Author: Money Mechanics

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…

Solid-state battery maker QuantumScape (NASDAQ: QS) updated investors on its path to commercialization with its fourth-quarter report last night. While it made significant progress in 2025, the volatile stock is still selling off today. Investors expect another year of losses in 2026, but one item of note may have spooked the market. QuantumScape stock plunged more than 10% after the report and remained down 8.8% as of 11:41 a.m. ET. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now, when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks…

In-brief analysis February 12, 2026 State taxes and fees on motor gasoline as of January 1, 2026, ranged from a high of 70.9 cents per gallon (c/gal) in California to a low of 9.0 c/gal in Alaska. State gasoline taxes averaged 33.5 c/gal across states, a slight increase from their average last year. We compile this information twice a year by collecting tax and fee information as of January 1 and July 1, as those dates align with the timing of many states’ changes in taxes. Twenty-six states have changed their gasoline taxes between the…

A cargo ship is loading and unloading foreign trade containers at Qingdao Port in Qingdao, Shandong Province, China, Jan. 13, 2026.Cfoto | Future Publishing | Getty ImagesThe U.S. government in January ran up a smaller deficit than a year ago, while tariff collections surged and provided a reminder of how pivotal a long-awaited Supreme Court decision could be to federal fiscal health.Customs duties collected through tariffs totaled $30 billion for the month, putting the fiscal year-to-date tally at $124 billion, or 304% more than the same period in 2025. President Donald Trump first levied the duties in April 2025 with…

ZDNET’s key takeaways The Chipolo Loop is available now for $39.It’s rechargeable, so you don’t have to worry about battery disposal, and the speaker is much louder than the Apple AirTag.It’s significantly more expensive than the AirTag, so could be a hard sell to iPhone user. Follow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google.I love AirTags, and my life would be a whole lot more chaotic without them. But they have their limitations. The design is not conducive to attaching to keys, they aren’t that loud, and they eat disposable batteries.  What if there was a super-loud finder tag that…

Key Takeaways Start with no-cost mortgage quotes to compare lenders on equal footing without fee confusion.The lowest no-cost rates help you build a shortlist of the most competitive lenders.You can then use that shortlist to explore different rate options and choose the structure that best fits your plans. Why Comparing Mortgage Rates Is Harder Than It Looks Mortgage rate shopping seems straightforward: Collect a few quotes, compare rates, and pick the lowest one. But in reality, it’s not that easy because rates don’t tell the entire story. You’ll want to consider how costs like loan origination and underwriting fees affect…

Key Takeaways According to the efficient market hypothesis (EMH), stock prices reflect all available information, suggesting that it’s impossible for investors to find undervalued stocks.Warren Buffett argues against the EMH by pointing to examples of value investors, including himself, who have outperformed the market.Still, Buffett recommends that non-professional investors choose low-cost index funds because successful value investing takes time and expertise. ​The legendary investor Warren Buffett has repeatedly denounced the efficient market hypothesis (EMH), which claims that stock prices reflect all relevant information and always trade at their fair value. Beyond simple luck, this should make it impossible to consistently…