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☆ Treasury announces new Series I bond rate of 6.89% for the next six months
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Tuesday announced Series I bonds will pay 6.89% annual interest through April 2023, down from the 9.62% yearly rate offered since May. It's the third highest rate since I bonds were introduced in 1998, and investors may lock in this rate for six months by purchasing anytime before the end of April. This is breaking news. Please check back for updates.

☆ 'Nearly risk-free' I bonds now pay 6.89%—here's why they 'could still be a good investment'
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Ryan Ermey | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

The U.S. Department of the Treasury on Tuesday announced Series I savings bonds — also known simply as I bonds — will pay a 6.89% annual interest rate through April 2023, down from the 9.62% the paid to those who purchased from May through the end of October. It's the third-highest rate since I bonds debuted in 1998, but that may feel like a bit of a consolation prize for those who attempted to lock in the 9.62% rate last-minute. Investor traffic flooded and ultimately crashed TreasuryDirect — the site that exclusively sells these bonds — in the days leading up to the interest rate change, which occurs every six months. "[I bonds] could still be a good investment for the short- to medium-term," he says. "Even though most people expect inflation to come down, they still offer attractive yield given their nearly risk-free nature."

☆ Elon Musk, new owner of Twitter, tweets unfounded conspiracy theory about Paul Pelosi attack
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk, the new owner of Twitter, tweeted out an unfounded conspiracy theory Sunday morning about the attack on the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi from a website that has a history of publishing false information. The fact-checking website Media Bias/Fact Check rates the Santa Monica Observer as a "questionable source" based on "the routine publication of false and misleading information and the use of poor sources." Media Bias/Fact Check said the website's article on the Pelosi attack "appears to be fake and defamatory." The publisher of the website, David Ganezer, unsuccessfully ran for Santa Monica City Council in 2010 and 1988, according to the Santa Monica Daily Press. Pelosi suffered a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands, according to Drew Hammill, spokesman for Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

☆ Elon Musk, new owner of Twitter, tweets unfounded, anti-LGBTQ conspiracy theory about Paul Pelosi attack
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( Julianne Mcshane | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Elon Musk, the new owner of Twitter, tweeted out a since-deleted, unfounded and anti-LGBTQ conspiracy theory Sunday morning about the attack on the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi from a website that has a history of publishing false information. The fact-checking website Media Bias/Fact Check rates the Santa Monica Observer as a "questionable source" based on "the routine publication of false and misleading information and the use of poor sources." Media Bias/Fact Check said the website's article on the Pelosi attack "appears to be fake and defamatory." The publisher of the website, David Ganezer, unsuccessfully ran for Santa Monica City Council in 2010 and 1988, according to the Santa Monica Daily Press. Pelosi suffered a skull fracture and serious injuries to his right arm and hands, according to Drew Hammill, spokesman for Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

☆ The ‘Ranked Choice’ Scam
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Kimberley Strassel is a member of the editorial board for The Wall Street Journal. She writes editorials, as well as the weekly Potomac Watch political column, from her base in Alaska. Ms. Strassel joined Dow Jones & Co. in 1994, working in the news department of The Wall Street Journal Europe in Brussels, and then in London. She moved to New York in 1999 and soon thereafter joined the Journal's editorial page, working as a features editor, and then as an editorial writer. An Oregon native, Ms. Strassel earned a bachelor's degree in Public Policy and International Affairs from Princeton University.

☆ Demand for Series I bonds crashes TreasuryDirect site ahead of key deadline as investors try to secure 9.62% rate
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Shapecharge | E+ | Getty ImagesInvestors crashed the Treasury Department website for Series I bonds on Friday as they clamored to lock in a record-high interest rate before a key deadline. Investors must buy I bonds and receive a confirmation email by Oct. 28 to lock in the 9.62% rate, according to TreasuryDirect. What a TreasuryDirect outage means for investorsAn outage on TreasuryDirect.gov — where investors purchase I bonds — may mean they're unable to complete an I bond purchase by Friday's deadline to secure the 9.62% rate. The Treasury Department is not planning to extend the deadline, a Treasury Department spokesperson said Friday. The site continues to "see customers successfully create accounts and purchase bonds at record levels," the spokesperson added.

