Author: Money Mechanics

Thank you, Reena. It is an honor to be back at Georgetown and at the Psaros Center.1 I have spent a significant amount of time on and around this campus, including when I served as a congressional intern early in my career. Perhaps in fate’s way of foreshadowing, one of the topics I researched that summer was the Glass-Steagall Act. Turns out that it was handy to learn about at a young age. Financial stability is a focal point of my attention at the Board of Governors, since I serve as chair of the Board’s Committee on Financial Stability. Allow…

At The Builder’s Daily Focus on Excellence Conference in Denver, we had a chance over breakfast to discuss what we were seeing in off-site housing. While we have come at this from different angles and have seen different aspects of it, we reached a similar conclusion. Both of us have believed for years that off-site building is simply inevitable—the way we do things has changed so little in a century. Most people are familiar with a McKinsey study stating that there has been no productivity growth in construction for decades, as well as the demographic projections for our aging workforce.…

Elon Musk’s Grok really, really loves its creator. Since this week’s release of Grok 4.1, X users have circulated posts and screenshots that show Grok vastly overestimating Musk’s abilities — like when Grok was asked about how Musk would perform as a professional football player. “hey @grok if you had the number one overall pick in the 1998 NFL draft and your team needed a quarterback, would you have taken Peyton Manning, Ryan Leaf, or Elon Musk?” one user asked. “Elon Musk, without hesitation,” Grok said. The AI explained that Peyton Manning has a strong legacy, but Musk would “redefine…

Key Takeaways: Legendary investor Charlie Munger called the first $100,000 difficult to earn but pointed out how compound growth makes all your future gains easier. It takes 9.5 years to save $100,000 if you’re putting away $650 per month at an average 7% annualized return. After that decade, it only takes just under two and a half more to become a millionaire, showing the speed of growth under compound interest once you save six figures. Legendary investor Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s longtime business partner at Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK.A, BRK.B), understood the psychology of wealth building better than most. “The…

(World Oil)– Baker Hughes has received a significant order for 25 aeroderivative gas turbines from U.S.-based Dynamis Power Solutions, expanding the energy technology company’s footprint in mobile power systems used across upstream, refining and petrochemical operations. The order—booked in the third quarter of 2025—includes LM2500, LM6000 and LM9000 gas turbines, totaling 1.3 GW of generation capacity. The equipment will be integrated into Dynamis’ fleet of mobile power units, which are deployed in regions where reliable on-site power is essential for drilling, production, and processing activities. A key component of the deal is Dynamis’ adoption of 10 LM9000 gas turbines, which will anchor…

Key Takeaways Avoid reacting to short-term market or political changes that can derail your long-term goals.Focus on what you can control by staying grounded in your plan and disciplined in your decisions.Identify the root of your worries so you can address them with clarity and confidence.Channel anxiety into action by reviewing your goals and consulting your advisor before making changes. Many Americans are feeling anxiety in today’s world. Money and politics are colliding, and constant headlines about tariffs, regulatory changes, layoffs, and global turmoil are causing widespread anxiety among investors. Heightened anxiety may prompt your clients to make rash decisions…

KEY TAKEAWAYS The percentage of employees in 2024 who took out a hardship withdrawal from the retirement account more than doubled compared to 2018.The costs of emergencies also continue to rise, from unexpected car repairs and hospital stays to an increased number and severity of natural disasters. It is becoming increasingly difficult for many Americans to accumulate sufficient savings, and many struggle to afford emergency expenses, especially as the costs for things like home repairs or hospital stays increase faster than general inflation. Workers are having to find alternative ways to afford these unexpected costs, such as taking out loans…

Key Takeaways Buffett calls self‑development “the best investment by far” because skills can’t be taxed or “inflated away.”The next‑best hedge is to own stock in companies whose products require little new capital but can raise prices at the rate of inflation or even higher.Firms built on royalty-like models or networks often convert revenue to cash without big reinvestments, giving them room to outpace rising costs. Inflation may ebb and flow, but Warren Buffett’s two lessons for fighting it are timeless. Become so good at what you do that people will pay a premium for your skills.Own stock in businesses that don’t…

How to Dodge the Sequence of Returns Trap in RetirementgettyRetirement is meant to be a reward for decades of work and saving. But for many, one hidden risk quietly threatens that reward: the risk of experiencing poor investment returns early in retirement while withdrawing from savings. Known as sequence‑of‑returns risk, this phenomenon doesn’t show up when you’re in accumulation mode, but it can dramatically change the outcome when you’re decumulating. Here’s a clear‑eyed look at this trap, how it works, and six practical actions anyone approaching or living in retirement should consider to reduce its impact.Why Sequence‑Of‑Returns Risk MattersWhen you’re…

Major U.S. equities indexes turned lower Thursday afternoon, reversing early gains as a rally powered by Nvidia’s (NVDA) blockbuster earnings after the bell Wednesday faded. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slid 0.7%, the S&P 500 dropped 0.9%, and tech-heavy Nasdaq fell 1.1%. Nvidia shares, which jumped as much as 5% earlier in the session on the chipmaker’s better-than-expected results, were down about 2% in recent trading. Jacobs Solutions (J) led declines on the S&P 500 as shares dropped nearly 10% after the company posted weaker-than-expected results, citing a drop in value of one of its investments, along with a substantially…