Author: Money Mechanics

(Oil Price) – The sanctions squeeze on oil supply from Russia and Iran are tightening the oil market and supporting crude prices as buyers look for additional legit barrels while sanctioned supply is piling in floating storage, according to the world’s biggest independent oil trader, Vitol. “The traditional buyers of those two supply sources are reaching for more Western or Saudi supply sources, which is then in turn tightening the real market,” Vitol’s CEO Russell Hardy said at the International Energy Week conference in London on Thursday, as quoted by Bloomberg. Fears of massive oversupply this year haven’t filtered through oil prices.…

Key Takeaways If you have a doctorate, you’re more likely to have a strong salary, job stability, and a good amount of budgeting experience. Those advantages can help you make up for lost time.A good goal is to contribute 20% of your salary every month to your retirement account.Don’t try to take shortcuts by chasing high returns or speculative investments. Many of those with doctorates land their first full-time job with an unsettling realization: you’re pushing 30 or older and have little to no retirement savings. Anxiety about playing catch-up often surfaces in personal finance forums, including Reddit. A biomedical…

Key Takeaways Several Federal Reserve officials said the central bank should keep interest rates at current levels while monitoring further progress on inflation.Inflation remained their key concern following better-than-expected jobs data.Tariffs could also continue to fuel inflation, though officials debated how much they will drive price increases. The job market is showing signs of stability. Now, if the Federal Reserve can only get inflation under control.  Employers added 130,000 jobs in January, surprising economists. But some Fed officials this week said their focus remains on elevated prices as the central bank looks at whether more interest rate cuts are needed…

Key Takeaways The national average price for a gallon of gas is $2.90, near its lowest level since spring 2021 after dipping to $2.78 last month.Gas has stayed below $3 per gallon for 11 straight weeks, the longest sustained stretch under that mark in more than four years.In the cheapest states, prices are in the mid-$2 range, while the highest statewide average reaches $4.52. Gas Prices Are Hovering Near Their Lowest Level Since Spring 2021 The national average price of regular gasoline is near its lowest level since spring 2021, according to new data released Tuesday by the U.S. Energy…

Key Takeaways McDonald’s will continue to experiment with menu items that appeal to high-income consumers, who are expected to increase their visits to fast-food restaurants this year, according to executives.On the flip side, McDonald’s expects lower-income consumers to “continue to be under pressure” this year. The well-off are still hitting the drive-thru, and McDonald’s wants to make sure its theirs. Higher-income consumers are increasingly trading down, substituting meals at full-service restaurants with less expensive outings to chains like McDonald’s. It’s a trend that’s been visible across industries in recent years—and McDonald’s is eager to keep serving those customers. “On the…

On January 1, Arkansas and Illinois became the latest states to join the trend of repealing or reducing sales taxes on groceries to ease the financial burden posed by food costs on shoppers. Now, nine U.S. states levy sales taxes on groceries at a full or reduced sales tax rate.This trend is happening as food prices remain high across the country. According to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the average household now spends over $550 a month on groceries — a figure that continues to climb due to inflation.But in states like Arkansas and…

Do you have a child under 18? If so, they could be eligible for a Trump Account — one of the most talked-about provisions of the 2025 Trump/GOP tax and spending law.Trump Accounts are child-focused savings vehicles designed to help provide a head start on a beneficiary’s higher education, first-time homeownership, and entrepreneurial pursuits. And for children born within certain years, the federal government will seed each account with $1,000.So far, more than 1 million taxpayers have already taken steps to open a Trump Account during the 2026 tax season. That’s according to IRS CEO Frank Bisignano, who recently reported…

Key Takeaways Cisco shares tumbled Thursday after the networking giant’s latest quarterly results showed rising memory costs squeezed its margins.A memory shortage has driven up costs, forcing Cisco to raise its prices and renegotiate contracts. Networking giant Cisco Systems is the latest tech firm to see its stock drop after revealing it’s grappling with the impacts of a global memory shortage. Shares of Cisco (CSCO) were down over 10% in recent trading, a day after the company reported fiscal second-quarter revenue and earnings per share that topped analysts’ estimates, but its gross margin fell short as memory costs surged. Cisco’s…

Key Takeaways Standard pension estimates rely on simplified assumptions and may overlook salary changes, service credit, survivor elections and FERS COLA caps.Incomplete projections can lead to undersaving or retiring at the wrong time, especially when Social Security and taxes aren’t planned out. Many federal employees rely on their official pension estimate when planning for retirement. That can be a wrong move. These projections are built on standardized assumptions, not personalized information, so they can miss changes that affect your benefits. Below, we take you through what you need to know and how to ensure you’re on the right track. What…

(Image credit: Getty Images)Inflation’s always been a hot topic for economists. But since June 2022, when the Consumer Price Index (CPI) hit its highest level in 40 years (9.1%!) and the Federal Reserve hiked interest rates to their highest level in over 20 years, more folks have become interested in the data.This is because inflation is a measure of our purchasing power. How much things cost and how quickly prices are rising directly impacts not only how far a dollar will stretch for us, but also how far it will go for the companies that we invest in. And very…