The Retired Investor: Trump's 21st Century MercantilismBy Bill Schmick,
03:32PM / Friday, December 20, 2024 | |
Jan. 20 is just around the corner. It is Day One in the tariff wars that our next president is intent on launching. The corporate world is trying to dissuade him from that course of action, with no success.
It is an economic fact that the cost of tariffs is passed on to the consumer. If tariffs are high enough, some imported products simply cease to be available, which can cause supply chain interruptions. At some point, buyers balk at paying higher prices. When that happens, tariff costs hit business profit margins directly. Everyone loses.
In the last column, I explained why Donald Trump is adamant that tariffs are the only way to turn 0 Comments
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The Retired Investor: Is Mercantilism the Answer to Our Trade Imbalance?By Bill Schmick,
04:33PM / Thursday, December 12, 2024 | |
Mercantilism is often associated with Donald Trump's economic policies. Can reaching back into the past truly make America great again? That is up for debate.
For those few of us familiar with the term, mercantilism was the dominant economic system in Europe from the 16th to the 18th centuries. It was a world where it was believed that global wealth was fixed and finite. To become powerful, a nation needed to acquire as much wealth as possible. Back then, a nation's wealth was measured by how much gold and silver it accumulated.
If this period evokes visions of tall ships, the Spanish Main, and epic exchanges of cannon fire between Spanish galleys 0 Comments
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The Retired Investor: The Future of Weight LossBy Bill Schmick,
04:27PM / Thursday, December 05, 2024 | |
More than 40 percent of Americans are now classified as obese while 75 percent of adults are either overweight or obese. A new group of drugs called GLP-1 receptor agonists have come on the scene to help in the battle to lose weight. Are they as good as we think?
You may have heard about them or some of their brand names like Zepbound, Wegovy, and Ozempic. The use of these drugs has exploded in popularity to the point where companies like Lilly and Novo Nordisk have had problems keeping up with demand.
There is nothing magical about the science behind these drugs. GLP-1 mimics a protein naturally produced by our small intestines. The receptors for 0 Comments
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The Retired Investor: Cost of College Pulls Students Southby Bill Schmick,
04:34PM / Thursday, November 28, 2024 | |
As the cost to attend several Ivy League colleges approaches $90,000 per year, applications to obtain a college degree below the Mason-Dixon line have skyrocketed.
But let's not focus on the most expensive schools like Princeton and Harvard. The average tuition price across all the Ivy League colleges is almost $65,000 annually. Many Southern colleges charge substantially less with pricing ranging from $30,000 to $49,999 per year.
However, college costs go beyond the tuition and fees charged at schools. The costs are increased by several additional factors such as living expenses, graduate outcomes, and financial aid.
In these areas, 0 Comments
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The Retired Investor: Thanksgiving Dinner May Be Slightly Cheaper This YearBy Bill Schmick,
04:49PM / Thursday, November 21, 2024 | |
After several years of price increases, consumers have come to expect that the typical Turkey Day dinner will cost more this year. Depending on how astute a shopper you are, you could get away with paying less this year.
Some items on your dinner agenda may be more expensive than in 2023 but others may have dropped in price. The price may also depend on where you shop and whether you insist on buying only name brands or are willing to buy store brands instead.
Every year since the COVID pandemic, grocery store prices and costs have been going up with the largest contributors to the cost being transportation, labor, and climate change. In 2020 (plus-3.5 0 Comments
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