by Louis Navellier
January 13, 2026
Early in the new-year, we’ve already seen several international surprises to help promote peace and prosperity around the world. First, President Trump’s international credibility rose after a successful raid to capture Venezuelan President Maduro, who is facing a trial in the U.S. Then, Cuba reported 32-military officers protecting Maduro were killed in the U.S. raid. This decisive action by the U.S. is expected to ensure low crude oil prices for years to come, perhaps decades, as major U.S. energy companies join Chevron to help boost Venezuelan crude oil production. In a speech, President Trump made it clear he wants the Venezuelan people to prosper and wants U.S. companies to invest to aid to help this process.
As you may have heard, President Trump likes to talk about how Colombia, Cuba and Mexico should behave. Since Venezuela has multiple Cuban advisors, and Cuba relies on Venezuelan crude oil, Cuba may be the next domino to fall. Further complicating matters, the White House has reiterated its demand to buy Greenland from Demark. Naturally, many European allies are appalled by this Greenland demand.
President Trump asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to lead the process to implement economic and political reforms in Venezuela to achieve the “full, complete and total” cooperation from the Caracas government. Some independent media folks were detained after Maduro’s arrest, so I suspect Rubio will strive to keep officials of the Maduro regime from intimidating the media and Venezuelan citizens. President Trump also said the U.S. is now controlling the Venezuelan crude oil and wants to distribute the proceeds to the Venezuelan people. It’s all part of the new “Donroe Doctrine” in the Western hemisphere.
The U.S. also seized a Russian oil tanker in the Atlantic last Wednesday after pursuing it for two-weeks after it fled the U.S. Navy’s blockade of Venezuela. Specifically, the U.S. military’s European command announced it boarded the Marinera, previously known as the Bella 1, over sanctions violations. Another oil tanker was seized in the Caribbean region, carrying Venezuelan crude oil. Then the Olina was also boarded in the Caribbean on Friday, so the seizure of several sanctioned oil tankers continues.
There are also large protests in Iran over its deteriorating currency and oppression of its citizens. The word “azadi,” Farsi for freedom, is being chanted during demonstrations. Iran’s rial has dropped 60% in value since June when it launched missiles into Israel. Tehran is also struggling with a drought so severe people may have to move as their water taps run dry. These large protests may result in a leadership change, which would be another welcome development, since Iran’s president recently said Iran was at war with Europe, Israel and the U.S., which is not the view held by most Iranian citizens.
As the Trump administration cracks down on international opposition in nations like Iran and Venezuela, crypto-currencies are doing poorly after a brief “dead cat” bounce, raising speculation criminals may be rushing to cash in their crypto-currency. If you are invested in crypto-currencies, I strongly recommend you sell them and switch to gold if you are looking for a more reliable alternative to the U.S. dollar.
Nvidia Still Leads in AI Innovation
Despite all these international distractions, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas last week served to remind investors AI and technology are still fueling U.S. economic growth. The robotics displays were especially popular, along with massive televisions, getting cheaper each year. The U.S. remains the world’s technology leader, but China is also innovative and a serious competitor.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang’s presentation at CES was very reassuring to NVDA investors. For instance, Jensen said, “Demand for Nvidia GPUs is skyrocketing,” and added, “It’s skyrocketing because models are increasing by a factor of 10, an order of magnitude every single year.” Wearing his sparkly leather jacket, Jensen’s backdrop included multiple robots. Specifically, Jensen said Nvidia, “is working with robo-taxi operators in hopes of having them use the company’s AI chips and Drive AV software stack to power their fleets of autonomous vehicles as soon as 2027.” Level 4 robo-taxis driving without human intervention in pre-defined areas is Nvidia’s primary self-driving focus. Jensen said, “Robotics, including self-driving cars, is the company’s second most important growth category after AI.”
