Federal, state, and local governments have extended a number of deadlines amid the coronavirus pandemic. Here are just a few of the deadlines that have been affected. Federal and state income taxes The IRS has postponed the due date for filing federal income tax returns and making tax payments from April 15, 2020, to July
When it comes to your finances, “go with your gut” might not be the wisest adage to follow. In fact, it may work against you, particularly in periods of market turbulence. Before jumping to conclusions about your finances, consider what biases may be at work beneath your conscious radar. Recency bias refers to the tendency
Do you find yourself glued to the daily news reports on market movements wondering about your own savings and investments? Before you make any hasty decisions, be sure you understand how these reports relate — or don’t relate — to your individual portfolio. The variance in the returns of different portfolios is largely attributable to
With the stock market closed last Monday in observance of Memorial Day, Tuesday’s trading led to solid returns for each of the benchmark indexes listed here. The S&P 500 climbed past the 3000 mark for the first time since March, only to trickle below by the end of the day. The small caps of the
Stocks opened the week with mixed returns. The S&P 500 stayed level, the Dow fell by almost half a point, and the Nasdaq finished the day up three-quarters of a percent. Crude oil prices dropped by nearly one percent. Positive news came from New York last Monday as Governor Cuomo indicated some businesses would be
On April 20, 2020, the price of a futures contract for West Texas Intermediate crude — the benchmark for U.S. oil prices — fell below zero for the first time in history, dropping more than 306% in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and ending the day at -$37.63 per barrel.1 Essentially, this meant
Investors continue to move toward stocks despite unfavorable economic data. New scientific and medical developments in the battle against COVID-19 offer hope. Last Monday saw stocks rebound from losses earlier in the day to close on a high note. Surging oil prices gave a boost to energy shares, which helped drive the market higher. Each
Throughout March 2020, as it became increasingly evident that the economic impact from the COVID-19 pandemic would be both profound and prolonged, Congress passed several pieces of legislation with provisions to help small businesses shore up their coffers and keep employees on the payroll. Within a few weeks, initial funding for the two cornerstone programs,
Fraudsters and scam artists are always looking for new ways to prey on consumers. Now they are using the same tactics to take advantage of consumers’ heightened financial and health concerns over the coronavirus pandemic. Federal, state, and local law enforcement have begun issuing warnings on the surge of coronavirus scams and how consumers can
Anyone can look good during a bull market. Smart investors are prepared to weather the inevitable rough patches, and even the best aren’t successful all the time. When the market goes off the tracks, knowing why you originally made a specific investment can help you evaluate whether those reasons still hold, regardless of what the
