patpitchaya/iStock via Getty Images Many investors who are focused on building up a passive income stream from dividend- and interest-paying investments focus solely on yield. In fact, they may even focus on what they would deem to be sustainable yield, namely, yields that come from blue chip stocks, preferreds, and even bonds that they believe they can count on to be paid out consistently through...
patpitchaya/iStock via Getty Images Many investors who are focused on building up a passive income stream from dividend- and interest-paying investments focus solely on yield. In fact, they may even focus on what they would deem to be sustainable yield, namely, yields that come from blue chip stocks, preferreds, and even bonds that they believe they can count on to be paid out consistently through thick and thin. While this is certainly important, it is not a complete approach to retirement income investing because it fails to account for some key considerations. We Are Living in Historically Dangerous Times In fact, we are currently in more dangerous times than we have seen since perhaps World War II, with breathtaking budget deficits, national debt levels in Europe, China, Japan, and the United States reaching levels that are nearing the point of no return, and the geopolitical situation is as fragile as ever, with the US-led global order appearing to have increasingly large cracks in it, and a threat of major economic and/or military conflict between the US and China, and Europe and Russia seemingly growing by the day. Thus, it is more important than ever for investors to ensure that they are adequately protecting their income stream from downside risks. With this in view, in this article, I detail the three investments that I would not want to retire without to make sure that I could sleep well at night knowing there was a high probability that my investments would fund my living expenses in retirement, even if the macro situation deteriorates significantly. Pillar #1: The Ultimate Safe Haven The first investment that I would want to have before any other is gold ( GLD ). The reason I put so much emphasis on gold is that it has a longer track record than any other economic asset out there, besides perhaps land, and it has zero counterparty risk. Additionally, given that it has survived every financial collapse, every currency failure, and every major war that ha...
Blue Origin faces a months-long setback after the explosion of a rocket damaged its launch pad, company and industry sources said, scrambling schedules for Amazon satellite launches and bolstering SpaceX's dominance in the commercial launch market. The mishap, which occurred during a test fire of the engines for the New Glenn rocket's launch next week, comes at a critical time for Jeff Bezos' bu...
Blue Origin faces a months-long setback after the explosion of a rocket damaged its launch pad, company and industry sources said, scrambling schedules for Amazon satellite launches and bolstering SpaceX's dominance in the commercial launch market. The mishap, which occurred during a test fire of the engines for the New Glenn rocket's launch next week, comes at a critical time for Jeff Bezos' business empire. A Blue Origin booster called "No, It's Necessary" - a nod to a line from the film Interstellar - was wrecked in the incident on Thursday.
sefa ozel/iStock via Getty Images Northern Oil and Gas ( NOG ) continues to make acquisitions, with the latest one being a CAD350 million ( USD254 million) Duvernay Shale acquisition . The price for this acquisition appears to be fair, although I believe that Northern should pause further acquisitions until it reduces its leverage. I project its year-end leverage to be around 1.8x now, due to its ...
sefa ozel/iStock via Getty Images Northern Oil and Gas ( NOG ) continues to make acquisitions, with the latest one being a CAD350 million ( USD254 million) Duvernay Shale acquisition . The price for this acquisition appears to be fair, although I believe that Northern should pause further acquisitions until it reduces its leverage. I project its year-end leverage to be around 1.8x now, due to its acquisition spending and substantial hedging losses (estimated at over $300 million for 2026). Despite those hedging losses, Northern is still projected to generate $382 million in free cash flow in 2026. I have raised my long-term oil price by $5, resulting in an increase in my estimate of Northern's value from $31 per share to $33 per share. This is based on long-term (after 2026) $75 WTI oil and $3.75 NYMEX natural gas. Northern does have substantial 2027 and 2028 oil hedges in place (assuming its counterparties exercise the swaptions) that may reduce its ability to benefit from strong oil prices in those years. Northern's future hedges (after 2026) have around negative $2 per share in value at $75 WTI oil. Due to that and Northern's significant leverage, I haven't raised my estimate of Northern's value by as large amount as would typically be expected from my $5 increase in long-term oil prices. At around $22 per share, Northern appears to be pretty undervalued, although its leverage is a notable risk factor. It is now trading at close to 20% below its share price at the start of the Iran conflict. This report uses US dollars as the main currency unless otherwise noted, along with an exchange rate of CAD1.38 to USD1.00. Duvernay Acquisition Northern made another acquisition, this time purchasing a 25% non-operated stake in Duvernay Shale assets in Alberta, Canada, that are operated by Parallax Energy. The purchase price (before adjustments) is CAD350 million ( USD254 million). Approximately CAD237 million ( USD172 million) of that consideration is in cash, and the other...
