How much Artificial Intelligence do you want in your portfolio? Your Survival Guy doesn’t want it anywhere near mine. But AI is already in the sports pages with a recent Ohio high school football recap written with the heart of a Tin Man. How much longer until we have ivory tower dwellers and woke politicians writing the rules for investments? What could possibly go wrong? Here’s some I’ve come up with. “Dear AI: Your Survival Guy wants a diversified portfolio.” How would AI interpret this? Your Survival Guy wants “an eclectic mix of dividend paying stocks.” How would AI interpret … [Read more...]
Archives for August 2023
“It Cost What?” Here’s the Problem with Inflation
The problem with inflation is everyone's fighting it, which can be costly in the form of high fees, high risk, and lost opportunities. But the answer isn't so complicated. It's in the reflection on that shiny piece of precious metal: you. If you want to fight inflation, you can do it. Save more. Spend less. Inflation is nothing new. We've been living with it our entire lives. It has a seat at the table. It's talked about like we know it. "How much is a gallon of milk?" we ask. "Can you believe the price per gallon of gas?" we declare. And yet, inflation means different things to … [Read more...]
India Lures New Business as China Fades
Manufacturers are looking for alternatives to China. For geopolitical reasons and in response to China's long Covid lockdowns that crimped supply chains, businesses are searching elsewhere for new suppliers. India has become a prime location. In The Wall Street Journal, Aruna Viswanatha reports on India's rise as a destination for manufacturing: BENGALURU, India— In early 2020, as the pandemic was shutting down global commerce, a Pennsylvania company was having trouble getting its usual steel parts out of China. It stumbled on another possible option—in India. Zetwerk, a two-year-old … [Read more...]
Getting Older Isn’t for the Faint of Heart
“All I can tell you it that it’s hard,” my father-in-law Dick Young told me. “Getting older means pretty much everything is harder. It’s not easy. And you need a team to help you. I’ve been advising investors since 1971 and can tell you, you don’t know what it feels like until you’re actually living it.” When I think about our conversations, it reminds me of the conversations I have with investors. They know how hard it is, too. They know what it feels like to live off their portfolio. We talk about ways to generate income. And yet, there’s always concern about the future. That’s natural. … [Read more...]
Your Survival Guy Goes Back to College for Year 2
It was a typical Saturday morning, except Your Survival Guy was heading back to college to drop off my son for year two. What could be so hard about that, I thought. Four hours of assembling a couch and coffee table later, I’m here to say it wasn’t as easy as I thought it would be. Now, for any of you who have a daughter and a son, you know the difference. There’s a difference between being packed and ready and being packed and ready. One of them, when you ask, “Are you packed?” is really packed, while the other is thinking he’s got this and will throw it all together, no problem. Your … [Read more...]
Is the Pandemic Retail Boom Finally Over?
Retailers are reporting weakening profits as consumers are "being more judicious in how they spend." Dean Seal reports in The Wall Street Journal: Shoppers have shifted their spending habits in a postpandemic world, leaving retailers in the lurch. The stocks of major retailers have tumbledas storesincluding Macy’s, Dick’s Sporting Goods and Foot Locker posted slowing sales, weakening profits and tepid forecasts. Their lackluster results offer more evidence that strained consumers feeling the weight of higher debt and increased prices are redirecting their discretionary spending away from … [Read more...]
Walmart Teams Up with Google for Long Distance Drone Deliveries
Two of America's best-known companies are working together on using drones to deliver products up to six miles away from stores. Bloomberg's Brendan Case reports: Walmart Inc. is planning its longest drone deliveries yet by teaming up with Alphabet Inc.’s Wing unit at two Dallas-area stores. The Wing drones will be able to drop off food and household essentials as far as six miles from the stores, Prathibha Rajashekhar, senior vice president of innovation and automation at Walmart’s US unit, said in a statement Thursday. Wing has approvals from the Federal Aviation Administration to fly … [Read more...]
Logistics Industry Looks Beyond China
The world's logistics industry is looking to build facilities and infrastructure in Asia outside of China as manufacturers look to diversify their supply chains away from the country. Oliver Telling and Chan Ho-him report in the Financial Times: The world’s largest shipping and logistics groups are locked in an increasingly intense rush to buy facilities in Asia in a bid to help their customers expand supply chains beyond China. Competition for assets has been fuelled by cash reserves that freight groups worldwide built up when disruption and increased ecommerce spending boosted demand for … [Read more...]
Your Survival Guy at Fidelity and Your RMD Compliance
Originally posted April 21, 2023. Staying on top of your IRA RMD can be a hassle, especially with the IRS changing the start dates. The new one is age 73. As I wrote back on December 19, 2022, when I worked at Fidelity Investments in the mid-90s, I was at FIRSCO. What the heck is FIRSCO? Glad you asked. Because to enter the realm of Fidelity as an employee is to enter a world of acronyms you never knew existed. FIRSCO stands for Fidelity Investments Retirement Services Company. Imagine Fidelity as the military, and FIRSCO as a branch within it, and you get the idea. I was on a special … [Read more...]
Yes! Money Can Bring You Happiness
Originally posted on April 30, 2020. It was a typical Sunday morning. The kids were up early, shows had been watched, books read to them, and pancakes eaten. Standing up with a cup of coffee, looking out at the backyard full of leaves and sticks, I thought to myself: “I could easily let the morning go and forget about the yard. Or, I could get the job done in a couple hours and perhaps catch some of the Pats game.” As I was tying my boots, I felt them staring down at me. One of them asked, “What are you doing?” “I’m going to rake the yard. It won’t take long.” I said. “Can we help?” they … [Read more...]
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