South Korea's central bank raised its benchmark interest rate Thursday and signaled it would tighten policy further as it keeps up its fight against high inflation.

Thursday:
• At 8:30 AM ET, The initial weekly unemployment claims report will be released.  The consensus is for 220 thousand up from 218 thousand last week.

• Also at 8:30 AM, Gross Domestic Product, 1st quarter 2021 (Second estimate). The consensus is that real GDP decreased 1.3% annualized in Q1, up from the advance estimate of -1.4%.

• At 10:00 AM, Pending Home Sales Index for April. The consensus is for a 1.9% decrease in the index.

• At 11:00 AM, the Kansas City Fed manufacturing survey for May.

On COVID (focus on hospitalizations and deaths):

COVID Metrics
	Now	Week Ago	Goal
Percent fully Vaccinated	66.6%	---	≥70.0%1
Fully Vaccinated (millions)	221.1	---	≥2321
New Cases per Day3	104,399	99,215	≤5,0002
Hospitalized3	19,724	16,965	≤3,0002
Deaths per Day3	288	273	≤502
1 Minimum to achieve "herd immunity" (estimated between 70% and 85%). 2my goals to stop daily posts, 37-day average for Cases, Currently Hospitalized, and Deaths Increasing 7-day average week-over-week for Cases, Hospitalized, and Deaths ✅ Goal met.

Click on graph for larger image.

This graph shows the daily (columns) and 7-day average (line) of deaths reported. New cases have more almost quadrupled from the recent low, and hospitalizations are increasing week-over-week.
Average daily deaths bottomed in July 2021 at 214 per day.

  Earnings reports can be telling. They can show whether a company is on the right track with its business model… Or they can tell whether or not a shift is needed in a business strategy in order to help turn things around. It shows whether or not a company has adapted to the market……

The post What Whacked Walmart’s Profits? | From the Mind of the Gorilla appeared first on .

How is your knowledge about the energy markets? Not only are energies a cornerstone of the financial sector, they’re also arguably the most critical foundational component of our global society. Energy products keep it all moving. Watch NinjaTrader’s Jim Cagnina along with special guest Bob Iaccino explore energy futures and things you may not know, […]

The post Energy Futures & Crude Oil Correlations or Coincidences? appeared first on NinjaTrader Blog.

TTWO Stock: Why Take-Two Interactive Is Up 6% Today? Shares of gaming company, Take-Two Interactive (NASDAQ: TTWO) are trading 6% higher in pre-market trading today, at the time of writing. Take-Two announced...

Are there wedding bells in your near future? If you’re engaged and reading this article, you likely have a lot of questions on your mind.  How can I plan an unforgettable wedding? Should we go on a honeymoon right away? Where will we live once we’re married? Should we combine our finances? Thinking about all […]

The post 31 Honeymoon Budget Tips from Financial Experts and Online Educators appeared first on Wealthtender.

Gross profit, operating profit, and net profit are three different measurements of a company’s profitability. Although they sound similar, they each tell you something different about the health of a company. Learn about these important financial metrics and how to calculate each.

The post Gross vs. Operating vs. Net Profit – What’s the Difference Between Them? appeared first on Money Crashers.

Bob Lotich is a a fellow personal finance blogger (check him out at SeedTime.com), author and most importantly, a good friend.

Over the years I’ve been able to witness firsthand how good his heart is as he’s always been willing to help a friend in need without expecting anything in return.

I got a chance to sit down with him and learn more about his radical savings plan in his new book, Simple Money Rich Life.

You can listen to the podcast interview below or read the transcription in this post.

Bob Lotich Interview – Full Transcript

Jeff

Many people are familiar with the fire movement, fire stands for Financially Independent, Retire Early. If you are a fire advocate, you are saving exorbitant amounts, usually you’ll hear 30% 40%, sometimes greater than 50% of your income. And many people on the outside of the fire movement don’t understand how they can save so much.

But if you’re having trouble trying to understand how somebody can save half of their income, see if you can wrap your head around this, instead of saving half of your income. What about giving it away?

Well, I’m going to introduce you to someone that isn’t giving away half of their income, almost, they’re giving away currently 44% That’s correct 44% of their income this year, and next year, it goes up to 45%. This person has given away over a million dollars by the time he turned the age of 40. If that doesn’t interest you, I don’t know what will.

I’m excited to share the story of a good friend of mine, who has been on the podcast and on the YouTube channel. I’ve known this guy for a very long time. I continue to be amazed at how generous and how faithful he is. His name is Bob Lotich.