Trump’s pursuit of policies that drive up prices, including tariffs and war, might be punished in November’s elections For such an uncannily successful politician, Donald Trump exhibits a perplexing political myopia. His most recent own-goal was endorsing Ken Paxton, a state attorney general, against four-term senator John Cornyn in the Republican primary for Senate in Texas. Trump’s endorsement h...
Trump’s pursuit of policies that drive up prices, including tariffs and war, might be punished in November’s elections For such an uncannily successful politician, Donald Trump exhibits a perplexing political myopia. His most recent own-goal was endorsing Ken Paxton, a state attorney general, against four-term senator John Cornyn in the Republican primary for Senate in Texas. Trump’s endorsement helped push the ethically compromised Maga firebrand over the top, to run against popular Democrat James Talarico in November, complicating the Republicans’ chances to keep the seat. But what truly screams “I want us to lose the midterms” is what Trump is doing about inflation, which is becoming his most vulnerable issue. According to a New York Times/Siena poll of registered voters earlier in May, Trump’s approval on handling the cost of living is underwater by 42 percentage points, poorer than his rating on handling the economy (minus 31 points) and the unpopular war in Iran (minus 34 points). Continue reading...
Stew Peas focuses on obeah, an enduring African magic practice in Jamaica banned by colonisers in the 1700s A new movie from award-winning Jamaican film-maker Sosiessia Nixon shines a spotlight on Jamaica’s enduring west African-based magic and spiritual healing tradition known as obeah. Nixon’s tense, feature-length suspense, Stew Peas , tells of the story of Jamaican detective Tessa, who is obse...
Stew Peas focuses on obeah, an enduring African magic practice in Jamaica banned by colonisers in the 1700s A new movie from award-winning Jamaican film-maker Sosiessia Nixon shines a spotlight on Jamaica’s enduring west African-based magic and spiritual healing tradition known as obeah. Nixon’s tense, feature-length suspense, Stew Peas , tells of the story of Jamaican detective Tessa, who is obsessed with an old murder case. Continue reading...
At least six new pubs and taphouses have opened in recent months, including the Pig & Swill in Cardiff On a hot Thursday evening in Canton, a buzzy Cardiff neighbourhood, a steady stream of people in sunglasses, shorts and dresses went back and forth between bar and garden at the city’s newest pub, the Pig & Swill. Next door, in Victoria Park, the splash pad was still heaving with families making ...
At least six new pubs and taphouses have opened in recent months, including the Pig & Swill in Cardiff On a hot Thursday evening in Canton, a buzzy Cardiff neighbourhood, a steady stream of people in sunglasses, shorts and dresses went back and forth between bar and garden at the city’s newest pub, the Pig & Swill. Next door, in Victoria Park, the splash pad was still heaving with families making the most of the tail-end of the May heatwave. Many parents and carers stopped by for takeaway pints and small plates. Continue reading...
As Daniela Klette is jailed after three decades in hiding, it’s clear that good strategy, and principally democracy, beat the terror, bombs and guns In 1972, the great German novelist Heinrich Böll described the campaign of violence launched by the Red Army Faction (RAF) since its foundation two years earlier as a war of “six against 60 million”. The writer was vilified for the phrase, accused of ...
