Latin America's Data Center Gold Rush Comes With Some Big Risks
The region is capturing unprecedented investments for the construction of data centers, the physical facilities that house servers, networks and data storage units to run applications and other digital services. Despite its political and economic upheavals, Latin America offers important advantages for these capital-intensive projects, including abundant renewable energy and natural resources such as metals and rare earths, a skilled local workforce and, in some cases, favorable jurisdictions or even tax incentives.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
27 minutes ago
- Yahoo
It's not just Bitcoin: Altcoin XRP's price is also rising. Here's a possible reason why
Earlier today, Bitcoin hit an all-time high of over $118,000 per token, giving many crypto investors hope that the digital coin king may soon surpass the psychologically important barrier of $120,000. What is fractional leadership, and why is it booming now? 5 companies that could hit a $4 trillion market cap after Nvidia AI will kill the org chart But Bitcoin isn't the only cryptocurrency significantly on the rise today. The altcoin XRP is also up today—more than 13% over the past 24 hours as of the time of this writing. Here's a possible reason why. In the world of cryptocurrency, you have one king, Bitcoin. Keeping in line with the nobility nomenclature, the title of prince belongs to Ethereum, the second-largest crypto by market cap. The title of duke, then, would go to XRP, the third-largest crypto by market cap. All Bitcoins in the world currently have a market cap of about $2.3 trillion, while Ethereum sits at about $361 billion, and XRP hovers around $161 billion. XRP, then, is one of the bigger so-called altcoins on the market. According to Yahoo Finance data, the current price of XRP (XRP–USD) is right around $2.76 per token. One of the largest holders of XRP is Ripple Labs Inc., a company that offers digital cross-border payment solutions like the decentralized RippleNet. Over the past 24 hours, XRP has seen a significant increase. As of the time of this writing, the coin is trading at around $2.7636 apiece. That's a more than 13% gain in the last day. But why is XRP surging? Any rise or fall in any crypto is usually linked to more than one reason, but over the past few days, investors seem to be more bullish on XRP—and perhaps thanks in part to a specific event. As noted by The Coin Telegraph, on Wednesday, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs hosted a hearing called 'From Wall Street to Web3: Building Tomorrow's Digital Asset Markets.' The event covered a number of topics, as noted by Bitcoin Magazine, including the regulatory environment surrounding crypto. One of the witnesses at the event was Ripple Labs' CEO Brad Garlinghouse. Since that event, XRP has steadily increased. Garlinghouse's presence at the event seems to suggest to some investors that Ripple may have a growing involvement with policymakers in Washington. If so, it may help boost the appeal of XRP, which Ripple owns a lot of. Of course, whether Ripple Labs actually has an increasing involvement with policymakers in D.C. remains to be seen—and even if they do, it doesn't mean XRP is guaranteed any kind of upward trajectory. Still, over the past five days, XRP has surged 20%. While XRP's five-day jump of 20% seems impressive, it's nothing compared to what the coin has done over the past 12 months. Since last July, XRP has surged a staggering 507%, according to data from Yahoo Finance. That's an astounding return compared to its peers. Bitcoin, for example, is up just over 105% in the same period, and Ethereum is down just over 3%. This post originally appeared at to get the Fast Company newsletter:
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
The S&P 500 Just Made a Bullish Crossover. Here's Why That Might Not Necessarily Mean a Big Rally Is Coming.
The S&P 500 recently made a very bullish "crossover," which has been known to precede to a strong rally. The last time a similar crossover took place was back in 2023, a year when the index rose by 24%. Investors, however, should consider the full context when analyzing chart trends. 10 stocks we like better than S&P 500 Index › The S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has been doing fairly well this year, and has recovered after the early Trump tariff news spooked investors back in April. It's back up around record levels, and recently made a very bullish crossover -- one that it hasn't made in two years. When there's a big "crossover" in stock prices' moving averages for different time frames, that can be a very bullish sign to buy, according to technical analysts who rely on chart patterns. But that doesn't mean an investment or asset is guaranteed to rise in value after such a crossover. It's always important to consider context. Here's why you shouldn't get too excited about what might normally be a very positive indicator for the S&P 500. A "golden cross" occurs when a shorter-term moving average crosses above a longer-term moving average. On the flip side, when the opposite happens, that's referred to as a "death cross," and technical analysts consider it a very bad indicator. Recently, the S&P 500's 50-day moving average crossed above its 200-day moving average, making a golden cross. A death cross did occur earlier this year when "reciprocal tariffs" were announced, but as you can see from the chart above, the S&P 500 has recovered in a relatively short fashion. The last time that a golden cross took place was back in early 2023, a year when the S&P 500 would go on to rally by more than 24%. Investing based on charts alone can be a dangerous strategy because they don't tell you the whole story, and it's important to understand what's going on in the markets, along with the relevant risks. Back in early 2023, when the last golden cross took place, the S&P 500 was coming off a brutal year in 2022 when it plunged by more than 19%. A golden cross then was a good sign that the market was recovering. This time around, however, things are a bit different. If not for the "reciprocal tariffs" that were announced back in April, a death cross probably wouldn't have happened, and neither would this recent golden cross. This is where context is important in analyzing any chart trends. It's not as simple as assuming that because a golden cross has taken place, stocks are destined to go higher. Instead, it looks like the S&P 500 has effectively gotten back to where it was before the threat of tariffs derailed its progress. I definitely wouldn't interpret this as a sign that stocks are likely to go on to major gains, not with the S&P 500 at record levels and with the threat and uncertainty around tariffs