January 26, 2026 09:56 AM EST
Gold Surges Above $5,000 Per Ounce for First Time
FROM 43 minutes ago
Gold finally hit the milestone traders have been waiting for.
The spot price of the precious metal over the weekend topped $5,000 per troy ounce for the first time, and reached as high as $5,115 Monday morning. The moves came as U.S. stocks ticked higher to start the week.
The seeming resolution, or at least a path toward one, of affairs involving the U.S., Greenland and mainland Europe appeared last week to have marked a cooling of geopolitical fears, though some analysts have said a broader issue—a possible realignment of the relationship between the U.S. and many of its allies and trading partners—remains in play. Fresh concerns about the possibility of another U.S. government shutdown are also factoring into investor sentiment this morning.
Investor appetite for gold remains strong.
CFOTO / Future Publishing via Getty Images
That’s contributed to demand for gold, long seen as a hedge against many types of uncertainty. Analysts and investors were targeting higher prices for gold, already up substantially this year, before $5,000 even hit. Some were even looking toward $6,000. (Gold first touched $4,000 in early October.)
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January 26, 2026 09:18 AM EST
The Fed Is Unlikely to Make Moves Next Week, But There Could Still Be Drama
FROM 1 hr 21 min ago
The Federal Reserve is all but certain to keep its key interest rate steady at its next meeting on Wednesday, leaving a few open questions, including how far Chair Jerome Powell will go to defend the central bank’s independence from the White House.
Financial markets widely expect the Federal Open Market Committee to put a lid on its recent string of rate cuts and hold the fed funds rate steady at a range of 3.5% to 3.75%. Traders on Friday were pricing in a 97% chance Fed will leave rates unchanged, according to the CME Group’s FedWatch tool, which forecasts rate movements based on fed funds futures trading data.
Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell is being investigated by the Department of Justice.
Chip Somodevilla / Getty Images
After cutting the rate by a quarter point for a third time in a row in December, Most officials have shown little appetite for further reducing the key rate, which influences borrowing costs on all kinds of loans.
Fed officials are expected to keep rates flat for at least a few months to see how the economy responds to the rate cuts so far, as the Fed pursues its dual mandate from Congress to keep inflation at 2% and employment high.
Read the full article here.
January 26, 2026 08:40 AM EST
Revolution Medicines Stock Tanks on Report Merck No Longer Discussing Acquiring Biotech
FROM 1 hr 59 min ago
According to a report, pharmaceutical giant Merck (MRK) no longer is interested in potentially buying Revolution Medicines (RVMD). Shareholders of the latter firm are selling the stock in premarket trading Monday.
Revolution Medicines stock was down roughly 20% an hour before the opening bell after The Wall Street Journal, citing people familiar with the matter, reported that Merck was no longer in discussions to acquire the cancer-drug biotech in a deal that could have valued Revolution Medicines at roughly $30 billion.
According to some of the people, the companies couldn’t come to an agreement on a price, the Journal said.
Shares of Revolution Medicines had soared more than 185% over the past year entering Monday.
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January 26, 2026 08:04 AM EST
Bill Gates Issues Warning on AI Investment Hype, Urges Caution
FROM 2 hr 35 min ago
Bill Gates has warned AI investors that not everyone will be a winner in what he calls a “hypercompetitive” market.
The Microsoft (MSFT) cofounder cautioned in December that “a reasonable percentage” of today’s pricey AI stocks can’t justify their valuations. “Not all of these valuations will end up going up. Some of them will go down,” Gates told CNBC.
Gates’ concerns came as the so-called hyperscalers—Microsoft, Alphabet (GOOG), Amazon (AMZN), Meta Platforms (META), and Oracle (ORCL)—spent $400 billion on infrastructure in 2025 and are set to spend a third more in 2026.
Bill Gates, seen here at the World Economic Forum in Davos Jan. 21, warned about stretched AI stock valuations in an interview at Abu Dhabi Finance Week in December 2025.
Fabrice Coffrini / Getty Images
Some investors worry the sheer size of those figures has encouraged speculation on Wall Street, causing some AI stocks to trade at eye-watering valuations.
Read the full article here.
January 26, 2026 07:32 AM EST
USA Rare Earth Stock Soars on Commerce Department Stake
FROM 3 hr 7 min ago
The U.S. government is taking an equity stake in USA Rare Earth (USAR). Investors are pleased with the development.
USA Rare Earth shares surged 21% in premarket trading after the Stillwater, Okla.-based company signed a non-binding letter of intent with the U.S. Department of Commerce to receive $1.6 billion in federal funding in exchange for issuing the agency 16.1 million shares of stock and about 17.6 million warrants.
In addition, USA Rare Earth raised $1.5 billion in private sector investment via a PIPE transaction “anchored by Inflection Point with participation from large mutual fund complexes,” it said.
“The LOI with the U.S. Government reflects the strategic importance of USAR’s mine-to-magnet platform and its role in closing the rare earth element and critical mineral supply gap for essential industries that underpin U.S. national security, including semiconductors, other critical technologies, and advanced manufacturing,” the company said.
The news confirmed media reports over the weekend that the Trump administration planned to invest $1.6 billion into the company in exchange for a 10% stake, which caused USA Rare Earth’s shares to soar more than 35% earlier Monday.
USA Rare Earth shares entered Monday having more than doubled thus far in 2026 to $24.77 apiece.
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January 26, 2026 06:44 AM EST
Stock Futures Point Lower on Geopolitical Developments Ahead of Big Tech Earnings Week, Fed Decision
FROM 3 hr 55 min ago
Futures contracts connected to the Dow Jones Industrial Average pointed fractionally lower.
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S&P 500 futures were 0.2% lower.
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Nasdaq 100 futures were down 0.4%.
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