As Daniela Klette is jailed after three decades in hiding, it’s clear that good strategy, and principally democracy, beat the terror, bombs and guns In 1972, the great German novelist Heinrich Böll described the campaign of violence launched by the Red Army Faction (RAF) since its foundation two years earlier as a war of “six against 60 million”. The writer was vilified for the phrase, accused of sympathy for bombers and murderers. But Böll had highlighted the most important factor in the eventual defeat of the group, of whom one of the last surviving alleged members, a 67-year-old called Daniela Klette, was sentenced last week to 13 years in prison for armed robberies. At the time Böll was writing, the RAF’s bombings, abductions and shootings had brought about the most acute crisis of West German democracy since the second world war. Dozens were killed, more injured, wanted posters and police checkpoints went up all over the country, huge state resources were devoted to counter-terrorism. Sporty small BMW cars were so favoured by the group that they were dubbed Baader-Meinhof Wagen, a reference to the RAF’s most famous founder leaders, Andreas Baader and Ulrike Meinhof. Jason Burke is the author of The Revolutionists: The Story of the Extremists who Hijacked the 1970s, and the Guardian’s international security correspondent Continue reading...
Guardian readers in the US spoke of fears about unregulated AI in response to the pope’s encyclical warning about the risks of the technology In his first major papal text since assuming leadership of the Catholic church last year, Pope Leo issued a stark warning about the rise of artificial intelligence this week, denouncing the “culture of power” driving the AI age. Calling for the “most rigorou...
Guardian readers in the US spoke of fears about unregulated AI in response to the pope’s encyclical warning about the risks of the technology In his first major papal text since assuming leadership of the Catholic church last year, Pope Leo issued a stark warning about the rise of artificial intelligence this week, denouncing the “culture of power” driving the AI age. Calling for the “most rigorous” ethical constraints on AI – which he described as one of the greatest threats facing humanity today – the first US-born pope also warned of “new forms of slavery” emerging through the digital economy. Continue reading...
Mothers with PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) explain how it has affected their relationship with their families Laura Daly was six the first time she suspected something was wrong with her mum, Wendy. Furious at locking herself out of the house, Wendy reversed and rammed the car into their garage door once, twice, then three times, as Laura cowered silently in the back, her head flopping fo...
Mothers with PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) explain how it has affected their relationship with their families Laura Daly was six the first time she suspected something was wrong with her mum, Wendy. Furious at locking herself out of the house, Wendy reversed and rammed the car into their garage door once, twice, then three times, as Laura cowered silently in the back, her head flopping forwards with each smash. On the seventh smash, the garage door contorted just enough for Laura to squeeze under, get into the house and fetch the keys. “It was like I was watching myself,” Wendy Barker, 56, says of this moment now. “Nothing would’ve stopped me.” Continue reading...
St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton Elephants, clowns, aerialists hanging by their hair … the Big Top concept doesn’t let up at this hugely enjoyable outing for a boy band with hits to spare Take That have never been shy when it comes to repackaging their past. In 2018, they followed two official best-of collections with Odyssey, a Stuart Price-produced curio in which they “re-imagined” their greatest ...
St Mary’s Stadium, Southampton Elephants, clowns, aerialists hanging by their hair … the Big Top concept doesn’t let up at this hugely enjoyable outing for a boy band with hits to spare Take That have never been shy when it comes to repackaging their past. In 2018, they followed two official best-of collections with Odyssey, a Stuart Price-produced curio in which they “re-imagined” their greatest hits. Around the same time, band captain Gary Barlow – now overseeing just two teammates, Mark Owen and Howard Donald – was brutally honest about the band’s standing as a legacy act more focused on ticket sales than streams. “Even if [the album is] a flop, we’re still going to go on tour next year and play to 600,000 people.” Fast forward eight years and the band have sidestepped the studio time and are instead lightly “re-imagining” an entire old tour. And not just any tour. When it first played stadiums in summer 2009, Take That Presents The Circus became the fastest selling jaunt in UK history, making more than £40m in profit. Without an obvious anniversary peg, on paper this unusual reboot of a widely seen show (even the DVD release broke sales records) has the feel of profit-obsessed businessmen stuck in a creative cul-de-sac. Continue reading...
