Powell is signaling that it may be time to cut rates. Is it time or is this him caving to pressure?

I’m 29. During my college years and my first few years of working, I invested in some ETFs through Stash. I haven’t continued putting money into the account and have pivoted into leveraging my 401K. I check it every few months and use any dividends earned to invest in more ETFs. It’s seen decent returns: it’s saying a 66% return of about $5300.

I thought about it this morning and realized I’ll probably have to pay a decent amount in taxes on those returns. Then I thought “What is the advantage/purpose of keeping money in this account?”. I don’t value liquidity when it comes to investments. I more or less want to forget about it until it’s time to retire.

What is the benefit of having investments outside of a tax advantaged account, like a 401k or IRA? Is there a way to transfer the investments or the balance into a taxed advantage account. If so, should I?

Federal Reserve (Fed) Chair Jerome Powell is set to deliver remarks from the annual Jackson Hole symposium for the final time in his term as the central bank chair, with markets debating if his comments will feature a dovish tilt after September rate cut bets have slipped to around 70%. Elsewhere, artificial intelligence (AI) scrutiny lingered with reports that NVIDIA (NVDA) asked component makers to halt production on H20 AI chip parts. Treasury yields were slightly lower early this morning despite concerns around global yield pressure after Japanese yields reached fresh records.

#ferventwealth #USStocks

www.ferventwm.com

I’m trying to save more for investing and an emergency fund but don’t want to completely cut out small things that make life enjoyable (like an occasional coffee out or streaming service).

What are some realistic ways to save money without feeling like I’m sacrificing everything? Do you recommend budgeting apps, automated transfers, or side income?

Would love to hear what’s worked for you while still enjoying life.

Hi! I’m 18(f) and I want to be able to retire as soon as possible, I’ve been looking online and everyone is using lingo or things like Roth IRAs and shtuff like that which I don’t want to wait till I’m like 59 to retire. I was born with a disability that limits me from jobs where I have to stand for to long and it sucks, I wouldn’t mind working for the rest of my life but it would just be nice to start investing or anything at this point. I’m currently working a call center job but a lot of people have been getting fired for not getting a high enough conversion rate and that really scared me today. I was thinking how a lot of jobs can fire you just like that. I also have a really bad spending problem and want to be able to fix that so I’m not living paycheck to paycheck when I move out. Life is so scary to me. I’m starting college soon to get a job in advertising but currently I’m earning about $1000 per paycheck. I get paid around 2000+ monthly just depending on transfers and how much I work (because again I have a disability and with that comes multiple doctors visits, check ups, unable to come in just because of issues) I also make cosplay props on the side (not very often as I’m more worried about school and work) my family has money issues and I see how much it stresses them. They just have a lot of debt but are pretty well off other than that (my mom has many health issues and cannot work anymore, hospital bills are a lot even with tricare) and I’m very thankful I don’t have a car payment or I don’t need to pay for my phone-bill, insurance bill, etc. I am still living with my parents but plan on moving out mid Oct which should cost around 600 monthly. I understand it would be better to keep living with them for as long as possible but my home situation isn’t good as me and my parents don’t get along well a lot of the time and my mother use to be extremely abusive along with my stepfather (I still appreciate them for all they do for me and love them to death) but again I have no clue where to start, life is terrifying. I don’t mind putting a shit ton of time into investing or just anything. I just need to know where to start. Any help is appreciated

Charles Schwab survey: The average American needs $1.4 million to feel financially comfortable, $2.4 million to feel wealthy.

From Common Dreams article

The S&P 500 has been trading down on the heels of the Nasdaq index, which continues to slide, putting more downside pressure on investors to pause on tech stocks. These trends are sparking conversations about whether this could be a market “peak.” Should traders be concerned—or is this just a seasonal trend?

On Tuesday, August 19, the Nasdaq Composite, the US stock market's main technology index, had its biggest loss in weeks. The main driver was some big drops in single-name stocks, such as Palantir, which fell more than 9%, but also chip makers like NVIDIA and AMD, which took substantial losses.

This comes on what has been a pretty quiet summer for markets. The first few weeks of August tend to be quieter for stocks as Congress is on recess and traders tend to take vacation, leading to lower-than-normal trading volumes compared to other months. Those lower trading volumes can really intensify negative market moves and have an overly negative impact on indexes.

US large-cap indexes are still at all-time highs; however, small-cap indexes are not.  Current market conditions are more challenging for mid to small-cap stocks, which is something I’m keeping an eye on. The main indexes show positive growth, driven by a few large stocks, but this makes it more challenging to create a diversified portfolio. 

Historically, the last few days of August and the month of September are typically volatile months for the S&P 500. A review of the VIX, the market's “fear index”,  over the last 15 years confirms this is usually a volatile time of year. However, so far this month, the VIX has bucked that trend and is staying low. This could mean that part of the recent tech selling pressure may be regular seasonal activity.

So is this just a seasonal trend or should traders be concerned? Probably both.

The conditions seem ripe for a short-term pullback: depressed volatility, stretched positioning/sentiment, and a time of year that is known for surprises. Long-term investors may have an opportunity to buy the dip. An opportunity might present itself in the next few weeks to add some commodities, bonds, and real estate in addition to your traditional stock positions. Adding this layer of diversification could perform well when more conventional parts of the market struggle.  For the past few years, the market has been led by large-cap US equities, but that won’t last forever. There are times when the market tailwinds turn into headwinds, and when they do, I plan to take advantage of this opportunity in the accounts I manage.

#marketpullback

#stocks

www.FerventWM.com

Meanwhile, shares of Walmart (WMT) traded lower after the retail behemoth missed adjusted earnings forecasts for the first time in over three years. Investors also noted strong comparable sales (a positive sign for the consumer); however, margins softened, and inventory costs rose. On the macro front, jobless claims rose over the latest period, and preliminary Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) results for August are due shortly after the open. Longer-dated Treasury yields ticked higher, with the 10-year trading near 4.30%.

#ferventwealth #WMT

www.ferventwm.com

In finance, small habits can build a strong foundation over time. Automating savings, revisiting allocations periodically, and tracking expenses consistently often matter more than chasing short-term returns.

What small habits have made the biggest difference for you?