WSJ: Rare-Earth Companies Become "America’s New Hottest Investment"

“America’s hottest investment”

AI age clock

Milei’s midterm triumph

China’s April export restrictions on rare earths, tightened in October, disrupted auto production and spiked prices, prompting U.S. threats of 100% tariffs, now paused under a tentative trade framework.

Major U.S. investments include $2.2 billion from the U.S. Export-Import Bank for Australian mineral projects, Defense Department funding for a gallium refinery, and JPMorgan’s $10 billion pledge to national-security-linked firms.

MP Materials’ stock quadrupled to a $12 billion valuation; Lynas Rare Earths tripled after raising $500 million; Ucore Rare Metals soared over 700% with a $18 million Pentagon grant for a Louisiana plant.

⭐ Editor’s Pick: The U.S. and China forged a substantial framework for tariff negotiations, averting threatened 100% duties on Chinese goods and delaying Beijing's rare-earth export controls for a year. (ABC)

Trump inked trade and critical minerals pacts with Cambodia, Thailand, and Malaysia at the ASEAN Summit. (TH)

Brazilian President Lula revealed that Trump “guaranteed” a forthcoming trade deal between the nations. (INV)

Trump indicated that a decision on appointing a new Federal Reserve chair could come by year-end. (RTS)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Vertex Pharmaceuticals could surpass Pfizer’s market cap by 2030, driven by its cystic fibrosis dominance, new drugs like Journavx and Casgevy, and a robust pipeline targeting diabetes and kidney disease, according to Motley Fool. (MF)

Market Beat analysts spotlighted MercadoLibre, Rocket Companies, and On Holding—trading 21% to 35% below their 52-week highs—as prime consumer discretionary picks for a Q4 rebound. (MB)

Morningstar revealed top-performing fund managers are loading up on non-tech stalwarts like Mastercard, Eli Lilly, JPMorgan Chase, Marsh & McLennan, and Stryker, drawn to their potential for steady growth amid a frothy market. (MS)

Zoomd Technologies is carving out a commanding position in the open-internet advertising arena through its AI-powered platform, signaling substantial upside potential, according to Seeking Alpha. (SA)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Bessent announced that Trump and Xi will finalize a long-awaited TikTok sale deal on October 30 in South Korea. (TC)

Disney World reported three deaths within a 10-day span—two from apparent medical issues and one suspected suicide. (EW)

Boeing's St. Louis-area machinists narrowly rejected a proposed five-year contract by a 51%-49% vote, prolonging a strike that began in early August. (WSJ)

CBS News Editor-in-Chief Bari Weiss is exploring hires of prominent conservatives like CNN commentator Scott Jennings to bolster the network's ideological balance. (SEM)

Meyer Lansky II, grandson of the infamous mobster, explained how athletes unwittingly entangle themselves with organized crime through seemingly benign financial deals amid the NBA gambling scandal. (FOX)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Chevron CEO Mike Wirth hailed Trump’s energy policy during a Permian Basin tour, asserting it will spur greater investment, hiring, and domestic production to bolster U.S. energy security. (FBN)

Trump signed an executive order granting a two-year exemption to Biden-era emission rules for U.S. copper smelters, easing regulatory burdens on producers. (RTS)

Hyundai Engineering & Construction secured a contract with U.S. developer Fermi America for four large nuclear reactors to power a Texas AI data center. (INV)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Trump nominated Michael Selig, a seasoned crypto regulation expert from the SEC's Crypto Task Force, to chair the CFTC. (TB)

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong laid out his vision for every startup to launch, fund, and IPO onchain, envisioning a future where blockchain tech transforms traditional financial systems. (CR)

Polymarket CMO Matthew Modabber has confirmed plans to launch a native POLY token and an airdrop. (FL)

Crypto.com applied for a national trust bank charter from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. (BBG)

AlphaSnake combines two predictive models using plasma samples from 302 middle-aged individuals, analyzing genetic, nutritional, and health-related markers.