Stanley Plotkin, 93, was instrumental in developing a number of vaccines over the course of his career. He recently said that he’s “beginning to regret having lived so long—because we’re going downhill.” How could we possibly have gotten here? Maybe we’ve always been here. It turns out that the anti-vaccine arguments currently flooding the Internet have been around for as long as vaccines have. In...
Stanley Plotkin, 93, was instrumental in developing a number of vaccines over the course of his career. He recently said that he’s “beginning to regret having lived so long—because we’re going downhill.” How could we possibly have gotten here? Maybe we’ve always been here. It turns out that the anti-vaccine arguments currently flooding the Internet have been around for as long as vaccines have. In his new book A Pox on Fools , Thomas Levenson breaks them down into three categories, as made clear in the book’s subtitle: “The True Believers, Grifters, and Cynics Who Convinced Us to Reject Vaccines.” The accusations these people levy against vaccines can just as easily be used to categorize the arguments themselves: They are wrong, they are bad, and they are intolerable. Wrong As Levenson tells it, in the early 18th century, a couple of forward-thinking Westerners learned about inoculations against smallpox from Ottoman women and an enslaved African. At that point, infectious disease was by far the leading cause of death, as it had been forever. In the 19th century, roughly 40 percent of babies died of infection before they turned 5. Read full article Comments
Norway Lobbies To Persuade EU To Drop Arctic Drilling Ban Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via OilPrice.com, Norway, Western Europe's top oil and gas producer, has intensified lobbying at the European Union to persuade the bloc to remove or tweak its moratorium on Arctic oil and gas drilling. Norway, which is not a member of the EU but is the biggest gas supplier to European markets , has sent nearl...
Norway Lobbies To Persuade EU To Drop Arctic Drilling Ban Authored by Tsvetana Paraskova via OilPrice.com, Norway, Western Europe's top oil and gas producer, has intensified lobbying at the European Union to persuade the bloc to remove or tweak its moratorium on Arctic oil and gas drilling. Norway, which is not a member of the EU but is the biggest gas supplier to European markets , has sent nearly a dozen of its ministers to Brussels so far this year to discuss energy and trade and the state of the Arctic drilling. The Iran war and the biggest oil and gas supply disruption in history have added to Norway's arguments that Europe needs reliable supply from places outside of conflict zones. However, the EU's moratorium enacted in 2021 due to the bloc's climate commitments and environmental concerns, does not allow drilling in Norway's northern parts of the Barents Sea, which is estimated to contain most of the remaining Norwegian oil and gas resources. “Norway is very active and good at making its voice heard,” the EU's special envoy for the Arctic, Claude Veron-Reville, told Bloomberg in an interview this week. “Norway knows very well how to intervene, they are very well organized and very present,” Veron-Reville added. Norway argues that an arbitrary line defining the Arctic area shouldn’t be viewed as the cut-off line for oil and gas drilling. “There are no climate arguments for treating oil and gas produced north and south of a certain line differently,” Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide told Bloomberg. Norway’s lobbying efforts clash with this week’s call of dozens of Scandinavian financial institutions which urged the European Commission to remain firm in its opposition to Arctic oil drilling even as the bloc could face physical oil shortages in weeks. The EU could unlock 3.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe) of natural gas, or about 22 trillion cubic feet, if it rethinks its Arctic policy, Norway-based consultancy Rystad Energy said early this ye...
JohnnyGreig/E+ via Getty Images On Friday, June 5, 2026, Federal Reserve watchers will look closely at the nonfarm payroll report published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Stock markets do not expect any cautionary job market dynamics. The Fed rate policy seeks to achieve maximum employment with stable prices. The Consumer Price Index increase in April already set expectations for a rate pause ...
