Today: 7 February 2026
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Khadija Saeed

A dedicated markets reporter, she covers stocks, macroeconomics, and major business developments with a sharp eye for detail and accuracy.

Uber stock: UK ‘taxi tax’ contract rewrite puts VAT risk in focus ahead of Monday trade

Uber stock: UK ‘taxi tax’ contract rewrite puts VAT risk in focus ahead of Monday trade

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 20:40 ET — Market closed Uber Technologies Inc (UBER) shares are likely to be in focus when U.S. trading resumes on Monday after a report said the company rewrote driver contracts outside London to reduce exposure to Britain’s new VAT regime, which would have lifted the tax take on app-booked rides. The Economic Times said the changes shift VAT liability to drivers — many below the £90,000 VAT registration threshold — potentially blunting a Treasury revenue projection of about £700 million a year. The Economic Times Why it matters now: VAT (value-added tax) is a
5 January 2026
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Lumentum stock nears $400 as jobs report week looms — here’s what investors watch next

Lumentum stock nears $400 as jobs report week looms — here’s what investors watch next

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 20:46 ET — Market closed Lumentum Holdings Inc shares head into Monday’s U.S. session with momentum after ending Friday up 4.75% at $386.11. The stock traded as high as $392 and logged about 2.82 million shares in volume, Yahoo Finance data showed. Yahoo Finance The move matters because Lumentum has become a fast-moving proxy for spending on higher-speed data-center links that support artificial intelligence (AI) computing. With the stock already pressing toward a 52-week high, traders are bracing for a week where macro data and risk sentiment can reprice growth names quickly. “The market is
5 January 2026
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Merck stock in focus before Monday: Cidara deal deadline hits Jan. 6 as MRK sits near 52-week high

Merck stock in focus before Monday: Cidara deal deadline hits Jan. 6 as MRK sits near 52-week high

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 20:43 ET — Market closed Merck & Co shares closed up 1.1% on Friday at $106.45, leaving the stock within sight of a 52-week high ahead of Monday’s U.S. market reopen. MarketWatch The near-term focus is a tender offer — a takeover process where shareholders can sell stock directly for cash at a set price — tied to Merck’s planned purchase of Cidara Therapeutics. A Nasdaq corporate actions alert said the offer is scheduled to expire late Tuesday. NASDAQ Trader That timetable matters because it brings a catalyst into an otherwise light stretch for large-cap
5 January 2026
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Silver price tumbles from record as India’s gold rate drops — experts’ 2026 playbook

Silver price tumbles from record as India’s gold rate drops — experts’ 2026 playbook

NEW DELHI, Jan 4, 2026, 20:05 ET Silver prices have slipped about 13% from a record high and some market watchers see the metal dropping as much as 60% by the end of India’s fiscal 2027, after a surge that has started to squeeze industrial users. Silver hit $82.670 an ounce in the international market on Monday and fell to $71.300 by Friday, a drop of $11.37, Live Hindustan reported. After a 180% jump in 2025, the report said, analysts warned that high prices were pushing end-users to consider substitutes, even as short covering — buying back to close bearish
5 January 2026
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Paramount “running out of patience” as Warner Bros Discovery nears next Netflix deal test

Paramount “running out of patience” as Warner Bros Discovery nears next Netflix deal test

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 20:05 ET Paramount Skydance is running out of patience with Warner Bros Discovery’s repeated refusals to engage on its takeover approach, the New York Post reported late Saturday. New York Post Warner’s board is expected to meet soon to weigh Paramount’s amended proposal against a rival cash-and-stock agreement with Netflix valued at about $82.7 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter. Under the terms of the Netflix deal, Warner would face a $2.8 billion breakup fee if it walks away. Reuters The timing matters because Paramount is using a tender offer — a
5 January 2026
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Citigroup stock closes higher to start 2026 — here’s what could drive the next move

Citigroup stock closes higher to start 2026 — here’s what could drive the next move

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 20:10 ET — Market closed Citigroup Inc (NYSE: C) shares ended Friday up 1.7% at $118.70, a firmer close heading into Monday’s reopen after U.S. markets were shut for the weekend. Nasdaq The move matters now because large banks remain tightly tethered to interest-rate expectations. The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield rose to 4.191% on Friday, up 3.8 basis points (one hundredth of a percentage point), underscoring how quickly rate-sensitive trades can swing. Reuters Investors get the next directional test with the U.S. jobs report due Jan. 9 and the consumer price index on Jan.
5 January 2026
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HSBC cuts UK mortgage rates to start 2026 as refinancing wave builds

HSBC cuts UK mortgage rates to start 2026 as refinancing wave builds

LONDON, Jan 4, 2026, 20:13 ET HSBC UK is cutting mortgage rates across a range of residential and buy-to-let products from Jan. 5, including reductions on two-, three-, five- and 10-year fixed deals, mortgage trade publication The Intermediary reported. The changes span loans with loan-to-value ratios from 60% to 95%, the publication said. Intermediary Mortgage News The move lands as lenders reset pricing after the Bank of England lowered Bank Rate by 0.25 percentage points to 3.75% in December, according to the central bank’s meeting summary and minutes. The BoE’s next rate decision is due on Feb. 5. Bank of
5 January 2026
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Bloom Energy stock jumps 14% on $502M Quanta microgrid disclosure — what investors watch next

Bloom Energy stock jumps 14% on $502M Quanta microgrid disclosure — what investors watch next