☆ Ex-Army sergeant pleads guilty to brutal stabbing death of fellow soldier in Georgia barracks
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Minyvonne Burke | Minyvonne Burke Is A Senior Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

A former Army sergeant admitted to the brutal 2020 stabbing of a fellow soldier in his Georgia barracks, a killing federal prosecutors say was retaliation "in cold blood" for the soldier reporting marijuana use. Under the plea agreement, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of life in federal prison, the Department of Justice said in a news release on Thursday. "The pair discussed beating Hawk up, damaging his car, or breaking things in Hawk’s barracks room," the plea agreement says. The following day, around 12:20 a.m., Booker parked his vehicle outside of a gate on the base and "unlawfully" entered before walking to Hawk's barracks room. The fight made so much noise that Brown, in a room below, could hear furniture moving, the plea agreement states.

☆ Putin admits Russia is facing 'issues' in the Ukraine war and told his team to make faster decisions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russian President Putin on Tuesday admitted his country faces "issues" from the war in Ukraine. Putin also told his team to speed up the decision-making process in the conflict. While the Kremlin wrote that Putin used the phrase "economic restrictions," the AFP reported that Putin said Russia was facing "economic difficulties" due to sanctions over the war. Putin's partial mobilization of the country's 300,000 military reservists in September created new challenges for production processes and output maintenance, according to a Russian central bank report released last week. The exercise is also expected to "negatively affect consumer and business confidence," the central bank said.

☆ Your last chance to secure 9.62% annual interest for Series I bonds is Oct. 28
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-25 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Insta_photos | Istock | Getty ImagesHow to estimate I bond rates for one yearThere are two parts to I bond rates: a fixed rate, which stays the same after purchase, and a variable rate, which shifts twice per year based on inflation. It's nice to know what interest rates you will get when you're committing to a 12-month lockup. Jeremy Keil Financial advisor at Keil Financial Partners"A short-term investor — somebody just wanting to put away cash — should definitely buy in October," he said. The downsides of buying I bondsWhile roughly knowing I bond rates for one year may be appealing, there are a few things to consider before buying, experts say. "The biggest downside is you are locked in for 12 months," Keil said.

☆ A feared Iranian militia is leading the crackdown on protesters. Who are the Basij?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( Hyder Abbasi | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +5 min

Dressed in black, the group of chanting schoolgirls in the Iranian city of Shiraz appeared determined to make themselves heard. Several videos posted to social media since her death have featured demonstrators shouting angry chants against the Basij. The Basij gave them access to higher education, subsidized consumer goods, free health care and job security, he added. Suppression methodsThere are three primary methods the Basij use to suppress anti-government protests, Golkar said. In 2009, rights groups including Amnesty International, said the group had used excessive force during peaceful anti-government protests triggered by a disputed presidential election.

☆ Impressive Everton thrash Palace 3-0 to end losing run
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LIVERPOOL, England, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Dominic Calvert-Lewin scored his first goal of the season as Everton ended their three-match losing streak in the Premier League with an impressive 3-0 win over Crystal Palace at home on Saturday. "For the team and for myself to get the win today it went exactly how I hoped," Calvert-Lewin said. The result ended Palace's unbeaten run of three league games and also means that they are yet to win an away league game this term. "I think we were second best in every department of the game," Palace manager Patrick Vieira told the BBC. "We saw a team who played with determination to win the game and we didn't match that level.

☆ Here's why a new $40,000 electric vehicle tax credit for business owners may be relatively easy to get
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

"I think it's going to be a lot more straightforward and easy to take advantage of than the light-duty-vehicle tax credit," Ingrid Malmgren, policy director at Plug In America, said of the tax credit for commercial EVs. "It's really a great opportunity for business owners to reduce emissions in a cost-effective way." Business owners can get the tax credit for new vehicles purchased on or after Jan. 1, 2023. Because the financial benefit is structured as a tax credit, business owners must have a tax liability to benefit. A tax credit isn't available to single individuals with modified adjusted gross income of $150,000 and above.

☆ Putin called an additional 300,000 men into the military a month ago, and it's taking a toll on the economy
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Putin's mobilization of men for the Ukraine war could hit the economy, the Russian central bank said. More than 300,000 Russian men and their families have fled the country since the mobilization order. "The recovery of economic activity stalled in September," the research department of the Central Bank of Russia said in a report on Wednesday. Russia's central bank did not reference those escaping from the call-up, but said the mobilization has created new challenges for production processes and output maintenance. "September's events will not necessarily push Russia into an immediate recession, but challenges are mounting," Morning Consult analysts said.

