Watch out for interest rates. Not the short-term rates controlled by the Federal Reserve. Barring an unforeseen financial crisis, they’re not going anywhere, especially not after the jump in inflation reported by the government on Wednesday. Instead, pay attention to the 10-year Treasury yield, which has been bouncing around since the election from about 4.8 … Read more
It’s possible to amass $1 million in special health savings accounts to use in retirement, a new analysis finds, with several big caveats. You have to start young, contribute the maximum each year and leave the money untouched for decades instead of spending it on medical needs. Health savings accounts, known as H.S.A.s, let people … Read more
Elon Musk’s growing power in government appears to be making some of his businesses more of a magnet for investors. Case in point: Banks have managed to sell off most of the $12.5 billion worth of debt owed by X, his social network, to eager buyers. Investors are essentially betting that the company’s future is … Read more
When President Trump announced he would impose new tariffs on imports from countries around the world, he launched a frontal attack on the global free trade system created in the aftermath of World War II. Mr. Trump’s move, announced Thursday and set to begin as soon as April, represents a bet that the United States … Read more
Liquor lobbyists gathered in a ritzy private club on a recent rainy evening in Brussels to swill cocktails with names like “Toasts Not Tariffs” and fret over the potential disaster confronting their industry. Again. Seven years ago, the spirits industry found itself a casualty in a worldwide trade war as President Trump unleashed tariffs on … Read more
Economic jargon is usually confined to textbooks and business school seminars. But every once in a while, something happens in the world that drives the lingo out of obscurity and into popular discussions. One such emergence happened late last month when, following a weekend of alarm over the viability of A.I. investments, Microsoft’s chief executive, … Read more
In recent weeks, Elon Musk and his aides have gained access to many federal agencies’ systems and unknown amounts of data. Many readers have written in to share their fears that the agencies — and the personal data they possess on hundreds of millions of taxpayers — are now vulnerable. When people tinker with vital … Read more
President Trump is pursuing a far more aggressive trade policy than he embraced in his first term, allowing his unfettered instincts about how to put America at the forefront to guide him with little pretense of investigations or extended deliberations. Since taking office, Mr. Trump has threatened punishing tariffs on goods from every global trading … Read more
For the past five years, Molly Culver, owner of Molly Oliver Flowers in Brooklyn, has mounted a quiet battle against the goliath of Valentine’s Day flowers: the rose. Classically red, multilayered, prickly and velvety, millions of roses, most imported from overseas, will be sold for the annual day of love. But Ms. Culver is among … Read more
Rows of white concrete buildings near the Pearl River in southern China house one of the world’s fastest-growing industries: Gritty workshops are churning out inexpensive clothing that is exported straight to homes and small businesses around the world. No tariffs are paid, and no customs inspections are conducted. The laborers who make these goods earn … Read more