Author: Money Mechanics

Chip and Joanna Gaines are ready to add yet another impressive real estate win to their awe-inspiring resume after snagging a buyer for one of the reality TV-approved renovation projects mere days after putting it on the market for $935,000.The property, which is located around 30 minutes from the couple’s iconic Waco, TX, farmhouse, was one of three dwellings that were listed by the Gaineses earlier this month, having all been given a total overhaul by the reality TV stars. While two of those properties—The Castle and The Hillcrest Estate—remain on the market, the third, and cheapest, of the trio,…

Please enable JavaScript if it is disabled in your browser or access the information through the links provided below. June 24, 2026 Federal Reserve Board’s annual bank stress test confirms that large banks are well positioned to weather a severe recession and able to continue to lend to households and businesses For release at 4:00 p.m. EDT The results of the Federal Reserve Board’s annual bank stress test confirmed that large banks are well positioned to weather a severe recession and able to continue to lend to households and businesses. Despite absorbing…

President Donald Trump on Wednesday canceled via Truth Social a scheduled Capitol Hill signing of a landmark bipartisan housing bill that leaders in both parties had heralded as a win, setting off a contentious day in Congress for the president.”Today’s Housing News Conference and Signing is hereby cancelled until such time as we pass the desperately needed SAVE AMERICA ACT, which I consider to be a National Emergency. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” Trump posted Wednesday, a little over an hour before he was due at the Capitol to sign the bill into law. House Speaker Mike…

Dutch Trade Minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma visited Washington this week to meet with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and members of Congress to oppose the MATCH Act, a bill that would bar Chinese chipmakers from accessing Western semiconductor equipment, and one that would hit ASML especially hard. ASML, based in the Netherlands, is Europe’s most valuable company and the only maker in the world of the sophisticated lithography machines that are used to make cutting-edge AI chips. “It’s exceptional that I’m coming here to broadly outline our concerns to Congress,” Sjoerdsma told Bloomberg after the meetings. “The stakes for the Netherlands may…

Tipping has always been part of everyday life, whether you’re dining out, getting a haircut or ordering food delivery. But in recent years, you may have noticed that tip prompts seem to be appearing in more places than ever before.At the same time, inflation has pushed up the cost of restaurant meals, personal services and other everyday expenses. That means even when you’re leaving the same percentage tip you always have, the dollar amount is often higher simply because the bill is higher.The result is that many people are taking a closer look at their tipping habits and wondering what’s…

Modular construction, panelized building, and other techniques could shave major costs off the price of building a new home, a new study finds.Manufactured housing techniques could shave 20% to 30% off the cost of building some homes, according to a new from the JPMorganChase PolicyCenter. Those techniques could also cut down the time needed to build new homes by 30% to 50%. Think two months less of building time.Since construction accounts for nearly two-thirds of the cost of a new home, cutting those expenses could help homebuyers face a surging market that has priced many out.”We’re really trying to look…

A lot of investors use bonds for one simple reason: to generate income with lower volatility than stocks. One of the most common ways to structure this is through a bond ladder.A basic Treasury bond ladder might look something like this: an investor splits capital evenly across Treasury securities maturing in one, two, three, four and five years. As each rung matures, the proceeds can either be spent or rolled into a new five-year Treasury.Bond ladders can help match future liabilities or spending needs, such as retirement withdrawals or tuition payments. They can also improve cash-flow planning and liquidity management…

Another big rebound on the other side of the world suggested stocks would rise in the U.S., too, and that’s what happened early on Wednesday. But investors, traders and speculators remain wary about the speed and scale of the artificial intelligence (AI) buildout.South Korea’s KOSPI Index bounced back in a big way after a sharp sell-off from new highs, just as it did in March and April, rising as much as 4.6% and finishing with a gain of 3.3%.More than half of the KOSPI’s value is tied to Samsung Electronics (SSNLF) and SK Hynix (HXSCL), which were up 9.8% and…

Server racks by dotshock via Shutterstock On June 17, Rumble (RUM), whose primary business involves streaming video content, announced that it had closed its acquisition of Northern Data. The latter entity intends to have “approximately 250MW of power deployed or coming online across ten global data centers by 2027” and rents GPUs that are used to create AI. Northern Data expects to generate 130 million euros to 150 million euros of revenue in 2026.  Meanwhile, Tether, the issuer of the cryptocurrency Tether (USDT), has invested a large amount of funds in RUM and has pledged to provide it with a…

In-brief analysis June 24, 2026 For the week ending June 19, 2026, U.S. refineries processed 17.1 million barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil, down 81,000 b/d from the previous week, and they operated at 96.1% capacity utilization. Gasoline production averaged 9.5 million b/d, and distillate production increased to 5.2 million b/d. Crude oil imports increased 436,000 b/d to 5.6 million b/d, although the four-week average of 5.7 million b/d is 4% below the year-ago level. Gasoline imports averaged 647,000 b/d; distillate imports averaged 135,000 b/d. Commercial crude oil inventories (excluding the Strategic Petroleum…