Author: user

Image source: Getty Images Just as the internet has transformed the world over the past 30 years, artificial intelligence (AI) is set to do something similar in the decades ahead. That makes it an exciting megatrend to back in my Self-Invested Personal Pension (SIPP) and Stocks and Shares ISA. Here’s how I’m hoping my portfolio grows in value as the AI era advances. Broad-based exposure Over the past few years, I have built up a lot of different AI investments. For a start, I hold a Nasdaq 100 exchange-traded fund (ETF). This gives me broad exposure to all the leading…

Read More

Image source: Getty Images Sometimes people wonder how much they’d need in a portfolio to generate enough passive income to live on. Even though this is an honourable goal, I think it’s often better to flip it around and look at a realistic portfolio size to see how much income it could generate. Based on an investor having built up a £50,000 portfolio over several years, here are my findings. Setting the tolerance Risk appetite is a big part of the equation that an investor needs to address. From the beginning of building a portfolio, an investor can choose a…

Read More

Image source: Getty Images With the FTSE 100 up 12% so far in 2025, we’re not seeing quite the same dividend yields from the top income stocks that we’ve had in the past. There might not be any 10%-plus ones to be had in the top index these days. But Legal & General (LSE: LGEN) still offers a fat forecast 8.4%. And we have first-half results coming on 6 August. If they’re good, might that push the share price up and lower the prospective dividend yield? Hmm, maybe we should consider buying before that can happen? The insurance and asset…

Read More

Image source: Getty Images Penny shares have the potential to make investors a lot of money in a very short space of time. But this can work both ways, of course, as a 5p share price can quickly become 2p. With this in mind, I note Virgin Galactic (NYSE: SPCE) stock has been surging higher. It has gone from $2.37 (or about £1.76) in April to just under $4 today. That’s a 65% jump! In the US, a business trading for a couple of dollars with a $98m market cap — like Virgin Galactic in April — would be classed…

Read More

Markets expect the Fed to hold rates steady on Wedenesday, despite pressure from the White House and public calls for cuts from FOMC members like Governor Waller. Analysts see signs of a shift toward easing—possibly beginning in September—but warn that Trump’s fiscal policies may complicate Powell’s efforts to control inflation, regardless of rate decisions. Jerome Powell has a chance to make his life significantly easier this week. If he was minded, he could recommend at the meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) that the base rate should be cut—thus removing some of the pressure the White House is…

Read More

In January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order titled “Removing Barriers to American Leadership in Artificial Intelligence.” The goal was to maintain and expand America’s edge in AI technology to enhance national security, economic power, and human development. Following up on that directive, the White House released “Winning the AI Race: America’s AI Action Plan” on July 23. The strategy aims to place the U.S. at the forefront of global AI development by fast-tracking infrastructure, encouraging innovation, and promoting international cooperation. Officials called it a transformative roadmap to power a new era of American technological dominance. Key Highlights of…

Read More

Image source: Getty Images Despite the FTSE 250 hitting a 52-week high this week, not every stock on the index is winning. And of those struggling, few are doing worse than popular high-street baker Greggs (LSE: GRG). The company’s shares are down a staggering 45% year-to-date, making it the second-worst performer on the UK’s mid-cap index. I’ve held shares in Greggs for several years, but lately I’ve started to question that situation. Less than a year ago, the price came close to breaching its all-time high above £33. Today, it trades near £15. If this slide continues, it won’t be…

Read More

UN Secretary-General António Guterres has declared that the global energy transition has reached a point of no return. As clean energy investments pass $2 trillion in 2024, renewable energy is now more cost-competitive than fossil fuels. Guterres said we have entered the “clean energy age” and must act quickly to build on this progress. With solar and wind becoming some of the cheapest sources of energy, countries and companies are shifting toward sustainable energy sources at a fast pace. Source: UN Are Renewables Really Cheaper Than Fossil Fuels? Yes—and by a big margin in many regions. According to a recent…

Read More