Author: Money Mechanics

Each week, in our Ask the Editor series, Joy Taylor, The Kiplinger Tax Letter Editor, answers questions on topics submitted by readers. This week, she’s looking at questions on capital-loss harvesting and the wash-sale rule. (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Tax Letter or subscribe.)1. What is capital-loss harvesting?Question: I keep hearing about capital loss harvesting as a strategy for year-end tax planning. What is capital loss harvesting? Joy Taylor: Tax-loss harvesting (or capital-loss harvesting) is a way for investors to lower their federal income tax bills. The strategy involves selling stocks or other securities in your taxable investment…

KEY TAKEAWAYS Bureau of Labor Statistics employees are returning to work so it can release its September inflation report on Oct. 24.This will allow the Social Security Administration to calculate the 2026 cost-of-living adjustment before the Nov. 1 deadline.Although the government remains shut down, Social Security beneficiaries will soon know how much their checks will increase next year. Security beneficiaries will get an idea about what next year’s benefit checks will look like after all. The federal government said it is bringing back some furloughed Bureau of Labor Statistics employees to release the September Consumer Price Index on Oct. 24.…

Income for single-filers Income for married couples filing jointly Marginal Income Tax Rate $640,601 or more $768,701 or more 37% $256,226 to $640,600 $512,451 to $768,700 35% $201,776 to $256,225 $403,551 to $512,450 32% $105,701 to $201,775 $211,401 to $403,550 24% $50,401 to $105,700 $100,801 to $211,400 22% $12,401 to $50,400 $24,801 to $100,800 12% $12,400 or less $24,800 or less 10% Tax Brackets Can Be Used To Help Guide Your Withdrawal Strategy Patrick Huey, a CFP and owner of Victory Independent Planning, suggests that knowing where you fall within the tax brackets can help you make smarter decisions about…

Key Takeaways A number of high-flying tech stocks tumbled Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, amid worries about worsening U.S.-China relations, while a snack and soft drink giant extended its post-earnings gains.Advanced Micro Devices and other semiconductor firms were among the S&P 500’s biggest decliners.PepsiCo stock added to its climb in the wake of a strong earnings report driven by international growth. High-flying tech stocks led the S&P 500 lower Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, amid worries about worsening U.S.-China relations. Meanwhile, a snack food and soda maker built on its momentum in the wake of an upbeat quarterly report. Major U.S. equities…

Stocks opened comfortably higher Friday but fell off a cliff mid-morning after President Donald Trump’s dire warning on China. Uncertainty surrounding the ongoing government shutdown – which will delay a key inflation update – did little to shift sentiment.Around 11 am Eastern Standard Time, President Trump posted on Truth Social that “very strange things” are happening with China, and that the country is “becoming very hostile” regarding the production of rare earths.Beijing has “a near-stranglehold on rare earth elements, a group of obscure minerals that happen to be vital to many high-tech applications and products,” writes David Payne, staff economist…

Thank you to the Economic Club of Minnesota for the opportunity to speak to you today.1 I’m happy to be here for several reasons, one of which is that I have roots in Minnesota. My grandmother was born and raised in Eveleth, where her parents ran a small clothing store they opened in 1906 to serve the growing population that came here in the iron ore mining boom of that era. That generation’s hard work and dreams of a better future helped build this great state as well as the prosperous economy that this club and the Federal Reserve are…

After a strong start to October, has come under the influence of profit-taking since the beginning of the week, becoming stuck in the critical resistance zone. Although the market has remained bearish throughout the week, the fundamental support for Bitcoin remains strong.The acceleration of institutional inflows into spot ETFs, the increasing accumulation tendency of long-term investors, and macroeconomic indecision stand out as the main factors likely to determine Bitcoin’s direction during this period.Spot ETF Inflows Confirm Institutional DemandBitcoin’s high-volume breakout above the $120,000 resistance in early October showed that institutional demand in the market remains strong. Net ETF inflows of…

As we have discussed, MUNIs for September finished strong. Many are calling for the balance of the year to remain firm because most of the record surge in supply is beginning to dry up. We have reported all year about the glut of supply hurting pricing while moving yields up; we are now starting to see a slowdown in the primary markets, which should help pricing. I do not think we will see another 25bps move to the downside this month, but 5-10bps is not out of the question. The FED showed a willingness to lower rates further this year,…

Pictured here is construction on a real estate project in Huai’an City, Jiangsu Province, China on October 9, 2025. Cfoto | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesBEIJING — China’s real estate market is expected to fall more sharply than expected in 2025, extending an industry slump for a fifth-straight year and delaying hopes of a market turnaround, S&P Global Ratings said in a report late Thursday.The analysts project sales of new homes will drop by 8% from last year to between 8.8 trillion yuan and 9 trillion yuan ($1.23 trillion to $1.26 trillion).That’s a far steeper decline than the 3% drop…

twomeows/Moment via Getty ImagesFollow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.ZDNET’s key takeawaysOpenAI and Anthropic, predictably, are getting the most money.Four vibe coding companies made the list, signaling a trend. The report also revealed several under-the-radar companies. As hype around AI has skyrocketed in recent years, and the biggest tech companies have reoriented themselves around the technology, there’s also been a profusion of new start-ups that offer their own AI-powered products. Also: AWS’s new agentic solution is a searchable AI hub for all your enterprise needsToday, businesses can choose from an almost dizzying variety of AI tools. Those gaining ground above the others…