In the Wall Street Journal, Jesse Newman and Patrick McGroarty outline a nightmare scenario for American farmers. Low prices for crops, difficult export opportunities thanks to a strong dollar, and a glut of grain on world markets are combining to push farmers out of business at a rate fast enough to shrink their numbers below 2 million for the first time since the mid-1800s. From the early 1800s until the Great Depression, the number of U.S. farms grew steadily as pioneers spread west of the Mississippi River. Families typically raised a mix of crops and livestock on a few hundred acres of … [Read more...]
One Easy Solution to the Fiduciary Problem
With the fate of the Department of Labor's fiduciary rule up in the air, investors and brokerages are looking for a way forward. For investors worried about doing business with a broker held to the much less stringent suitability standard, the easy solution is to simply work with an investment advisor held to the higher fiduciary standard. Michael Wursthorn reports for the Wall Street Journal on the next steps brokers are taking in the face of uncertainty about the rule. The fiduciary rule, due to take effect April 10, is unpopular with Republicans and some in the financial industry who say … [Read more...]
A New Energy Source Could Change Shipping in the World Forever
In a year, a typical cargo ship can pollute as much as 50 million passenger vehicles. Needless to say, the shipping industry is coming under increasing fire by environmentalists to clean up its fleet. At ExxonMobil Energy Factor, the company explains how shipping companies are embracing much cleaner burning liquified natural gas. While the containerships responsible for supplying goods to consumers have consistently grown in size over the decades, one of the latest technological improvements ahead for these vessels will be what they consume themselves. Today, large, diesel engines are … [Read more...]
Unstoppable New Killer Bacteria Growing on Chinese Farms?
The FT reports that bacteria resistant to the so-called "last resort" anti-biotic, colistin, are growing on farms in China. In the absence of new medical innovations, these bacteria could become unstoppable. The 2015 discovery in China of bacteria with mcr-1, the colistin resistance gene, sparked fears over the future of human health. Margaret Chan, head of the World Health Organization, said last year that medicine risked “going back to the dark ages” without action to spur development of new antibiotics and to preserve the dwindling numbers that remain effective. Since the discovery in … [Read more...]
Do You Know Your Retirement Score?
Fidelity makes it easy for investors to get a quick sense of where their retirement preparations are, and how to get back on track if they've fallen behind. Check out your Fidelity Retirement Score here. Customer Stories: Lee’s and Michelle’s Retirement | Fidelity … [Read more...]
A Canary in the Commercial Real Estate Coal Mine?
Commercial real estate is a famously cyclical business. Booms and busts are a part of the landscape. Eight years of near-zero interest rates has resulted in nothing but boom for the sector. Today the WSJ reports some real-estate investors are reducing their holdings and getting more selective about deals. Could this be an early-warning signal of the next bust? Some prominent real-estate investors are reducing their holdings and getting more selective about new deals, in a sign that the eight-year bull market for U.S. commercial property is coming to a close. Asset managers at pension funds … [Read more...]
RAGE Gauge: The Roar of the Silent Majority
You heard the silent majority speaking loud and clear in November’s presidential election, and now the results are in. For the first time in 3-years there was a decline in year-over-year background checks for pistols—a barometer for sales—and a 29% decline from the same month last year. Isn’t it amazing what a president can do to the psyche of a nation? But a populist in the White House won’t be cheap and that’s reflected in the 5% surge last month in gold prices as the market anticipates higher inflation down the road. How much higher? Populism can be expensive. Continue to invest with … [Read more...]
For the First Time Amazon Appears to be Targeting Profits
Known more for a drive to build market share than to maximize profits, Amazon may now be signalling a shift in focus. Laura Stevens writes at The Wall Street Journal: Amazon’s stronger margins likely reflect more discipline in spending and fewer promotions at the expense of profit, as well as a larger percentage of sales stemming from its third-party sellers, analysts said. Those sales are nearly pure profit margin because Amazon doesn’t have to buy and hold the product itself. It also gets paid for items that sellers ship in for Amazon to fulfill. ... Amazon often has bucked retail … [Read more...]
Will a WTO Member Wolf Pack Corner the U.K. on Trade Post-Brexit?
James Bacchus writes today that WTO trade negotiators may be eager to exploit the U.K.'s separation from the EU herd. Like a wounded animal, the U.K. could be set upon with demands for more open markets, giving advantages to nations that could never have set such terms when the U.K. was a member of the EU. The widespread assumption is that Britain will be able to fall back automatically on the balance-of-trade rights and obligations it enjoys as a member of the World Trade Organization. In Brexit parlance, this is called the WTO option. The problem is that 163 other WTO member countries … [Read more...]
Don’t be Lulled to Sleep by this Market
The S&P 500 hasn't traded in a daily range of 1% or greater for 34 sessions. That's the longest such a trend has continued since 1995. But investors shouldn't be lulled to sleep by a sleepy market. Be vigilant and continue to avoid risk. Chris Dieterich explains the Index's low volatility at The Wall Street Journal. To be sure, the stock market has mostly been going up even though the daily moves have been soporific. Since the streak began, the index has climbed just 1% in total, but it’s still set new all-time highs along the way, most recently on Jan. 25. Still, uncertainty about the … [Read more...]
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