We talked about this a little bit on this interview, but I think the last time I had Bob on was when he took a sabbatical. You hear people taking a sabbatical. I mean, maybe not a lot, but for him it wasn’t just a week sabbatical, a few weeks, a month, which he actually does every single year. No, actually I’m taking about a year sabbatical. He talks a bit about that in this interview. But that’s not what this is about. This is about something even bigger than that. It is radical giving.

And the way that he goes about it, his approach and his continued faith and how he does it. It just amazes me. And I’m excited for him to come on the GFC podcast and share his story. Let’s find out what’s going on with Bob right now and how he is giving away 44% of his income and also why.

Bob lotic yes, you’re a friend. You’re a financial blogger. You’re now an author. I guess you actually have already wrote a few books. But this is like a bigger deal teaser, the first published book, first published, self published, let’s throw it out there. See what happens type of stuff.

So we’re here talking about this book, simple money rich life that you wrote, like, in a weekend, right?

Bob

Yes, one weekend, honestly. In like three hours I just kind of knocked it out.

The One Year Sabbatical

Jeff 

Dude, you have lived a very interesting life. I mean, I’ve never met anybody that was so diligent about taking a sabbatical, like once a year. Like you’re the first person I ever even heard that. And I’m sure I’ve heard the word sabbatical.

But the fact like, oh, wow, like you actually do this. And you do it every single year. And then you went to another level. And really quickly just shared that because I think people and we’ve talked about that, and so on over YouTube video, but it’s worth repeating.

Bob  

In 2017, I took a one year sabbatical, which the three you’re talking about, right? The one year, the big boy. So that was a crazy journey.

Jeff  

I just for people to understand. You have your own business, your business owner online business, you are working from home, predominantly. And God gave you a nudge that said, you need to take some time off. And if I recall, it wasn’t initially to take a year off correct?

Bob  

I was just taking a one month sabbatical like we do every year. And then kind of at the end of that, that previous year particularly burnt out just had a really difficult year and just burnt out. I think that’s what it was. And taking that one month off. And I know that anyone like listening that’s never taken a sabbatical, you think this is insane. But even after that one month, I felt like, I don’t really feel like this made any difference.

This didn’t help, which I know like, just sounds so insane for somebody who’s like, I can’t even take two days off, like, you know, but I was that burnt out that at the end of that, it’s just like, that wasn’t working. And somewhere in there, like you said, like I was praying, I just sensed God was kind of leading me to take an entire year off.

And I’m like I kind of got some other plans here. I got things that I want to do. And you know, I’m someone who likes work, I enjoy working. And so that was a big act of faith, not to mention, like, how are we going to pay our bills, provide for our family, all this stuff. But I’m thankful that we did, it ended up being one of the most life changing.

The most life changing year in my entire life.

And so much has come out of that I think I improved as a human being so much or so much recalibration for me personally, as well as our business. Our family, like lots of fantastic stuff came out of that. And so I’m really glad that I obeyed that little prompting or nudge.

Jeff  

I’m sure there are times where you thought what am I doing? Is this really what you want me to do? You mentioned that there were some, a few, or several Aha moments or discoveries, like, can you just share something that only happened? Because you obeyed? And you did take that one year.

Bob 

Well, I mean, one of the most important things to me was that, basically, six months prior to that, my wife and I had started the process of adoption. And we started kind of working to establish an agency. And they said, typically, the way that we work is we meet with birth mothers, when they’re about four months pregnant.

That means for you, you have probably about a five month heads up before any adoption opportunities available. And so we’re thinking, Alright, so we’re gonna have about five month heads up anyway, like two weeks after I basically made that decision to take the entire year off.

The adoption agency calls us and says, Hey, we have a really unique situation. We have a little girl who was born last night. So can you come down to Alabama like today? My wife and I like instantly put down the phone and then packed up for like, 10 days, because you need to when you’re crossing state lines, you need to be there for 10 days. So we just rushed out of the house and went down, we got our baby girl. And I got to spend the first year of her life with her.

And had I just been working like normal. Like I had so much stuff planned those next couple months, and I had no idea how that would work out. But you know, that was one like kind of practical thing where it’s like, wow, the timing of this is just perfect.

But like, just within my own personal ambitions and stuff. Like I just sensed God doing some purification stuff throughout that year in my heart where I was just, you know, just like drifting just a bit in the wrong direction. He’s just like, just nudge me right back kind of where I needed to be.

