Author: Money Mechanics

(Image credit: Getty Images)Software stocks are getting annihilated so far this year. That is my highly technical description of companies, like Salesforce and others, many of which are down more than 50% from their highs.The opinion or theory of some: AI is going to make these exorbitant subscriptions unnecessary. I am not naïve enough to think I will be the last man standing as robots power the global economy and my friends have all involuntarily “retired.”But there is one thing that gives me hope about my job security — the never-ending, mind-boggling changes to the Internal Revenue Code. From just…

Key Takeaways The average 401(k) balance for millennials is about $67,300. The median is about $35,000.On average, millennials contribute around 8.7% of their pay to their 401(k)s. Their employers contribute about 4.6% of their pay, on average, for a total savings rate around 13.3%.Experts suggest saving 12%–15% of your pay, including your employer’s match. Anyone claiming millennials are bad with money hasn’t seen the data. The average millennial has a 401(k) balance of $67,300 and is saving about 13% of their income for retirement, which is close to what experts recommend. Here’s what that portfolio actually looks like, and how…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Motor insurers — and their investors — have been pondering existential questions recently: with the impending arrival of self-driving vehicles, will car insurance even exist 20 years from now? Recent updates in the UK, however, were a reminder that there is a more mundane present-day problem: making money from cars that are currently on the road. FTSE 100 group Admiral was one of the first insurers to try forecasting the spread of self-driving cars over the next decade, predicting they would account for…

Mortgage rates have risen as the bond market digested developments in the Middle East. Higher oil prices sparked fears of inflation and bond yields surged. According to the Zillow lender marketplace, the current 30-year fixed rate is 5.98%, up 17 basis points from last weekend. The 15-year fixed rate is up 18 basis points to 5.50%. Here are the current mortgage rates, according to the latest Zillow data: 30-year fixed: 5.98% 20-year fixed: 5.90% 15-year fixed: 5.50% 5/1 ARM: 5.96% 7/1 ARM: 5.70% 30-year VA: 5.52% 15-year VA: 5.24% 5/1 VA: 5.30% Remember, these are the national averages and rounded…

’s surge toward $88 is not just an oil story. Gold and Treasury yields are rising alongside it, an unusual cross-asset pattern that suggests markets are pricing inflation risk even as growth concerns build. $88 Brent Crude Near 2024 high +20% Since Strike Feb 28 → Mar 7 Day 7 ME Conflict No ceasefire $5,131 Gold Edging higher ↓ S&P 500 Fut. Modest decline ↓ Europe Edged lower ↑ Asia Recovery gains 50K NFP Forecast 8:30am ET today Brent at $88: Mechanism Behind the MoveBrent crude reached $88 a barrel on Friday, its highest close since mid-2024 and its largest…

Weekly pending sales Pending home sales data provides a week-to-week perspective, though results can be affected by holidays and short-term fluctuations, such as the giant winter storm in January. We were showing year-over-year growth at the start of the year, and then the snowstorm slowed things down. Now that all the snow data is gone, we have three straight weeks of year-over-year growth, which should be the case given that mortgage rates have been under 6.25% all year long.  Weekly pending sales last week over the last two years: 2026: 66,127 2025: 63,508 Mortgage purchase application data Purchase application data…

Bose QuietComfort Ultra (Gen 2) pros and cons Pros Excellent comfort and noise cancellation Improved battery capacity and power managementUSB-C audio compatibility Cons Limited audio customization Not worth an upgrade from the previous model Sony offers cleaner audio more buying choices Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.How do you convince yourself to pay $400+ for a pair of headphones that look and operate almost identically to the previous generation? That’s a question I hope to answer, and a question Bose hopes its latest flagship headphones will answer based on their performance alone.Also: I tested Sony and Bose’s best…

(BOE Report) – BP Chairman Albert Manifold on Friday announced plans for a slimmer board as part of the British oil major’s reset strategy, with former Shell chief financial officer Simon Henry among those departing. The leaner board is another of Manifold’s changes since coming on as chairman in October. Since then, Murray Auchincloss abruptly departed as CEO in December, with Woodside Energy’s Meg O’Neill set to take over the top role starting in April. O’Neill is BP’s first external hire for the post in over a century. She will receive a base salary of 1.6 million pounds, according to the company’s…

At the January reinsurance renewals SCOR grew its North America catastrophe risk book, seeing pricing as still attractive and also expecting other opportunities to deploy more capacity there this year, while the reinsurer also expanded its Risk Partnerships business where third-party capital partners participate.That’s according to CEO Thierry Léger, who was speaking during an analyst call this week after SCOR announced its fourth quarter and full-year results. As we reported, SCOR did report a competitive market in property risks but its CEO said that the company delivered “a positive outcome, combining growth with an adequate level of profitability,” at the…

A recently-added feature in Grammarly purports to improve users’ writing with help from the world’s great writers and thinkers — and some tech journalists, too. Launched in August 2025 as part of a broader set of AI-powered features, Expert Review appears in the sidebar of Grammarly’s main writing assistant, allowing users to bring up revision suggestions “from the perspective” of subject matter experts. Wired noted that this Grammarly frames this feedback as if it was coming from well-known authors, whether they’re living or dead. In some cases, according to The Verge, it can even appear to come from tech journalists…