This week, the Warner Bros-Netflix-ParamountSkydance bidding war ended with Warner Bros formally rejecting Paramount’s bid and opting for Netflix. IBM acquired Confluent for $11 billion, while Medline’s IPO raised $6.26 billion, with the stock jumping over 40% on its first day. Market indices fluctuated, with the S&P 500 up 0.06%, Nasdaq Composite up 0.3%, Dow Jones down 0.7%, and Russell 2000 down 0.9%. Oil prices declined 1.4%, while natural gas rose 2.9% and silver hit a fresh high of $67.385/oz, up 8.6%. In other news, President Trump reclassified cannabis as a Schedule III drug, leading to mixed reactions in the industry.

Additionally, President Trump’s Trump Media and Technology Group announced a merger with TAE Technologies, creating the world’s first publicly traded fusion company valued at over $6 billion. TikTok signed a deal to divest its US entity to American investors, and Coursera merged with Udemy in a $2.5 billion all-stock transaction. Stock reactions varied post-merger, with analysts giving mixed ratings. This news was originally published by TheStreet on Dec 20, 2025.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Cannabis stocks, Trump Media & Technology and TikTok