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Tech stocks help lift S&P/TSX Friday, U.S. stock markets mixed after jobs report TORONTO — Canada's main stock index eked out a gain Friday as a rise in tech stocks helped outweigh losses in energy, while U.S. markets were mixed after employment reports on both sides of the border. The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 11. Rosa Saba, The Canadian Press Dec 6, 2024 1:50 PM Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message A person walks past the TMX Market Centre in Toronto, Wednesday, Sept. 11, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paige Taylor White TORONTO — Canada's main stock index eked out a gain Friday as a rise in tech stocks helped outweigh losses in energy, while U.S. markets were mixed after employment reports on both sides of the border. The S&P/TSX composite index closed up 11.76 points at 25,691.80. In New York, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 123.19 points at 44,642.52. The S&P 500 index was up 15.16 points at 6,090.27, reaching another all-time high, while the Nasdaq composite was up 159.05 points at 19,859.77, another record. Both Canada and the U.S. got fresh jobs data on Friday, but the two reports painted very different pictures, said Pierre-Benoît Gauthier, vice-president of investment strategy at IG Wealth Management. U.S. employers hired more than expected last month but the unemployment rate also ticked higher to 4.2 per cent. “This report was just good enough,” said Gauthier — not too weak, but also not too strong. The report sealed expectations that the U.S. Federal Reserve will announce a quarter-percentage-point interest rate cut later in December, said Gauthier. It shows the economy continues to handle higher rates well, he added. In Canada, the economy added 51,000 jobs in November, while the unemployment rate jumped to 6.8 per cent. The jobs number was undermined by the fact the gain was mainly public-sector hiring, said Gauthier. “The federal government creating jobs is in no way, shape or form an indication of the strength of the Canadian economy,” he said. The Bank of Canada is set to cut next week, and Gauthier thinks it could be an outsized half-percentage-point cut. “The rate cuts here cannot come fast enough,” he said. But the Bank of Canada will need to keep an eye on the increasing differential between rates in the U.S. and Canada, he added, which could put further downward pressure on the already weak Canadian dollar. “The Bank of Canada will be stuck between a rock and a hard place, because at some point they'll still have to defend the Canadian dollar," he said. A lower Canadian dollar could also result in some inflation as imports from the U.S. cost more. The Canadian dollar traded for 70.74 cents US compared with 71.24 cents US on Thursday. The January crude oil contract was down US$1.10 at US$67.20 per barrel and the January natural gas contract was essentially unchanged at US$3.08 per mmBTU. The February gold contract was up US$11.20 at US$2,659.60 an ounce and the March copper contract was up a penny at US$4.20 a pound. — With files from The Associated Press This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 6, 2024. Companies in this story: (TSX:GSPTSE, TSX:CADUSD) Rosa Saba, The Canadian Press See a typo/mistake? Have a story/tip? This has been shared 0 times 0 Shares Share by Email Share on Facebook Share on X Share on LinkedIn Print Share via Text Message More The Mix Police believe the gunman who killed UnitedHealthcare's CEO left NYC on a bus after the shooting Dec 6, 2024 2:01 PM Health Canada says daily cannabis use hasn't changed much since legalization Dec 6, 2024 1:56 PM BRP executive warns against overreaction to Trump tariff plan Dec 6, 2024 1:48 PM Featured Flyer
Los Angeles, Dec 28, 2024- The sets of ‘Dune’ were not meant for social media after strict orders were issued by the film’s director Denis Villeneuve. The filmmaker, 57, explained why cast and crew on his projects are not encouraged to bring certain devices on set, reports ‘People’ magazine. He told the Los Angeles Times, “Cinema is an act of presence. When a painter paints, he has to be absolutely focused on the color he’s putting on the canvas. It’s the same with the dancer when he does a gesture. With a filmmaker, you have to do that with a crew, and everybody has to focus and be entirely in the present, listening to each other, being in relationship with each other”. He added, “So cellphones are banned on my set too, since day one. It’s forbidden. When you say cut, you don’t want someone going to his phone to look at his Facebook account”. Earlier in the interview, the director shared another reason he’s not so fond of technology at times. He further mentioned, “I feel that human beings are ruled by algorithms right now. We behave like AI circuits. The ways we see the world are narrow-minded binaries. We’re disconnecting from each other, and society is crumbling in some ways. It’s frightening”. As per ‘People’, the director referred to being able to have constant access to others as “addictive”. He said, “It’s compulsive. It’s like a drug. I’m very tempted to disconnect myself. It would be fresh air”. The first installment of Villeneuve’s Dune film adaptation of Frank Hubert’s novel arrived in October 2021, with Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya and Oscar Isaac . The second part was released in March 2024. A-listers Austin Butler, Florence Pugh and Anya Taylor-Joy joined for ‘Dune: Part Two’.(Agency)
