🪔 What to expect this week

Good morning investors! Welcome to another holiday-shortened week as markets close for New Year's Day.

Today we cover:

📊 Economy and News

Here’s what to keep an eye on this week:

One More Thing: 22 states raise minimum wage in 2026, most effective Jan 1.

Reminder: India’s Zepto files for IPO as quick-commerce race heats up. Elsewhere, China issues draft rules to regulate AI with human-like interaction.

📈 Stocks

S&P 5006,929.94 (+0.42%) (-0.030%)
DJIA 48 710,97 (+0.14%) (-0.041%)
NASDAQ 23 593,10 (+0.57%) (-0.087%)
BRENT CRUDE 60.14 (-2.57%)
* Prices as of Dec 29th, 12:20 AM UTC

Oracle shares have plunged about 30% this quarter, putting them on track for the steepest decline since the 2001 dot-com bust.

New co-CEOs Clay Magouyrk and Mike Sicilia, appointed three months ago, face investor skepticism over Oracle's massive AI infrastructure expansion. A landmark September deal commits OpenAI to spend over $300 billion on Oracle cloud services, driving a huge revenue backlog but requiring enormous capital outlays.

Recent earnings showed weaker-than-expected revenue and free cash flow. Oracle plans $50 billion in fiscal 2026 capital expenditures—up 43% from prior guidance—plus $248 billion in leases for data centers. The company raised $18 billion in debt in September to fund growth, raising concerns about its investment-grade rating.

The stock soared to a record $345.72 after the OpenAI deal announcement but has since dropped over 40%, closing around $198 last week. Analysts worry about heavy reliance on OpenAI, declining margins (projected to fall to ~49% by 2030), and negative free cash flow in coming years.

Some investors remain optimistic, citing founder Larry Ellison's track record and potential for hypergrowth to $225 billion in annual revenue by 2030, largely from AI.

💵 Personal Finance

In August 2025, the U.S. Department of Education under the Trump administration rejected 327,955 applications for income-driven repayment (IDR) plans, according to a December court filing in a lawsuit settled with the American Federation of Teachers.

These plans cap monthly payments based on income and offer forgiveness after 20-25 years (or 10 years for Public Service Loan Forgiveness participants). Denials leave borrowers facing higher payments or interest-accruing forbearance. As of November, over 802,000 additional IDR applications remain pending.

The department cited an "unforeseen ambiguity" when applicants requested "the plan with the lowest monthly payment," as multiple plans yielded equal amounts. Critics, including higher education expert Mark Kantrowitz and advocate Persis Yu, called this justification weak, noting existing guidelines for ranking plans in tie situations.

With the Biden-era SAVE plan blocked and other IDR options phasing out under recent legislation, experts recommend the Income-Based Repayment (IBR) plan as the best current choice—typically 10-15% of discretionary income.

If denied: Reapply immediately at StudentAid.gov, selecting a specific plan (e.g., IBR) rather than the lowest-payment option. Use online tools to compare monthly costs under available plans.

This comes amid challenges, including potential wage garnishment for defaults starting in January 2026 and over $1.6 trillion in outstanding student debt held by more than 42 million Americans.

💰 Be a Better Investor

👩🏽‍⚖️ Legal Stuff
FOR EDUCATIONAL AND INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY; NOT ADVICE. Morning Download products and services are offered for educational and informational purposes only and should NOT be construed as a securities-related offer or solicitation or be relied upon as personalized financial advice. We are not financial advisors and cannot give personalized advice.  There is a risk of loss in all trading, and you may lose some or all of your original investment. Results presented are not typical.  This message may contain paid advertisements, or affiliate links.  This content is for educational purposes only.

Please review the full risk disclaimer:  MorningDownload.com/terms-of-use