BUSINESS

OMAHA, Neb. — Warren Buffett may have retired as Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s CEO on Jan. 1, 2026, but the legendary investor remains chairman and is still consulted on major capital decisions as the conglomerate navigates a record $373 billion cash pile and a shifting investment landscape.

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia depends heavily on the Strait of Hormuz for roughly half of its diesel imports, even as the country imports virtually no crude oil directly from the Middle East, leaving the nation exposed to disruptions in the critical chokepoint that carries about one-fifth of global seaborne oil and significant LNG volumes.

Shares of AXT Inc. (NASDAQ: AXTI) skyrocketed more than 19% midday Wednesday, climbing to $54.10 as investors piled into the semiconductor materials maker on renewed optimism over its role in supplying critical substrates for artificial intelligence infrastructure and data center expansion.

Alphabet Inc.'s Class C shares (NASDAQ: GOOG) climbed more than 3% midday Wednesday, reaching $313.96, as investors cheered fresh signs of strength in the company's artificial intelligence initiatives and cloud computing business amid a broader technology sector rebound.

With Bitcoin trading around A$100,000 to A$102,000 in early April 2026, Australian investors face a familiar dilemma: buy the dip in hopes of another bull run, sell to lock in gains after last year's volatility, or simply hold through what many analysts call a transitional year in the cryptocurrency's four-year cycle.

Americans reported losing a staggering $11.366 billion to cryptocurrency-related scams in 2025, a 22% increase from the previous year and the highest total on record, according to the FBI's annual Internet Crime Complaint Center report released Monday.

Warren Buffett, the legendary investor who stepped down as Berkshire Hathaway CEO at the end of 2025, continued his pattern of net stock selling into early 2026, trimming major holdings to amass a record cash pile now exceeding $373 billion.

LONDON — The FTSE 100 index jumped sharply Wednesday, climbing more than 300 points or nearly 3% to trade around 10,666 as investors cheered a surprise two-week ceasefire between the United States and Iran that raised hopes for a partial reopening of the Strait of Hormuz and an easing of the global energy crisis.

NEW YORK — Oil prices tumbled sharply Wednesday after the United States and Iran announced a two-week ceasefire that raised hopes the partially reopened Strait of Hormuz could ease the worst global supply disruption in decades, sending benchmark crude below $95 a barrel for the first time in weeks.

NEW YORK — U.S. stock futures soared early Wednesday while oil prices plunged after President Donald Trump announced a two-week ceasefire with Iran, contingent on Tehran allowing the safe reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, triggering a sharp relief rally across global markets and easing fears of prolonged energy disruptions from the five-week conflict.

AUSTIN, Texas — Elon Musk fired off a single-word reply — "lol" — to an old Wall Street prediction urging investors to sell Tesla stock, igniting a viral storm on X that underscored how dramatically the electric-vehicle pioneer has defied skeptics over the past eight years. The April 8, 2026, post quickly amassed millions of views as users piled on with memes, old headlines and fresh data showing Tesla shares up roughly 1,100% since the 2018 bearish call.

NEW YORK — World oil prices tumbled sharply Wednesday after President Donald Trump announced a framework ceasefire between the United States, Israel and Iran, easing fears of prolonged disruption to crude flows through the Strait of Hormuz and sending Brent crude futures plunging more than 13% in early trading.

SINGAPORE — As Singapore cements its position as Southeast Asia's AI powerhouse in 2026, a dynamic ecosystem of homegrown champions and global players is driving breakthroughs in fintech, retail analytics, healthcare, and enterprise automation. Backed by strong government support through the National AI Strategy 2.0, generous R&D incentives, and events like GITEX AI Asia, these companies are not only transforming local industries but also expanding influence across the region and beyond.

SYDNEY — In a year when Australia's average employee turnover hovers around 16% and one in three businesses battles rates above 20%, a select group of employers is defying the odds with retention rates that set new benchmarks for workplace excellence.