Finally, Jensen said its next generation AI chip, Vera Rubin, “is in full production” and scheduled for delivery to customers later this year. The Vera Rubin architecture is a six-chip system combining a Vera CPU and two Rubin GPUs, designed to provide significant improvements in speed and power efficiency. Specifically, the Vera Rubin NVL72 AI GPU promises up to five-times greater performance and 10-times lower cost per query than Nvidia’s exiting Blackwell GPUs. In other words, Nvidia next generation GPU will be lowering the cost of utilizing AI, which should help it spread exponentially. It is very odd for a company as big as Nvidia to experience exponential growth, but Nvidia is making this growth happen!
Most Economic Indicators Point to 5% GDP Growth in 2026
Last Wednesday, the Institute of Supply Management (ISM) said its non-manufacturing, service sector index rose to 54.4 in December, up from 52.6 in November, the third-consecutive month of expansion and the fastest growth in the service sector in over a year. The new orders component surged to 57.9 in December, up from 52.9 in November, while the business activity component rose to 56, up from 54.5 in November. Also impressive, the new export orders component rose to 54.2 in December, up from 48.7 in November, while 11 of the 16-service industries ISM surveyed reported expanding in December. Overall, the ISM service index bodes well for positive revisions to fourth-quarter GDP growth.
In more good news for fourth-quarter GDP growth, the U.S. trade deficit plunged to its lowest level in 16-years! Last Thursday, the Commerce Department announced the trade deficit plunged to $29.4 billion in October, down from $48.1-billion in September. Exports surged 2.6% in October to $302-billion, while imports plunged by 3.2% to $331.4-billion. Also, the U.S. continues to export a lot of gold, while pharmaceutical imports plunged due to on-shoring efforts. The U.S. trade deficit with China was almost cut in half to $14.9-billion compared with $28.1-billion a year ago!
When I appeared on Fox Business, my 5% GDP forecast raised some eyebrows there. Fortunately, the Atlanta Fed now backs me up. They reported last Thursday their revised estimate for fourth-quarter GDP growth is now a 5.4% annual pace, double its previous 2.7% estimate – due to the smaller October trade deficit and big productivity gains, rising 4.9% in the third-quarter, after a 4.1% rise the previous quarter. Productivity is now running at the fastest pace in two-years, as AI is fueling those gains in many firms.
Many overseas companies are now electing to onshore more work to America to avoid tariffs. This is already happening in the automotive and aerospace industries as well as the pharmaceutical industry.
Of course, the data-center boom is also accelerating and pushing GDP growth higher due to rising order backlogs. Due to “drill baby, drill,” the U.S. has an abundance of natural gas and is leading the world on building data-centers, thanks to Bloom Energy (BE) and GE Vernova (GEV) providing fuel-cells and turbines to data-centers with a direct natural gas supply and effectively avoid the electric grid.
Last Wednesday, ADP reported private payrolls rising by just 41,000 in December, which was below the economists’ consensus estimate of 48,000. In November, 29,000 private payroll jobs were lost, so in the past two-months, ADP reported only 12,000-private payroll jobs were created. In December, 5,000 manufacturing jobs were lost, while education and health services created 39,000-private jobs, followed by 24,000-jobs in leisure and hospitality. In the regional break-down, the West lost 61,000-private sector jobs in December, while the South led national job growth with 54,000-new jobs.
Then, on Friday, the Labor Department reported 50,000-payroll jobs were created in December, well below the economists’ consensus expectation of 73,000-jobs. The unemployment rate declined to 4.4% in December, down from a revised 4.5% in November. November payrolls were revised down to 56,000 (from 64,000 previously reported), and the October payroll had a massive downward revision to a loss of 173,000-jobs (from -105,000 previously reported). Last September, the Labor Department said the payroll data between; April 2024 through March 2025 will likely be revised substantially lower. As a result of these big downward revisions, the Fed will likely need to continue to cut key interest rates.
