Author: Money Mechanics

To help you understand the trends surrounding business and technology and what we expect to happen in the future, our highly experienced Kiplinger Letter team will keep you abreast of the latest developments and forecasts. (Get a free issue of The Kiplinger Letter or subscribe.) You’ll get all the latest news first by subscribing, but we will publish many (but not all) of the forecasts a few days afterward online. Here’s the latest…Businesses need to prepare for state privacy law enforcement, and fast. Total privacy fines in all 50 states soared to $3.4 billion in 2025, versus $1.8 billion in…

Rising energy tensions and hawkish Fed expectations continue to support US dollar strength globally. Weak growth in China and Europe is increasing investor demand for US dollar safe havens. US dollar index could test the 100 level if and Treasury yields remain elevated. The US dollar is currently being influenced by several major global developments. Three key factors are driving the market. First, ongoing tensions around the Strait of Hormuz continue to raise concerns about energy supply risks. Second, investors are increasingly considering the possibility that the could take a more hawkish approach on interest rates. Third, weaker growth expectations…

This Week In A Nutshell: Rates are likely to move more on headlines out of Iran than on economic data. If peace talks show real progress, rates could come down, but if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, markets will keep pricing in Fed rate hikes. Upcoming Attractions   This is a light week for market-moving economic data. The main scheduled items are the FOMC minutes on Wednesday, the Philadelphia Fed manufacturing index and housing starts on Thursday, and final University of Michigan consumer sentiment on Friday. We’ll also get pending home sales on Tuesday. The FOMC minutes may give…

Home design guru Alison Victoria has claimed that HGTV fired her from her co-hosting duties on “Battle on the Beach” because she told fans the series had been “canceled,” instead of stating that it had not been “renewed.” Victoria, 44, fronted the show for four seasons, alongside co-hosts Ty Pennington and Taniya Nayak. But in July 2025, during an episode of her podcast “The Pap Smear,” she told her “Ugliest Houses in America” co-star Retta that the series had been “canceled” as part of a sweeping program cull carried out by HGTV during that summer.Awkwardly for Victoria, the series actually…

Refresh 2026-05-18T20:37:47.321Z Stocks close mixed to start Nvidia week All three main indexes opened higher Monday, but only one was in positive territory at the close. Tech stocks were the biggest decliners as bond yields continued to climb, while energy stocks outperformed as oil prices jumped to their highest level since early April.At the close, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was down 0.5% at 26,090 and the broader S&P 500 was off 0.07% at 7,403. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3% at 49,686. Nvidia (NVDA) also closed lower today, falling 1.3% ahead of Wednesday’s earnings announcement.”We fully expect the leading supplier of AI silicon will again exceed estimates and guide above…

(Image credit: Getty Images)As the 2026 travel season hits its stride, the allure of the open sea is being met with a sobering reality check. While most travelers are busy packing formal wear and sunscreen, recent reports of Norovirus clusters on major lines and localized Hantavirus warnings have shifted the conversation from excursions to endurance. For those relying on Medicare, the risk isn’t just physical — it’s fiscal.Beyond the discomfort of a “stomach bug” or the severity of respiratory distress lies a complex web of “territorial waters” and a “Six-Hour Rule” that could leave you responsible for a five-figure medical…

(Image credit: Getty Images)All three main indexes opened higher Monday, but only one was in positive territory at the close. Tech stocks were the biggest decliners as bond yields continued to climb, while energy stocks outperformed as oil prices jumped to their highest level since early April.At the close, the tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite was down 0.5% at 26,090 and the broader S&P 500 was off 0.07% at 7,403. The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 0.3% at 49,686.Front-month West Texas Intermediate crude futures, meanwhile, climbed roughly 3% to settle at $108.66 per barrel. From just $107.88 $24.99 for Kiplinger…

Gold (GC=F) June futures opened at $4,547.60 per troy ounce on Monday, down 0.3% from the previous closing price of $4,561.90. Gold moved even lower in early trading, falling to $4,541.50 by 6:47 a.m. ET. Silver (SI=F) July futures opened at $76.21 per ounce on Monday, 1.7% lower than the previous closing price. The price of silver edged down in early trading to $75.95 by 6:47 a.m. ET. Once again, the president’s Truth Social posts are part of the headlines this morning. Last week, it was President Trump’s weekend reaction to a peace proposal from Iran, calling it “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!”…

Brent crude () is trading at $110.08 in the New York session Monday after touching $112 earlier in the day, with the violent reversal lower coming on the back of an Iranian news agency report that the U.S. had accepted a temporary waiver on sanctions during ongoing negotiations. The single-day decline from $112.60 yesterday morning to current levels represents a 2.23% pullback, but the bigger picture remains unambiguous: is up 18.03% on the month versus $93.27 one month ago, and up an extraordinary 67.14% year-over-year against $65.86 on this date in 2025. That $44 absolute price increase over twelve months…

Higher mortgage rates, rising gas prices and continued economic uncertainty over the war with Iran are all still weighing on potential homebuyers. Builders, however, are feeling slightly better about their businesses, seeing a potential late spring surge.After a sharp drop in April, homebuilder sentiment in the market for single-family homes rose 3 points in May to a readout of 37 on the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index. Housing economists had expected the index to remain unchanged month over month. Still, anything below 50 on the index is considered negative sentiment. The index stood at 34…