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 8:00 PM ET — Market closed Bloom Energy Corp shares surged 13.6% on Friday to close at $98.69, putting the fuel-cell maker in focus heading into Monday’s U.S. session. The rally matters because it underscores how quickly traders are chasing signs that demand for on-site power is turning into large, disclosed spending commitments. It also comes as investors test whether project announcements translate into revenue and cash collections, not just headlines. A late-December disclosure from Taiwan helped sharpen that debate. Quanta Computer said its U.S. unit would buy fuel-cell microgrid systems from Bloom for about
5 January 2026
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Texas Instruments (TXN) stock jumps 2% as chip rally kicks off 2026 — what to watch next

Texas Instruments (TXN) stock jumps 2% as chip rally kicks off 2026 — what to watch next

NEW YORK, January 4, 2026, 20:19 ET — Market closed Texas Instruments Inc shares closed up 2.32% at $177.52 on Friday, snapping a four-session losing streak. The stock traded about 6.1 million shares and is roughly 20% below its 52-week high of $221.69, MarketWatch data showed. MarketWatch The move came as the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index — a basket of U.S.-listed chip stocks — jumped about 4% on the first trading day of 2026, led by big-cap names including Nvidia and Intel, Reuters reported. Reuters Now investors are shifting back to macro catalysts. “The market is looking for direction,” said Matthew
5 January 2026
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Cisco stock set for Monday spotlight after $2 billion Axonius deal report, ex-dividend drop

Cisco stock set for Monday spotlight after $2 billion Axonius deal report, ex-dividend drop

NEW YORK, Jan 4, 2026, 7:58 PM ET — Market closed Cisco Systems Inc. shares are set to be in focus when U.S. markets reopen on Monday after Israel’s Calcalist reported the networking gear maker is in advanced talks to acquire cybersecurity company Axonius for about $2 billion. ctech The report lands as investors reassess big-ticket deal appetite in enterprise technology, where boards have leaned on acquisitions to bolster faster-growing software and security revenue. For Cisco, any M&A headline also feeds into the debate over whether the company prioritizes buybacks and dividends or steps up spending to chase growth. The
5 January 2026
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Palo Alto Networks stock set for Monday spotlight after Guggenheim upgrade, insider sale notices

Palo Alto Networks stock set for Monday spotlight after Guggenheim upgrade, insider sale notices

New York, Jan 4, 2026, 7:50 PM ET — Market closed Palo Alto Networks, Inc. shares closed Friday down 2.6% at $179.37, and traders will be watching for follow-through on Monday after Guggenheim upgraded the cybersecurity company to Neutral from Sell. Moomoo The rating change lands as the stock tries to stabilize after a weak stretch and heightened focus on execution risk tied to Palo Alto’s dealmaking and product shift toward AI-enabled security tools. The next session will show whether buyers treat Friday’s dip as an entry point or a signal to keep trimming exposure. Investing There is also fresh
5 January 2026
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Thermo Fisher (TMO) stock closes higher into 2026 — what to watch before Jan. 29 earnings

Thermo Fisher (TMO) stock closes higher into 2026 — what to watch before Jan. 29 earnings

NEW YORK, January 4, 2026, 19:53 ET — Market closed Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc shares closed Friday up about 2.3% at $592.51, beating the broader market’s modest advance in the first session of 2026. Reuters The move matters heading into Monday because investors are rotating from thin holiday trade into a January calendar packed with economic data and the start of earnings season. Thermo Fisher’s results later this month will be one of the first big readouts for life-science tools demand. Thermo Fisher Scientific Thermo Fisher is a bellwether for “life science tools” — lab instruments, consumables and services used
5 January 2026
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Stock Market Today

Seagate (STX) stock jumps nearly 6% as Citi hikes target — what to watch next week

Seagate (STX) stock jumps nearly 6% as Citi hikes target — what to watch next week

7 February 2026
Seagate shares rose 5.9% to $429.32 Friday after Citigroup raised its price target to $480 and reiterated a buy rating. The gain ended a two-day slide but left the stock 6.6% below its Feb. 3 high. CEO Dave Mosley sold 20,000 shares on Feb. 2 under a pre-arranged plan, SEC filings show. U.S. jobs and inflation data next week are seen as key tests for tech stocks.
Cummins (CMI) stock price rebounds after earnings whipsaw as investors eye data-center power demand

Cummins (CMI) stock price rebounds after earnings whipsaw as investors eye data-center power demand

7 February 2026
Cummins shares jumped 6.8% to $577.73 Friday, recovering from a nearly 9% post-earnings drop the day before. The company reported Q4 revenue up 1% to $8.54 billion, took a $218 million charge tied to its hydrogen business, and guided for 2026 EBITDA of 17–18% of sales. Demand for data center generators offset weakness in North American truck markets. Analyst reaction was mixed; Truist raised its price target.
Corning stock hits first record close since 2000 as jobs, CPI data loom

Corning stock hits first record close since 2000 as jobs, CPI data loom

7 February 2026
Corning shares surged 8.3% to $122.16 Friday, their highest close since the dot-com era, after Meta agreed to buy up to $6 billion in fiber-optic cables. The stock is up 40% since late 2025, fueled by strong first-quarter guidance and AI data-center demand. Insiders sold shares following the rally, SEC filings show. Investors await next week’s U.S. jobs and inflation data for rate signals.
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