Good Afternoon. Today’s edition closes out the year for us. With strong growth data, record markets, breakthroughs in medicine, and alongside a consumer who’s still spending. We’ll be back in the new year. Until then, thank you for reading, and wishing you a healthy, restful break.

—Rosie, Wyatt, Evan & Conor

🔥 What’s Hot: 🔥

🥶 What’s Not: 🥶

1. Stocks Near Records as GDP Surprises, Gold Keeps Running

The News: U.S. stocks pushed higher Tuesday, with the S&P 500 hovering near a record close after third-quarter GDP came in stronger than expected. The economy grew at a 4.3% annual rate, the fastest pace in two years and well above the 3.2% forecast, driven largely by resilient consumer spending. Elsewhere, commodities kept stealing attention. Gold surged past $4,500 an ounce before easing slightly, while silver and London-traded copper also hit record highs. While Treasury yields rose modestly.

Why It Matters: This is the market’s favorite contradiction: strong growth and investors buying both stocks and hard assets at the same time. GDP says the economy is humming, but sentiment surveys say households aren’t convinced and gold prices suggest investors still want insurance. Growth is real, but belief in its durability remains…questionable.

What to Watch: Whether equities can hold record levels as consumer confidence continues to be driven by higher earners. Also keep an eye on commodities, gold and copper breaking records usually signals more concern than holiday cheer. For now, markets are celebrating strong data, just with one eye on an exit plan. Now’s a good time to review your portfolio and make sure you’re diversified enough.
Source: wsj.com

2. Aflac Breach Hits 22.6 Million Customers, Exposing Sensitive Health Data

The News: Aflac confirmed it is notifying roughly 22.6 million people whose personal and health information was stolen in a cyberattack disclosed earlier this year. The breach exposed names, dates of birth, home addresses, government-issued IDs, Social Security numbers, and medical and insurance data, according to filings with state attorneys general. Aflac said the attackers may be tied to a known cybercriminal group that has been targeting the insurance industry, and federal law enforcement is involved.

Why It Matters: This is about as bad as a data breach gets. Health and insurance records are uniquely valuable to criminals because they’re nearly impossible to change, making identity theft and fraud harder to contain and longer-lasting for victims. For insurers, the incident underscores how concentrated risk has become: one breach can affect tens of millions of customers at once, with legal costs, remediation expenses, and reputational damage stretching for years. Cybersecurity is no longer a back-office issue, it’s a balance-sheet one.

What to Watch: Watch for regulatory scrutiny, lawsuits, and whether insurers accelerate spending on identity protection and security audits across the sector. Also keep an eye on follow-on disclosures from other insurers targeted in the same wave. For customers, expect a familiar routine: credit monitoring, password changes, and the quiet realization that your most sensitive data is already out there, again. If you haven’t already, be sure to freeze your credit file for free to help stay safe.
Source: techcrunch.com

3. Consumers Do the Heavy Lifting as U.S. Growth Hits a Two-Year High

The News: The U.S. economy grew at a 4.3% annual rate in the third quarter, the strongest expansion in two years and well above economists’ 3.2% forecast, according to a delayed government report released Tuesday. Growth accelerated from 3.8% in the prior quarter, powered primarily by consumer spending, which rose at a 3.5% pace. Healthcare services, international travel, and spending on software and personal computers all contributed.

Business investment also helped, though momentum cooled. Overall business spending grew 2.8%, down sharply from 7.3% in the second quarter, while residential investment fell for a second straight quarter. Inflation picked up alongside growth, with core prices rising at a 2.9% annualized rate, up from 2.6% previously. Trade added a meaningful boost as exports rose and imports declined.

Why It Matters: Once again, the U.S. consumer showed up even while confidence surveys say they didn’t feel like it. Strong spending is keeping the economy humming despite higher inflation, sluggish hiring, and clear strain among lower-income households. The disconnect matters: growth looks healthy on paper, but it’s being carried disproportionately by higher earners and services spending, while housing and durable goods lag.

What to Watch: Watch whether consumer spending holds up into 2026 as people get their holiday credit card bill, inflation stays sticky and real disposable income flattens. Also watch revisions: this data predates the government shutdown and could still shift. For now, the takeaway is simple, the economy is growing faster than expected, thanks largely to consumers who keep spending even while insisting they shouldn’t be.
Source: wsj.com

4. Starlink Blows Past 9 Million Users

The News: SpaceX’s Starlink crossed 9 million global subscribers, adding a full million users in just 47 days. The satellite internet service now operates in 155 countries and territories and is averaging more than 21,000 new customers per day. Starlink’s constellation includes over 10,000 launched satellites, with about 8,500 active, giving it roughly two-thirds of all operational satellites in orbit.

Why It Matters: This is what product–market fit looks like when the market is the entire planet. Starlink is becoming the default broadband option in places fiber never reached and increasingly a backup where it did. With projected revenue north of $10 billion in 2025, the service has quietly become SpaceX’s main cash engine, funding everything from rockets to moonshots. The speed of adoption also raises the stakes for regulators, competitors, and national telecom providers who suddenly have a space-based rival moving very fast. As SpaceX looks towards a potential IPO in 2026, Starlink will be one of the main factors pushing for higher valuations.

