As you may know, Your Survival Guy has a history of spec ops and RMDs at Fidelity Investments. And this time of year was always a scramble to meet the end-of-year deadline for distributions. Falling on the wrong side of December 31 meant getting to know the IRS through letters. Not much fun. You may also have read that your government is working overtime to change the distribution age next year from 72 to 73 (and down the road a bit to 75). Don’t stress. This is about moving the deck chairs on the Titanic. The IRS will use the life expectancy divisor to up the distribution amounts when … [Read more...]
Archives for December 2022
Congress Looking to Make Significant Changes to Your 401(k)
Members of both the Democratic and Republican parties in Washington, D.C. are looking at ways to change your 401(k) plan. Anne Tergesen and Richard Rubin report in The Wall Street Journal: Congress is on the verge of passing a bill that aims to help Americans save more for retirement and leave their retirement savings untouched and untaxed for longer. The bill nearing approval raises the age people are required to start withdrawing money from tax-deferred retirement accounts to 75 from 72. It increases retirement savings contribution limits for older workers and provides an increased … [Read more...]
The Wisdom of “Make It A Good Month”
When you finished reading Richard C. Young’s Intelligence Report, above the P.S., P.P.S., and P.P.P.S, he always signed off “Make It A Good Month.” Short, yes. Sweet? Eh, not so much. If you know Dick Young like I do, self-reliance is a way of life. Count on yourself and you’ll be just fine, or you won’t. It’s not up to him. Got it? Merry Christmas. In Dick’s piece at richardcyoung.com How Do You Protect Your Brain from Inflammation? Dr. David Perlmutter discusses how the food (you could replace the word food with investment) industry stacks the cards against the consumer and how difficult … [Read more...]
If You’ve Been with Me, It’s Been a Good Year
If you’ve been with me, it’s been a good year, and the future looks just as good. As Your Survival Guy, I’m focused on you keeping what’s yours—what you’ve made during a lifetime of work and saving. If everyone could remember how hard it was to get to where they are and lock it in their brains there’d be a lot less heartbreak when it comes to money. Remember, I’m Your Survival Guy. I’m just fine living in a cave as the world passes by. Let it. I’m focused on return of assets first, then, and only then, the focus is on return on assets. And let’s get this out of the way. If you’re concerned … [Read more...]
Is There Anywhere to Hide in the Era of High Interest Rates?
In the Financial Times, Ruchir Sharma suggests in the tight money era, wealthy investors will find no place to hide in private investments. He writes: If a bubble is a good idea gone too far, the $10tn global market for private investing in everything from debt to companies to real estate may be one. The rage for private investing began in the early 2000s, after the success of the Yale University endowment fund led by David Swensen, who embraced private investments to diversify away from stock and bond markets and stabilise returns in the long run. Swensen’s definition of “long” was … [Read more...]
“Let Me Tell You About Money Kid”
“How old are you?” he asked. “50,” I said. “Let me tell you about money, kid.” “I’m 74. Sold my business in ’99. Made out real well. But that’s not the point. The guys were arrogant, didn’t understand New Englanders, and they had to shut it down. They’re a big international player. They’re fine. But their way was no way to run my business, kid.” Based on the toughness coming through the phone and the Boston accent, he sounded like he’d be right at home on the docks telling his crew what the job was for the day. “What type of business did you own?” “The toughest one of ‘em all … [Read more...]
Recent IPOs Enter a Hard Winter
One in four stocks of companies that went public in 2020 or 2021 is now trading below $2/share. Many of these companies' shares may never recover, according to Corrie Driebusch at The Wall Street Journal. Busch writes: Hundreds of companies that went public when the market for initial public offerings was booming have suffered such sharp reversals that they now face a stark reality: Their shares may never recover. More than one in four of the nearly 600 companies that went public via a traditional IPO in 2020 or 2021—including oat-milk maker Oatly Group OTLY -1.10%decrease; red down … [Read more...]
How Your Survival Guy Feels about CDs
Investors in deep blue states can take pleasure in knowing interest income from Treasuries is tax free on a state and local level—but that’s not the case for CDs. Also, Treasuries are backed by the full faith credit pledge of the federal government. Again, not so for CDs. Action Line: This is a wonderful time of year to get working on your Treasury bond ladder. Let’s go. Originally posted on Your Survival Guy. … [Read more...]
The World Is Using More Coal than Ever
Despite regulatory and treaty efforts by Western governments to reduce the use of carbon dioxide producing fossil fuels like coal, the world is set to use more coal than ever. Leslie Hook reports for the Financial Times: Global coal use will reach a record level this year as the war in Ukraine and growing demand in India and Europe push consumption of the fuel to new highs. The trend flies in the face of pledges made at the UN climate talks last year, when 194 countries pledged to phase down their use of coal to curb emissions. Coal consumption will rise by 1.2 per cent this year … [Read more...]
Keep It Simple: Work with a Fiduciary Who Has Your Back
Last week, Vanguard announced it was pulling back from the woke agenda targeting companies for their lack of dogmatic ESG adherence. Now, HSBC has announced it's going in the opposite direction. The bank has announced that it will stop funding any new oil and gas field developments. Charles Kennedy reports for OilPrice.com: In an update on its energy policy, the bank said, “We will no longer provide new lending or capital markets finance for the specific purpose of projects pertaining to new oil and gas fields and related infrastructure when the primary use is in conjunction with new … [Read more...]