Jeff

Wow, like, you’ve told me that story. But it’s one of those stories. I mean, it’s one of those God stories that you have to continue to share, you know, just for people to hear. And maybe at times, like in those times where maybe things aren’t working out exactly how you want. And it’s just remember, like, don’t you remember that time?

Bob  

No, and we’re going through what now? Like, we’re going through our own struggle right now and a couple different things. But, but like, that’s exactly I was just talking to my wife, Linda today.

And she was just reading this verse. I forget which one it was, she was saying was encouraging her and just that exact point, like looking back at what God has done, like he’s faithful, and he’s going to be faithful now through going through.

Jeff 

And, you know, maybe kind of take a bow on the sabbatical just kind of share, because you took a year off. And I mean, your business thrived. Like it increased, didn’t it? Revenue wise over the course of the year drop.

But, like one of the things that we’re probably gonna talk about today, actually, I was I was trying to make a funny joke, because I remember I do remember, you sharing because you had an assistant that was, you know, keeping things going as best as she could. But it’s like, if you own a franchise, or any sort of business, and you step out for a year, I mean, for the most part, like, yes, it will continue to turn some revenue, but you’re probably going to see a decline.

And I just wanted to share that because it wasn’t like you took time off. And it just the business took off, or it just may stay flat. Like no, there was other things that were like, Oh my gosh, like, Am I really making the right decision? I’m like, me seeing revenue drop, and, oh, we have a new kid now. I mean, that just adds all this level of stress.

Bob 

Even beyond that because I thought as soon as this year was over, that I was gonna have all this awesome insight and revelation, whatever, that the next year was gonna take off like this. And it didn’t just kind of state like flat. So we came down and just kind of hovered down and it’s like, all right, was this really the right decision?

But now that we’re four years out from this, like this whole book came out of that, like, this wouldn’t have happened without it. And I never had a desire to write a book. But this was part of what came out of that year. Anyway, it’s just a whole new calibration of our book. is instant where we’re going redirecting and stuff. And I feel very confident that it was the best thing I could have done.

And I’ll be able to look back 10 years from now, and be able to say that with a whole lot of confidence.

How did you get started on your journey of giving?

Jeff  

So simple money rich life. I think, in addition to you taking sabbaticals and taking that time off, I think another part about you that I’ve always been, I’ll say impressed or just that you’ve been a radical giver, I mean, a faithful giver, you know, like, because typically crazy crazy.

Obviously, for those reading the headline of this video on this interview, you know, giving away a million dollars by age 40, like I was calling backtrack a little bit, you know, and like, let’s just talk about, when did you start giving? What did that look like for you?

How did that feel in times when you’re not making a lot of money, or in times that you’re making good money? Cuz sometimes, like, oh, it’s easy to give 10% of 10,000. But like, Man, when I’m making a lot of money, and now it’s like, God you want me to give you 40,000? Like, who? I don’t know about that one? 

Bob

And that’s something that I even I had to wrestle through, like, oh, my gosh, like, that’s a lot of zeros like I’m, I’m used to giving the small amount, you only give you the big amount now, like, I don’t know, are you sure about that? I never said like, I’ve thought through all of those things.

Let me tell you a story, just taking you back to my giving journey. Like I remember kind of when I first became a Christian, and I was going to church in this small town, in Florida, or in it’s 75 people in this church.

And we have a guest preacher that comes one day, he gets up, starts preaching,in the middle of the sermon he looks around and goes, who here is not tithing. And it’s like, this is a room of 75 people. And so it’s like, everyone knows each other. Like, this is a small little room. And everyone’s looking around like, does he want us to answer? And you know, a normal one year preacher, like not get a response. They’re like, Alright, let’s move on.

You know, this guy’s like the opposite. He’s like, Who here is not tithing? Tell me, you know. Wow. And I’m like, looking down. You know, I’m 20 years old at this point, new Christian. I’m thinking, is this what you do in church? Like, I don’t know if this is normal? Like, is this what giving is? Is this the way it’s supposed to be all this stuff? I’m like, having all these thoughts and I’m also secretly trying to think, can I sneak out of this room under the chairs, which this guy continues, like continues the interrogation.

Finally, there are two guys, they sheepishly raise their hand, and admit that they’re not consistently tithing. And then I thought like, that would be the end of it. But no, he calls them down to the front. And then publicly berates them in front of the whole church, for the error of their ways for not consistently tithing. They tithe sometimes they just weren’t consistently good.

