Latest business and finance news & analysis
Normal (but holiday mindset) for the markets today. And, with a party mindset, a kick-back day around here. I thought about putting today’s Peoplenomics report out as a whole column – so non-subscribers could make a judgement as to whether PN is their cuppa tea. But that’s hard for an author-writer to do, honestly. So, … Read More
No – but here’s the answer – right off the press release: Year-Over-Year The S&P Cotality Case-Shiller U.S. National Home Price NSA Index, covering all nine U.S. census divisions, reported a 1.4% annual gain in October, up from 1.3% the previous month. The 10-City Composite annual increase came in at 1.9%, down from 2.0% the previous month. … Read More
Financial Manipulation Wars are no longer a metaphor — they’re an operating environment. One in which value may be redefined in 2026. Silver prices – trying to turn back up this morning – are interesting, but what’s more revealing is how the conversation around silver is now being carried. Over the past few months, YouTube has … Read More
The first big financial story today is about how precious metals got a solid beat-down on the Futures market ahead of the open. Despite the claims of some on YouTube (cited in our unusual Sunday report), in economics life is always about The Counter-Argument. You don’t find out before The End – and usually that’s too late … Read More
No, we are not ringing the bell, yelling “Panic!” and everyone “run from street.” But, there are a couple of great videos making the round this weekend from Jon A.G. over on Youtube which will help you feel less like “Chicken Little” is coming and more like “Jeez, should have listened when George was buying … Read More
As always, busy as the hubs of Hades around here the past week, or so. Good weather doesn’t come often enough. When it does, we like to get things done. That may sound easy. But there’s the whole sub-topic of time management (in management sciences) where we delve more than waist-deep into “task-switching.” This also came … Read More
The New Year is a dandy time to look back – and then ahead – to see what levers we can each pull to increase our odds of health, wealth, and living happily ever-after. After a few headlines (so little is going on and we hate rewrite!) a personal story from one of my books and how … Read More
We won’t really know – for sure and for certain – what this Christmas told us about the economy for a while. Sure, there was a dandy run into the Christmas Eve early closes, but markets are set to give back a bit at the open today. Early futures showed the Dow off 100 but … Read More
Sleigh bells? Chestnuts? Open fires? Not around here – not this year. Mostly sunny and 77 today. Boxing Day will hit 81. To be sure, the East Texas outback is a different part of the country. Down here in “We say grace, we say mam, if you aint into that we don’t give a damn” country. Where … Read More
Apparently, the Government Shutdown this year – 46 bonus days – was not enough for non-government taxpayers to fund. So yes, most U.S. federal offices are closed today, Wednesday, December 24, 2025, as the President issued an executive order making Christmas Eve a federal holiday for all executive departments, with only essential personnel for national … Read More
These may not all apply to you. But, around here, they are all part of making the season merry. So we’ll begin… Breaking: Durable Goods Drop to Suck: Oh, but not to worry, no sir! Real gross domestic product (GDP) increased at an annual rate of 4.3 percent in the third quarter of 2025 (July, August, … Read More
As we roll into Nick Day week, besides metals glittering early, there’s a CFNAI report to dissect. After which three “holiday week risks” are assessed. Noisy headlines give me a cartoon excuse, but then into useless lithium battery chargers and some ShopTalk and Peoplenomics previews. St. Nick’s Rally – And Caution Market futures were showing a … Read More
Is this really ShopTalk? Maybe: It’s really about aging, agency, risk, and dignity. Let me read you in. Every so often a reader letter lands that isn’t really about tools — it’s about starting over. Two things stood out in this week’s mailbag: First, it comes from a long-time reader – she’s 73. And she lost everything … Read More