Author: Money Mechanics

The annual Economic Symposium, hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, is set to take place from Thursday to Saturday, at the Jackson Lake Lodge in Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming. The highlight of the event, as always, will be Fed Chair Jerome Powell’s on Friday at 10:00 AM ET, titled “Economic Outlook and Framework Review.” With Powell’s term as Fed Chair nearing its end in May 2026, this speech—likely his final one at Jackson Hole—carries significant weight for markets, policymakers, and analysts seeking clues about the U.S. central bank’s next moves. Powell’s Jackson Hole speeches have historically…

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released its May 2025 Inflation report on June 11th, 2025. The report showed that Annual Inflation was up from 2.3% in April to 2.4% in May.Calculated to two digits, it was really 2.31% in April, and 2.35% in May (not even 1/10th% up). And still below the 2.39% in March.Economists were predicting higher inflation, so the slight increase was basically a non-event.Economists were predicting higher inflation, so the slight increase was basically a non-event.May’s Inflation Prediction:At 2.35%, May inflation numbers came in at last month’s “extreme low” projection, indicating that inflation could have been…

Key Takeaways La-Z-Boy earnings slumped on reduced foot traffic in its stores and weakness in its Joybird brand.Same-store sales fell 4% year-over-year, and Joybird sales sank 14%.La-Z-Boy CEO Melinda Whittington said the furniture retailer was “evaluating all alternatives” to deal with its non-core-business financial woes. La-Z-Boy (LZB) shares sank 13% Wednesday, a day after the furniture maker’s profit declined as it dealt with fewer buyers in its stores and weak demand for its Joybird brand. The company known for its reclining chairs reported fiscal 2026 first-quarter adjusted earnings per share that slumped 24% year-over-year to $0.47, while analysts surveyed by…

Lowe’s Companies, Inc. LOW reported second-quarter net earnings of $2.4 billion, or diluted Earnings Per Share (EPS) of $4.27, compared to $4.17 in the year-ago quarter.Adjusted diluted EPS rose 5.6% to $4.33 from $4.10, topping analyst estimates of $4.24.Quarterly sales reached $23.96 billion, compared with $23.59 billion a year earlier, and came in slightly above Wall Street’s estimate of $23.96 billion. Comparable sales increased 1.1%.Also Read: Home Depot Navigates Traffic Decline, Reaffirms Annual OutlookGross margin expanded 34 basis points to 33.81%, with gross profit up 2.6% to $8.1 billion. Operating margin narrowed by 15 basis points to 14.5%.“This quarter, the…

Please enable JavaScript if it is disabled in your browser or access the information through the links provided below. July 03, 2025 Federal Reserve Board issues enforcement action with former employee of Jonah Bank of Wyoming For release at 11:00 a.m. EDT The Federal Reserve Board on Thursday announced the execution of the enforcement action listed below: Consent prohibition order against Kendall Hickman Former employee of Jonah Bank of Wyoming, Casper, Wyoming Embezzlement of funds Additional enforcement actions can be searched for here. For media inquiries, please email [email protected] or call 202-452-2955.…

In-brief analysis August 20, 2025 Developers added 12 gigawatts (GW) of new utility-scale solar electric generating capacity in the United States during the first half of 2025, and they plan to add another 21 GW in the second half of the year, according to our latest survey of electric generating capacity changes. If those plans are realized, solar would account for more than half of the 64 GW that developers plan to bring online this year. Battery storage, wind, and natural gas power plants account for virtually all of the remaining capacity additions for 2025.…

“There’s no one issue that contributed to defects,” Nick Volpe, executive vice president of ACES Quality Management, said in an interview with HousingWire. “We got a little bit of a rate blip in the fourth quarter. They went back up in January. And it wasn’t a refi boom that happened in the fourth quarter by any stretch of the imagination, but after such a prolonged period of elevated rates, any little bit helps. “The rates did change a little bit in the first quarter. Historically, what we’ve seen is when rates do tick up from quarter to quarter, you get…

KEY TAKEAWAYS Estée Lauder shares are down in premarket trading Wednesday after the cosmetics company posted a wider-than-forecast quarterly loss and a disappointing outlook for the upcoming year. The New York-based company, whose brands include MAC, La Mer, and Jo Malone, said Chinese consumer demand remained “subdued.”The company’s shares are falling 6% in premarket trading but have gained 19% so far this year entering Wednesday. Estée Lauder (EL) shares are down 6% in premarket trading Wednesday after the cosmetics company posted a wider-than-forecast quarterly loss and a disappointing outlook for the upcoming year. The New York-based company, whose brands include MAC,…

The portability of the lifetime estate and gift tax exemption amount between spouses was introduced in the 2010 tax law. But details of portability aren’t well-known, and misunderstandings can cost an estate a lot of money. Each individual has a lifetime exemption from the estate and gift tax, which is $13.99 million in 2025 and will rise to $15 million in 2026. After that, it will be indexed for inflation. When one spouse dies and his or her estate doesn’t use the entire lifetime exemption, the unused exemption amount can be passed to the surviving spouse. The surviving spouse then…

Key Takeaways Target announced it was replacing CEO Brian Cornell with 20-year company veteran Michael Fiddelke, and shares plunged.Fiddelke was instrumental in the struggling retailer’s efforts to reshape how it operates.Target reported better-than-expected revenue and comparable store sales. Target (TGT) shares sank 11% in premarket trading Wednesday as the struggling retailer replaced its CEO with a company veteran even as its business showed signs of improvement in the second quarter. Target announced that long-time employee Michael Fiddelke would be taking over for Brian Cornell on Feb. 1, 2026. Cornell, who has held the post for 11 years, will become executive…