The financial news that actually matters
Taxpayers earning above $500,000 face audit scrutiny at roughly 30 times the rate of those below $200,000, according to IRS examination data. The gap, drawn from the agency’s own Data Book Table 3-1, puts the odds at about 1 in 1,000 for lower earners and approximately 1 in 30 for high-income filers. That disparity is…
Ray Dalio, the founder of Bridgewater Associates, is warning that nations are preparing to weaponize capital flows in the same way they have weaponized trade, a shift he says could hit equity markets hard. His argument rests on observable stress points: rising U.S. Treasury issuance, softening foreign demand for American debt, and a slow but…
American workers face a labor market that is adding jobs at a crawl while the official unemployment rate drifts lower, a combination that sounds contradictory but reflects a shrinking pool of people actively looking for work. The U.S. economy created just 57,000 nonfarm payroll jobs in June 2026, and the unemployment rate edged down to…
Anyone who has ever had a credit card opened in their name by a stranger knows the damage can take months to untangle. Federal law now gives every consumer a free tool to stop that from happening: a security freeze placed at Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. The three nationwide credit bureaus must place, lift, or…
More Americans are falling seriously behind on their credit card bills than at any point since the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Federal Reserve data tracking commercial bank loan performance show that the share of credit card balances at least 90 days past due has climbed to its highest level in roughly 15 years….
Thousands of American storefronts could go dark before the end of the year. Coresight Research projects about 7,900 U.S. store closures for 2026, a figure driven by individual chain restructurings that are already well underway. Among the largest single contributors is 7-Eleven, which plans 645 North American store closures in its current fiscal year while…
California drivers are paying more at the pump starting July 1, 2026, as the state’s gasoline excise tax rose to 63.4 cents per gallon. The increase, which took effect automatically through an annual inflation adjustment, applies to every gallon of motor vehicle fuel sold statewide through June 30, 2027. Combined with a federal excise tax…
Workers who leave a job and take a 401(k) distribution as a paper check face a hard 60-day deadline to deposit those funds into an IRA or another eligible retirement plan. Miss that window, and the entire amount counts as taxable income, potentially triggering a 10 percent early-withdrawal penalty for anyone under 59 and a…
Millions of credit-card holders who pay their bills on time each month can still watch their credit scores drop for a single reason: carrying a balance that eats up too much of their available credit. Federal consumer guidance puts a clear number on the safe zone, advising that revolving balances stay at or below 30…
Investors with modest taxable income can legally owe zero federal tax on profits from selling stocks, real estate, or other long-term assets. The IRS confirms that some or all net capital gain may be taxed at 0% depending on taxable income and filing status, a benefit written directly into the tax code. With the agency…