iPhone, iPad… and I Bonds? No, not Apple bonds; rather the inflation-linked savings bonds from US Treasury. You may be familiar with treasury bills, bonds, or EE bonds from Treasury Direct, but inflation-linked bonds – called I Bonds – are also offered. The real coupon rate has been very low, oft...
US equity markets recovered a bit after the rough October returns, though still down over the past two months. For the year, US large caps are holding a solid gain but small caps are roughly flat. At the sector level, the monthly return range was about 9%, with Health Care having a positive 7% and...
The 2019 Medicare Part B premiums have been set. There is a small increase of 1.1% or $1.50/month for the standard premium up to $135.50/month. Those with a higher income that are impacted by income related adjustments (IRMAA) have the same % increase but will see a slightly higher dollar increase....
As you are probably aware, almost all asset classes were down this past month. Even the usual favorable effects of rising bond prices didn't help except for short-maturity treasuries and currency-hedged international bonds. There was a small bounce at the end of the month in equity markets to soft...
Last month I posted the 2019 Social Security inflation adjustment estimate of 2.8% based on 2 of the 3 months' CPI data available at that time. This morning the final CPI-W data point was released and the final inflation adjustment for benefits is 2.8%, the highest since 2012. Unlike last year when...