What to Watch: Watch Starlink’s next act: mobile. Trademark filings and partnerships with T-Mobile and Kyivstar point toward direct-to-cell services that could blur the line between satellite internet and cellular networks. Also watch reliability and congestion as the user base explodes. Rebuilding the internet in space may not be easy but Starlink is clearly in a hurry to finish the job.
Source: benzinga.com

5. Experimental Drug Reverses Alzheimer’s in Mice

The News: Researchers from Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals, and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center reported that an experimental compound fully restored cognitive function in mice with advanced Alzheimer’s disease. The drug, P7C3-A20, rebalanced NAD+, a key cellular energy molecule depleted in Alzheimer’s brains, and normalized a leading human biomarker tied to tau pathology. In a separate study, Northwestern University researchers showed a different compound, NU-9, could stop the disease before symptoms begin by neutralizing toxic protein buildup inside neurons. Both findings were published in peer-reviewed journals this month.

Why It Matters: This challenges one of neuroscience’s most stubborn beliefs: that once Alzheimer’s damage is done, it’s irreversible. If these mechanisms translate to humans, treatment could shift from slowing decline to restoring function and even preventing symptoms altogether. That would be a seismic change for patients, caregivers, and healthcare systems facing a disease that currently has no cure and massive economic costs. Still, these are mouse studies, which is where many Alzheimer’s breakthroughs have historically gone to… retire quietly.

What to Watch: Watch for early human trial data and how regulators evaluate safety, especially around NAD+ modulation, which can be risky if pushed too far. Also watch investor interest in the companies commercializing these approaches—Glengary Brain Health and Akava Therapeutics—as funding often determines whether promising science ever reaches patients. For now, it’s hope with an asterisk but you know what they say, rebellions are built on hope.
Source: news.uhhospitals.org

1. Global Stocks Beat the U.S. By the Most Since 2009

The News: International markets are wrapping up 2025 with their strongest relative performance against U.S. stocks in more than three decades. The MSCI World ex-USA index is up 29% for the year, beating the S&P 500 by nearly 12 percentage points, the widest gap since the aftermath of the financial crisis. A weaker dollar, surging commodities, and a rotation away from crowded U.S. tech trades powered the move.

Canada and South Korea led the charge. Canada’s TSX climbed 29% on strength in materials, financials, and energy, while South Korea’s Kospi surged 68%, making it the world’s best-performing major index on the back of AI-driven chip demand and governance reforms. Europe and emerging markets also posted solid gains, helped by lower correlations and more attractive valuations.

Why It Matters: After more than a decade of U.S. dominance, diversification finally paid—loudly. A 10–13% slide in the dollar amplified foreign returns for U.S. investors, while gold’s 70% rally and strong materials performance reshaped global leadership. The shift reflects more than a currency move: investors are reassessing concentration risk in mega-cap U.S. tech and rediscovering markets tied to commodities, financials, and domestic reform stories.

What to Watch: Watch whether this rotation sticks into 2026 or stalls if the dollar stabilizes and U.S. tech continues to reassert itself. Also keep an eye on commodities, gold and silver have done much of the heavy lifting for global markets. For now, global diversification isn’t just a theory again, it’s a viable option for the long term.
Source: tickernews.com

2. Libya Reopens the Door to Big Oil After 17-Year Freeze

The News: Libya plans to award its first oil and gas exploration licenses since 2008, with contract awards expected by February 2026. The licensing round covers 22 onshore and offshore blocks holding an estimated 10 billion barrels of discovered resources and up to 18 billion barrels of undiscovered potential. More than 30 companies, including BP, ExxonMobil, Shell, and TotalEnergies, are competing, lured by revamped fiscal terms that sharply improve returns for investors.

Why It Matters: This is Libya signaling it’s open for business, at least on paper. Revised contracts boost potential internal rates of return from barely investable levels to numbers that make oil executives answer emails again. For Europe, Libya’s proximity and existing pipelines offer a potential alternative supply source as the continent continues to diversify away from Russia. For markets, the move highlights how geopolitics and energy security are quietly pulling capital back toward frontier producers, even when the risks are obvious and unresolved.

What to Watch: Watch whether political stability holds long enough for deals to close and for rigs to actually arrive. Security remains the wildcard, with production historically vulnerable to sudden disruptions. If Libya can maintain output and attract sustained investment, it could materially lift supply by the end of the decade. If not, this may join the long list of energy plans that looked great in a prospectus.
Source: thenationalnews.com

3. Robot synthesizes nearly 700 compounds in a week, finds new antibiotic

The News: Researchers at the University of York used an automated lab robot to synthesize and screen more than 700 metal-based compounds in a single week, dramatically accelerating the hunt for new antibiotics. The study, published Monday, identified a promising iridium-based compound that proved effective against drug-resistant bacteria while showing low toxicity to human cells. Using a combination of robotic liquid handling and “click chemistry,” the team generated 672 compounds and tested them almost immediately against common pathogens.

Why It Matters: This is what speed looks like in drug discovery—and it’s badly needed. Antibiotic resistance now kills more than a million people a year, while pharma investment in new antibiotics has quietly dried up because the economics are terrible. By automating synthesis and testing, researchers can explore huge swaths of chemical space that humans simply don’t have time for. The robot didn’t just save labor, it found a viable lead in days, not decades. If this approach scales, it could finally unclog one of medicine’s most dangerous bottlenecks.

What to Watch: Watch whether metal-based antibiotics, long viewed as too toxic, get a second look as data keeps improving. Also watch how quickly automation moves from academic labs into commercial drug pipelines. For now, the takeaway is simple: when new technology is aimed at an old problem, they sometimes stumble into life-saving discoveries.
Source: nature.com

Q: Why are ghosts bad politicians?

A: Because they are too transparent.

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