Another reason the Fed needs to cut key interest rates is the Institute of Supply Management (ISM) announcing their manufacturing index declined to 47.9 in December, down from 48.2 in November. This marks the 10th consecutive month the ISM manufacturing index has been below 50, the level signaling a contraction. The new export orders component rose to 46.8 in December, up from 46.2 in November. Despite this “green shoot,” ISM reported only two of the 17-industries surveyed reported expanding in December. The expanding sectors were Electrical Equipment, Appliances & Components, and Computer & Electronic Products. Clearly, data-center demand is helping boost orders in these two-industries.
Fed Governor Stephen Miran is now calling for 150-basis points in cuts this year, in order to boost the labor market. He said the Fed policy is restrictive with inflation is running at 2.3%, which provides the Fed with plenty of room to cut rates. On Bloomberg TV, Miran said, “I’m looking for about a point and a half of cuts. A lot of that is driven by my view of inflation,” adding, “Underlying inflation is running within noise of our target, and that’s a good indication of where overall inflation is going to be….”
If deflation appears, due to: (1) weak housing/rental prices, (2) low crude oil prices, and (3) the deflation imported from China and other weak economies around the world, the Fed is going to have to slash key interest rates by 100-basis points, and darn quick. President Trump is also expected to nominate a new Fed Chairman soon, so existing Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is expected to become a lame duck.
Navellier & Associates; own Nvidia (NVDA), GE Vernova Inc. (GEV), and Bloom Energy Corporation Class A (BE), in managed accounts. We do not own Chevron Corp (CVX). Louis Navellier and his family own Nvidia (NVDA), GE Vernova Inc. (GEV), and Bloom Energy Corporation Class A (BE), via a Navellier managed account and Nvidia (NVDA), in a personal account. They do not own Chevron Corp (CVX), personally.
All content above represents the opinion of Louis Navellier of Navellier & Associates, Inc.
Also In This Issue
A Look Ahead by Louis Navellier
Major Moves in the Caribbean Region Keep Oil Flowing
Income Mail by Bryan Perry
The New Year Is Loaded with Lots of Moving Parts
Growth Mail by Gary Alexander
As Birth Rates Shrink, Demography Defines Our Destiny
Global Mail by Ivan Martchev
As the First Week in January Goes, So Goes the Year
Sector Spotlight by Jason Bodner
The New Year Brings a New Hunt for Market Winners
View Full Archive
Read Past Issues Here
Louis Navellier
CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER
Louis Navellier is Founder, Chairman of the Board, Chief Investment Officer and Chief Compliance Officer of Navellier & Associates, Inc., located in Reno, Nevada. With decades of experience translating what had been purely academic techniques into real market applications, he believes that disciplined, quantitative analysis can select stocks that will significantly outperform the overall market. All content in this “A Look Ahead” section of Market Mail represents the opinion of Louis Navellier of Navellier & Associates, Inc.
Important Disclosures:
Although information in these reports has been obtained from and is based upon sources that Navellier believes to be reliable, Navellier does not guarantee its accuracy and it may be incomplete or condensed. All opinions and estimates constitute Navellier’s judgment as of the date the report was created and are subject to change without notice. These reports are for informational purposes only and are not a solicitation for the purchase or sale of a security. Any decision to purchase securities mentioned in these reports must take into account existing public information on such securities or any registered prospectus.To the extent permitted by law, neither Navellier & Associates, Inc., nor any of its affiliates, agents, or service providers assumes any liability or responsibility nor owes any duty of care for any consequences of any person acting or refraining to act in reliance on the information contained in this communication or for any decision based on it.
Past performance is no indication of future results. Investment in securities involves significant risk and has the potential for partial or complete loss of funds invested. It should not be assumed that any securities recommendations made by Navellier. in the future will be profitable or equal the performance of securities made in this report. Dividend payments are not guaranteed. The amount of a dividend payment, if any, can vary over time and issuers may reduce dividends paid on securities in the event of a recession or adverse event affecting a specific industry or issuer.
None of the stock information, data, and company information presented herein constitutes a recommendation by Navellier or a solicitation to buy or sell any securities. Any specific securities identified and described do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold, or recommended for advisory clients. The holdings identified do not represent all of the securities purchased, sold, or recommended for advisory clients and the reader should not assume that investments in the securities identified and discussed were or will be profitable.
