OK, let’s have some fun. Cue the car dealership ad: “Have I got a deal for you. Come lease this brand-new car for a fraction of what you’d expect to pay. Just come on down and see me.” You get the point. When dealers need the business, you can’t stop hearing from them. Which brings me to annuities. They remind me of a car lease. Because the more options you want, the more you pay, and at the end of the term, they get your money (or the car), not you. If you were in kindergarten and were told about the terms, you’d run. But that’s not what happens with annuities. They’re sold by salesmen who … [Read more...]
Archives for August 2022
McWAGE CONTROLS: California Wants to Set Wages for Fast Food Work
At $15.00/hour California already has the highest minimum wage among the states (though D.C.'s is higher at $16.10). Now the state's politicians want to create an entirely new process for setting wages for fast food workers. The state would grant power over fast food wages to an unelected group of appointees chosen by the state's politicians. Heather Haddon and Christine Mai-Duc report for The Wall Street Journal: California’s Legislature passed a bill Monday to create a government panel that would set wages for an estimated half-million fast food workers in the state, a first-in-the-U.S. … [Read more...]
Why Investors Should Forget Prices and Focus on Income
Investing can be a dangerous endeavor, especially when it depends on things we don’t control, like prices. Prices are unpredictable, yet it never ceases to amaze me how many retirees bank on the following phrase: “Well, the stock market always comes back.” Really? Allow me to add: “But not on anyone’s schedule.” Listen, stock market corrections mean different things to different investors. The investor who retired last December is licking his wounds, wondering how he could be so unlucky. And there’s a good chance he sold at or near the bottom so he could sleep well at night. That’s … [Read more...]
Is China About to Suffer Its Own Financial Crisis?
China's real estate market is crumbling, and it's threatening to take the country's banking sector with it. Is China about to suffer its own 2008-style financial crisis? Cao Li reports for The Wall Street Journal: Shares in China’s privately run banks have fallen sharply this year, as the country’s property slowdown starts to bite. The Shanghai-listed shares of China Merchants Bank and Ping An Bank Co.—two of China’s biggest, most prominent privately run lenders—have fallen by 32% and 25%, respectively, since the start of 2022, wiping $68 billion off their combined stock market value. The … [Read more...]
401(k) Collecting Dust? Let’s Clean It Up and Get It Moving
If you want to reach a certain “number” in savings when you retire, my best advice is to harness the tools available to you like the 401(k). If you have access to one, then I want you to try and do everything you can to max it out: Save ‘til it hurts, especially when you’re young. Time to Get Your Lazy Cash Off the Couch When I worked at Fidelity Investments back in the mid-90s I had a front-row seat—literally—to the explosive growth of the 401(k). Every time there was a spike in the volume of calls, my group was brought in to help “man” the phones. As a phone rep, I was taking orders … [Read more...]
European Data Centers Prepare for Dark Winter Amidst War
Datacenter operators Equinix and Digital Realty Trust are stocking up on diesel fuel at European locations. The companies hope to stave off shortages that may arise during a winter that may bring shortages of fuel amidst the war between Russia and Ukraine. Anna Gross and Harry Dempsey report in the Financial Times: The world’s two biggest data centre operators are stockpiling generator fuel as the energy crisis sparked by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine threatens winter power blackouts across Europe. Equinix, the global market leader with a market capitalisation of $64bn, and its $38bn rival … [Read more...]
Biden Admin Doesn’t Have Any Idea How Much Student Loan Giveaway Will Cost
How can you tell the country that a big spending bonanza is paid for if you don't even know how much it's going to cost? That's the question raised by a White House correspondent to Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre yesterday. Her answer was as confused, and confusing, as ever. Watch: Reporter 1: "You could say 'this is how much it's going to cost if everyone who is eligible applies.'" KJP: "We just don't want to get ahead of ourselves." Reporter 2: "If you don't know how much it's going to cost, how can you guarantee that it's going to be paid for?" pic.twitter.com/MFtIlFXvYl — … [Read more...]
Fed Says Excess Demand a Bigger Factor than Limited Supply in Inflation
A recent study performed by the Federal Reserve suggested that excess demand has been a bigger factor in America's inflation than limited supply. Julian di Giovanni reports for the New York Fed's Liberty Street blog, writing: What factors are behind the recent inflation surge has been a huge topic of debate amongst academics and policymakers. We know that pandemic-related supply constraints such as labor shortages and supply chain bottlenecks have been key factors pushing inflation higher. These bottlenecks started with the pandemic (lockdowns, sick workers) and were made worse by the push … [Read more...]
Texas Comptroller BANS Banks Hostile to the Energy Industry
You've read about efforts by West Virginia State Treasurer Riley Moore to push back against banks targeting fossil fuel energy companies. Now a heavyweight state is taking it up another notch. Texas has joined the fray in full swing, and according to The Wall Street Journal, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar has "published a list of 10 financial companies and nearly 350 investment funds" which government entities will be "required, with some exceptions, to divest from them if they stay on the list past certain legally mandated deadlines." The Journal's Richard Vanderford reports: Texas has … [Read more...]
What Happened to Zoom Stock?
Zoom stock has been crashing since mid-pandemic when some investors realized that pandemic lockdowns wouldn't last forever. Now results are showing the strain of reopening on Zoom's business. Dan Gallagher reports in The Wall Street Journal: Many businesses are still recovering from the pandemic. For Zoom Video Communications, recovery from being a pandemic darling is proving equally difficult. Fiscal second-quarter results late Monday from Zoom were the toughest yet for the videoconferencing provider. Revenue for the quarter ended July 31 rose only 8% year over year to about $1.1 … [Read more...]
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