still hovering over the markets. The S&P 500 has historically risen in value over the long term, and that's the only real trend you need to worry about with the index. In fact, the death cross that took place earlier this year highlights a significant weakness in relying on technical analysis and charts alone. By simply looking at the earlier chart back in April, you may not have expected a bearish crossover to suddenly take place. If, however, you were following market-related news and were aware that wide-scale tariffs were about to be put in place, you may have anticipated a significant pullback in the markets due to worsening investor sentiment. Charts can be useful tools in assessing how a stock or asset is doing, but you shouldn't base your investing decision on what a trend may suggest is happening. The good news, however, is that with a simple buy-and-hold strategy, you can ignore chart trends and just hang on for the long haul. This is where tracking the S&P 500 through exchange-traded funds can be an easy, no-nonsense way to grow your portfolio over the long term without having to worry about what's happening in the markets on a day-to-day basis. Before you buy stock in S&P 500 Index, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and S&P 500 Index wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $674,432!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $1,005,854!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 1,049% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 180% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of July 7, 2025 David Jagielski has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. The S&P 500 Just Made a Bullish Crossover. Here's Why That Might Not Necessarily Mean a Big Rally Is Coming. was originally published by The Motley Fool Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Individual investors account for 43% of Quantum Graphite Limited's (ASX:QGL) ownership, while insiders account for 29%
The considerable ownership by individual investors in Quantum Graphite indicates that they collectively have a greater say in management and business strategy A total of 15 investors have a majority stake in the company with 51% ownership 29% of Quantum Graphite is held by insiders This technology could replace computers: discover the 20 stocks are working to make quantum computing a reality. If you want to know who really controls Quantum Graphite Limited (ASX:QGL), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are individual investors with 43% ownership. Put another way, the group faces the maximum upside potential (or downside risk). Meanwhile, individual insiders make up 29% of the company's shareholders. Insiders often own a large chunk of younger, smaller, companies while huge companies tend to have institutions as shareholders. In the chart below, we zoom in on the different ownership groups of Quantum Graphite. Check out our latest analysis for Quantum Graphite Institutions typically measure themselves against a benchmark when reporting to their own investors, so they often become more enthusiastic about a stock once it's included in a major index. We would expect most companies to have some institutions on the register, especially if they are growing. We can see that Quantum Graphite does have institutional investors; and they hold a good portion of the company's stock. This suggests some credibility amongst professional investors. But we can't rely on that fact alone since institutions make bad investments sometimes, just like everyone does. It is not uncommon to see a big share price drop if two large institutional investors try to sell out of a stock at the same time. So it is worth checking the past earnings trajectory of Quantum Graphite, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too. Hedge funds don't have many shares in Quantum Graphite. Chimaera Capital Limited is currently the company's largest shareholder with 8.2% of shares outstanding. Meanwhile, the second and third largest shareholders, hold 7.7% and 5.8%, of the shares outstanding, respectively. Salvatore Catalano, who is the second-largest shareholder, also happens to hold the title of Senior Key Executive. A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 15 shareholders have a combined ownership of 51% implying that no single shareholder has a majority. Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. As far as we can tell there isn't analyst coverage of the company, so it is probably flying under the radar. The definition of company insiders can be subjective and does vary between jurisdictions. Our data reflects individual insiders, capturing board members at the very least. The company management answer to the board and the latter should represent the interests of shareholders. Notably, sometimes top-level managers are on the board themselves. Insider ownership is positive when it signals leadership are thinking like the true owners of the company. However, high insider ownership can also give immense power to a small group within the company. This can be negative in some circumstances. Our most recent data indicates that insiders own a reasonable proportion of Quantum Graphite Limited. It has a market capitalization of just AU$166m, and insiders have AU$48m worth of shares in their own names. We would say this shows alignment with shareholders, but it is worth noting that the company is still quite small; some insiders may have founded the business. You can click here to see if those insiders have been buying or selling. With a 43% ownership, the general public, mostly comprising of individual investors, have some degree of sway over Quantum Graphite. While this size of ownership may not be enough to sway a policy decision in their favour, they can still make a collective impact on company policies. We can see that Private Companies own 18%, of the shares on issue. It might be worth looking deeper into this. If related parties, such as insiders, have an interest in one of these private companies, that should be disclosed in the annual report. Private companies may also have a strategic interest in the company. I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Be aware that Quantum Graphite is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , you should know about... Of course this may not be the best stock to buy. Therefore, you may wish to see our free collection of interesting prospects boasting favorable financials. NB: Figures in this article are calculated using data from the last twelve months, which refer to the 12-month period ending on the last date of the month the financial statement is dated. This may not be consistent with full year annual report figures. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
