Author: News Room

President Biden announced the approval of student loan handouts for more than 150,000 people on Monday, with the White House touting a total of more than 5 million beneficiaries over the course of the president’s term. With just one week left in office, Biden said his administration “has taken historic action to reduce the burden of student debt, hold bad actors accountable, and fight on behalf of students across the country.””These 150,000 borrowers include: almost 85,000 borrowers who attended schools that cheated and defrauded their students, 61,000 borrowers with total and permanent disabilities, and 6,100 public service workers,” Biden said…

As I perused the ubiquitous “Best Books of the Year” lists from thought leaders whose reading prowess I respect, one book I hadn’t read kept popping up, so I decided to explore it over the holiday stretch. Aided by its curious title, The Courage To Be Disliked is a parabolic conversation between a youth and a philosopher designed to explicate the intersection of Greek philosophy and Adlerian psychology. Wait—I realize that might not be the most tempting of descriptions, so let me share three specific concepts from the book and how they can help you live a richer life. First,…

The California wildfires could be the costliest disaster in US history, the state’s governor said, as forecasts of heavy winds raised fears that the catastrophic blazes would spread further.In remarks to NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday, Gavin Newsom said the fires — which have burnt through more than 40,000 acres, according to CalFire, the state’s forestry and fire protection department — would be the worst the country has seen “in terms of just the costs associated with it, [and] in terms of the scale and scope”.He added that there were likely to be “a lot more” fatalities confirmed. The…

How much should you withdraw from your retirement savings in 2025 to help pay for your living expenses throughout the year? There are many reasonable answers to this question, some that are fairly straightforward and others that are quite complicated to understand and implement. The right solution for you depends on several factors, including your tolerance for risk, how you’ve invested your savings, and what other sources of retirement income you might have. As a result, there’s no one solution that’s best for all retirees. This post focuses on one method retirees can use to calculate their withdrawal amount. It’s…

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for freeRoula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.Chinese chipmakers and technology companies are heading to Malaysia in droves, its economy minister Rafizi Ramli said, as Beijing prepares to face more tariffs when Donald Trump returns as US president this month.The moves by Chinese companies, which are expected to result in billions of dollars of investment in Malaysia in the coming years, would rival the US companies that have dominated the country’s market, he said.“Chinese [companies] are very keen to go outside and expand beyond their domestic market,” Rafizi told…

The annual Open Enrollment Period ended December 7 and on January 1, another one began. First, the Basics The Medicare Advantage Open Enrollment Period runs from January 1-March 31 and is just for those who elected Medicare Advantage. During this period, they can: Switch to another Medicare Advantage plan with or without prescription drug coverage, or Drop the Advantage plan and return to Part A and Part B automatically with the option to enroll in a stand-alone Part D prescription drug plan. They can also apply for a Medigap policy (Medicare supplement insurance). However, they may be subject to medical…

Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for freeYour guide to what the 2024 US election means for Washington and the worldThe IMF has warned that jitters surrounding Donald Trump’s threat to impose trade tariffs were driving up longer-term borrowing costs and would add to pressures facing the global economy in 2025. Speaking to reporters in Washington on Friday, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva said global economic policy faced “quite a lot of uncertainty” in 2025, particularly around the trade policy of the world’s largest economy. “That uncertainty is actually expressed globally through higher long-term interest rates,” Georgieva said, although she noted…

This article was written byFollowRichard Durant is the leader of Narweena, an asset manager focused on finding market dislocations that are the result of a poor understanding of a businesses long-term prospects. Narweena believes that excess risk adjusted returns can be achieved by identifying businesses with secular growth opportunities in markets with barriers to entry. Narweena’s research process is focused on company and industry fundamentals with the goal of uncovering unique insights. Narweena has a high risk appetite and a long-term horizon, in pursuit of stocks that are deeply undervalued. Coverage tilts towards smaller cap stocks and markets where competitive…

Last year, Southwest Airlines pilots approved a new contract under which pilots earned a substantial pay increase: a 50% salary increase over the life of the five-year contract. The airline’s 11,000 pilots reportedly were negotiating not just for better pay, but also for improved retirement benefits and disability insurance along with a revised scheduling process. Little did we know that the pilots were successful in improving their retirement benefits by negotiating a key new benefit that includes life income: a cash balance pension plan. As reported by Pensions & Investments, this new market-based cash balance plan began last August under…

Stay informed with free updatesSimply sign up to the Chinese economy myFT Digest — delivered directly to your inbox.China’s government bond market has opened 2025 with a clear warning for policymakers: without more determined stimulus, investors expect deflationary pressures to become even more entrenched in the world’s second-largest economy.China’s 10-year bond yield, a benchmark for economic growth and inflation expectations, fell to a record low of less than 1.6 per cent during trading last week and has since hovered close to that level.Crucially, the whole yield curve has shifted downwards rather than steepening, suggesting investors are alarmed about the long-term…