Author: Money Mechanics

Key Takeaways The Jackson Hole conference will serve as a forum for Federal Reserve officials to signal whether the central bank will start cutting interest rates in September.Fed Chair Jerome Powell may also discuss whether the Fed is changing its inflation-fighting strategy, moving away from a flexible approach that failed to stop inflation from surging after the pandemic.Powell may also defend the Fed’s independence from political control amid increasing pressure from President Donald Trump. This year, the Jackson Hole conference in Wyoming is more than just a chance to see central bankers outside their natural habitat.The annual economics symposium, which…

Key Takeaways Neuro‑imaging studies find that sports betting and day trading trigger the same dopamine pathways in the brain’s reward center. Variable rewards, illusions of skill, and loss‑chasing can drive people to double down in both arenas. Your brain is hardwired for excitement, not spreadsheets. Brain scans reveal the same reward centers light up when people make an in‑game wager and when they click “Buy” on a meme stock. The dopamine pathways that govern these impulses evolved to push our ancestors toward high-stakes, high-reward endeavors—hunting dangerous prey, exploring new territory, and bonding with allies—by flooding the brain with feel-good chemicals…

Key Takeaways U.S. equities were mostly lower at midday as tech shares once again weighed on the overall market.Target named a new CEO and reported lower revenue.JPMorgan upgraded Hormel Foods on expected demand for the company’s protein products and those with fewer artificial ingredients. U.S. equities were mostly in the red at midday, dragged for a second session by tech stocks, as well as a mixed bag of earnings news. The Nasdaq dropped 1%, the S&P 500 was down as well, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed. Shares of artificial intelligence (AI)-related firms, including Palantir Technologies (PLTR)…

Unlike many of its rivals, Alaska Airlines is giving members of its new loyalty program a choice on how they earn rewards points. The Alaska Air Group (ALK) carrier issued several press releases Wednesday, touting a premium credit card, free Starlink Wi-Fi, and a new membership program that is different than its peers’ in one key way. Alaska Says Offering Under Its New Rewards Program Marks an Industry First Alaska Airlines on Wednesday announced the launch of its Atmos Rewards loyalty program, which combines its old Mileage Plan with Hawaiian Airlines’ HawaiianMiles after the Department of Transportation cleared their merger…

Why Some Analysts Think Tech Sell-Off Won’t Last 31 minutes ago Tech stocks are having a rough day, extending their recent slump amid a sector rotation away from big tech leaders.  However, some Wall Street analysts said they don’t expect that to last long.  “While some near-term tech volatility is not surprising given the run-up in valuations, we advise investors against becoming overly defensive,” UBS said Wednesday. “While we think some caution may be warranted in the more cyclical parts of tech, we remain confident in the broader AI sector’s long-term growth and resilience. We recommend investors seek balanced exposure across the…

In July, equity investors saw the broad rally from April lows continue, leading the S&P500® Index (SPX®) to multiple new highs. Volatility was muted — the Cboe Volatility Index (the VIX® Index) remained in the 15-18 range and volatility of volatility, expressed by Cboe’s VVIX℠ Index (VVIX), held steady near 90, the lower end of the prior year range.SPX rose 2.17%, from 6204 to 6339, and set an all-time closing high just shy of 6390 on July 28. Continuing a long-term trend, small cap performance lagged, with the Russell 2000® Index (RUT) gaining 1.68%, finishing at 2211.65. Although RUT increased…

The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) is projected to be higher next year, but benefits still might not be enough for many older Americans to live off. Each year, the Social Security Administration adjusts benefits based on inflation. This year’s COLA was a 2.5% increase. While the official numbers aren’t released until the fall, The Senior Citizens League predicts the increase for next year will be even higher at 2.7%. Retirees received an average of $2,006.69 in benefits during July. A 2.7% COLA would raise that average monthly check by roughly $54. TSCL estimates that nearly 22 million seniors live…

Tech stocks are having a rough day, extending their recent slump amid a sector rotation away from big tech leaders.  The Nasdaq lost close to 1% in recent trading, and the S&P 500 slid 0.4% as tech sector losses weighed on the indexes. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was little changed as retail and consumer defensive names gained, while Amazon (AMZN), Apple (AAPL), and Nvidia (NVDA) ranked among its weakest performers as all of the “Magnificent Seven” stocks declined.  Caution ahead of a speech from Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell on Friday, uncertainty about policy changes from the Trump administration,…

The problem isn’t that people don’t save for retirement. There’s another mistake that Kyle Wurtzel, a partner and private wealth advisor at Northwestern Mutual, has seen play out countless times with clients: They think retirement will be way cheaper than it actually is. Find Out: I’m a Financial Expert: This is the No. 1 Mistake Americans Make With Their Roth IRAs Read Next: 3 Reasons Retired Boomers Shouldn’t Give Their Kids a Living Inheritance (And 2 Reasons They Should) “One of the biggest mistakes I see middle-class retirees make is assuming their spending will significantly decrease in retirement,” Wurtzel explained.…

 In your TradeTalks interview at Consensus, you noted that “crypto is here to stay.” How do you see the crypto space evolving in the short and long term?We’ve entered a new era for crypto, one defined not by regulatory uncertainty, but by momentum toward collaboration and clarity. This administration has shifted the tone: Regulation by enforcement is being replaced by constructive dialogue and a goal to craft clear, fair rules through legislation and reasonable agency rulemaking. In the near term, the most critical priority is establishing a comprehensive federal framework that outlines how the SEC and CFTC oversee digital assets.…