☆ How to get the 'best of both worlds' for Series I bond interest rates before November
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

RyanJLane | E+ | Getty ImagesAfter a difficult year for the stock market, investors have poured money into Series I bonds, a nearly risk-free and inflation-protected asset that's paying a record 9.62% annual interest rate through October. While I bond rates shift twice yearly based on inflation, you can still lock in 9.62% annual interest for six months — as long as you complete the purchase by Oct. 28. You can estimate I bond rates for one yearThere are two parts to I bond rates: a fixed rate, which stays the same after purchase, and a variable rate, which shifts twice per year based on inflation. It's nice to know what interest rates you will get when you're committing to a 12-month lockup. "The biggest downside is you are locked in for 12 months," Keil said.

☆ Durham’s FBI Indictment
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-14 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Members of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences Tore Ellingsen, Hans Ellegren and John Hassler announce the 2022 Nobel Prize for Economic Sciences, during a news conference at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden October 10, 2022. The winners are Ben S. Bernanke (USA), Douglas W. Diamond (USA) and Philip H. Dybvig (USA). "Some households and some firms are already weakened," Gernot Doppelhofer, professor at the economics department of the Norwegian School of Economics (NHH) said. The economics prize is not one of the original five awards created in the 1895 will of industrialist and dynamite inventor Alfred Nobel. It was established by Sweden's central bank and first awarded in 1969, its full and formal name being the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel.

☆ TreasuryDirect sold more than $27 billion in Series I bonds since Nov. 1. Now it’s getting a makeover
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-04 | by ( Kate Dore | Cfp | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

With record demand for Series I bonds, an inflation-protected and nearly risk-free asset, the U.S. Department of the Treasury has unveiled a front-end makeover for TreasuryDirect, the online platform investors use to buy assets. While the Treasury still plans future system upgrades, Tuesday's revamp focuses on website navigation, more concise information and the broader user experience, including a mobile-friendly design. More from Personal Finance:I bonds to deliver record 9.62% interest for the next 6 monthsExperts answer three tricky questions about Series I bondsHere’s where I bonds may work in your portfolioWith task-based navigation, the new website aims to more easily guide investors through transactions, like buying or selling bonds. There's also streamlined content, aiming to deliver quick answers to the most pressing questions. While there's an improved help center, investors may now find more details via product pages.

☆ Georgia Exposes the ‘Jim Crow 2.0’ Lie
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-03 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

☆ Vestas launches 'world's tallest onshore tower for wind turbines'
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( Anmar Frangoul | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

A Vestas wind turbine photographed in Denmark. The company said Tuesday it would launch an onshore wind turbine tower with a hub height of 199 meters. In a statement, the Aarhus-headquartered company described it as "currently the world's tallest onshore tower for wind turbines." The growing size of wind turbines has led to concerns about whether port infrastructure, highways and the ships used to install turbines at sea can cope. The last few years have seen a number of major offshore wind energy projects take shape.

☆ Democrats ‘Charity’ Voter-Registration Scheme
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-23 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

With interest rates back then already close to zero, they had run out of conventional ammunition to ward off the threat of outright deflation they feared would choke off the economic recovery. As one Danish bank vaunted the world's first negative rate mortgage, it is likely that cheap borrowing added steam to house price spikes across the region. "It's the central bankers who have taken interest rates to a level where we attach no value to the future," he said. As the negative rate era closes, the global pool of assets with negative yield has shrunk to less than $2 trillion from a 2020 peak of some $18 trillion. "I am very doubtful anyone here is ready to say never again for negative rates."

☆ Peter Thiel, Losing Arizona
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

☆ Kimberley A. Strassel — Opinion Columnist, Potomac Watch at The Wall Street Journal
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Kimberley A. StrasselKimberley Strassel is a member of the editorial board for The Wall Street Journal. She writes editorials, as well as the weekly Potomac Watch political column, from her base in Alaska. Ms. Strassel joined Dow Jones & Co. in 1994, working in the news department of The Wall Street Journal Europe in Brussels, and then in London. She moved to New York in 1999 and soon thereafter joined the Journal's editorial page, working as a features editor, and then as an editorial writer. An Oregon native, Ms. Strassel earned a bachelor's degree in Public Policy and International Affairs from Princeton University.

☆ Next up for US unions: Major contracts for 700,000 workers
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-18 | by ( Chris Isidore | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

In terms of big US labor contracts, however, this is just the opening act. And as with the rail unions, members are focused on staffing shortages and scheduling problems that they say have brought many employees to a breaking point. And soon after the Teamsters contract for UPS ground workers expires, contracts for UPS pilots and aircraft mechanics become amendable. That’s a major concern for unions whose members build engines and transmissions. But that settlement did not address the looming question of what a switch to EVs will mean for union workers going forward.

☆ Hunter Biden Claims His Laptop
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-07 | by ( Kimberley A. Strassel | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

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