NEW YORK, May 28 (Reuters) – Inflation, affordability and war are just a few of the issues dominating the headlines right now — and their effects are being felt everywhere, from the grocery store to the gas pump, opens new tab to your retirement account.
How is it all impacting you? Please reach out to me with your personal finance comments and questions via the link in my bio below. While you’re at it, be sure to follow our On the Money coverage. And connect with me on LinkedIn, opens new tab, where I’m always posting the latest Reuters, opens new tab news.
5 WAYS MAHJONG CAN TEACH US ABOUT MONEY
Before we dive into the headlines, I have an important question for you: Do you play mahjong?
Mahjong is soaring in popularity, opens new tab, especially among young people who are looking for screen-free fun. But did you know the game mirrors many of the decisions people face in their financial lives — making a plan, managing risk and pivoting when the unexpected happens?
If you play — and even if you don’t — read my recent article and share your thoughts about mahjong by emailing me.
IS INFLATION THE MOST IMPORTANT POLITICAL ISSUE FOR AMERICANS?
What starts at the checkout line often ends at the ballot box.
The war in Iran is driving up the price of gasoline and groceries, making inflation one of the defining issues in U.S. politics right now.
With the midterms just months away, be sure to listen to this conversation on our Econ World podcast, starring host Carmel Crimmins. She talks to Sally Buzbee, Reuters U.S. editor, and U.S. economics editor Dan Burns about the political and economic consequences of America’s affordability crisis.
READ. WATCH. LISTEN.
Costlier flights, hotels divide US summer travel into haves and have-nots
Meet Ferrari’s new electric car Luce, priced at $640,000
High gas prices spur Americans to improvise, from bus rides to toy cars
Space ETFs booming in anticipation of SpaceX IPO
America’s baby celebration boom: Where new parents spend the most, opens new tab
The AI bots are coming and the young are booing, not applauding
Investors hunt for AI winners in small-cap US tech stocks
US mortgage rate rises to nine-month high, worsening affordability again
Thanks to AI, metals producers have pricing power — for now
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BABY BOOM?
The U.S. is getting older — and having far fewer babies. Here’s why that matters to your wallet.
First, fertility rates are at a record low and trailing what’s needed for the population to replace itself. Current projections show that by around 2030, deaths will exceed births each year.
All of this is important to the economy as well as the sustainability of social safety nets, particularly programs for the elderly like Social Security and Medicare that are the foundations of the U.S. social compact. The more working-age people who pay taxes into the system to support a given number of retirees, the more sustainable the system is over the long run.
Check out this informative Reuters graphic which looks at these demographic trends, and why they matter to your money.
Speaking of babies: The U.S. is about to roll out Trump Accounts with $1,000 in seed money for children born between 2025 and 2028 who have a valid Social Security number.
If eligible, be sure to download the app ahead of the official launch in July.
Lauren Young
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