Markets
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What the Supreme Court’s decision to let $6 billion in student-loan relief move forward means for borrowers
It will likely be several weeks before we know the Supreme Court justices’ view on mass student debt cancellation. But last week, the court allowed at least $6 billion in student-debt relief for roughly 290,000 borrowers to move forward. The court declined a petition Thursday from three schools to stop a settlement between a class…
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Social Security’s expected shortfall sparks debate over tax increases
With the clock ticking to remedy Social Security’s financial ills, many experts are pushing Congress to take urgent action, yet there’s little agreement on which medicine might work best. The points of contention were on display this week at a panel discussion focused on Social Security’s future. Competing proposals involve raising taxes, adjusting benefits, or…
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The ‘super surge’ of money market funds is on with yields over 4.6% luring savers. Here’s what you need to know.
Last month’s bank failures, combined with a healthy yield advantage over bank deposit accounts, has prompted a “super surge” of assets into money market mutual funds, according to research firm Crane Data. Money market funds, which invest in very short-term, high-quality debt, in March enjoyed their third-best month of inflows ever, according to Crane, as…
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Tesla, Netflix earnings due: Cheaper cars, cheaper content, more workout videos, as ‘earnings recession’ seems likely
For anyone watching Netflix, the streaming services’ recent moves to cut costs could mean fewer films, lower-budget shows and — depending on your subscription — more ads. For anyone buying a Tesla, its moves to cut prices will make it easier on customers, but harder on profit-seeking investors. With both companies reporting results this week,…
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Good news on inflation: shocks that kept inflation percolating in the 1970s seem absent today, top economist says
Former IMF chief economist Olivier Blanchard, one of the first economists to warn about high inflation in the waning days of the pandemic, now says inflation can come down on its own because the shocks that kept inflation percolation in the 1970s seem absent today. During the 1970s when inflation went higher, it set of…
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Credit-card balances have hit historic highs. Here’s what that says about consumers’ finances.
Credit-card debt climbed to a historic high at the end of last year. That’s according to new data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, which adds to earlier reports of record-smashing balances in 2022’s final quarter. Credit-card balances reached nearly $765 billion in the fourth quarter — up by more than $100 billion from about…
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We all know an emergency fund is important. Here’s how to get started.
Given all that’s going on in the world today, the concept of saving and building up an emergency fund may feel like a pipe dream. But no matter where you are or what you are dealing with in terms of your finances, there is a path toward slowly building up a safety net between yourself…
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How a conservative boycott of Bud Light could create a backlash to the backlash
After Bud Light’s recent partnership with a transgender influencer, sales of the beer may take a hit as a result of conservative calls for a boycott — or they may get a boost from other consumers buying more of the product in response. Whatever the effect, analysts say, it will likely evaporate quickly. What’s more,…
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‘Real estate is tangible. It enjoys a host of tax benefits’: Yes, investors can still make money in a cooling housing market
Rent growth is cooling and apartment landlords are feeling the heat, especially those who will soon need to refinance debt they took on to buy buildings. Yet one company is still upbeat on the outlook for multifamily rentals, particularly in the Sun Belt. “You have major supply constraints in most rental markets [and] the housing…
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Amazon workers’ serious-injury rates still double those of other warehouse workers, study shows
For the second year in a row, an annual report’s findings that serious-injury rates at Amazon.com Inc.’s warehouses were more than twice the rates at other warehouses coincides with a shareholder resolution calling for an independent audit of worker health and safety. The injury rate of 6.6 per 100 workers at Amazon’s U.S. warehouses in 2022…