Thursday,
August 15, 2024
Market recap
Dow Jones
40,008.39
+242.75 (+0.61%)
S&P 500
5,455.21
+20.78 (+0.38%)
Nasdaq
17,192.60
+4.99 (+0.03%)
Top Story
What if tips weren’t taxed?
Politicians are pushing to eliminate taxes for earnings from tips. While it sounds like a good way to help low-wage workers, it’s ignoring one key factor.
US stocks finished higher on Wednesday
• More promising inflation data helped support hopes for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut in September.
• Consumer price inflation rose 2.9% year-over-year in July, the smallest advance since March 2021.
What to be on the lookout for today
• Retail sales and the weekly update on unemployment claims.
• In earnings, Alibaba, Applied Materials, Deere & Company, and Walmart will report.
Have we slayed the inflation dragon?
The Federal Reserve has been fighting inflation for a while now. The central bank’s high interest rate policy is designed to cool the economy down, and it certainly has shown some success. Consumer price inflation rose 2.9% year-over-year in July, the smallest 12-month increase since March 2021, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
That’s not quite the Fed’s 2% target, but it’s getting there. So now what?
For one, inflation data seems to have become second-rank for the Fed, economists, and the markets, says SoFi’s Head of Investment Strategy Liz Young Thomas. “Investors are now more focused on employment, and for good reason… it seems to be the key to predicting what the Fed might do with rates for the rest of the year,” she writes in this week’s column.
Here’s what to look out for in the data, and how to interpret where we’re at.
Today’s top stories
There’s a gender gap in the job huntAs the labor market becomes tougher, a gender gap among young jobseekers is becoming more pronounced.
Read more >> Corporate boardrooms aren’t sure how to approach AICompanies want to dive into the age of AI. But new technology comes with new risks.
Read more >> Do you owe capital gains on your IRA and Roth IRA investments?If retirement accounts and taxation questions have left you confused, we got you.
Read more >>Other news that caught our eye
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Snickers-maker Mars Inc. will buy Pop-Tarts-parent Kellanova for roughly $36 billion, adding brands like Cheez-Its, Eggo, and Pringles to its consumer packaged goods portfolio.
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Google and Microsoft are offering a year of free cybersecurity assessments to small hospitals, along with discounts up to 75% on related tools, as cyberattacks on healthcare providers rise.
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Texas is suing General Motors for allegedly collecting and selling driver data without consent.
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Boeing scored more new orders than Airbus in July despite ongoing safety concerns and production delays. However, Boeing still remains well behind Airbus for total orders this year.
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SpaceX violated environmental rules by discharging wastewater at its Starbase facility in Texas, according to regulators.
Financial planner tip of the day
“The 30 day rule can be an excellent way to manage excess spending on items that we want rather than need. After 30 days have passed, if you still wish to purchase an item, then you can potentially do so, knowing that it’s no longer an impulse buy.”
Brian Walsh, CFP® at SoFi