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Quantum computing is a hot topic right now. Three of the four highest-performing stocks in the last six months are pure play investments in this technology. Investors expect big things from a new class of computers, with the promise of solving incredibly complex problems in the blink of an eye. Leading quantum computer builder IonQ ( IONQ -5.72% ) gained 484% in six months as of Dec. 26. Believe it or not, but that jump doesn't qualify IonQ for a top-four finish. No, IonQ lands in the 16th place on this list, far behind the 2,735% gain posted by smaller rival Quantum Computing, Inc. ( QUBT -4.63% ) . Can Quantum Computing build on its recent success? Will IonQ turn the tables and outperform the smaller company in 2025? What else do you need to know before investing in the explosive quantum computing market? Metric Quantum Computing IonQ Market Cap $2.4 billion $10.2 billion Revenue (TTM) $390,000 $37.5 million Net Profit Margin (TTM) (6,159%) (457.9%) Free Cash Flow (TTM) ($20.5 million) ($120.4 million) Cash and Short-Term Investments $3.06 million $301.8 million Data collected from Finviz and YCharts on Dec. 26, 2024. TTM = trailing twelve months. Compare and contrast the financial results These financial statements have a lot in common. IonQ and Quantum Computing's stocks are worth billions of dollars despite minimal revenues and deeply negative bottom-line profits. Neither company is attempting to make a profit at this point. They are development-stage businesses set up to deliver new and improved technologies that might support a profitable business someday. I'm not speculating here. Here's what IonQ said about its business prospects in regulatory filings before entering the public stock market in 2021: Quantum Computing offered another sobering self-analysis in 2020: "We incurred negative cash flows from operating activities and recurring net losses in fiscal years 2019 and 2018. [...] These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern ." Wall Street's ditches are littered with the remains of development-stage businesses that never lived up to their early expectations. IonQ and Quantum Computing are the first to admit that they might be next in line for financial disaster, bankruptcy, and crumbling investor value. I'm not saying that the two companies are doomed to fail, but you should be aware of the substantial risks involved in owning these stocks. Even if you don't mind risky investments , it's best to make smallish bets on any stock in this volatile industry. Some of the most promising research projects may never result in commercial-grade computing systems, after all. What makes these quantum computing specialists unique IonQ is a leading manufacturer of quantum computing systems. So far, its customer list includes several branches of the U.S. military, South Korean vehicle maker Hyundai , and industrial machinery giant Caterpillar . Anyone can access IonQ hardware through popular cloud-computing platforms from Amazon , Microsoft , and Alphabet . The IonQ Forte system hit the market a year ago. Its trapped ion architecture provides 32 qubits of quantum computing power. That's enough to perform some simple calculations, though the error rate is still high. Estimated to cost about $13 million, the Forte system is still not useful for any real-world business task. Quantum Computing (the company, not the technology itself) started out with a tight focus on providing software and algorithms to run on quantum computing hardware from other companies. Since then, the company has merged with a quantum hardware researcher and is now looking for opportunities to sell computing systems, too. This company is not shipping any hardware yet, though. The third-quarter report in November highlighted several partnerships and research programs, looking forward to potential system sales in 2025. How to invest in quantum computing stocks today All things considered, I think it's too early to pick long-term winners in the promising but risky field of quantum computing. I would approach this game-changing technology from a safer angle. Some of the largest tech giants are also developing quantum computing systems these days, including some of the IonQ partners mentioned earlier. These deep-pocketed businesses are better equipped to manage the unpredictable nature of risky research projects. But I promised to pick a winner in this specific duel, and the choice is very clear. IonQ has already proven its ability to win long-term development contracts and actually deliver a few systems to real-world customers. Moreover, this company has enough cash reserves to make it a couple of years without being forced to raise extra cash in uncomfortable ways. The Quantum Computing company doesn't have that luxury. So I would much rather own IonQ stock than Quantum Computing shares. Your mileage may vary, but the smaller company is too risky for my blood.
