Author: starbpo

Why getting it right on your income-tax return is more critical this tax season. The Internal Revenue Service is facing hurdles in its ability to properly handle the 2026 tax-filing season amid substantial workforce cuts, missing hiring goals and a tax system loaded with additional rules. That’s according to findings from two distinct watchdogs this week – the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, and the IRS National Taxpayer Advocate. The worst part is that, following a record-breaking shutdown that ended in November of last year, their warnings failed to account for the potential consequences of another U.S. government closure.…

Following an increase in oil prices in January, OPEC+ will meet on Sunday. Oil prices concluded the month of January with their first uptick in six months. The world’s supply of petroleum is still anticipated to exceed demand this year, which is not surprising considering the threats to the global oil flow associated with Venezuela and Iran. When they meet this weekend to debate their oil-production targets, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies—the group of big oil producers known as OPEC+—will need to consider all of that. January has seen a “repricing of geopolitical risk layered…

On a poppy-and-sesame-seed bread, the McDonald’s Big Arch burger consists of two beef patties, three slices of white cheddar, lettuce, pickles, onions, and a sauce known as Big Arch. Is the half-pounder the replacement for the quarter-pounder? McDonald’s (MCD) plans to launch their beefy Big Arch burger in the United States in early March, according to a number of reports. Already a mainstay on McDonald’s menus in other countries, the plus-size sandwich contains two beef patties – apparently weighing in at 8 ounces combined – along with three slices of white cheddar cheese, lettuce, pickles, onions and something dubbed Big…

Silver futures fell considerably below $100 an ounce on Jan. 30. Silver’s slide on Friday was the metal’s worst daily decrease since 1980 and was described by one strategist as “every man and his dog rushing for the exit.” The U.S. dollar DXY recovered after President Donald Trump nominated Kevin Warsh to be the next head of the Federal Reserve. According to some analysts, Warsh would be less in favor of lower interest rates than other possible candidates. That caused traders of precious metals to sell, although it might only be a hiccup in the silver surge. To some, Friday’s…

Kevin Warsh, a former governor of the Federal Reserve, is President Donald Trump’s choice to lead the central bank going forward. Traders in the roughly $30 trillion Treasury market were examining President Donald Trump’s candidate to be the next leader of the Federal Reserve and arriving to the conclusion that they aren’t going to end up getting all they want. On Friday, the bond market was trading in a manner that signaled there were some worries over Trump’s selection of former Fed governor Kevin Warsh to succeed Jerome Powell, whose term as Fed chair ends in May. Long-dated Treasury yields…

It appears that bitcoin is unable to recover. Bitcoin (BTCUSD) dropped another 7% this week after falling below the $90,000 mark last week, reaching an intraday low of $81,065 overnight. This happened amid a backdrop of heightened volatility across several asset classes, showing that investors have been feeling risk-averse in recent weeks – and risk-averse investors don’t want to park their money in bitcoin. That may have investors wondering what it would take to lift bitcoin out of this rut. Bitcoin was trading at its lowest level since the November 2025 fall, and may risk dipping below $80,000 for the…

Kevin Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor, sits second from left as he takes part in a panel discussion in 2024 in Washington, D.C. President Donald Trump has nominated former Federal Reserve governor Kevin Warsh to serve as the next chair of the Fed, putting a well-known opponent of the U.S. central bank in its top role. Trump made the news in a Truth Social post at 6:48 a.m. Eastern. When Warsh joined the bank’s board of governors in 2006, he became the youngest Fed governor in history. During the 2008 global financial crisis, he was part of Fed Chair…

Bears of Apple Inc. have spent the last few months warning of supply-chain concerns regarding order reduction, competitive pressures in China, and poor iPhone uptake. Nevertheless, Apple (AAPL) exceeded revenue forecasts in the most recent quarter, increased its margins, and demonstrated a surge in its services division. According to Ben Reitzes, an analyst at Melius Research, the dynamic implies that investors who concentrate on “builds,” or supplier dynamics, are missing the mark. He commented, “Apple is a platform company with ‘levers’ that only a few companies in the world have,” after the company’s results announcement on Thursday. Reitzes claimed that…

Thursday was the worst day ever for United Parcel Service Inc.’s stock after the package delivery behemoth revealed a deal that would reduce its business with its biggest client, Amazon.com Inc., by more than half. Wall Street was rocked by the news, even though UPS (UPS) clarified that the action was a part of its strategy to concentrate on more lucrative deliveries rather than just growing volume. In a call with analysts, CEO Carol Tomé stated, “Amazon is our largest customer, but it’s not our most profitable customer,” according to a transcript from AlphaSense. “Its margin is very dilutive to…

“Big Blue is so back.” Amit Daryanani, an Evercore ISI analyst, is commenting on the most recent earnings of International Business Machines Corp. (IBM). With its shares topping gainers on the S&P 500 SPX and Dow Jones Industrial Average DJIA and heading for their best day ever, the company’s remarks had Wall Street buzzing. Why such a positive outlook? The outlook on consulting has significantly improved. “We think the print highlighted IBM’s unique position across both software and consulting segments that are starting to inflect higher with [artificial intelligence] and potential [mergers and acquisitions] being incremental upside catalysts,” Daryanani stated.…