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Peek of the Week

The Fed plays catch up with 'anti-inflation' campaign
The Fed plays catch up with 'anti-inflation' campaign

Today's Peek of the Week tells us how the Federal Reserve has stepped up their "anti-inflation campaign" in the last week, with the goal to slow inflation. Inflation has been high and is getting further exacerbated by the war in Ukraine and by China's virus lockdowns. So far, the American economy has avoided a recession but it has not avoided ongoing inflation.

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Money, Lifestyle, Stock market, Peek of the Week, World EventsLeif HagenAchievement Financial#inflation, #campaign, #marketwatch, #stockmarket, #stocks, #bonds, #wealth, #advisor, #Ukraine, #war, #interestrates, #earnings, #unemployment
Policymakers wonder where inflation is headed
Policymakers wonder where inflation is headed

Today's Peek of the Week explains the complexity of inflation and how the numbers may vary, depending on how things get measured. To determine how quickly prices will rise or fall is not easy and our government relies on two indexes to get their answers: the CPI (Consumer Price Index) and the PCE (the Personal Consumption Index). These signify headline inflation and core inflation. Read our "Peek of the Week" to learn how to differentiate between them and learn why the cost of two things we use daily, food and energy, can be excluded from inflation calculations. One thing we know for sure: policymakers have A LOT of data to consider before they make their predictions for the future.

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Investment, Lifestyle, Money, News, Peek of the WeekLeif HagenAchievement Financial#inflation, #groceries, #inflating, #policy, #prices
Wishing you hope and joy for Easter!
Wishing you hope and joy for Easter!

Are you read for Easter on Sunday? The word "Easter" is said to derive from the Anglo-Saxon goddess of spring and fertility. Or, it's also said to derive from the Latin phrase in albis, which is a plural version of the word meaning dawn. Today's Easter Commentary reiterates the importance of new beginnings and hope on Easter.

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Lifestyle, Community Involvement, World EventsLeif Hagen#holyweek, #Easter, #EasterSunday, #EggHunt, #traditions, #global, #international, #heisrisen, #hope, #joy, #spring, #renewal, #newlife, #holiday, #resurrection
The cost of war filters through the markets
The cost of war filters through the markets

The first quarter of 2022 experienced a storm of volatility with events like nonstop rising inflation, the war in Ukraine, rising interest rates, sanctions on Russia and a new COVID-19 outbreak in China... just to name a few. Today's Peek of the Week offers a review of the first quarter with some options for investors when it comes to fighting inflation, borrowing money and gauging future business operations. Energy prices have surged around the world, causing a jump in global inflation when it comes to transportation and shipping. These costs will be reflected in many other goods, including food.

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Money, Lifestyle, Investment, World EventsLeif HagenAchievement Financial#war, #wartime, #ukraine, #russia, #invasion, #cost, #supply, #demand, #china, #coronavirus, #lockdown, #markets, #stockmarket, #stocks, #bonds, #rates, #federalreserve, #borrowingrate, #inflation, #brainfreeze, #weather, #summer, #firstquarter, #exports, #imports
Checking in... on the Fed and the gender wage gap
Checking in... on the Fed and the gender wage gap

Today's Peek of the Week "checks in" on the Federal Reserve and many other things. The Federal Reserve has been asked by Congress to promote price stability and maximize employment. Inflation continued to increase to 6.4 percent last week (with food and energy included) and the Fed's target rate for inflation is all the way down at 2 percent. Yikes. Today's blog will explain some potential next moves for balancing out financial complications.

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Money, Lifestyle, Investment, Insurance, World EventsLeif HagenAchievement Financial#inflation, #thefed, #federalreserve, #wagegap, #gender, #genderwagegap, #price, #prices, #stability, #money, #unemployment, #jobs, #jobreport, #jobmarket, #stocks, #bonds, #stockmarket, #focus
Rates are rising for consumers and investors
Rates are rising for consumers and investors

Be careful what you ask for…you just might get it! Today's Peek of the Week explains the recent increase in Treasury rates, the drop in demand for home loans and how the cost of carrying credit card debt has increased. It was early March when almost two-thirds of Americans said the Federal Reserve should be more aggressive when it comes to inflation. Well, Americans got what they asked for! When rates rise, borrowing money becomes more expensive, demand gets reduced and prices go even higher.

