The Russian invasion of Ukraine has drawn condemnation and punitive sanctions from the United States, Europe, and their allies. The humanitarian cost of war cannot be measured, and the long-term economic effects could take months or years to unfold. However, the early stages of the conflict pushed oil prices upward and sent the U.S. stock
The headline U.S. unemployment rate fell from 6.7% at the end of December 2020 to 3.9% in December 2021, marking the biggest one-year improvement in history.1 While many workers took advantage of this strong rebound in the job market, companies large and small have been struggling with labor shortages. A conspicuous lack of workers has
You’ve been doing the right thing financially for many years, saving for your child’s education and your own retirement. Yet now, as both goals loom in the years ahead, you may wonder what else you can do to help your child (or children) receive a quality education without compromising your own retirement goals. Knowledge Is
After five payment pauses that began roughly two years ago, federal student loan payments are set to resume in May 2022. The first payment suspension came in March 2020 when Congress passed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and lasted for six months through September 2020. The second and third pauses came
On March 16, 2022, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) of the Federal Reserve raised the benchmark federal funds rate by 0.25% to a target range of 0.25% to 0.50%. This is the beginning of a series of increases that the FOMC expects to carry out over the next two years to combat high inflation.1
Over the past days, the United States and other countries have imposed various sanctions on Russia for its invasion of Ukraine. One sanction that was discussed initially but not implemented immediately was blocking Russia from the SWIFT global banking network. However, the United States and European allies eventually agreed to remove selected Russian banks from
The IRS announced that the starting date for when it would accept and process 2021 tax-year returns was Monday, January 24, 2022. Tips for making filing easier To speed refunds and help with tax filing, the IRS suggests the following: Make sure you have received Form W-2 and other earnings information, such as Form 1099,
4,376,997 – Number of new business applications in 2020. Retail trade applications accounted for approximately 20% of this total. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 After taking a nosedive at the start of the pandemic recession (gold shaded area), business applications rose sharply, peaking in July 2020. Applications have fallen somewhat since then but are still
$352,700 – National median price of an existing home in October 2021. This was lower than median prices in the summer, but higher than September. The West was the most expensive region with a median price of $507,200, followed by the Northeast ($379,100), South ($313,600), and Midwest ($259,500). Source: National Association of Realtors, 2021 U.S.
The IRS issued more than 125 million individual income tax refunds in 2020; the average amount was nearly $2,600. Source: Internal Revenue Service, 2021 Most U.S. taxpayers “completely agree” (68%) or “mostly agree” (26%) that paying their fair share of taxes is a civic duty.1 However, no one wants to pay more than his or
