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November 30, 2024

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In this video from StockCharts TV, Julius takes a deep dive into US sector rotation, breaking it down into offensive, defensive and cyclical sectors. He first looks at the relative rotations that are shaping up inside the group, assessing each sector’s price chart in combination with the rotation on the Relative Rotation Graph to get a complete picture. This all culminates with the chart of SPY, which is showing a lot of strength recently. Going forward, the crucial question will be whether SPY can rally further without the participation of technology, the most important sector in the universe.

This video was originally published on November 27, 2024. Click anywhere on the icon above to view on our dedicated page for Julius.

Past videos from Julius can be found here.

#StayAlert, -Julius

Thailand is sending almost 1,000 highly endangered tortoises and lemurs home to Madagascar in a landmark victory against animal trafficking, with the first batch on its way on Saturday.

The repatriation is the largest ever between the two countries, according to Thai officials.

Thai police recovered 1,117 animals, eight of which had died, during an anti-trafficking operation in the southern Thai province of Chumphon in May.

Among them were spider tortoises, radiated tortoises, ring-tailed lemurs and brown lemurs, all listed among the world’s “most endangered” animals under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

These species are highly sought-after in Asia as exotic pets, though replicating their natural habitat is extremely difficult, often putting their life at risk.

Some of the animals seized in May have since died due to poor health caused by a lack of food and water when they were smuggled to Thailand. Some also failed to adapt to the new environment.

Thai authorities held an official ceremony in the capital Bangkok on Wednesday to hand over the animals to Madagascan officials.

A total of 961 live animals will be sent back on three flights operated by Qatar Airways starting Saturday.

Dr. Chalermchai Sri-on, Thailand’s minister of natural resources and environment, said the repatriation shows Thailand’s commitment to combating illegal wildlife trafficking as well as prioritizing the welfare of seized species.

“By conducting operations like this and broadcasting them globally, it shows that there are arrests and exchanges happening, making people worldwide aware that possessing these animals is not right,” he said.

“Some might think that if they have the money, they can buy and collect them, but that’s not the case.”

UK-based conservation group Traffic said in a statement that the repatriation was “a true testament to the power of international collaboration in addressing the wildlife trafficking crisis.”

Illegal trades in timber and wildlife have been identified as the second-largest threat to Madagascar’s rich biodiversity, the group said in a 2023 report.

Thailand is the largest importer of wildlife from Madagascar in Southeast Asia, a region that plays “a vital role” in the trade and re-exporting of some of Madagascar’s most threatened species, the report said.

Between 1975 and 2019, Thailand directly and indirectly exported almost 35,000 animals or their products from Madagascar, according to the report.

This post appeared first on cnn.com

Reddit is ramping up efforts to attract more users outside of the U.S., putting countries like India and Brazil in focus as it looks to unlock new advertising opportunities, a top company executive told CNBC.

In a wide-ranging interview, Jen Wong, chief operating officer of Reddit, said other platforms have 80% to 90% of users outside of the U.S. while about half of her company’s current users are based internationally.

“So that points to a lot of our future user growth opportunity definitely outside of the U.S. and local language,” Wong told CNBC. “The opportunity, the way I think about it, is every language is an opportunity for another Reddit.”

Reddit has historically been an English-language platform, but the company is looking to expand its international reach with the help of artificial intelligence translations. This year, Reddit launched a feature that automatically translates its site into different languages.

Wong said that around 20 to 30 languages could be available by the end of the year.

Among the company’s fastest-growing markets in terms of users is the U.K., the Philippines, India and Brazil.

“India’s growing really rapidly,” Wong said. “We see a big opportunity in India.”

The Reddit COO said that India has a large English-speaking internet population, and there are lots of engaged users around topics like cricket and the Bollywood movie industry.

Wong also said Reddit has been meeting with “mods” — or moderators, who oversee content on communities on the site.

Growth in markets like India can propel Reddit to boost ad revenue, its main source of income.

International markets account for just over 17% of Reddit’s revenue currently, according to the company’s third-quarter results, despite around 50% of its users being located outside the U.S.

Wong said that Reddit first attempts cross-border advertising for international markets, such as when a European brand is looking to advertise in the U.S. Then, when Reddit hits about 10% of a country’s internet population in a country, there is an opportunity to build teams focused on local advertising — like an Indian brand advertising to Indian users.

This has not yet happened in many markets, but Reddit is keeping an eye on many of its fastest growing countries, Wong said.

Reddit users will know that it’s not always the easiest site to find what you’re looking for — a drawback that the company is now looking to change with new search tools.

During Reddit’s third-quarter earnings call last month, CEO Steve Huffman called search on the platform a “focused investment” in 2025.

Wong expanded that the company is thinking of its search feature as a way of helping users to navigate around the site to find similar topics or posts that they may have otherwise missed.

“You land on a post and but it’s almost like a dead end. But there are a lot of posts, often like that post, or there are other posts like that post in other communities. And so giving you a total view of what that looks like is a really interesting opportunity,” Wong said.

“Guiding you through Reddit as you follow that line of thinking, is how we think of the opportunity.”

Wong declined to say more except, “We’re testing a lot of things.”

This post appeared first on NBC NEWS