Don’t Cry for Me Bailing out Argentina has for some in the financial markets become a long term engagement. Many of us recall the so-called Brady Bonds of the 1990’s that were named after the Treasury Secretary at the time. Existing bonds of Argentina were exchanged...

Coffee Up Productivity Flat You may have taken notice in the coffee aisle at the supermarket that the essential has spiked in price recently. The cup of Joe on the go will be increasing commensurately. The conflicting news is that Starbucks stock is not climbing along...

Most reasonable people are ardent supporters of reducing and eliminating crime and lawlessness. That is why on its face it may make good sense to send in the National Guard to assist the police in the District of Columbia in their effort to reduce crime. According to...

Tariff and Debt Ceiling Deadlines We are a week out from the imposition of the tariffs and for those who have not negotiated their respective levels to a conclusion.  The rates spelled out in delivered letters will govern what shapes the future. The retail sector is...

Implementation Phase Now that the federal budget bill has become law, we turn to the implementation phase. What we have learned in recent days is that the start dates for some of the cuts and adjustments have different start dates. The work requirement for able bodied...

BBB connotation BBB for most of us with links to the financial world means investment grade. It still means just that. But for the next few days leading up to July 4 it will translate to the Big Beautiful Bill. The pressure is on to get the bill passed but there is...

Cold Rolled Tariffs Amid the many tariffs proposals, discussions, pauses, and negotiations, the tariffs on imported steel and aluminum have been set at the 50% level. I am openly wondering what the effect will be on the many infrastructure projects underway and...

Slap happy tariffs Not since the slapping incident at the Oscars has a tariff been slapped on so quickly. The tariff on the Eurozone is more global in scope. It appears that we hit allies fairly hard with tariff levels. One observer in the Wall Street Journal pointed...

More SALT please Whether you call it a spice or a condiment, SALT has a major presence at the budget table. For those in high tax states, raising the cap to $30,000 from $10,000 only makes a marginal difference. Take the case of a married couple who both work filing...