Crude prices retreated on Tuesday after rallying the previous session, with markets focused on developments in the banking crisis and indications of strengthening demand in China. Prices eased after rising at the fastest pace in more than four months on Monday. West Texas Intermediate U.S. crude was down 1 cent, or 0.01 percent, to $72.80 a barrel. Brent crude futures fell 19 cents to $77.93 a barrel by 0651 GMT. “Though risks remain in the banking system amid the recent event, dip-buys in crude oil could be the prevailing trend in the near term,” said Tina Teng, an analyst at CMC Markets. Prices rose in the previous session after Turkey stopped pumping crude from Kurdistan via a pipeline following an arbitration decision that confirmed Baghdad’s consent was needed to ship the oil. Monday’s announcement that First Citizens BancShares Inc will acquire deposits and loans of failed Silicon Valley Bank spurred optimism about the condition of the banking sector that has roiled … [Read more...] about Oil prices soften; banking crisis and Chinese demand in focus
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Savers And Investors Are Flocking To Money Market Funds.
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Cash has been crowned king yet again. Investors and savers are piling into cash as a safe haven from the banking turmoil that has rocked the industry these last few weeks. Since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), investors have transferred over $300 billion into money market funds bringing the total to a record-breaking $5.4 trillion . Until recently, money market funds didn’t produce enough returns to lure investors away from the stock market or depositors away from savings accounts. For the last 10 years, the S&P 500 had an average yearly return of 9.82%. Compare that to Vanguard’s VMFXX 0.78% return and it’s no wonder catchy phrases like “cash is trash” caught on with investors. No too long ago, keeping more than three months of expenses in a savings account was considered unwise because of the opportunity cost compared to investing. However, nothing lasts forever. In times of market uncertainty and … [Read more...] about Savers And Investors Are Flocking To Money Market Funds.
Taxpayers can now file returns, pay ‘anywhere’
INQUIRER FILE PHOTO MANILA, Philippines — Taxpayers are now allowed to file their tax returns and pay the corresponding dues “anywhere,” as the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) aims for a full-year intake of P2.6 trillion in 2023. The BIR made the file-and-pay anywhere scheme, doing away with penalties imposed on filing in the wrong venue, through Revenue Memorandum Circular No. 32-2023 dated March 3. This means that the filing of the annual income tax returns (AITRs) may be done through any BIR-authorized banks or revenue collection officers, even in BIR district offices other than the one where the taxpayer is registered. BIR Commissioner Romeo Lumagui Jr. said this policy was part of efforts to provide optimal services to taxpayers. “I wanted to improve the services that we offer to the taxpaying public,” Lumagui said. “My ultimate goal here is to provide each one of us the luxury of filing and paying our correct taxes at our most convenient time and place without any … [Read more...] about Taxpayers can now file returns, pay ‘anywhere’
Ten Questions With OpenAI On Reinforcement Learning With Human Feedback
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Recently, we interviewed Long Ouyang and Ryan Lowe, research scientists at OpenAI . As the creators of InstructGPT – one of the first major applications of reinforcement learning with human feedback (RLHF) to train large language models – the two played an important role in the evolution of RLHF models and paving the way for GPT-4. Here are some highlights from the conversation. What's the motivation behind InstructGPT? And what are the problems with GPT-3 that inspired InstructGPT? Long Ouyang: I think one of the main issues we’re trying to solve is that when GPT-3 came out there was a lot of excitement about using it to do useful cognitive work, for example, summarizing a news article. Out of the box it’s not exactly designed to do that, it’s designed to predict what someone on the internet might say in a given setting. And it turns out that you can kind of trick the model into performing useful work for you … [Read more...] about Ten Questions With OpenAI On Reinforcement Learning With Human Feedback
Pandemic Boomtowns Go From Hot Spots To Not-So-Hot Spots
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The tide has turned as housing markets in tech hubs and pandemic migration hot spots are cooling more rapidly than other parts of the country as the tech sector falters and mortgage rates remain elevated, according to a recent survey . The Redfin analysis found that Austin, Texas cooled the fastest over the last year as the housing market descended from its pandemic-era boom. The Fed started hiking interest rates to combat inflation, leading to an increase in mortgage rates a year ago. Austin is followed by Seattle; Phoenix; Tacoma, Washington; and Denver. Las Vegas, Stockton, California; San Jose, California; Sacramento and Oakland, California round out the top 10. When push comes to shove, high rates, low supply and tech layoffs dampen demand in West Coast hubs Measures of home buying demand and competition dropped off quickly in tech centers, including Seattle, San Jose and Oakland. The typical San Jose home … [Read more...] about Pandemic Boomtowns Go From Hot Spots To Not-So-Hot Spots
Know The Red Flag In Your Portfolio
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Travis Forman, Portfolio Manager at Strategic Private Wealth Counsel - Harbourfront Wealth Management . Not to alarm you, but there may be a red flag in your portfolio. You might have a sound investment plan and be adequately diversified, but how are you protecting your purchasing power? Do you have inflation-fighting assets in your portfolio? Whether we acknowledge it or not, we are in an era of higher inflation. Just a couple of years ago, inflation was low, and interest rates were at rock bottom. As we know, this has changed significantly since then. While peak inflation of 9.1% in the United States and 8.1% in Canada may no longer be a reality, a swift return to the days of 2% inflation is also unlikely. If you need to hear it from someone other than me, the multinational investment corporation BlackRock agrees. In its 2023 outlook, the firm stated, “we think we are going to be living with inflation … we see … [Read more...] about Know The Red Flag In Your Portfolio
Financial Planning For A Divorce
Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin There are many financial planning considerations before, during, and after a divorce. A key part of the process from a financial standpoint is dividing the assets. Generally, couples split the value of their assets 50-50 (though not always). But that doesn't mean the actual assets are just split down the middle, and some assets are much more favorable from a tax perspective than others. Once the divorce is finalized, a crucial (but often overlooked) part of the process is updating estate documents and beneficiary designations. Here are some key considerations when financial planning for a divorce. Money and divorce This article solely focuses on some of the general financial planning aspects of divorce and is not personal legal, tax, accounting, or financial advice. When getting a divorce, it's important to assemble your team of professionals. During the divorce, your attorney is the star quarterback. … [Read more...] about Financial Planning For A Divorce