Author: Money Mechanics

For markets, the question is no longer whether the Federal Open Market Committee will cut interest rates when it meets next week. Investors, traders and speculators now wonder how big the move will be at the next Fed meeting. They’ll look to this week’s incoming economic data, including fresh producer and consumer price numbers, for additional guidance.According to CME Group FedWatch, it is 100% certain Jerome Powell & Co. will trim the target range for the federal funds rate from 4.25% to 4.50%. The greater probability is 25 basis points, or 0.25%, at 88.2%. Recent action reflects rising belief in…

Key Takeaways Only 3.2% of retirees have $1 million in retirement accounts vs. about 2.6% of Americans in general. The average retirement savings for households aged 65-74 is $609,000, while the median is only about $200,000. The number of “401(k) millionaires” in America reached a record of about 497,000 last year. Many Americans dream of retiring with a million-dollar nest egg —Americans in general think you need about $1.5 million to retire—but the reality is starkly different. Using figures from the U.S. Federal Reserve’s Survey of Consumer Finances (updated to 2022 but released in 2025), only about 2.5% of all…

Mortgage rates made a big move lower Friday, and now it’s a matter of whether it holds through the week. According to Zillow, the current 30-year fixed mortgage rate is 6.20%. The 15-year fixed rate has fallen to 5.38%. If you can get a similar rate from a lender, this might be a good time to buy a house and lock in a relatively low rate. Read next: The best mortgage lenders for low and no down payments Here are the current mortgage rates, according to the latest Zillow data: 30-year fixed: 6.20% 20-year fixed: 5.63% 15-year fixed: 5.38% 5/1…

This whale alert can help traders discover the next big trading opportunities.Whales are entities with large sums of money and we track their transactions here at Benzinga on our options activity scanner.Traders often look for circumstances when the market estimation of an option diverges away from its normal worth. Abnormal amounts of trading activity could push option prices to hyperbolic or underperforming levels. Below are some instances of options activity happening in the Industrials sector: Symbol PUT/CALL Trade Type Sentiment Exp. Date Strike Price Total Trade Price Open Interest Volume AAL CALL SWEEP NEUTRAL 11/21/25 $14.00 $47.5K 81.5K 508 JBLU…

August nonfarm payrolls were weaker than expected, with only 22,000 jobs added. Fed eyes rate cuts as weak labor data influences bond yields and US dollar movement. Inflation data critical for USD direction, balancing Fed cuts and inflation risk. Looking for actionable trade ideas to navigate the current market volatility? Subscribe here to unlock access to InvestingPro’s AI-selected stock winners. For US dollar, the main focus last week was the August data, which reported only 22,000, significantly below the market’s expectation of 75,000. After revisions, the average employment growth over the past three months remained at just 29,000, with figures…

German reinsurer Deutsche Rückversicherung AG (Deutsche Rück) is exploring potential risk absorbers and additional vehicles, while also keeping an open mind towards alternative capital instruments, according to Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Achim Bosch.Bosch, who is a renowned veteran across the reinsurance sector, became CEO of Deutsche Rück in July this year, succeeding Frank Schaar, who held the role since February 2018. Bosch joined the firm in 2019 as Chief Underwriting Officer (CUO), where he was responsible for managing the company’s non-life market segment. He began his professional career at Concordia Versicherung in Hanover and went on to serve at General…

Jada Jones/ZDNETFollow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.It’s almost time for Apple to announce the iPhone 17 smartphone lineup, but I’m more excited about the possibility of an AirPods Pro 3 announcement. The AirPods Pro 2 are my daily driver earbuds, but there are some features I’d love to see improved in the next model.Also: How to watch Apple’s event this week (and what to expect)I’ve heard rumors about a complete redesign of the AirPods Pro’s earbuds and charging case, potential live translation capabilities, and temperature sensing, all meant to make the earbuds more useful in your everyday life.…

(Oil & Gas 360) – Calgary, Alberta (September 8, 2025) – Strathcona Resources Ltd. (“Strathcona“) today announced a variation and extension of its previously announced take-over bid (as varied, the “Amended Offer“) for MEG Energy Corp. (TSX: MEG) (“MEG“). Under the terms of the Amended Offer, Strathcona is offering to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common shares of MEG (“MEG Shares“) not already owned by Strathcona or its affiliates for 0.80 of a common share of Strathcona (“Strathcona Share“) per MEG Share. The expiry date for the Amended Offer is 5:00 p.m. (Mountain Time) on October 20, 2025. The Amended…

Key Takeaways Robinhood Markets and AppLovin shares surged Monday on word they will be added to the S&P 500 prior to the start of trading Sept. 22.S&P Dow Jones Indices said the duo and Emcor Group will replace Caesars Entertainment, MarketAxess Holdings, and Enphase Energy. Those three will be shifted to the S&P SmallCap 600 Index.The changes were part of S&P Dow Jones Indices’ quarterly rebalancing.  Shares of trading platform Robinhood Markets (HOOD) and mobile marketing provider AppLovin (APP) soared Monday on word they will be added to the S&P 500 Index. S&P Dow Jones Indices, which sets the membership,…

This episode of “The Hot Options Report” recaps the trading week, highlighting the significant market activity on Friday, September 5th. Mark Longo notes that the non-farm payroll data caused a lot of red in the market and a lot of green on the volatility screen. The episode then dives into a countdown of the hottest options, starting with broad market indices like the VIX, SPY, SPX, IWM, and QQQ, before moving on to individual stocks. The host provides details on the trading volume and the most active options for each security. The report concludes by recapping the top 10 single-name…