Posts Tagged salary
Consumer Spending in U.S. Rises More Than Forecast
Posted by Tetyana Matychak in Favourites, Trading Markets on August 30th, 2010
Consumer spending in the U.S. rose more than forecast in July, exceeding gains in incomes, a sign the improvement will not last without more jobs.
Purchases rose 0.4 percent, the most since March, after little change the prior month, Commerce Department figures showed today in Washington. Incomes climbed 0.2 percent, less than projected, and the savings rate dropped.
Disposable incomes, or the money left over after taxes, dropped for the first time since January after adjusting for inflation, showing the lack of jobs is hurting Americans’ spending power. Companies from Intel Corp. to J. Crew Group Inc. are cutting forecasts as unemployment and flagging confidence prompt households to scale back.
“This, so far, is allaying near-term double-dip concerns,” said Derek Holt, an economist at Scotia Capital Inc. in Toronto, referring to fears the world’s largest economy will tip back into a recession. “It nonetheless showcases very lackluster growth in the U.S. economy.”
Stock-index futures fell after the report, extending earlier losses, and Treasury securities rose. The contract of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was fell 0.3 percent to 1,060.3 at 8:54 a.m. in New York. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note dropped to 2.60 percent from 2.65 percent late on Aug. 27. Read the rest of this entry »
A Toolkit for Women Seeking a Raise
Posted by Tetyana Matychak in Budget on May 31st, 2010
Even now, when women represent half the work force, they’re still paid considerably less than men — and part of that pay gap may be a result of what happens at the salary negotiation table.
That’s assuming that women make it to the table, since research shows that they are less likely to ask for raises. Even when they do, their requests may be perceived as overly demanding or less agreeable.
“We have found that if a man and a woman both attempt to negotiate for higher pay, people find a woman who does this, compared to one who does not, significantly less attractive,” said Hannah Riley Bowles, an associate professor at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government, who has conducted numerous studies on gender, negotiation and leadership. “Whereas with the guy, it doesn’t seem to matter.”
So what’s a woman to do if she feels her work merits a raise?
A new study concludes that women need to take a different approach than men. Women, it suggests, should frame their requests in more nuanced ways to avoid undermining their relationship with their boss. Read the rest of this entry »
If You’re 50 and Haven’t Saved A Dime
Posted by Tetyana Matychak in Budget on February 9th, 2010
You’re 50, recently laid off, and now forced to figure out what work you’ll do for the next 15 years or more and how you’ll ever retire.
You’d dreamed of leaving your job at 65, vacationing in Tuscany, taking a trip around the world, or perhaps spending your afternoon on the golf course. But the reality is the economic downturn has tripled the number of unemployed wokers ages 55 to 64 over the past two years, compared with a doubling in the overall unemployment rate.
That means right now, for you, Job Number One is figuring out the next career you’ll embark on. This is the “new retirement” that many Baby Boomers (born between 1946-1964) must now envision.
The rise in job losses, grim prospects for Social Security benefits, and paltry personal savings has created a situation where many Boomers must put off retirement from the workforce because they simply cannot afford it. Even before the recession, the Congressional Budget Office predicted the Social Security Administration would be doling out more money than it took in by 2020, which would deplete the trust fund and cause a severe cut in benefits by 2043. Read the rest of this entry »
3 ways to invest a $50,000 windfall
Posted by Tetyana Matychak in Investing on January 12th, 2010
Question: I’m 33 years old and seem to live paycheck to paycheck. I’ll be coming into $50,000 soon, however, and I don’t want to blow it. What’s your advice on how I should invest this money once I have it? –Jay, Lowell, Mass.
Answer: I applaud your desire to properly invest your $50,000 windfall. It’s great that you want to do the right thing with it.
But unless you find a way to stop lurching from one payday to the next, I fear that even the best investing strategy in the world isn’t going to improve your long-term financial prospects very much.
Why?
Well, the fact that you don’t mention having any savings already set aside plus your admission that you’re living paycheck to paycheck suggests to me that you don’t have your spending under control. Another way of saying that is that you spend whatever amount is available to you. Read the rest of this entry »
How much you’ll need in retirement
Posted by Tetyana Matychak in Budget, Favourites on January 8th, 2010
Conventional wisdom says you need 80% of your pre-retirement income. But ensuring a comfortable retirement will take more than just a rule of thumb.
Question: I always heard that you will need 80% or so of your working salary to live on in retirement. But is that a percentage of your gross income or your take-home pay? –Mary Taylor, Chalfont, Pennsylvania
Answer: This rule of thumb has long confused many people who are trying to get a handle on their retirement planning. But the question of how much income you’ll need to live comfortably after calling it a career has taken on a special urgency the last year or so as retirement account balances wilted during the market’s meltdown.
After all, if you earn roughly $100,000 a year and take home, say, $80,000 after taxes, the difference between requiring 80% of your gross income ($80,000) and 80% of your net income after taxes ($64,000) is substantial. Unless you’ve got a pretty sizeable nest egg, the difference between coming up with $80,000 a year (plus inflation increases to maintain purchasing power) and $64,000 can have a significant impact on whether your money can support you the rest of your life. Read the rest of this entry »
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Consumer Spending in U.S. Rises More Than Forecast
30 August 2010
Monetary Policy Gets No Respect
19 July 2010
Stocks May Surprise By Year-End
5 July 2010
Is A Global Reserve Currency A Necessity?
28 June 2010
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