JohnnyGreig/E+ via Getty Images On Friday, June 5, 2026, Federal Reserve watchers will look closely at the nonfarm payroll report published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Stock markets do not expect any cautionary job market dynamics. The Fed rate policy seeks to achieve maximum employment with stable prices. The Consumer Price Index increase in April already set expectations for a rate pause on warnings of an increase by early next year. What will the job situation in May look like? In the previous report, total NFP edged up by 115,000 . That left the unemployment rate unaffected at 4.3%. Job Growth in Three Sectors The economy likely added jobs again in health care, transportation and warehousing, and retail trade. In April, health care added 37,000 jobs, higher than the average of 32,000 over the prior 12 months. Transportation and warehousing employment grew by 30,000. Companies hired 38,000 couriers and messengers. Shares of FedEx ( FDX ) and United Parcel Service ( UPS ) reflect the strength of that segment. In the last month, FDX stock gained the most, while UPS traded flat. As shown in the chart below, firms in the industrials sector like Old Dominion Freight Line ( ODFL ), Deutsche Post ( DHLGY ), and Expeditors International of Washington ( EXPD ) also rose. XPO ( XPO ) fell slightly. Seeking Alpha Among those firms, FedEx and XPO have a “Strong Buy” rating. However, UPS has a strong valuation grade of “A-.” Seeking Alpha In April, retail trade added 22,000 jobs. The odds of another increase are low. Consumers potentially cut spending on goods that they did not need. That would offset the April 0.6% monthly CPI increase and 3.8% rise in the last 12 months. The BLS Readers might infer that food stocks like Conagra Brands ( CAG ) or Flowers Foods ( FLO ) are a buy. However, both companies trade near a 52-week low. Suppliers will pass higher fertilizer and fuel transport costs to packing firms. Consumers will pay more sooner, causing demand to weaken. In ...
China warned it would “resolutely” retaliate if the European Union proceeds with new restrictive trade measures, following a May 29 European Commission discussion on China policy. “Should the EU insist on unilaterally introducing new trade instruments and imposing discriminatory restrictions, China will resolutely take countermeasures and adopt effective measures to safeguard its own interests,” t...
China warned it would “resolutely” retaliate if the European Union proceeds with new restrictive trade measures, following a May 29 European Commission discussion on China policy. “Should the EU insist on unilaterally introducing new trade instruments and imposing discriminatory restrictions, China will resolutely take countermeasures and adopt effective measures to safeguard its own interests,” the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on Saturday. That follows preliminary meetings held on Friday by the European Commission, which handles trade matters for the EU, to discuss how to address rising economic competition from China, including a flood of products that have undercut numerous European industries. The deliberations reflect the EU’s desire to rethink its economic relationship with China — but also the difficult spot the bloc is in. READ: EU Warns Trade Relationship With China Is ‘Not Sustainable’ (1) Communication channels between China and the EU remain open, and both sides are exploring the establishment of a trade and investment consultation mechanism, the Ministry of Commerce statement added.
Key PointsAlthough Kevin Warsh brings experience to the central bank's lead position, nothing can prepare him for the possibility of stagflation taking shape.
Key PointsAlthough Kevin Warsh brings experience to the central bank's lead position, nothing can prepare him for the possibility of stagflation taking shape.
Jim Cramer called it “the greatest time in the history of the industry” on Mad Money Thursday night, and the data is screaming the same thing: Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) is up 75% year to date as the AI data center buildout has triggered shortages across every node, every fab, and every piece of capital equipment ... Top 5 Stocks That Will Ride the Data Center Chip Equipment Supercycle
Jim Cramer called it “the greatest time in the history of the industry” on Mad Money Thursday night, and the data is screaming the same thing: Applied Materials (NASDAQ:AMAT) is up 75% year to date as the AI data center buildout has triggered shortages across every node, every fab, and every piece of capital equipment ... Top 5 Stocks That Will Ride the Data Center Chip Equipment Supercycle