Oselote/iStock via Getty Images This is, in my opinion, the most interesting chart in all of finance. This shows the return from gold versus the total return of the S&P 500 since 1/1/2000. As you can see, gold’s return has exceeded that of stocks by almost 3 to 1; it isn’t even close. If you had bought gold at the turn of the century, at no point over the next 25 years would you have been better o...
Oselote/iStock via Getty Images This is, in my opinion, the most interesting chart in all of finance. This shows the return from gold versus the total return of the S&P 500 since 1/1/2000. As you can see, gold’s return has exceeded that of stocks by almost 3 to 1; it isn’t even close. If you had bought gold at the turn of the century, at no point over the next 25 years would you have been better off having bought the S&P 500 instead. There were periods of outperformance by stocks, so you could have done better if you were able to trade those inflection points, but for buy and hold investors, the 21st century has, so far, been the Golden Century. Is gold trying to tell us something, or is it just the latest object of speculation in a society increasingly addicted to gambling? Think about this for a minute… an inert metal with limited industrial uses has, over the last 25 years, produced a better total return than ownership of, supposedly, the best companies in the United States. Think of all the innovations provided by the leading US companies over the last 25 years. In 2000 we didn’t have: Smartphones – the first BlackBerry phone came out in 2002, and the iPhone followed in 2007 Widespread availability of Wi-Fi 3G, 4G or 5G cellular networks Social media – Facebook 2004 and YouTube 2005 CRISPR technology Human genome mapping project completed in 2003 mRNA vaccines Generative AI, large language models AlphaFold Blockchain and Bitcoin Reusable rockets – SpaceX Widespread use of EVs Self-driving auto technology USB flash drive Of course, corporate America has also provided us with some things that weren’t all that beneficial. Most of them, to my way of thinking, are just symptoms of the same malady affecting gold – inflation, a cheapening of the dollar. Subprime mortgages, liar loans, etc. Credit default swaps on those subprime mortgage securities The creation of “investment grade” securities from a bundle of junk mortgages courtesy of the ratings agencies Bernie Madof...
Key Points The break-even age is when the total benefits from claiming at one age equal those from claiming at another age. Social Security claiming decisions come down to whether you want smaller benefits for a longer time or larger benefits for a shorter time. There is no "right" or "wrong" age to claim Social Security. The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook › In the...
Key Points The break-even age is when the total benefits from claiming at one age equal those from claiming at another age. Social Security claiming decisions come down to whether you want smaller benefits for a longer time or larger benefits for a shorter time. There is no "right" or "wrong" age to claim Social Security. The $23,760 Social Security bonus most retirees completely overlook › In the years leading up to retirement, one of the bigger decisions you have to consider is when to claim Social Security benefits. When you claim Social Security will permanently affect how much you receive monthly, so it's a decision you shouldn't make on a whim. There's no "right" or "wrong" age to claim Social Security; just the age that makes sense for your personal situation. However, there are benchmarks you can use to help make your decision. One of those is the break-even age. Where to invest $1,000 right now? Our analyst team just revealed what they believe are the 10 best stocks to buy right now, when you join Stock Advisor. See the stocks » What is your break-even age? In Social Security, your break-even age is when the total benefits from claiming at one age equal those from claiming at another age. It's not an end-all, be-all, but it can help you decide whether smaller payments over a longer period or larger payments over a shorter period is the better route for you. The good news is that break-even ages are the same no matter the amount of your projected benefit. For example, the break-even age between 62 and 67 is 78.7; between 62 and 70, it's 80.4; and between 67 and 70, it's 82.5. Any time before the break-even age, your total benefits from claiming at the earlier age are higher. After the break-even age, total benefits from claiming at the later age are higher. I used those three specific ages because 62 is the earliest you can claim benefits, 67 is the full retirement age for anyone born in 1960 or later, and 70 is the latest you can delay benefits and still re...
Torsten Asmus/iStock via Getty Images The Charles Schwab Corporation ( SCHW ) met consensus expectations for its bottom line in the fourth quarter, but missed in terms of revenues. The company's strong earnings were driven by robust core net new asset migration trends as well as robust equity market performance throughout the quarter. According to Seeking Alpha, Charles Schwab met adjusted earning...