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CHARLESTON — The following events happened on these dates in West Virginia history. To read more, go to e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia at www.wvencyclopedia.org . Dec. 29, 1861: Confederate soldiers burned most of downtown Sutton. The town slowly rebuilt but remained small until the local timber industry boomed from 1890 to 1920. Dec. 29, 1928: Humorist and political cartoonist James Frederick Dent was born in Charleston. His talent for turning daily events into delightful anecdotes gained him national fame. Reader’s Digest reprinted 194 items from his columns, and radio commentator Paul Harvey often used his work. Dec. 29, 1970: John Denver and two friends completed the song “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” Denver performed “Country Roads” in West Virginia on several occasions, notably for the opening of the new Mountaineer Stadium in Morgantown in 1980. Dec. 30, 1901: McKendree Hospital started providing medical care in rural Fayette County. It was one of three hospitals established by the state in the fast-growing coalfields. Dec. 30, 1917: The temperature in Lewisburg dropped to 37 degrees below zero. It is the coldest official temperature on record for the state. Dec. 31, 1939: Larry Combs, one of the world’s leading orchestral clarinetists, was born in South Charleston. He started studying woodwinds at age 10 and was principal clarinetist for the Charleston (now West Virginia) Symphony Orchestra at age 16. He later served in the same role for symphonies in Montreal and Chicago and was inducted into the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame in 2009. Dec. 31, 2007: Sara Jane Moore was released from prison after serving 32 years for trying to kill President Ford. Moore grew up in Charleston and later moved to California, where she joined left-wing groups and became an FBI informant. She spent part of her incarceration at the Federal Prison Camp in Alderson. Jan. 1, 1888: In one of the most violent episodes of the Hatfield-McCoy Feud, Jim Vance, uncle to “Devil Anse” Hatfield, led an arson attack on the McCoy family cabin. Two of Randall McCoy’s children were killed, and his wife was beaten. Jan. 1, 1953: Country music legend Hank Williams was found dead in his car in Oak Hill, Fayette County. He had been scheduled to perform in Charleston the previous night, but the concert was canceled due to bad weather. Jan. 2, 2006: An explosion at the Sago Mine in Upshur County killed 12 men. Federal investigators pointed to a lightning strike as the most likely ignition source for the blast. Jan. 3, 1856: Musician Lewis Johnson “Uncle Jack” McElwain of Webster County was born. He was the most respected fiddler in central West Virginia during his lifetime. He took part in many fiddle contests, and no one can recall him ever being beaten. Jan. 3, 1921: The state capitol building in Charleston was destroyed by fire. The so-called Victorian capitol, the second one in Charleston, had opened in 1887. After the fire, a temporary wood-frame building was erected in just 42 days and became known as the “pasteboard capitol.” It burned in 1927. Jan. 4, 1897: Classes began at Montgomery Preparatory School, a state institution established to prepare students for West Virginia University. The school evolved into the West Virginia University Institute of Technology. e-WV: The West Virginia Encyclopedia is a project of the West Virginia Humanities Council. For more information contact the West Virginia Humanities Council, 1310 Kanawha Blvd. E., Charleston, WV 25301; 304-346-8500; or visit e-WV at www.wvencyclopedia.org .High school boys basketball rankings: Perfect start puts Central Valley into top 5 in Class 4A( MENAFN - EIN Presswire) Martha Barrantes shares insights on SME growth, predicting trends like digital transformation, sustainability, and supply chain resilience. SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA, December 28, 2024 /EINPresswire / -- Renowned financial consultant and entrepreneur Martha Barrantes , with over 25 years of experience in accounting and financial management, has unveiled her latest projections for the growth and development of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the face of current global economic shifts. Known for her commitment to empowering SMEs, Barrantes provides invaluable insights into how businesses can navigate challenges and seize opportunities to achieve sustainable growth. "Economic shifts present both obstacles and openings for SMEs," says Barrantes. "Understanding the trends and proactively adapting to these changes is the key to ensuring long-term success. SMEs must be agile, innovative, and well-prepared to leverage the opportunities that come their way." Analyzing the Economic Landscape Barrantes explains that the global economic environment is being shaped by several transformative factors, including technological advancements, supply chain disruptions, and inflationary pressures. While these elements pose challenges, they also create fertile ground for innovation and growth within the SME sector. "SMEs are uniquely positioned to adapt quickly to changing market conditions," Barrantes notes. "Unlike larger corporations, their smaller