ¼ cents. Open interest was down 788 contracts on Tuesday, as the roll out of March continues, down 30,524 contracts. March options expire on Friday. The CmdtyView national average Cash Corn price was down 5 1/4 cents at $3.93. USDA’s FGIS tallied corn export shipments at 1.492 MMT (58.75 mbu) during the week ending on February 12. That was 7.31% below the week prior and 8.06% shy of ...

In less than three years, Hyperliquid has become one of the dominant players in crypto trading, notching volumes that rival long-established exchanges like Binance and Coinbase. Now, the firm is looking to flex its political muscle, too. On Wednesday, the Hyperliquid Policy Center launched in Washington, D.C., with the goal of creating a legal pathway for widespread decentralized finance, or DeFi, adoption in the United States. The inaugural CEO of the new body is Jake Chervinsky, a longtime cryptocurre ...

Jacob Funds, a mutual fund company, released its fourth-quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the same can be downloaded here. After an optimistic quarter, equity markets corrected slightly in November. Although overall economic growth has been robust throughout the year, recent divergent data on consumer spending and the labor market have put doubt on future projections. This pattern has become somewhat familiar over the past few years, as conflicting economic data has become the norm. As for the Fund’s ...

Hormel Foods has signed an agreement to sell its whole-bird turkey business to Life-Science Innovations (LSI) as part of the company’s efforts to refine its portfolio. In a statement, the US-based food company said the transaction covers assets including the Melrose, Minnesota, whole-bird production facility; the Swanville, Minnesota, feed mill; and associated transportation assets. However, the agreement does not include Hormel Food's Jennie-O brand name or the wider range of Jennie-O turkey products. ...

Few artificial intelligence (AI) stocks have seen more capital pile into them in such a short period than Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU). The memory-chip maker has seen its stock soar 250% since the start of September, and now sports a market cap of over $460 billion. With the stock already 44% higher through the first few weeks of 2026, investors may be wondering whether it's set to surpass $1 trillion in the near future. Another doubling will just about do it. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our anal ...

Endeavour Group has selected Tim Poole as its next chairman, the Australian liquor retail and drinks business announced today (18 February). Poole will succeed Duncan Makeig, the lead independent director who stepped in as interim chair in August following the resignation of Ari Mervis in August. Mervis left after “disagreements with the board”, having been elevated to executive chair in February 2025 following the departure of CEO Steve Donohue in March. The group, which owns drinks retailer Dan Murph ...

Quick Read Technology Select Sector SPDR (XLK) concentrates 39% of assets in three stocks: NVIDIA, Apple and Microsoft. XLK outperformed SPY by 35 percentage points over five years through concentrated tech exposure. XLK declined 3.06% through mid-February 2026 while SPY remained flat during sector rotation. A recent study identified one single habit that doubled Americans’ retirement savings and moved retirement from dream, to reality. Read more here. If you want to own a piece of the tech sect ...