And I remember leaving that day from the church and like, This is crazy. Is this what giving it it’s, it’s that thing that Jesus said, it’s more blessed to give than to receive, like, because I don’t want anything to do with this, like I want nothing to do with this at all. That was my first, these are some of the hurdles that I had to overcome, as a giver, would have grown to find out is that giving is now become like, just one of my favorite things in life.

It’s one of our most joyous things when we can take a moment when we can use a little that we have. And so one random example, we first moved here, we were staying at this Hyatt Hotel, just down the road. And we were there one night, and we were getting ready to pack up.

I remember I was gonna leave a tip for the cleaning lady. And so I go into my wallet, and I’m hoping to find a couple bucks and throw it under a pillow. All I had was a 20. And I’m like, Oh, that’s a lot to just give a cleaning lady for one night. And I’m like, I don’t know anything else. So I put it on the pillow, we walk out right as she was coming in, We went down to the elevator and as we’re pressing the button, she comes running down the hall jumping up and down, with tears in her eyes. She was excited and thanking us profusely about this $20 tip we just left her.

I remember going down that elevator talking to Linda, my wife, and saying ‘honey, that was $20’. We could have blown that on lunch. We could have blown that on anything that really didn’t mean that much to me. But look at what that meant in her life, look at how a small amount to us impacted her so much that might have made her week or her month.

I want to do more of that.

I want more of those moments where I get to enjoy this giving thing and someone else does as well...

Commercial real estate is property used for business or investing purposes. Many different property types, including offices buildings, warehouses, retail stores and even laboratories, fit under the broad umbrella of commercial real estate. Notably, commercial real estate is almost always used to generate revenue for a business, but it can also be a personal investment....

The article Commercial Real Estate Explained originally appeared on NerdWallet.

“Start where you are.” Such a short statement but has such a huge impact.

In this episode of The Crystal Paine Show, Bob and Linda Lotich, authors of their new book Simple Money, Rich Life: Achieve True Financial Freedom and Design a Life of Eternal Impact, talk about how they’ve made Sabbath a priority in their home and lives.

In this age of busyness when we all have a lot on our plates, is Sabbath rest even possible? If so, what would that look like? We delve into what it looks like for Bob & Linda and how we all can find ways to practice it in our own lives — even if we have a very full schedule.

We also talk about how this practice is more about our hearts and releasing our sense of control and micromanaging our lives and instead resting in Jesus.

Bob and Linda share their experiences, what they’ve learned, how this practice has deeply impacted them, and struggles they have encountered along the way. I hope this episode inspires you with ideas for how you, too, can implement a regular practice of Sabbath in your own life and what that might look like for you.

In This Episode

[00:34] – Welcome to another episode of The Crystal Paine Show.

[01:28] – Bob & Linda introduce themselves.

[04:57] – How did you recognize there was a need for Sabbath?

[05:57] – Bob talks about how hard it was to take a break for a week the first time.

[07:05] – Did it shift something in your soul when you took time off?

[09:20] – Bob and Linda explain how they set up and delegate when taking off time.

[10:45] – What can someone do if they don’t have the luxury of taking a full month off or even a week off?

[13:05] – Linda shares that what you can do is make your time count and be intentional.

[14:28] – I read a snippet from Simple Money, Rich Life.

[16:42] – How do you practice Sabbath when you have young kids to take care of?

[18:20] – Bob and Linda share what Sunday Family Day looks like.

[20:12] – We talk about the advice they would share with a couple who may not be on the same page.

[23:40] – The question to ask is, “What does this look like for each person?”

[24:12] – How have you invited and talked to your kids about Sabbath?

[26:12] – Linda and Bob unpack what it means to live the lifestyle of the Sabbath.

[29:19] – We discuss one practical step that you can take to help you rest in Jesus.

