Wealth and Wisdom: Week of February 10, 2025
- Mike Brown
- Feb 10
- 4 min read
It’s too soon to know if and how much President Trump’s tariffs will drive up consumer prices, but it would appear to make further interest rate cuts a lot less likely – possibly for the remainder of this year.
Investors, meanwhile, seem to be watching the latest quarterly earnings reports a lot more closely these days – and nervous traders have been quick to dump the stock of many quality companies at the hint of any disappointing news. That volatility hasn’t spread to the broader market, however. At least not yet.
I’m looking forward to seeing many of you in my How to Retire class, which begins this week at St. Louis Community College. This session is completely full, but if you’re planning to retire in the next year or two and weren’t able to get in, I’ll be offering a second session in June. Here’s how to enroll if you’re interested.
Nearly all 401(k) plans now offer a Roth savings option – a huge increase over the last 10 years. So why are nearly 80% of employees ignoring it? (Reading time: 4 minutes)
Retirees have been following these simple rules of thumb with their savings for decades – but new research suggests there’s a better to way to invest. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
There are five big decisions many retirees wish they’d made differently. You can learn from their mistakes. (Reading time: 6 minutes)
Unlike their younger counterparts, Baby Boomers are generally not big fans of giving away their money before they die. (Reading time: 5 minutes)
When it comes to making retirement decisions, there’s no shortage of information and advice. These books might help you focus on what’s most important. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
Equities have delivered impressive investment returns for more than a century – mostly for investors who were willing to wait for them. (Reading time: 5 minutes)
The federal government has launched an online tool that could help you find and recover forgotten retirement accounts. (Reading time: 4 minutes)
Tax season is here, which means you’ll be getting these essential documents. Here’s how to make sense of them. (Reading time: 3 minutes)
Use this handy guide to decide what paperwork is safe to get rid of – and what to keep forever. (Reading time: 2 minutes)
Why stop with paperwork? This article is a goldmine of tips and resources to organize virtually every area of your life. (Reading time: 7 minutes)
Words to the Wise
“Tariff wars are the measles of international economics - juvenile, contagious and inherently self-defeating.”
– Roger Lowenstein
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