Glow in the dark
Digging into the nuclear renaissance
Good morning, metallurgy masters. This is your Stock Market Rundown for November 30th, 2023. Thank you so much for joining me once again. Let’s dig in:
TODAY’S TOP STORY: THE NEW ATOMIC AGE
 It’s toxic, it’s a radiation hazard, and it’s more than doubled in price over the past three years. Uranium is back in the headlines, thanks to nuclear energy suddenly being trendy again. Quite a switch from a few years ago, when it was as out of style as acid-washed bell bottoms.Â
The meltdown of Japan’s Fukushima reactor in 2011 made many of us fear nuclear energy as disaster-prone and dangerous, and led to nuke plants shutting down worldwide.
But now, with governments struggling to reduce fossil fuel use, fission is getting a fresh look. Sixty new nuclear reactors are under construction globally, which is spurring a supply squeeze for the uranium feedstock those reactors will require.
To ease it, shovels are hitting the dirt on new uranium mines globally. The biggest is a megaproject in frigid Northern Saskatchewan, Canada that’ll produce over 20 million pounds a year, fuelling enough electricity generation to power millions of iPhones, Instant Pots, and Teslas.
Experts say nuclear is the key to energy security. In fact, Miss America 2023 was a nuclear engineer who toured the country advocating for mass adoption of nuclear energy. (Guess it was the right move cancelling the swimsuit competition.)
Hedge funds are betting big on uranium, piling into mining stocks that are plays on the metal, and public support for nuclear energy is spiking, with broad-based support from both left and right. Who knew Homer Simpson had one of the most in-demand jobs in the economy when he was clocking in for shifts at the Springfield nuclear power plant?
SO WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
Some bean-counters are getting coal in their stocking this year. Top accounting firm KPMG has frozen salaries for 12,000 employees due to a slowdown in advisory work.
Bill Gates says AI will lead to a society where we only have to work 3 days a week. Keep in mind, this is a guy who’s probably had somebody putting toothpaste on his toothbrush for him since 1997.
Did anybody misplace a million gallons of crude oil? The US Coast Guard found it in the Gulf of Mexico. Please pick it up at the lost and found.
LiveNation, owner of Ticketmaster, is being forced to testify before a US Senate panel probing the abusive tactics it uses to shut out competition in the concert industry. Senators, please also make them explain the exorbitant beer prices at their shows. How am I supposed to enjoy Blink 182 when beers are $9.50 each?
Clocking out for today, comrades; see you bright and early tomorrow. Yours in capitalism, The Axe
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Hit me up at theaxe@stockmarketrundown.co