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Money, Lifestyle, Investment, World Events, Stock market, Peek of the WeekLeif HagenAchievement Financial#rates, #investor, #investors, #stocks, #stockmarket, #bonds, #housingmarket, #credit, #creditcard
Investor clarity improves as we spring forward
Investor clarity improves as we spring forward

Last week, the FOMC (Federal Open Market Committee) met and decided to raise the federal funds target rate by a quarter point. Most people were expecting this to happen, and Jerome Powell expects the Fed will continue to raise rates in 2022 in hopes of lowering inflation. Today's Peek of the Week has insight about the yield curve, future rate hikes and implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Investors felt reassured after last week's improved clarity. Major U.S. stock indices rallied and accomplished some gains.

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Peek of the Week, Stock market, World EventsLeif HagenAchievement Financial#spring, #springequinox, #blog, #investing, #investors, #stocks, #bonds, #stockmarket, #positive, #clarity, #peekoftheweek
Preparing for luck on St. Patrick's Day
Preparing for luck on St. Patrick's Day

Tomorrow is St. Patrick’s Day! Saint Patrick once said that "luck is when an opportunity comes along and you've prepared for it." But it should be noted that the man we know as "Saint Patrick" was actually named Maewyn Succat. It might also be a surprise to find out that he wasn't Irish at all! Read our special St. Patrick's Day Commentary to learn about the legend of Saint Patrick and a few fun facts that you could share with family or friends over a green beer!

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Lifestyle, Peek of the WeekLeif HagenAchievement Financial#luckoftheirish, #luck, #irish, #celebrate, #holiday, #stpatricksday, #stpatrick, #ireland, #opportunity\
Investor optimism drops as workplace equality grows
Investor optimism drops as workplace equality grows

Investor optimism is low. In only two weeks, the war has altered the status of over two million people in Ukraine. In response, investors are focusing on the short-term implications of the war. Today's Peek of the Week dives into the top investor concerns such as slowed economic growth, rising inflation, supply chain breakdowns and the demand for goods that simply aren't available. Also today: equality in the workplace is a topic that follows us throughout time and today's blog brings us some updated facts when it comes to women in the workplace.

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World Events, Stock marketLeif HagenAchievement Financial#blog, #money, #stockmarket, #stocks, #bonds, #inflation, #war, #ukraine, #russia, #putin
Adapting to war and a changing reality
Adapting to war and a changing reality

U.S. stocks finished the week lower. This comes as no surprise as our world is currently being forced to quickly adapt to a fast-changing reality. The war in Ukraine has intensified and financial markets are grappling with all this uncertainty. Today's Peek of the Week discusses the recent wartime sanctions and how economists are now expected to revise their predictions for global growth and inflation. Economists anticipate the rising commodity prices (on things like oil and gas) are likely to push inflation higher than it might have been otherwise, causing a slowdown for the global economy.

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News, Peek of the Week, Stock market, World EventsLeif HagenAchievement Financial#ukraine, #russia, #war, #stockmarket, #worldnews, #growth, #inflation, #sanctions, #economy, #China
Stocks markets fight the implications of war
Stocks markets fight the implications of war

Last week, Russian invaded Ukraine. After the invasion, the Russia Trading System Index (a gauge of the Russian stock market) dropped 38 percent. Today's Peek of the Week explains how the major U.S. stock indices responded and how they were able to partially recover during Friday's session. There are many global markets to keep track of as geopolitical events continue to unfold. The cost of war can be felt by most when the demand for things is high and the supply is low. The reality: the war is pushing prices even higher.

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Leif HagenAchievement Financial Inc.#ukraine, #russia, #war, #globalmarkets, #stockmarket, #world, #marketnews, #government, #china, #europe, #oil, #gas
Market corrections... and the great college debate!
Market corrections... and the great college debate!

Today's Peek of the Week is full of questions. Investors wonder what will happen with the current geopolitical tensions, if the Federal Reserve will tame inflation and how the market correction is being received. Major U.S. stock indices moved lower last week and came even closer to correction territory. A stock market correction occurs when assets, indexes or markets decline by 10 to 20 percent and although they feel unpleasant, they aren't unusual. In addition, here have been all kinds of debates about college and its importance. Questions such as: is college a good investment? Which college majors are worth the cost? And, should employers remove college degree requirements from job listings? What do YOU think?

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Money, Lifestyle, Investment, Stock market, Peek of the Week, World EventsLeif HagenAchievement Financial#education, #school, #college, #investing, #investor, #marketnews, #marketcommentary, #marketreport, #employer, #employers, #risk, #benefit, #benefits, #gold, #prices, #stockmarket, #federalreserve