What we’re reading (10/24)
“Google’s Cloud Sales Disappoint As Advertising Rebounds” (Wall Street Journal). “Google reported its strongest business growth in more than a year but disappointed investors with relatively weak cloud-computing sales, delivering a mixed picture as it continues to wrestle with competitors developing artificial-intelligence tools.”
“Microsoft Ticks Up On Faster Cloud Growth And Hopeful Revenue Forecast” (CNBC). “Microsoft shares jumped as much as 6% in extended trading Tuesday after the software maker issued fiscal first-quarter results and quarterly revenue guidance that beat Wall Street estimates. The firm also reported a surge in profit due to a slower pace of operating expense growth.”
“How High Interest Rates Sting Bakers, Farmers and Consumers” (New York Times). “Over the past few weeks, investors have realized that even with the Federal Reserve nearing an end to its increases in short-term interest rates, market-based measures of long-term borrowing costs have continued rising. In short, the economy may no longer be able to avoid a sharper slowdown.”
“The Secret Of America’s Economic Success” (Paul Krugman). “My conjecture — and that’s all it is — is that the U.S. approach turned out to be the right one. Covid appears to have had lasting effects on what we buy and how we work — most obviously, working from home appears to be here to stay — while high labor force participation belies fears that laid-off workers would never come back. So America’s Covid response, even though it temporarily led to high measured unemployment, may have set the stage for a strong recovery.”
“The 4% Rule For Retirement Spending Is Now The 4.7% Rule” (MarketWatch). “Bengen’s new work says 4.7% is the new “SAFEMAX” withdrawal rate under poor conditions — his word for the most someone can take the first year with a low probability of depleting their nest egg. Take more than 4.7% from your nest egg the first year, according to the new adjustment, and you run the risk of outliving your money. Take less, and you may leave more on the table than you’d like.”
