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The market’s uptrend is under a bit of pressure and the Fed’s dovish stand on interest rates is a sign of weakness that is unlikely to impress Wall Street. Nevertheless, Sea Limited (SE) has regained its momentum and NovoCure (NVCR) is up 35% over the past two weeks. And our emerging markets timer (EEM) is positive. This week we go to Australia for a new fintech idea that has been on a tear, but fortunately has pulled back for a decent entry point.

It’s a busy and short Christmas week and like many of you, I was doing last-minute shopping and preparing to visit family.

Therefore, this is a brief update and instead of the usual stock-by-stock update, I can summarize as follows.

Europe’s stock market has underperformed the U.S. by the most in almost three decades.

While the S&P 500 index is up about 25% so far this year to record highs, Europe’s benchmark Stoxx 600 is only up 5%. That underperformance in returns is the biggest since 1995, according to Bloomberg. The other side of the coin is that the S&P 500 is now trading at 22.5 times forward earnings and is at a record high 70% premium to the Stoxx 600. The European Union (EU) bloc is the world’s third-largest economy, with a market of 450 million consumers, and controls the world’s second-most-used currency, the euro.

So today, we go to Europe (literally!) to add a new stock to the Explorer portfolio that looks poised to outperform.

The independence of Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s position is important, and uncertainty over his role is impacting market sentiment. Dynamism and stability is America’s golden goose. Stay a bit on the defensive and conservative and keep adding some international stocks through the summer.

Data showed consumer inflation keeping pressure on the 30-year bond’s yield which touched 5% for the first time since early June. And in Japan, the trend is the same, with rising government bond interest rates raising the costs of paying interest on its debt equal to 250% of its GDP.

During the last bull run, crypto trading led to massive gains. But crypto investing is a different animal that depends on long-term growth.

I’m often asked about the difference between Cabot Options Trader and Cabot Options Trader Pro, so here I explain the difference so that you can choose the right service for your needs.

I’m often asked about the difference between Cabot Options Trader and Cabot Options Trader Pro, so here I explain the difference so that you can choose the right service for your needs.

This was a great week for Explorer stocks.

Coeur Mining (CDE) shares were up 19.6% this week following last week’s 13% gain after quarterly revenue was up 117% year over year. Dutch Bros (BROS) shares were up 16.9% this week. Sea Limited (SE) shares were up 17.3% this week following net income in the second quarter increasing by more than fivefold to $414 million.

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq reached new records on Wednesday, reversing Tuesday’s declines. President Trump’s tax-and-spending bill squeaked through the Senate and is now at the heart of a battle in the House. This is hopefully settled today, and a setback would have an impact on the stock market.

Luckin Coffee’s (LKNCY) revenue in China has already surpassed Starbucks in China. This week, it brought the battle to America as its first two U.S. locations opened in New York. This may be just a public relations gambit.

While Nvidia (NVDA) has pulled back more than 20% over the past two weeks, our conservative AI play IBM (IBM) has tacked on 40 points over the same period- hitting an all-time high early this week.

Cloudflare (NET) shares were up again this week and are now up 28% in 2025 to reach 140.

Dutch Bros (BROS) shares rose 8.5% this week and have surged 23% so far in 2025.

As I mentioned recently, I’m now in Europe looking for intelligence and ideas.

This week I’m in Madrid and visited the stock exchange (bourse) and met with some local brokers to try to get a feel for the market and region. Like brokers always are, they were bullish on stocks and especially gold. One stock we discussed which I have followed from time to time is Banco Santander (SAN). It is in a nice uptrend and still well below book value, but I need to do some research and reach out to some friends who previously worked for Santander to get their views before considering a recommendation.

Instead, today I have a new gold stock recommendation.

Centrus Energy (LEU) shares jumped almost 19% this past week and are up 70% in the last six months. Dutch Bros (BROS) shares gained 6.3% this week following weekly gains of 10.6% and 36%.

Tariffs took center stage this week as the incoming Trump administration indicated day-one 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico and some more for China as well.

The S&P 500 and other major indexes finished up yesterday after slightly negative first-quarter economic growth. Not much movement in Explorer stocks this week except Sea Limited (SE), up 11%.

Chinese exports have recently plunged as the psychology of tariffs takes a toll. China relied on exports for about a third of its economic growth last year.

“Bull markets are born on pessimism, grow on skepticism, mature on optimism, and die on euphoria.” -Sir John Templeton

Tech stocks and a couple of Explorer stocks are having a tough week, but the rest of the market is calm as investors await Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell’s speech on Friday at the central bank powwow in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

The bull market rages on, and technology stocks continue to garner most of the headlines, some of which we’ll examine today. But our new recommendation isn’t some go-go artificial intelligence play: it’s a small-cap U.S. titanium maker that’s off to a very fast start (+56%) in 2024 ... with plenty more runway ahead.