Author: Money Mechanics

Key Takeaways In 2026, you can save more for retirement with higher 401(k) and IRA limits, but older workers earning more than $150,000 may need to make catch-up contributions on a Roth basis.When you get a pay raise, consider putting some of it toward your retirement account to grow your savings faster. Higher 401(k) limits, new rules for Roth individual retirement accounts (IRAs), and a fresh calendar year: 2026 offers a real chance to get ahead on retirement—if you know where to start. We spoke with financial planners about the moves worth making right now. Key Changes in 2026 With…

It might be time to review your asset and retirement income allocations.gettyIf you’re retired, the recent significant gains in the stock market look like a reason to celebrate. During 2025, for instance, the S&P 500 gained 17.9% when including the return from dividends. What’s more, the S&P 500 earned double-digit returns in 2023 and 2024 and for six of the past seven years. In 2025, however, the S&P 500 fluctuated significantly due to concerns about tariffs and layoffs. In addition, the return on the S&P 500 could have been down 5% or more, depending on which day you checked. Adding…

Key Takeaways Shares of chip manufacturing equipment suppliers and semiconductor designers soared on Thursday after strong results from contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. suggested demand for AI chips remains as robust as ever.The divide between AI haves and have-nots has widened this year as investors shift from buying AI aspirations to rewarding tangible AI-driven growth.  Record earnings from contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSM) sparked big stock gains Thursday, suggesting there’s still gas in the tank to fuel the AI rally. TSMC on Thursday reported record quarterly profit of 505 billion new Taiwan dollars ($16 billion) on record…

Key Takeaways Clear prompts create clearer and safer emails. Provide the AI with explicit and unmistakable compliance boundaries in your prompts. AI supports better communications at scale, leaving advisors more time to deepen relationships with clients. When clients face challenging times, such as market downturns, significant life transitions, or other periods of uncertainty, financial advisors must communicate with empathy and clarity, but finding the right words can be challenging, especially when managing multiple client relationships. AI can help, but you must know how to prompt it to get the results you need. Goal of the Prompt  Your clients need more…

If you are turning 65 in 2026, you have a critical seven-month window to sign up for Medicare — and missing it can be an expensive mistake. While some people are enrolled automatically, millions of others must take proactive steps to avoid gaps in their health coverage.With new 2026 changes now in effect — including a $2,100 out-of-pocket cap on prescription drugs and lower negotiated prices for high-cost medications — there has never been a more important time to get your enrollment right. Here is exactly how to sign up, what documents you need, and the deadlines you cannot afford…

Key Takeaways Lori Calvasina, RBC Capital Markets’ head of U.S. equity strategy, thinks continued earnings growth can power stocks higher in 2026. Analysts raised earnings expectations for the last three months of 2025 over the course of the fourth quarter—’a rare thing,’ FactSet’s John Butters said. Can the S&P 500 post another year of double-digit returns? If it does, one market expert says, it’ll earn it. Some have warned that U.S. stocks can’t post outsize gains forever. After a decade of posting exceptional performance, helped by a strong dollar and valuation expansion, the S&P 500’s winning streak seems likely to…

Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up to the Oil myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.Oil prices fell nearly 5 per cent on Thursday as US-Iran tensions de-escalated and traders dialled back their bets on military action against one of the world’s major crude producers.Brent crude, the international benchmark, dropped by $3 a barrel to $63.45, erasing most of this week’s gains. The protests in Iran, fresh US tariffs on buyers of Iranian oil and the prospect of a US intervention after reports of a heavy death toll all helped crude prices break above their 200-day moving average…

futures are transitioning from an expansionary momentum phase into a mean-reversion regime as defined by the VC PMI (Variable Price Momentum Indicator) framework. The recent price peak near $93.70 precisely aligned with the Daily Sell-1 VC PMI level, confirming statistical exhaustion rather than trend continuation. Within the VC PMI model, Sell-1 and Sell-2 levels represent extreme price deviations from the mean, where probability increasingly favors reversion rather than directional follow-through. Following rejection from Sell-1, price has rotated back toward the Daily VC PMI Mean (~$90.57). This level acts as a short-term equilibrium zone where volatility often compresses before resolution. Below…

US insurer Allstate has announced an estimated pre-tax catastrophe loss for the fourth quarter of 2025 of $209 million, which lifted the total for the current annual aggregate risk period for its catastrophe bonds to $2.757 billion while the run-rate of losses slowed in recent months.Allstate had reported  $594 million of pre-tax catastrophe losses for April 2025, then a further $777 million for May, an additional $619 million pre-tax for June, which took their Q2 2025 total cat losses to $1.99 billion or $1.57 billion, after-tax. Then at the end of Q3 2025, Allstate reported total catastrophe losses for the period were…

Please enable JavaScript if it is disabled in your browser or access the information through the links provided below. January 15, 2026 Federal Reserve Board issues enforcement action with former employee of PrimeLending For release at 11:00 a.m. EST The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday announced the execution of the enforcement action listed below: Consent prohibition order against Aquana Raffington Former employee of PrimeLending, a PlainsCapital Company, Dallas, Texas Conflicts of interest and fraud Additional enforcement actions can be searched for here. For media inquiries, please email [email protected] or call 202-452-2955.  …