Author: Money Mechanics

(Oil Price)– Russia and Iran this week discussed boosting their cooperation in nuclear energy, including in building small nuclear reactors (SMRs) in the Islamic Republic, Iranian media report. Mohammad Eslami, director of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI), discussed nuclear energy cooperation in Tehran with Nikolai Spassky, Deputy CEO for International Relations at Rosatom, Russia’s state-owned nuclear energy company. Spassky was returning a visit by Eslami to Moscow last month, during which Iran and Russia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on cooperation in construction of small nuclear power plants in Iran. The two countries sanctioned by the West…

Key Takeaways Amazon’s (AMZN) Prime Day is here again from Oct. 7-8, 2025. On the last Prime Day in July, Americans spent $24.1 billion on the shopping platform. But many of those purchases were unplanned, and carrying that balance on a credit card could cost far more than any discount saved. Given the average credit card annual percentage rate (APR), a $100 item bought during this week’s Prime Big Deal Days at 20% off could end up costing more than the original price if you carry the balance and make only minimum payments. Amazon Prime Big Deal Days are here,…

KEY TAKEAWAYS Confluent shares are surging Wednesday as the data streaming company reportedly explores a sale.The Mountain View, Calif.-based company is working with an investment bank on the sale process, according to a Reuters report. Confluent (CFLT) shares jumped over 10% in early trading Wednesday following a report the data streaming company is exploring a sale. The company’s move to sound out buyers comes as the artificial intelligence boom continues to boost demand for companies that support the technology’s infrastructure. The Mountain View, Calif.-based company is working with an investment bank on the sale process, according to a Reuters report, citing…

Key Takeaways Paying an extra $5 a day, or $150 a month, toward your mortgage will get your loan paid off early and save you thousands of dollars in interest payments. However, this is only worthwhile if your mortgage rate is much higher than the rate of return from investing. If the two rates are roughly equal, there is little difference between paying an extra $150 on your mortgage every month or investing that money. If your mortgage interest rate is much lower, you’ll build significantly more wealth by making the standard mortgage payment and investing $150 a month instead.…

Once you begin taking required minimum distributions (RMDs) at age 73, you must withdraw a set amount each year from your pre-tax retirement accounts. If you don’t need that money for living expenses, you can still use it productively. Many retirees choose to reinvest their RMDs in a taxable brokerage account, add to emergency savings, buy income-producing investments, pay down debt, or use part of the funds for qualified charitable distributions to reduce taxable income. A financial advisor can help you decide which option supports your overall retirement plan. Once you take your RMD, the money becomes taxable income, but…

Accessible Keys for Video [Space Bar] toggles play/pause; [Right/Left Arrows] seeks the video forwards and back (5 sec ); [Up/Down Arrows] increase/decrease volume; [M] toggles mute on/off; [F] toggles fullscreen on/off (Except IE 11); The [Tab] key may be used in combination with the [Enter/Return] key to navigate and activate control buttons, such as caption on/off. As we wrap up today’s conference, I would like to thank all of the moderators and presenters on today’s panels. And of course, Secretary Bessent for sharing his perspectives on community banks, and the many community bankers, and state bank regulators and others who…

Job seekers attend the Mega JobNewsUSA South Florida Job Fair held in the Amerant Bank Arena on September 25, 2025 in Sunrise, Florida. Joe Raedle | Getty ImagesEmployment growth was essentially flat in September, according to data from investment giant Carlyle that seeks to fill in data gaps created by the government shutdown.The firm said its proprietary data showed job growth of just 17,000 for the month, which would be even less than the 22,000 gain in August reflected in Bureau of Labor Statistics data.With the BLS shuttered and data releases suspended until the impasse between congressional Republicans and Democrats…

When is October Prime Day 2025? This year, Amazon’s October Prime Day sale ran from Oct. 7 to Oct. 8. The annual sale lasted for two days in the fall, and brought a wide range of deals on household goods, tech gadgets, and electronics, many of which are manufactured by Samsung. Expect to see deals on Samsung smartphones, tablets, and home appliances. Are Samsung devices really cheaper on Prime Day? They often are! On Amazon and at other competing retailers, you will often find discounted Samsung smartphones, tablets, laptops, and home appliances.How did we choose these October Prime Day deals?ZDNET authors only write…

KEY TAKEAWAYS Housing prices and mortgage rates remain high, putting homeownership out of reach for many Gen Zers.Affording a down payment is one of the biggest hurdles to homeownership for this generation, since many must first pay rising rent prices and their student loan debt.Some Gen Zers are finding ways to enter the housing market, getting financial help from their families and buying homes in cheaper areas in the Midwest and South. Housing prices continue to rise, and other expenses are cutting into Gen Zers’ budgets, making it extremely hard for them to buy a home. But some have managed…

Coming into this year, there was a lot of optimism that this would be a strong year for initial public offerings (IPOs), and that optimism has been met — IPOs are back! And, as we’ll show, both the Nasdaq IPO Pulses suggest this strength will continue into 2026. The caveat being that the U.S. IPO market will be on hold until the government shutdown ends since the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission needs to review and approve IPO filings. Historically, government shutdowns have lasted eight days on average, with the longest lasting 35 days.U.S. IPO pop returns 2nd strongest since at…