Information presented is general information that does not take into account your individual circumstances, financial situation, or needs, nor does it present a personalized recommendation to you. Individual stocks presented may not be suitable for every investor. Investment in securities involves significant risk and has the potential for partial or complete loss of funds invested. Investment in fixed income securities has the potential for the investment return and principal value of an investment to fluctuate so that an investor’s holdings, when redeemed, may be worth less than their original cost.
One cannot invest directly in an index. Index is unmanaged and index performance does not reflect deduction of fees, expenses, or taxes. Presentation of Index data does not reflect a belief by Navellier that any stock index constitutes an investment alternative to any Navellier equity strategy or is necessarily comparable to such strategies. Among the most important differences between the Indices and Navellier strategies are that the Navellier equity strategies may (1) incur material management fees, (2) concentrate its investments in relatively few stocks, industries, or sectors, (3) have significantly greater trading activity and related costs, and (4) be significantly more or less volatile than the Indices.
ETF Risk: We may invest in exchange traded funds (“ETFs”) and some of our investment strategies are generally fully invested in ETFs. Like traditional mutual funds, ETFs charge asset-based fees, but they generally do not charge initial sales charges or redemption fees and investors typically pay only customary brokerage fees to buy and sell ETF shares. The fees and costs charged by ETFs held in client accounts will not be deducted from the compensation the client pays Navellier. ETF prices can fluctuate up or down, and a client account could lose money investing in an ETF if the prices of the securities owned by the ETF go down. ETFs are subject to additional risks:
- ETF shares may trade above or below their net asset value;
- An active trading market for an ETF’s shares may not develop or be maintained;
- The value of an ETF may be more volatile than the underlying portfolio of securities the ETF is designed to track;
- The cost of owning shares of the ETF may exceed those a client would incur by directly investing in the underlying securities; and
- Trading of an ETF’s shares may be halted if the listing exchange’s officials deem it appropriate, the shares are delisted from the exchange, or the activation of market-wide “circuit breakers” (which are tied to large decreases in stock prices) halts stock trading generally.
Grader Disclosures: Investment in equity strategies involves substantial risk and has the potential for partial or complete loss of funds invested. The sample portfolio and any accompanying charts are for informational purposes only and are not to be construed as a solicitation to buy or sell any financial instrument and should not be relied upon as the sole factor in an investment making decision. As a matter of normal and important disclosures to you, as a potential investor, please consider the following: The performance presented is not based on any actual securities trading, portfolio, or accounts, and the reported performance of the A, B, C, D, and F portfolios (collectively the “model portfolios”) should be considered mere “paper” or pro forma performance results based on Navellier’s research.
Investors evaluating any of Navellier & Associates, Inc.’s, (or its affiliates’) Investment Products must not use any information presented here, including the performance figures of the model portfolios, in their evaluation of any Navellier Investment Products. Navellier Investment Products include the firm’s mutual funds and managed accounts. The model portfolios, charts, and other information presented do not represent actual funded trades and are not actual funded portfolios. There are material differences between Navellier Investment Products’ portfolios and the model portfolios, research, and performance figures presented here. The model portfolios and the research results (1) may contain stocks or ETFs that are illiquid and difficult to trade; (2) may contain stock or ETF holdings materially different from actual funded Navellier Investment Product portfolios; (3) include the reinvestment of all dividends and other earnings, estimated trading costs, commissions, or management fees; and, (4) may not reflect prices obtained in an actual funded Navellier Investment Product portfolio. For these and other reasons, the reported performances of model portfolios do not reflect the performance results of Navellier’s actually funded and traded Investment Products. In most cases, Navellier’s Investment Products have materially lower performance results than the performances of the model portfolios presented.