Torsten Asmus/iStock via Getty Images The Charles Schwab Corporation ( SCHW ) met consensus expectations for its bottom line in the fourth quarter, but missed in terms of revenues. The company's strong earnings were driven by robust core net new asset migration trends as well as robust equity market performance throughout the quarter. According to Seeking Alpha, Charles Schwab met adjusted earnings expectations of $1.39 per-share last week, although the broker missed top-line expectations by $56.1M. I like that Charles Schwab continued to grow its profit margins, attracted more client capital, and focused on returning more cash to shareholders, with total capital returns amounting to $11.8B in FY 2025. Shares have upside potential in a rising market, especially if high interest rates continue to benefit the firm's net interest revenue growth. Shares are attractively valued, in my opinion, and have about. Data by YCharts Previous rating I rated Charles Schwab a strong buy previously— High Platform Profitability —because I liked the consistently high margins that the brokerage published. Additionally, Charles Schwab was attractively valued last time I covered the shares, which made the decision to continue a strong buy an easy one. I continue to see Charles Schwab as a beneficiary of a continual stock market rally in 2026, which is set to benefit trading activity. This could easily happen, in my opinion, considering that AI-driven Capex spending trends in the important tech market are fully intact, which could drive the stock market to new highs this year. Charles Schwab has continual platform momentum The brokerage benefited from strong equity market performance in the fourth quarter, which lifted the stock market to new all-time highs in Q4, resulting in Charles Schwab publishing 19% year-over-year revenue growth. Net interest revenue increased 25% year-over-year to $3.2B for the brokerage mainly because of higher interest rates on client loans and margin balances, ...
Listen to the article 9 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback In 2026, retailers are placing bigger bets on agentic AI commerce — even at the risk of losing direct access to customers and control over their data. Just in the first month of 2026, Etsy, Target and Walmart have continued their move to bring merchandise offerings onto external platforms by partnerin...
Listen to the article 9 min This audio is auto-generated. Please let us know if you have feedback In 2026, retailers are placing bigger bets on agentic AI commerce — even at the risk of losing direct access to customers and control over their data. Just in the first month of 2026, Etsy, Target and Walmart have continued their move to bring merchandise offerings onto external platforms by partnering with Google’s Gemini and Microsoft’s Copilot. All three companies joined forces with OpenAI's ChatGPT last year to make products available for purchase on the platform. That's on top of the efforts by Amazon and Walmart to popularize the AI consumer-facing assistants they built, named Rufus and Sparky respectively. The rapid evolution of agentic AI — and the shift it poses to direct consumer access — is likely game changing for the retail industry. “I kind of think that this is going to shake up retail just like the internet did,” Kartik Hosanagar, marketing professor at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, told Retail Dive. Retail executives agree, as many took to the stage at the National Retail Federation’s 2026 Big Show in New York City earlier this month to discuss the impact of AI. Industry leaders like Ulta Beauty CEO Kecia Steelman and REI CEO Mary Beth Laughton told audiences at the event that AI will likely impact every aspect of the business. The argument for joining forces with the likes of ChatGPT and Gemini is that retailers want to meet their customers where they are. Walmart's incoming CEO John Furner emphasized the sentiment while speaking at NRF. AI-driven U.S. e-commerce traffic grew 758% year over year between Nov. 1 and Dec. 1, according to Adobe’s 2025 Holiday Shopping report. AI traffic to U.S. retail sites specifically on Cyber Monday increased 670%. “What we expect is that consumers will deepen their engagement,” Katherine Black, a partner at Kearney leading food, drug and mass market retail, told Retail Dive via email. “More cons...
The third wife of former Malaysian army chief Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan has been mocked on social media after arriving at court in a wheelchair to face money laundering charges linked to a military procurement scandal Salwani Anuar, 27, was first seen in a wheelchair on Thursday at a special corruption high court in Kuala Lumpur, where she and her 58-year-old husband were each charged with four...
The third wife of former Malaysian army chief Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan has been mocked on social media after arriving at court in a wheelchair to face money laundering charges linked to a military procurement scandal Salwani Anuar, 27, was first seen in a wheelchair on Thursday at a special corruption high court in Kuala Lumpur, where she and her 58-year-old husband were each charged with four counts under Malaysia’s anti-money-laundering law. Though Salwani initially walked to the court entrance, she later sat in a wheelchair pushed by a Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) officer. Advertisement Her lawyer, Fahmi Abd Moin, told the court she had an abscess on her thigh and asked for her to be allowed to remain seated in the dock due to her condition, according to a New Straits Times report. Salwani Anuar, wife of former Malaysian army chief Muhammad Hafizuddeain Jantan, arrives at the Kuala Lumpur Court in a wheelchair under escort by Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission officers on January 22. Photo: EPA On Monday, she was wheeled in again, this time to a sessions court in Kuala Terengganu, where she was charged with receiving proceeds from illegal activities in the form of 5,000 ringgit (US$1,260) that was deposited into her bank account.