Every career has its share of days you never forget. There are the early memories, such as getting that first paycheck, and milestones like scoring the big promotion or the morning you finally moved into the corner office. But for many people, there’s one special day that stands head and shoulders above the rest: the last.
Faster than nearly anyone thought possible just a few months ago, Americans have jumped back into the market in a bid to rebound from the thrashing they took last year. And while good stock picking and smart bond selection are always important, savvy investors say one basic investment tenet is more vital than ever: Keep costs low.
The stock market’s been climbing. Housing prices are on the rebound. But the job market? Like a bum on a bender, it still hasn’t hit bottom. Even as the Dow continued its impressive run-up in recent months, Americans were still losing jobs at the rate of 2,500 an hour.
You don’t have to know a piston ring from a brake caliper to know that it’s been a historic year for the car industry – and not in a good way. Back in the spring, Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy protection with an Italian last name.
Overall, personal bankruptcy filings were up 36.5 percent in the first half of 2009 from the same time a year ago, and experts predict the number of filings will keep rising even as the economy recovers.
It’s a typical meeting for the dozen or so men and women convening at a conference table in the Philadelphia suburb of Blue Bell, Pa. Doctors by profession, they’re dressed casually in fleece jackets and sweaters, peering at their laptops and making the occasional wisecrack.
It’s not difficult to figure out why sales of smartphones have taken off nationwide. After all, the average price of one is $155, more than 30 percent lower than last year and today’s models let you talk, e-mail and surf the Internet quickly.
After months of histrionic headlines about socialized medicine and Congress’s continuous plodding on health care legislation, it’s not surprising that some investors have turned skittish on health care stocks.
Investors poured $8.5 billion into Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities, or TIPS, funds in the second quarter, double the amount in the same period last year, according to researcher Strategic Insight.
Perhaps Kmart’s recent promotion of their layaway plan for back-to-school shoppers was a needed reminder for us all that there was a form of payment used to purchase goods before credit cards became popular.
