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Esteban Ma

573 Articles

Esteban Ma, CFA Level 2 CANDIDATE, is a financial editor at TradingKey, mainly focusing on covering equities, cryptocurrencies and commodities. With two years of experience in crypto at Gate.io Research and three years in comprehensive finance, he specializes in cryptocurrency industry analysis and macroeconomic analysis.

He passed the Certificate of Security Qualification(CSQ) and Certificate of Futures Qualification(CFQ).

Written by Esteban Ma

Reviewed by Esteban Ma

Hundreds Closed, Thousands Cut: Starbucks’ Painful Turnaround Goes Deeper Than Expected

TradingKey - Global coffee chain giant Starbucks (SBUX.US) announced on Thursday a $1 billion restructuring plan, including closing hundreds of stores and laying off 900 employees across North America. This marks Starbucks’ second major round of job cuts in 2025, signaling another decisive move in

SEC Scrutinizes Crypto Treasury Stocks for Insider Trading, Challenging Strategy’s Buy-and-Hold Crypto Model

TradingKey - Amid a broader crypto market pullback, U.S. regulators SEC and FINRA have launched preliminary reviews into some of crypto treasury companies. Regulators have begun examining whether abnormal trading patterns exist in the stocks of companies that have adopted crypto purchases as a core

Soft September Tokyo CPI Doesn’t Mean a Softer BOJ Stance as Yen Stabilizes

TradingKey - While stronger-than-expected U.S. Q2 GDP data pushed USD/JPY toward the psychological 150 level, weaker-than-expected inflation in Japan’s key early indicator — the September Tokyo CPI — failed to reinforce expectations of further yen weakness. Instead, the yen briefly strengthened

U.S. August PCE Preview: Four-Run PCE Bounce Challenges the Fed’s Three-Cut Plan

TradingKey - The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) will release the August Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) Price Index on Friday, September 26, with markets closely watching how much tariff pass-through effects have influenced inflation.

Trump’s Low-Oil-Promise Splits U.S. Energy Sector: Shale Break-Even at $60, Survival Line at $40

TradingKey - The Trump administration’s pledge to boost U.S. crude output and lower oil prices is drawing fierce backlash from American shale producers. WTI crude has fallen 18% from its January peak and is now approaching the industry’s widely recognized break-even level of $60 per barrel, with

Tesla Poised for a Q3 “Delivery & Stock Price” Double Win as Wall Street Turns Bullish

TradingKey - Whether measured by stock price or vehicle deliveries, Tesla is staging a strong comeback in the third quarter — a sharp reversal from its earlier struggles this year. Following Goldman Sachs, both UBS and Wolfe Research have now raised their Q3 delivery forecasts.

Wall Street Divided on Nvidia-OpenAI Alliance: AI Ecosystem Masterstroke vs. Next Cisco Bubble?

TradingKey - Since September, a series of cross-investments and partnerships among major AI tech giants have unveiled a capital game that is as exciting as it is puzzling: OpenAI buys cloud capacity, Oracle buys chips, and Nvidia reinvests in OpenAI — forming an almost perfect “AI Circle.”

Rate Hike Countdown for October? Former BOJ Board Member Says “Inflation-Focused BOJ Can Act at Any Time”

TradingKey - Following the two dissenting votes at the September Bank of Japan (BOJ) meeting and a slightly hawkish tone from BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda, a former BOJ board member has now publicly backed a potential October rate hike — the second increase in 2025 — signaling that Japan’s push toward

Cathie Wood's Ark Invest Rebuilds Alibaba Position Amid Renewed AI Momentum

Shortly after Cathie Wood's Ark Invest re-established its position, Alibaba’s stock surged 9%, fueled by major advancements in its AI strategy, including a full-stack AI upgrade and a new partnership with Nvidia.

Biggest Cloud Provider Amazon’s AI Lag Makes It the Magnificent Seven’s Most Vulnerable in 2025

TradingKey - Despite remaining the leader in cloud computing, Amazon has struggled to convince investors with a clear AI growth narrative, and its dominance in the cloud may be at risk. Amazon’s stock has risen just 0.60% this year, making it the weakest performer among the U.S. tech Magnificent

Powell Flashes Red Light to Stocks: Valuations High, October Rate Cut Not Guaranteed

TradingKey - Reiterating that there is no risk-free path for monetary policy, Fed Chair Jerome Powell has now sounded a warning on elevated stock valuations.

Supply Crunch, Record Profits, Profit Focus: Micron’s Q4 Earnings Defy the Memory Cycle

TradingKey - Micron Technology (MU), the sole U.S.-based memory chipmaker, delivered a stunning Q4 FY2025 earnings report and issued first-quarter FY2026 guidance far above market expectations. Fueled by AI and data center demand, High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) products are in severe shortage, and

Doves Lone, Hawks Strike Back — U.S. Treasuries Fall for Four Days as Inflation Fears Haunt Fed Officials

TradingKey - After the Federal Reserve restarted its easing cycle in September and signaled two more rate cuts this year, several Fed officials have shifted toward a more hawkish tone, leaving only Stephen Miran, the Trump-backed new Fed governor, standing alone in advocating additional aggressive

Is Google Facing Another Breakup? U.S. Antitrust Focuses on the AdX Platform

TradingKey - After failing to force Google to divest its Chrome browser, the U.S. government is now concentrating its antitrust firepower on another major case: demanding that Google sell off its online advertising exchange platform, AdX.

The $100 Billion Alliance: NVIDIA’s Deep Ties to OpenAI Cement Its Role as AI’s Backbone

TradingKey - After raking in massive profits from selling AI chips, Nvidia is now transforming from a hardware supplier into an architect of the AI ecosystem through aggressive infrastructure investments. The company’s latest strategic partnership with OpenAI, involving a potential $100 billion

H-1B Restrictions as Trade Weapon? India Faces Dual Threat to Its IT Exports and Currency

TradingKey - Since around 70% of H-1B visa beneficiaries are of Indian origin, the Trump administration’s new policy to raise H-1B application fees to $100,000 is widely seen as a direct blow to India’s globally renowned IT services industry — potentially an extension of escalating tensions in the

ASML Poised to Be the Ultimate AI Winner, Bolstered by Wall Street as Oracle, Intel Surge

TradingKey - In the two-year U.S. bull market, Nvidia, the quintessential “picks and shovels” play of the AI era, has been seen as a guaranteed winner in any AI-driven trade. But as Nvidia faces tightening chip export restrictions, Wall Street is shifting focus upstream — to ASML, the Dutch

Who Pays for Trump’s H-1B Visa Fee Hike? The Triple Shock: Corporate Costs, Labor Chaos, Innovation at Risk

TradingKey - Citing the need to "protect American workers," President Donald Trump has signed a new executive order overhauling the H-1B visa program, raising application fees from around $5,000 to $100,000 per visa — sending shockwaves through U.S. corporations. Critics warn this “worker-first”

Pfizer Bets Big with 110% Premium to Acquire Metsera — A Lifeline in the Weight-Loss Drug Race

As Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly dominate the weight-loss drug market — building empires from scratch — and after its own R&D setbacks, U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer (PFE) is now going all-in with a doubled-premium acquisition of rising obesity drug developer Metsera.

Wall Street’s De-Dollarization Shift: Short the Dollar, Not U.S. Assets — Hedging America with Precision

As Fed rate cuts loom and some of President Trump’s policies — including tariffs — show signs of softening, Wall Street analysts are rewriting the “de-dollarization” script into a more nuanced strategy: “Hedge America.” Investors are selling the U.S. dollar, but still buying U.S. equities.

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