The financial news that actually matters
JPMorgan Chase warned in January 2026 that a proposed 10% cap on credit card interest rates could eliminate lending access for up to 40 million American borrowers, a figure the bank’s executives cited during earnings-cycle communications. The warning landed as Senate bill S.381, the 10 Percent Credit Card Interest Rate Cap Act, continues to draw…
Consumer prices in the United States climbed 0.3% in December 2025 on a seasonally adjusted basis, pushing the annual inflation rate to 2.7% above its level a year earlier. The reading, released by the Bureau of Labor Statistics on January 13, 2026, capped a year in which monthly price swings varied widely and federal funding…
U.S. retail sales were unchanged in December compared with November, a flat result that caught economists off guard and closed out the year with fading consumer momentum. The reading, drawn from the Census Bureau’s Advance Monthly Retail Trade Survey, suggested that holiday shoppers pulled back more than anticipated, leaving the economy with less spending fuel…
The U.S. economy is heading into 2026 with a striking contradiction at its center. Growth projections near 3 percent sit alongside core inflation readings that remain well above the Federal Reserve’s 2 percent target. That split creates real tension for policymakers deciding when, or whether, to cut interest rates, and for households still feeling the…
Consumer prices in the United States rose 2.7% for the 12 months ending December 2025, holding steady at the same annual pace recorded through November. Core inflation, which excludes food and energy, eased to 2.6% over the same period. The data, released in mid-January 2026, offered a mixed signal: headline inflation refused to budge lower,…
Most Americans carry a dozen or more recurring charges on their credit cards and bank statements, from streaming platforms to cloud storage to meal kits. Collectively, those charges add up to roughly $3,200 a year for the average consumer, yet surveys consistently show that people badly underestimate how much they actually spend. That gap between…
Auto loan delinquencies in the United States have climbed to 4.1%, the highest level recorded in 14 years, according to Federal Reserve data tracking the share of balances at least 30 days past due. The increase signals mounting financial pressure on millions of American households that depend on vehicle financing for daily transportation. With total…
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury yield pushed above the 4.2% threshold this week, a move that reflects growing tension between the bond market’s expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts and a wave of government borrowing that keeps pushing long-term rates higher. The climb puts pressure on mortgage rates, corporate borrowing costs, and household budgets at…
The IRS raised Health Savings Account contribution limits for 2026 to $4,400 for individuals with self-only high-deductible health plan coverage and $8,750 for family coverage. The adjustment, published through Revenue Procedure 2025-19, also tightens the thresholds that define qualifying high-deductible plans, a shift that could reshape how millions of workers plan for medical expenses in…
The U.S. economy added 50,000 jobs in December 2025, falling well short of the 73,000 positions economists had projected. The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.4 percent, and the labor force participation rate held steady, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, but the softer-than-expected payroll gain added to signs the labor market has cooled…