The tool’s “delta age” (difference between biological and chronological age) correlates with health indicators like cholesterol, blood pressure, and glucose levels.

A positive delta age signals faster biological aging, while a negative delta age indicates slower aging, helping identify at-risk individuals.

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Google AI Studio unveiled a "vibe coding" experience powered by Gemini models, enabling users to swiftly build AI applications for videos, images, or code simply by describing their vision. (DW)

AI is revolutionizing habit formation through neuroscience-backed algorithms that deliver personalized nudges, adaptive reminders, and dopamine-fueled gamification to forge intuitive routines. (QZ)

Saudi Arabia is harnessing its oil-derived wealth and cheap energy to emerge as a global exporter of AI computing power, investing billions in vast data centers. (NYT)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: China's Ghost Jellyfish drone, equipped with a transparent body and hydrogel tentacles, achieves near-invisibility underwater, enabling stealthy deep-sea reconnaissance. (TOI)

South Korean researchers unveiled OCTOID, an octopus-inspired soft robot that dynamically camouflages, crawls, and grasps objects up to 30 times its weight. (IE)

HL Robotics' "PARKIE," billed as Korea's thinnest autonomous parking robot, captivated crowds with live demonstrations at the Future Innovation Technology Expo. (DT)

Sam Altman recruited top biomolecular engineer Mikhail Shapiro to his brain-computer interface startup Merge Labs, aiming to pioneer a noninvasive alternative to Neuralink using ultrasound and gene therapy. (SOU)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Trump is advancing plans for a "Golden Fleet" of new Navy warships to supplant the existing fleet and sharpen U.S. maritime superiority against China. (WSJ)

China is harnessing its DeepSeek AI model to revolutionize military operations by powering autonomous robot dogs and swarming drone formations for rapid target recognition. (RTS)

Castelion secured a Pentagon contract to integrate its cost-effective "Blackbeard" hypersonic weapon onto Army and Navy platforms. (FBN)

Valinor Advanced Research unveiled a mobile charging station for short-range drones as part of a U.S. Army CRADA aimed at bolstering Pentagon drone logistics in contested environments. (DS)

⭐ Editor’s Pick: Valthos raised $30 million from Founders Fund to develop AI-driven biodefense tools that detect pathogens in real time, and accelerate medical countermeasures against synthetic biology threats. (AIM)

AI contractor marketplace Mercor is finalizing a $350 million funding round led by Felicis Ventures at a $10 billion valuation. (WSJ)

Hemab Therapeutics raised $157 million in a Series C extension, led by Sofinnova Partners, to advance its pipeline of targeted antibody therapies for underserved coagulation disorders. (BPD)

ChipAgents, an AI startup pioneering generative agents for chip design, secured $21 million in Series A funding led by Bessemer Venture Partners. (EVT)

La Libertad Avanza outperformed the Peronist opposition in Buenos Aires, a historic upset in a long-standing stronghold, winning 41.5% to 40.8%.

Inflation dropped from 12.8% pre-inauguration to 2.1% last month, alongside a fiscal surplus and broad deregulation, signaling early success for Milei’s policies.

Milei’s performance was bolstered by Trump providing a $40 billion aid package, including a $20 billion currency swap, to Argentina.

Trump congratulated Milei, writing: "Congratulations to President Javier Milei on his Landslide Victory in Argentina. He is doing a wonderful job! Our confidence in him was justified by the People of Argentina."

⭐ Editor’s Pick: U.S. lawmakers are pressing the Trump administration to redesignate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern for its failure to curb escalating Islamic terrorism against Christians. (CP)

State Department will release Global Engagement Center documents in coming weeks, exposing censorship of conservative voices. (BN)

University of Sheffield slapped trigger warnings on the Bible's Gospels, igniting backlash as a hollow guise for censorship. (GBN)

Brazil unveiled an AI-powered “Platform of Respect,” dubbed Aletheia, to scour online discourse for hate speech offenses against so-called misgendering. (RTN)