Links & Resources

• Links & ResourcesBob & Linda Lotich, Seedtime
• Books
• Simple Money, Rich Life: Achieve True Financial Freedom and Design a Life of Eternal Impact by Bob Lotich
• Love-Centered Parenting by Crystal Paine
• 10 Days to Be a Happier Mom
• Sign up for the Hot Deals Email List
• MoneySavingMom.com
• My Instagram account (I’d love for you to follow me there! I usually hop on at least a few times per day and share behind-the-scenes photos and videos, my grocery store hauls, funny stories, or just anything I’m pondering or would like your advice or feedback on!)
• Have feedback on the show or suggestions for future episodes or topics? Send me an email: crystal @ moneysavingmom.com

The world has changed. Has your financial advisor changed with it? If the idea of commuting back and forth to meet your financial advisor in their office feels a little antiquated, you’re not alone. In a world that’s moved online, finding an advisor who offers 100% digital services means more time in your day to […]

The post Looking for a Financial Advisor Who Offers 100% Digital Services? Get to Know Archer Investment Management. appeared first on Wealthtender.

tommaso79 / Shutterstock.com

As summer heats up, prepare for your wallet to melt down. Residential electricity rates could soar 40% higher this summer compared with 2021, according to an estimate from Barclays PLC, Bloomberg reports. Meanwhile, the U.S. Energy Information Administration projects that retail residential rates will rise more in 2022 than they have in any year since 2008. If you have the misfortune of living in...

Am I required to divide my pension with my ex? If I do divide it, how will it affect my pension when I retire?

FPAC responds:

Under the Canadian rules that govern the division of property between married couples who separate, you are required to equally split all assets grown and contributed to during the time of marriage. These assets can include a pension, as in your case.

Usually, when a couple ends their relationship, any pensions are valued based on the date of marriage and the date of separation. That said, there is no requirement for any specific asset to be divided. Instead, the requirement is for the value of “matrimonial assets” to be equalized.

What happens if I don’t want to divide my pension?

Since the requirement is just for the matrimonial assets to be equalized, this means that if you have other equity equivalent to the value of the pension equalization number, you can offer that instead taking from the pension itself. For example, let’s say the value of your pension is $100,000 at the date of separation, and your ex is entitled to half that value, meaning $50,000. If both you and your ex agree to it, you could use the equity in your home or other savings to cover meet the obligation instead dividing the pension.

What if my ex doesn’t want a substitute asset?

On the other hand, if your ex wants your pension value and doesn’t want any substitute asset, or there are no other assets available for you to meet that financial commitment, then you must request that your pension provider separate the pension “at source.” In other words, a portion of the pension is transferred to the other spouse’s pension or locked-in retirement account (LIRA) without you making any withdrawals from the pension yourself.

How will dividing my pension affect my retirement income?

If your pension is divided at source, this will reduce the amount in your pension that can be used to provide income when you retire. Up to 50% of the value of the pension accrued during the marriage could be transferred to your ex. How this division will impact your pension payments depends on how close you are to retiring and the length of time you contributed during the marriage, since you are not obligated to divide the contributions you made before or after your separation.

As you can see, the question of how your pension might be impacted in a divorce can strongly impact your retirement income, and it’s not easy to know what the extend will be without looking carefully at the details for your case.

Working with a qualified divorce financial analyst, such as a Chartered Financial Divorce Specialist, can help you understand your options and the impact of the financial decisions you are making today and into the future.

Debbie Hartzman, CFP, CLU, RRC, CFDS, TEP, is a Certified Financial Divorce Specialist who has spent the last 20 years helping couples navigate the financial pitfalls of Separation and Divorce.

Qualified Advice is written by members of FPAC (the Financial Planning Association of Canada), a MoneySense content partner. Working closely with governments, regulators, financial planners, academia, vendors and the general public, FPAC’s goal is to set standards and principles that will allow financial planning to evolve into a knowledge-based profession that ultimately commands the credibility, public awareness and respect afforded to other advisory professions.

If you have financial planning questions, FPAC members can help—consult our directory of members to find the right fit for you.  

Read more qualified advice:

• I cosigned a motorcycle loan and the owner passed away: What are my obligations to the bank?
• What do rising interest rates mean for my mortgage?
• What’s the difference between beneficiaries, successor holders and successor annuitants?
• How does CPP credit splitting work if I’m divorced?

The post Am I required to divide my pension with my ex? appeared first on MoneySense.

Not all new business owners’ journeys start from nothing — some entrepreneurs buy an existing small business instead. You can finance a business purchase with a loan from a variety of lenders, including traditional banks, online lenders and the Small Business Administration. And if the existing business is already successful, applying for financing could be...

The article How to Finance a Business Purchase originally appeared on NerdWallet.

One advantage of using credit cards is the delay when you pay. Your money isn’t immediately transferred to the seller. Part of that lag time is when the charge has been authorized but is still “pending,” meaning the transaction has not yet been finalized or posted. That limbo status means you have a time window,...

The article How to Cancel a Pending Credit Card Transaction originally appeared on NerdWallet.