Everyone is watching Iran.
The drones. The missiles. The Strait of Hormuz.
Oil prices are spiking. Gas is up 43 cents in a single week.
But according to this bombshell exposé from investment analysts Porter Stansberry and Luke Lango… Iran isn't the real story. The real story is what Trump just did to China.
You see, China buys 90% of Iran's oil exports.
Last year alone, Iran shipped 520 million barrels of crude to Chinese ports.
But it goes deeper than that. 50% of all China's oil imports flow through the Strait of Hormuz. Right now, that strait is a ghost town. Commercial ships have stopped moving through it.
That means China's energy lifeline just got severed.
And here's where it gets critical: China needs that energy to power its AI war machine. Since 2021, China has added more power capacity than the U.S. has built in its entire history.
Goldman Sachs says China will have three times the world's entire data center demand in spare capacity by 2030. That's their edge. That's how they plan to win the AI race.
But without oil flowing through the Strait of Hormuz… without Iran's 520 million barrels a year… that edge starts to crumble. This isn't a war about nukes. It's a war about who controls the energy that powers the next era of artificial intelligence.
And it's exactly why Trump signed Executive Order 14365:
Declaring AI and advanced computing "strategic national assets" under direct federal protection. The U.S. isn't just bombing Iran. It's cutting off China's fuel supply for the AI arms race.
Porter and Luke predicted this convergence.
They call it America's New 1776 Moment – where economics, technology, and geopolitics collide to create what could be the largest wealth transfer in American history.
And they've identified the assets at the center of this collision… along with the 10 stocks they say you need to SELL immediately.
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE "NEW 1776" BRIEFING
Editor's Note: With the Strait of Hormuz effectively shut, oil prices surging, and the AI arms race accelerating, this may be the most important briefing Porter has ever released.
Whether you're holding energy stocks, tech stocks, or "safe" blue chips – the rules just changed. Get the full details here.
Forget Chipmakers: Walmart and Target Are the Real AI Plays
Authored by Jeffrey Neal Johnson. Originally Published: 3/19/2026.
Key Points
- Walmart is leveraging its vast dataset and AI technology to achieve significant cost savings and enhance the customer shopping experience.
- Target's strategic investment in proprietary AI tools is accelerating its ability to predict consumer trends and increase its profitability.
- Both companies offer a unique opportunity by blending cutting-edge AI innovation with decades of reliable and consistently growing dividend payments.
- Special Report: Have $500? Invest in Elon's AI Masterplan
When investors think about the artificial intelligence (AI) boom, attention often goes to high-flying chipmakers and software developers — companies priced for perfection. Yet a quieter, potentially more consequential AI revolution is unfolding outside the tech hubs, inside the supply chains of America's largest retailers.
As the AI narrative shifts from theory to practical application, established giants are deploying the technology at scale to produce measurable results. Walmart (NASDAQ: WMT) and Target (NYSE: TGT) are leading that shift. A recent Jefferies analyst note highlights that these two retailers are significantly outpacing peers in AI-driven supply chain initiatives, presenting a compelling, under-the-radar opportunity for investors.
From Cost Center to Competitive Edge
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Discover the #1 Memecoin To Own NowFor a big-box retailer, managing a global supply chain is a monumental task. Billions of products must move from manufacturers to distribution centers and onto thousands of store shelves or customer doorsteps. Historically, this complexity has been a massive cost center. Today, AI is turning it into a competitive advantage and a direct driver of profitability. By applying AI, retailers can now address the most complex operational problems with greater precision, converting logistical data into dollars.
This transformation spans the entire supply chain, creating operating leverage that translates into direct cost savings. Key areas of impact include:
- Hyper-Accurate Forecasting: Modern AI systems analyze countless variables — from local weather and community events to social media trends — to predict demand for specific products at a neighborhood level. This reduces waste from overstocking and prevents lost sales from empty shelves.
- Intelligent Inventory Control: Computer vision and other AI tools automate inventory tracking with near-perfect accuracy. Combined with analytics, these systems cut losses from shrinkage — theft, damage, and administrative errors.
- Optimized Warehouse Operations: AI improves placement of goods within fulfillment centers and automates employee and robotics scheduling. That ensures frequently ordered items are easy to access, speeding fulfillment and lowering labor costs.
- Logistical Efficiency: Algorithms that ingest real-time traffic, fuel prices, and delivery windows calculate the most efficient routes for fleets. Those optimizations save millions in fuel and labor, directly boosting earnings per share.
Retail's AI Frontrunners
While many retailers are only beginning to experiment with AI, Walmart and Target have positioned themselves as leaders, each using the technology to amplify its strengths. Their initiatives offer a clear view of how AI is creating shareholder value today.
Walmart's Tech-Driven Dominance
Walmart is using its scale to deploy AI for immediate, measurable financial returns. Its strategic late-2025 move from the New York Stock Exchange to the tech-focused Nasdaq signaled an ambition to be seen not just as a retailer but as a technology company. Central to that identity is Walmart's data: hundreds of millions of weekly transactions fuel AI models with predictive power smaller competitors struggle to match.
The financial impact is already visible. Walmart's AI-powered Self-Healing Inventory system has saved over $55 million by proactively correcting stock discrepancies. In logistics, AI-driven route optimization has reduced delivery miles by 30 million, cutting fuel and labor costs. On the customer side, Walmart's generative AI shopping assistant, Sparky, is lifting sales: shoppers who use the tool have an average order value about 35% higher. This multi-pronged approach has strengthened Wall Street's confidence, reflected in the stock's Moderate Buy consensus rating and strong institutional ownership.
Target's Strategic AI Turnaround
Target is treating AI as the engine of a strategic turnaround. Management has committed an incremental $2 billion in 2026, with a significant portion allocated to technology and AI to make Target faster, smarter, and more profitable.