This report contains statements that are, or may be considered to be, forward-looking statements. All statements that are not historical facts, including statements about our beliefs or expectations, are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of The U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by such forward-looking terminology as “expect,” “estimate,” “plan,” “intend,” “believe,” “anticipate,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “could,” “continue,” “project,” or similar statements or variations of such terms. Our forward-looking statements are based on a series of expectations, assumptions, and projections, are not guarantees of future results or performance, and involve substantial risks and uncertainty as described in Form ADV Part 2A of our filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is available at www.adviserinfo.sec.gov or by requesting a copy by emailing info@navellier.com. All of our forward-looking statements are as of the date of this report only. We can give no assurance that such expectations or forward-looking statements will prove to be correct. Actual results may differ materially. You are urged to carefully consider all such factors.
FEDERAL TAX ADVICE DISCLAIMER: As required by U.S. Treasury Regulations, you are informed that, to the extent this presentation includes any federal tax advice, the presentation is not written by Navellier to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of avoiding federal tax penalties. Navellier does not advise on any income tax requirements or issues. Use of any information presented by Navellier is for general information only and does not represent tax advice either express or implied. You are encouraged to seek professional tax advice for income tax questions and assistance.
IMPORTANT NEWSLETTER DISCLOSURE:The hypothetical performance results for investment newsletters that are authored or edited by Louis Navellier, including Louis Navellier’s Growth Investor, Louis Navellier’s Breakthrough Stocks, Louis Navellier’s Accelerated Profits, and Louis Navellier’s Platinum Club, are not based on any actual securities trading, portfolio, or accounts, and the newsletters’ reported hypothetical performances should be considered mere “paper” or proforma hypothetical performance results and are not actual performance of real world trades. Navellier & Associates, Inc. does not have any relation to or affiliation with the owner of these newsletters. There are material differences between Navellier Investment Products’ portfolios and the InvestorPlace Media, LLC newsletter portfolios authored by Louis Navellier. The InvestorPlace Media, LLC newsletters contain hypothetical performance that do not include transaction costs, advisory fees, or other fees a client might incur if actual investments and trades were being made by an investor. As a result, newsletter performance should not be used to evaluate Navellier Investment services which are separate and different from the newsletters. The owner of the newsletters is InvestorPlace Media, LLC and any questions concerning the newsletters, including any newsletter advertising or hypothetical Newsletter performance claims, (which are calculated solely by Investor Place Media and not Navellier) should be referred to InvestorPlace Media, LLC at (800) 718-8289.
Please note that Navellier & Associates and the Navellier Private Client Group are managed completely independent of the newsletters owned and published by InvestorPlace Media, LLC and written and edited by Louis Navellier, and investment performance of the newsletters should in no way be considered indicative of potential future investment performance for any Navellier & Associates separately managed account portfolio. Potential investors should consult with their financial advisor before investing in any Navellier Investment Product.
Navellier claims compliance with Global Investment Performance Standards (GIPS). To receive a complete list and descriptions of Navellier’s composites and/or a presentation that adheres to the GIPS standards, please contact Navellier or click here. It should not be assumed that any securities recommendations made by Navellier & Associates, Inc. in the future will be profitable or equal the performance of securities made in this report.
FactSet Disclosure: Navellier does not independently calculate the statistical information included in the attached report. The calculation and the information are provided by FactSet, a company not related to Navellier. Although information contained in the report has been obtained from FactSet and is based on sources Navellier believes to be reliable, Navellier does not guarantee its accuracy, and it may be incomplete or condensed. The report and the related FactSet sourced information are provided on an “as is” basis. The user assumes the entire risk of any use made of this information. Investors should consider the report as only a single factor in making their investment decision. The report is for informational purposes only and is not intended as an offer or solicitation for the purchase or sale of a security. FactSet sourced information is the exclusive property of FactSet. Without prior written permission of FactSet, this information may not be reproduced, disseminated or used to create any financial products. All indices are unmanaged and performance of the indices include reinvestment of dividends and interest income, unless otherwise noted, are not illustrative of any particular investment and an investment cannot be made in any index. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.