In this week’s Steady Investor, we explore current market news that we believe investors should keep on their radar, such as:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2022 The index that investors should watch most closely
\u2022 Is the U.S. heading for another Government shutdown?
\u2022 Japanese equities return to all-time highs
\u2022 How to navigate tax season<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Federal Reserve\u2019s Preferred Inflation Gauge Rises 2.4% in January<\/strong> \u2013 The consumer price index (CPI) measure of inflation tends to get the most fanfare in financial media. But it\u2019s not the inflation gauge that the Federal Reserve watches most closely. Back in 2000, in the Fed\u2019s semi-annual policy report to Congress, they formally made the PCE price index the preferred inflation gauge, which we would argue is the index that investors should also watch most closely. On Thursday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis released the PCE price index for January, showing a 2.4% year-over-year increase. For those keeping score, this puts annual inflation much closer to the Fed\u2019s 2% target, and also strengthens the case for rate cuts later this year. On a month-over-month basis, inflation rose by 0.3% from December to January, which was in-line with expectations. Digging into the numbers a bit more closely, food prices were seen rising 0.5% and services prices rose 3.9%, while prices for goods fell by 0.5% and energy prices decreased by 1.4%. The PCE price index\u2019s 2.4% annual increase is distant from CPI\u2019s 3.1% print in January, and is the main reason for the discrepancy is housing costs. As we\u2019ve written before, shelter costs for homeowners and renters makes up about 34% of the CPI measure, while they only account for about 15% of the PCE price index. The good news here is that shelter costs\u2019 contribution to inflation is widely expected to moderate as the year progresses, which should be great news for CPI and good news for PCE.1<\/sup><\/p>\n\n\n\n Navigate Tax Season with Our Free Tax Reference Guide<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Whether you are handling your returns independently or with a tax professional, uncertainties about rules, deductions, limits, and credits arise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n To help you navigate through this tax season, we are offering our free 2024 Tax Reference Guide<\/a><\/em><\/span><\/strong>, which is an easy-to-use, accurate reference for the most common tax questions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This guide includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Key dates for the 2024 tax season If you have $500,000 or more to invest and want to learn more, click on the link below to get your free copy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u2022 Tax rate brackets, other tax rates, and deduction information
\u2022 Complete IRA and pension limits
\u2022 Tax information for Education, Social Security, Health Savings Accounts, Retirement Plans, Charitable Gifts, Estates and more<\/p>\n\n\n\n