One standout is Trend Brain, Target's proprietary AI platform that scans fashion publications and social media sentiment to predict emerging apparel trends. Apparel is a high-margin category where staying ahead of trends helps avoid deep, profit-eroding markdowns.
Using AI, Target can bring popular collections to market almost twice as fast, improving margins. AI also powers its omnichannel services — for example, optimizing how employees assemble and stage orders for Drive Up pickup. The strategy is showing results: Target beat earnings estimates in its most recent quarterly report, and multiple analysts have raised price targets. Despite a current Hold consensus rating, that upward momentum suggests the market is starting to reward Target's AI-driven progress.
The AI Investment for the Rest of Us
The true test of a technological revolution is whether it generates value in the real economy. Walmart and Target show that effective AI use unlocks tangible financial benefits. For investors, this shift from creation to application is an attractive opportunity. Pure-play AI stocks often carry high valuations and volatility; these retail giants provide a more defensive, stable way to participate in the AI theme. Their AI-driven efficiencies are a present-day reality strengthening their financial foundation.
That appeal is reinforced by long dividend histories. Both Walmart and Target are Dividend Kings — companies that have raised their dividends for at least 50 consecutive years. Walmart's 53-year streak and Target's 54-year streak illustrate a commitment to returning capital through market cycles.
The margin expansion and cost savings from deep AI integration do more than lift share prices; they help secure and sustain those dividends. That combination of exposure to cutting-edge AI and defensive, income-oriented stability makes a compelling case for investors seeking a pragmatic way to play the AI revolution.
3 Smart Investments If Interest Rates Stay Higher for Longer
Authored by Chris Markoch. Originally Published: 3/23/2026.
Key Points
- Investors should focus on assets that can perform well even if interest rates remain elevated for longer than expected.
- ETFs like VNQI and MLPX provide diversified exposure to real estate and energy infrastructure with strong income potential.
- Equinix stands out as a growth-oriented REIT with pricing power and long-term contracts that help offset inflation pressures.
- Special Report: Have $500? Invest in Elon's AI Masterplan
The March Federal Reserve meeting made it clear investors are facing a much different backdrop than many expected at the start of the year. Back then, hopes ranged from two to several interest-rate cuts.
Falling rates help companies that rely on capital to grow, which is one reason speculative stocks performed well in 2025.
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Discover the #1 Memecoin To Own NowBut inflation, by most commonly used measures, remains stubbornly above the Fed's preferred target. That led Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell to avoid ruling out the possibility of higher rates.
While further hikes are possible, they may be unlikely. What's more probable is a "higher-for-longer" interest-rate environment that lasts longer than markets had anticipated. That shifts the focus to investments that can benefit from persistent inflation without depending on aggressive Fed easing.
In other words, investors should look beyond "what hedges inflation" to "what can hedge inflation and still perform if real rates stay elevated." That narrows the list to targeted ETFs and companies with physical assets and pricing power that can raise rates or fees as prices rise more broadly.
Global Real Estate Exposure Helps VNQI Navigate Higher Rates
Real estate investment trusts (REITs) typically perform well when rates fall but can be hit-or-miss when rates remain elevated. One way to stay invested in real estate without taking on single-REIT risk is through an exchange-traded fund (ETF). Along with a dividend yield around 4.5%, there are several reasons to consider the Vanguard Global ex-U.S. Real Estate ETF (NASDAQ: VNQI).
First, it has an ultra-low net expense ratio of just 0.12%. Second, about $3.5 billion in assets under management (AUM) gives investors ample liquidity for buying and selling shares. Third, despite a recent selloff, VNQI has delivered roughly a 10% total return over the past 12 months.
Investors should pay particular attention to the fund's broader geographic exposure compared with U.S.-centric real estate REITs. At a time when capital is flowing into emerging markets, international exposure can help navigate volatility in the real estate sector.
MLPX ETF Offers Income and Stability in a Volatile Energy Market
Energy stocks, especially oil and gas names, have benefited from higher crude prices, but those gains can be volatile. One way to reduce that volatility is to focus on midstream companies that own and operate pipelines, or on service companies that benefit when higher oil prices spur more exploration.
That case points to the Global X MLP & Energy Infrastructure ETF (NYSEARCA: MLPX). The fund is up more than 22% year-to-date in 2026 and pays a dividend yielding roughly 4%.
MLPX provides exposure to both U.S. and Canadian oil markets, and over 84% of the fund's holdings are in the Oil & Gas Storage & Transportation sector. That gives investors exposure to the pipelines that will be essential as the U.S. continues to invest in energy infrastructure.
Institutional investors also increased positions in the fund in Q4 2025 — before the Iran-related conflict — and that steady demand could remain supportive for MLPX going forward.
Equinix Stock Delivers Growth Through Pricing Power and Data Demand
For investors preferring single stocks, Equinix Inc. (NASDAQ: EQIX) is an appealing option. The specialized REIT sits at the intersection of rising long-term demand for data centers and a business model built on contractual, recurring revenue streams.
Revenue growth should continue in the coming year, making Equinix less sensitive to interest-rate movements — a positive for investors seeking growth that can outpace inflation.
As of March 23, EQIX is up more than 2% year-to-date in 2026, which has reduced the dividend yield to about 2.2%. The company's payout per share is $20.64 and has increased at an annual rate near 12% over the past three years.
Despite a relatively high share price of about $955, analysts continue to raise price targets. Institutional buying still outpaces selling by roughly 2.5-to-1, another vote of confidence from large investors.
In a higher-for-longer rate environment, consider assets with pricing power, steady cash flows, and tangible exposure to inflation — characteristics exemplified by VNQI, MLPX, and Equinix.
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