The latest Market Talks covering Financial Services. Exclusively on Dow Jones Newswires at 4:20 ET, 12:20 ET and 16:50 ET.
1140 ET - Robinhood Chief Executive Vladimir Tenev sees prediction markets as a new way for traders and investors to gain information. Increasingly, prediction markets are being used not just as a tool for traders to speculate, but also as a new source of information, Tenev says during an interview with CNBC. Robinhood earlier this week launched a "preset combo" product within its prediction markets offerings, which closely resembles a parlay bet. "We think we're in the early stages of a prediction market super-cycle where the amount of volumes in this new asset class are going to grow tremendously," Tenev says. (katherine.hamilton@wsj.com)
1058 ET - Lifestyle won out over luxury, Zillow says, as the defining theme of Americans' home-search behavior in 2025. This year's search trends found home shoppers gravitating toward adaptable spaces and attainable comforts. Search behavior in 2025 shifted away from square footage and high-end features toward homes that support lifestyles. Americans searched more often for proximity to water, flexible layouts that accommodate family needs and small comforts that make a home feel functional and personal. 2025 was the year people stopped searching for more home and started searching for more meaning at home, Zillow says. Searches for outdoor and experience-driven features grew sharply. Interest in pool, patio, yard and view rose year-over-year, showing strong demand for livability over square footage. Searches tied to high-end living, including mansion, luxury and acreage, cooled from 2024. (chris.wack@wsj.com)
1045 ET - A typical household in the St. Louis suburb of Bellefontaine Neighbors, Mo., would need to spend just 16% of their income on housing every month, Redfin says, the lowest share in the nation and less than half the national average. This is according to a Redfin analysis of median incomes and median home sale prices across nearly every U.S. city, using weighted averages from January to November 2025. Nationwide, the typical homeowner has to spend 39% of their income on housing, which is well above the recommended 30% threshold. A majority of the most affordable cities are located in the Midwest and southern U.S. Housing in these regions tends to be quite old, especially in places like Detroit, which can keep prices low. Every city in the top 50 has a median sale price near or below $300,000. (chris.wack@wsj.com)
0754 ET - Cost cutting and better deployment of capital will help Societe Generale to grow its earnings per share at an average rate of 20% between now and 2028, Bank of America analysts write. The French bank will also boost its return on tangible equity to 13% from 10% over the next three years, which the analysts say is at the heart of their confidence in the group. Evolving the group's French retail business into a digital bank will cut costs and improve weak profitability, the analysts add. Societe Generale is the biggest riser in the French CAC 40, gaining 3.3%.(josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)
0621 ET - HSBC will benefit from Hong Kong's push to be a global leader in offshore wealth management and capital markets, KBW analysts write. Savers in mainland China are increasingly looking to invest outside the country as a result of unappealing domestic alternatives, Edward Firth and Elise Yu Ge say. The dynamic will push more of the $22 trillion Chinese domestic savings market to wealth managers including HSBC, the pair write. KBW expects HSBC to outperform revenue expectations next year. Its rating on the stock has been upgraded to outperform from market perform. Shares are up 4.3%, making it the largest riser in the FTSE 100 index. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)
0549 ET - Steepening European yields and lower borrowing costs in the U.K. and U.S. will support life insurers over nonlife insurers, analysts at UBS write. Noting the broader insurance sector's outperformance in 2025, a famine won't immediately follow the feast, the analysts say. However, nonlife insurers will experience revenue squeezed by pricing pressure next year, they say. Broadly, the sector benefits from strong balance sheets, which could drive greater returns to investors, they add. Phoenix Group gains 4% after UBS upgrades its rating on the stock to buy from neutral, citing the potential for excess to be deployed toward investment. London-listed Prudential and Aviva gain 2.4% and 1.6%, respectively. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)
0520 ET - U.K. banks gain after inflation data for the country came in lower than expected. The 3.2% print for November was below forecasts, solidifying expectations that the Bank of England will lower the cost of lending Thursday. HSBC is the biggest climber, gaining 3.6%, with Standard Chartered up 2.4%. The two lenders also benefited from a broker upgrade, Interactive Investor's markets head Richard Hunter writes. "Taken together with a higher unemployment figure yesterday, there seems no doubt that an interest rate cut will follow tomorrow," Hunter writes. Elsewhere, Barclays and Lloyds are up 2.4% and 1.5%, respectively, helping the FTSE 100 to climb 1.6%. (josephmichael.stonor@wsj.com)
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
December 17, 2025 12:20 ET (17:20 GMT)
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