My View Of Trump’s Tariff War

My View Of Trump’s Tariff War

In a word, I believe it’s extremely misguided. Here’s why. First, what problem is Trump trying to solve? The only justifications he has made are that (1) the U.S. is being economically “ripped off” through other countries’ tariffs, and (2) we need to bring manufacturing back onshore (presumably to increase jobs). Let’s tackle the rip-off…
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Retirement In The U.S. Today

Retirement sure has changed since the Social Security Administration (SSA) issued its first monthly retirement check in 1940. That amount was only $22.54. And back then a 65 year-old retiree was expected to live for only another 12-13 years before dying. Today seniors have higher benefits and a much longer life expectancy thanks to improvements…
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Surprisingly Legal Tax Deductions

It’s currently tax season again. Last year at this time I reported on unusual bogus tax deductions that various miscreants tried to get away with. This year I thought I’d provide the opposite: deductions that you might be surprised to discover are legal. Thanks to TurboTax and AARP for the information! The IRS allows numerous…
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Are ETFs Better Than Mutual Funds?

You’re probably familiar with mutual funds. They are arguably the most common type of investment choice for 401(k) and other retirement accounts. But ever since the first exchange-traded fund (ETF) appeared in 1993, investments into ETFs have been steadily overtaking those into traditional mutual funds. Why is this happening? Are ETFs better than mutual funds?…
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Your Risk Tolerance May Be Harmful To Your Investment Health

How can that be? Risk tolerance is the amount of risk that each person is comfortable taking with their investment choices. Just because yours is different from someone else’s doesn’t mean it’s wrong. Or does it? To better understand the issue, it helps to recognize that there are actually two ways that risk – as…
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The Futility Of Predicting Stock Market Returns

One year ago I wrote about the stock market predictions that major investment banks and brokerages seem to feel is a necessary part of their marketing (see https://www.cognizantwealth.com/2024/01/10/a-review-of-2023-stock-market-predictions/ ). Why they spend the time, effort, and money to come up with these guesses is a mystery to me, particularly because those predictions are almost always…
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