The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania has dethroned longtime leader Stanford Graduate School of Business to claim the top spot in the QS Global MBA Rankings 2026, signaling a shift in how the world's most ambitious professionals evaluate elite business education amid surging demand for artificial intelligence expertise, sustainable leadership and international networks.

Shares of Alignment Healthcare Inc. surged more than 18% in morning trading Tuesday, climbing to $22.13, up $3.46 or 18.53%, on heavy volume as investors piled into the Medicare Advantage specialist amid renewed optimism about its differentiated care model, strong membership expansion and improving profitability in a sector facing reimbursement pressures.

CVS Health Corp. shares jumped more than 6% in morning trading Tuesday, climbing to $78.19, up $4.92 or 6.71%, as investors cheered fresh optimism around Medicare Advantage payments and the company's ongoing turnaround efforts in a challenging health care environment.

Paramount Skydance Corp. shares surged nearly 9% in morning trading Tuesday as the newly formed media giant moved closer to securing $24 billion in equity commitments from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds to finance its ambitious $81 billion to $110 billion takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery, a deal that could reshape Hollywood and the global streaming landscape.

Hologic Inc. shares hit a fresh 52-week high of $76.07 Tuesday as the medical technology company's $18.3 billion buyout by private equity giants Blackstone and TPG appeared on track to close as early as April 7, leaving investors with a narrow window to decide whether to buy, sell or ride the deal to its likely conclusion.

Intel Corp. shares climbed more than 2.5% in early trading Tuesday as the semiconductor giant continues to ride optimism from a major deal that gives it full control of a key European manufacturing plant, part of a broader push to reclaim leadership in advanced chip production amid fierce AI competition.

UnitedHealth Group Inc. shares rocketed more than 8% Tuesday morning after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services finalized a 2.48% payment rate increase for Medicare Advantage plans in 2027 — far higher than the near-flat proposal issued in January that had hammered insurer stocks earlier this year.

Alphabet Inc. Class C shares (NASDAQ: GOOG) slipped 1.40 points, or 0.47%, to $296.26 in morning trading Tuesday, April 7, 2026, as investors continued to balance the company's aggressive artificial intelligence investments against ongoing antitrust pressures and broader market caution tied to geopolitical tensions.

U.S. stocks opened lower Tuesday as investors grew increasingly nervous ahead of President Donald Trump's 8 p.m. ET deadline for Iran to agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face potentially devastating U.S. military strikes on Iranian infrastructure.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbled more than 290 points in early trading Tuesday as investors grew anxious ahead of President Donald Trump's self-imposed 8 p.m. ET deadline for Iran to agree to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face intensified U.S. military strikes.

SYDNEY — Australian fuel prices have begun to moderate in early April 2026 after the federal government's temporary halving of the fuel excise and an additional cut funded by GST revenue, yet they remain significantly higher than pre-conflict levels due to ongoing disruptions from the war in the Middle East and Iran's restrictions on the Strait of Hormuz.

U.S. mortgage rates remained largely stable Tuesday amid ongoing uncertainty from Middle East tensions, with the average 30-year fixed rate hovering around 6.38% to 6.50% depending on the lender survey, offering little relief for homebuyers entering the peak spring season.

LONDON — The FTSE 100 index edged higher Tuesday, reaching 10,461.88 points by mid-morning trading on April 7, 2026, as gains in energy and defensive stocks offset broader caution stemming from escalating geopolitical risks in the Middle East.

SYDNEY — Sales and registrations of electric vehicles in Australia jumped sharply in March 2026, with some states recording increases of nearly 50 per cent month-on-month as record-high petrol and diesel prices, triggered by global oil market turmoil linked to the U.S.-Iran conflict, pushed more motorists toward battery-electric options.

OAK BROOK, Ill. — McDonald's Corp. CEO Chris Kempczinski has responded directly to widespread online mockery over a promotional video in which he took a notably small bite of the chain's new Big Arch burger, insisting he regularly enjoys the company's food and remains committed to menu innovation despite the social media firestorm.