Author: Money Mechanics

The global mining sector extracts and refines a wide range of materials, used in everything from construction to automotive output to electricity generation and electronics production.Each of these produces significant carbon dioxide emissions and has contributed to environmental degradation such as deforestation. These can have negative implications for a range of local stakeholders.In addition, control of the supply of so-called critical minerals and metals is at the forefront of rising geopolitical tensions across the globe. Trade policy tools such as export restrictions and import tariffs are increasingly being used in the current geopolitical backdrop. Subscribe to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Be…

Every year, Americans spend billions of dollars on video games and virtual worlds. A large portion of those expenses are purchases of gaming currency that is stored on a player’s account and used for in-game transactions, like buying goods and services or initiating person-to-person (“P2P”) transfers. As detailed in our report on the financial risks of video games and virtual worlds, the ways in which these gaming currencies and accounts work are evolving rapidly, including to function more and more like banking and payment systems.As these evolutions have occurred, gamers—or in some cases their parents and guardians—have reported issues such…

Americans have a good chance of living well into old age these days, which is something to cheer about.But it also raises serious concerns for those who haven’t planned for the possibility of long-term care needs.And the demand for those needs has never been greater. Subscribe to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Be a smarter, better informed investor. Save up to 74% Sign up for Kiplinger’s Free E-Newsletters Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice on investing, taxes, retirement, personal finance and more – straight to your e-mail. Profit and prosper with the best of expert advice – straight to…

Please enable JavaScript if it is disabled in your browser or access the information through the links provided below. July 09, 2025 Minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee, June 17–18, 2025 For release at 2:00 p.m. EDT The Federal Reserve on Wednesday released the minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting that was held on June 17–18, 2025. The minutes for each regularly scheduled meeting of the Committee are generally published three weeks after the day of the policy decision. The descriptions of economic and financial conditions contained in these…

(Oil Price)– U.S. Devon Energy Corporation has signed a 10-year natural gas agreement to supply LNG to UK’s Centrica, the owner of British Gas. Under the deal announced on Friday, Devon Energy will supply 50,000?(MMBtu) per day of natural gas over a 10?year term starting in 2028. This is equivalent to five LNG cargoes per year. The LNG volumes will be indexed to the European gas hub price, TTF. The agreement supports Centrica’s objective of managing market price risk in its LNG portfolio by aligning feed gas pricing with European gas prices whilst providing Devon Energy with international price exposure, the UK…

KEY TAKEAWAYS Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is “very happy” with the current tariff situation with China, indicating there likely won’t be any immediate changes to the trade truce between the two countries.Earlier this month, President Donald Trump extended the trade truce for another 90 days, hours before tariffs imposed on China were due to spike.Bessent said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday that “China is now the biggest revenue line in the tariff income.” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the U.S. is “very happy” with the current tariff situation with China, indicating there likely won’t…

Key Takeaways Many people think that certain retirement strategies don’t apply to them or assume that their steady paycheck means they’re automatically on track.Advisors often meet new clients who either save aggressively or spend freely without linking their current financial strategy to their retirement objectives, resulting in them working longer than necessary or missing out on life today. Many professionals assume their steady income means they’re on track for retirement. But financial advisors say that’s the mindset that keeps people stuck—working years longer than they need to or missing out on life now. The most common and costly retirement mistake…

Rate cuts might be on the horizon. As such, it presents an excellent opportunity for savers to capitalize on higher rates now before they disappear.I have been a big fan of high-yield savings accounts. They’re easy to set up, offer returns well above 4%, and I don’t have to worry about being nickel-and-dimed by my bank.However, if rate cuts happen, it will impact these accounts. Therefore, like you, I’m looking at changing where to place my emergency fund before the fall. Subscribe to Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Be a smarter, better informed investor. Save up to 74% Sign up for Kiplinger’s…

Our last update on Nasdaq’s U.S. and Stockholm IPO Pulses was on April 10 — the day after the Liberation Day tariffs were suspended for 90 days until July 9 (since extended to August 1). At that time, the Nasdaq-100® and the S&P 500 had just bounced from their lows for the year and were still about 15% off their previous highs.A falling stock market and increased volatility weighed on the IPO Pulses, pushing our U.S. and Stockholm IPO Pulses into downturns, signaling fewer IPOs ahead.Of course, the downturn in the Nasdaq IPO Pulse wasn’t just about tariffs. The IPO Pulse actually peaked…

Question: We bought a vacation home for retirement, which we rarely use. Should we sell? Or should we rent it out and wait for mortgage rates to come down?Answer: This is an enviable problem to have! Many people dream of owning a vacation home in retirement. And there are benefits to owning your own private getaway, like being able to pick up and skip town on a whim, knowing you have a place to stay.On the other hand, owning a second home is an expensive prospect. Even if the property in question is mortgage-free, there’s still the matter of taxes,…