Friday,
April 5, 2024
Market recap
Dow Jones
38,596.98
-530.16 (-1.35%)
S&P 500
5,147.21
-64.28 (-1.23%)
Nasdaq
16,049.08
-228.38 (-1.40%)
Top Story
Do you know how much debt the US has?
The Congressional Budget Office is projecting debt-to-GDP to soar into the triple digits in the coming years. We look at what that means.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average to log its worst day since March last year ahead of todayâs jobs report
• Oil prices rose 1.4% as tensions in the Middle East continued to escalate. The ongoing tensions also briefly pushed gold to a record high of roughly $2,300 per ounce.
• U.S. employers announced more than 90,000 layoffs in March, the highest monthly total since January 2023.
What to be on the lookout for today
• The March jobs report.
How consolidation can help you manage your debt
Managing your debt load can be difficult, especially if the debts are scattered across different lenders, because it could mean different interest rates, minimum payments, due dates and loan terms. Enter debt consolidation.
Consolidating your debts into one new loan can help simplify the repayment process by creating one monthly payment and interest rate.
How do you do it? Here are some options.
Personal loan. Personal loans typically donât require collateral, and you can shop around to find the best rates and terms. If approved, you may use your loan to pay off other debts.
Balance transfer. Transferring existing credit card debt to a new credit card with a lower interest rate can consolidate your debts and potentially save money.
Home equity. If youâre a homeowner and have built equity in your home (e.g. youâve paid off part of your mortgage), you can take out a home equity loan to consolidate other debt.
If youâre looking to manage your debt better, our debt summary tool can help you make sense of it all.
Todayâs top stories
Explaining what has been going on with DisneyThe entertainment company has been all over headlines as an activist investor tried to get seats on its board. But despite the turbulence and the on-going streaming wars, Disney stock has been rallying.
Read more >> Philanthropy is getting a makeoverâCollective givingâ is one of the fastest-growing forms of philanthropy in America, as community-based groups pool small donations to make a big impact.
Read more >> You can get a well-paying job without a four-year degreeNo college degree? No problem. Here are some of the highest-paying trade jobs.
Read more >>Other news that caught our eye
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Boeing paid Alaska Airlines $160 million as initial compensation for profit losses related to its midair door panel blowout.
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Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the U.S. would impose trade barriers, such as tariffs, on China to protect domestic industries.
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Amazon plans to cut hundreds of jobs in its cloud computing business AWS, following its move to scrap âJust Walk Outâ technology in U.S. grocery stores.
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Bloomberg reports that Apple engineers are looking into developing personal robots for use around the home.
Financial planner tip of the day
"The first step to tackling high interest debt is understanding your overall debt load. List out all debt including balance, payment, and interest rate. Any debt with an interest rate greater than 7% is considered high, so separate those out and develop a plan to pay them down."
Brian Walsh, CFPÂŽ at SoFi