scale and flexibility allow them to pivot strategies and explore new business models with relative ease. However, this requires a clear understanding of the economic trends at play." Key Projections for SME Growth Based on her extensive experience and analysis, Barrantes shares several projections for SME growth in the current economic climate: 1. Digital Transformation Will Accelerate Barrantes predicts that the digitalization of SME operations will continue to gain momentum. "Businesses that invest in technology to improve efficiency, customer engagement, and scalability will have a significant competitive advantage," she asserts. From eCommerce platforms to cloud-based accounting systems, digital tools are becoming indispensable for SMEs aiming to streamline operations and expand their market reach. Barrantes highlights the importance of adopting technologies that align with specific business goals. 2. Sustainability as a Growth Driver Another key projection from Barrantes is the growing emphasis on sustainability. "Consumers and investors are increasingly prioritizing environmentally responsible businesses," she observes. "SMEs that integrate sustainable practices into their operations will not only contribute to a healthier planet but also attract a loyal customer base and investment opportunities." Barrantes advises SMEs to explore energy-efficient technologies, reduce waste, and partner with eco-conscious suppliers to position themselves as leaders in sustainability. 3. Supply Chain Resilience Will Be Paramount The global supply chain disruptions of recent years have underscored the need for robust supply chain strategies. Barrantes emphasizes that SMEs must build resilience into their supply chains to weather future uncertainties. "Diversifying suppliers, investing in inventory management systems, and fostering strong supplier relationships are crucial steps for mitigating risks," she explains. SMEs that proactively address supply chain vulnerabilities will be better equipped to maintain operations and meet customer demands. 4. Talent Retention and Development Will Define Success Barrantes projects that talent acquisition and retention will be central to SME growth. In an increasingly competitive labor market, businesses that prioritize employee development and well-being will stand out. "Offering competitive benefits, fostering a positive workplace culture, and investing in upskilling programs will help SMEs attract and retain top talent," she advises. "Your team is your most valuable asset, and their growth directly impacts your business's success." 5. Access to Financing Will Evolve Securing financing remains a critical factor for SME growth, and Barrantes anticipates that innovative financing options will become more accessible. "From crowdfunding platforms to fintech solutions, SMEs have more avenues than ever to secure funding," she notes. "However, it's essential to approach financing strategically and align it with long-term goals to avoid over-leverage." Strategies for Navigating Economic Shifts In addition to her projections, Barrantes offers actionable strategies to help SMEs thrive amid economic changes: Focus on Financial Planning: "Robust financial planning is the cornerstone of stability," Barrantes asserts. She encourages SMEs to regularly update their financial forecasts and maintain a cash reserve to navigate uncertainties. Embrace Innovation: Innovation is a powerful tool for overcoming challenges. Barrantes advises SMEs to explore new markets, diversify products, and adopt creative approaches to problem-solving. Prioritize Customer Relationships: Building strong relationships with customers can help SMEs maintain loyalty and adapt to evolving demands. "Understanding and addressing customer needs is essential for long-term growth," she emphasizes. Leverage Professional Expertise: Barrantes recommends seeking guidance from financial consultants and industry experts to navigate complex decisions. "Collaborating with professionals can provide fresh perspectives and enhance strategic planning," she adds. Empowering SMEs for a Resilient Future Barrantes' insights highlight the immense potential within the SME sector, even amidst economic shifts. She believes that with the right strategies and mindset, SMEs can not only survive but thrive in the current landscape. "SMEs play a vital role in driving economic growth and innovation," she says. "By equipping these businesses with the tools and knowledge they need, we can foster a resilient and prosperous future." About Martha Barrantes Martha Barrantes, a Costa Rican entrepreneur, boasts over 25 years of expertise in Project Management, Finance, Accounting, and Tax Consulting. She has founded, steered, and guided businesses toward success, fostering innovation, productivity, and profitability. Barrantes holds a Master's Degree in Finance and Tax Consulting. Martha Barrantes marthabarrantes email us here Visit us on social media: Facebook X Legal Disclaimer: EIN Presswire provides this news content "as is" without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the author above. MENAFN28122024003118003196ID1109037938 Legal Disclaimer: MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.
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