A current account is in balance when the country’s residents have enough to fund all purchases in the country. Residents include the people, businesses, and government. Funds include income and savings. Purchases include all consumer spending as well as business growth and government infrastructure spending. The goal for most countries is to accumulate money by exporting more goods and services than they import. That’s called a trade surplus. It means a country will take in more earnings than it spends....

Generally, they use statistics, chart overlays, and technical indicators to help forex traders make better-informed trading decisions. Some of the tools described below are unique to forex trading, while others are common to all markets and can be fine-tuned for trading currencies. These global markets vary in size, in terms of their numbers of currency transactions and how many currency traders they have. That means each session in each market has different characteristics in their currency “pairs,” or the comparison of the value of the home currency against another one....

What Is a Down Payment? A down payment is an upfront payment you make to purchase a home, vehicle, or another asset. That money typically comes from your personal savings, and in most cases, you pay with a check, a credit card, or an electronic payment. Down payments are often, but not always, part of obtaining a loan. For example, when you see “zero down” offers on vehicles, no down payment is required....

fizkes/Getty Images You use your emergency funds so you don’t have to withdraw from a retirement account (like a 401(k) or IRA) and pay early withdrawal penalty taxes, or so you don’t have to sell long-term investments (like stock index funds or bond mutual funds) at a bad time. Also, cash puts you in a position to buy when everyone else wants to sell, allowing you to make money in good and bad times....

Powell told the Senate Banking Committee that inflation pressure had grown, and that the central bank is considering steps to rein it in sooner than previously anticipated. “The recent rise in COVID-19 cases and the emergence of the omicron variant pose downside risks to employment and economic activity and increased uncertainty for inflation,” Powell said. “Concerns about the virus could reduce people’s willingness to work in person, which would slow progress in the labor market and intensify supply chain disruptions....

Filing Your Taxes Late Filing a late return can be especially stressful if you have several years of tax returns to prepare rather than just one. But you can catch up with the IRS if you get organized and dedicate some time to the project. You’re in great shape if you already have your original W-2 forms and you saved them so you can lay your hands on them. But the IRS can help you out if you’re missing any tax documents....

These ratios compare the overall debt load of a company to its assets or equity, showing how much of the company’s assets belong to shareholders and creditors. If shareholders own more assets, the company is said to be less leveraged. If creditors own a majority of assets, the company is said to be highly leveraged. Financial leverage ratios help management and investors understand ​the risk level of the capital structure of a company....

If you have a policy, it will save you from paying for these losses out of pocket or having to dip into your savings. Since such losses can be expensive, it’s wise for every renter to obtain renter’s insurance. When deciding how much renter’s insurance you should get, it’s helpful to understand what the policy covers and then factor in what you own that’s at stake, the type and cost of coverage, and any plan limitations....

To make it past the applicant tracking system (ATS), you need a resume that sells your qualifications in terms a robot can understand. Learn how to use the right keywords, format your resume correctly, and nail the details that will get your profile to the people in charge. Automated Systems That Screen Resumes What is an applicant tracking system? To screen a large volume of resumes, many employers use software to help them conduct an initial screening of resumes....

This long-standing value demonstrates the stability of gold and its attractiveness over time. Gold is considered by investors to be one of the safest investments, recovering its value quickly through economic downturns. Its price often tracks in opposition to stock market or economic swings. When investor confidence is shattered, gold prices often climb as nervous investors look for a safe place to put cash pulled out of the market. Gold is also a haven in times of inflation because it retains its value much better than currency-backed assets, which may climb in price, but drop in value....

“Conforming” loans tend to be less expensive and easier to get than jumbo loans because they are backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, government-sponsored companies which purchase them from lenders. The latest increase in the limits is the biggest-ever by dollar value (the first limits were in the 1970s) and the largest by percentage terms since 1980. A higher limit applies in certain areas like Alaska and Hawaii, and where homes tend to be pricier—such as New York City....

While prices for crude oil haven’t risen every day, they’ve generally been headed north again for over a week, making it less clear that the highs we’d seen in the early days of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are behind us. It took nearly two weeks for a gallon of regular unleaded to fall 9 cents from its record high national average of $4.33 as daily declines slowed to a crawl and then stopped, according to data from AAA....

The monthly mortgage payment on a typical U.S. home will rise to $952 a month by the end of the year, up from $862 last December, as house prices continue to rise unabated, the report said. And that’s assuming that interest rates hold around the current average of 2.68% for a 30-year fixed rate, a figure that is close to a record low. The ultra-low rates have helped fuel a homebuying frenzy, along with city-dwellers seeking to live away from crowded urban areas amid the pandemic....

Now that mortgage rates are rising so quickly (and they’ve gone up even more sharply since February, crossing into 5% territory, according to lender data provided to The Balance) the question on everyone’s mind is whether price increases may begin to moderate. Prices soared as buyers competed for record-low numbers of listings during much of the pandemic, and while there are early signs that the rising rates may be shifting the supply and demand balance, it could take years for the for-sale listings to get back to normal levels, according to housing experts polled by real estate firm Zillow Feb....

A good understanding of pay periods is essential to make sure employees are properly paid, and to keep your business operating smoothly. Here we cover the basics of pay periods, how different types operate, and how to deal with potential payroll hurdles. What Is a Pay Period? A pay period is a recurring length of time over which employee time is recorded and paid for. Examples of pay periods are weekly, biweekly, semimonthly, and monthly....

How do they pay for all of those services? Banks earn revenue from investments (or borrowing and lending), account fees, and additional financial services. Whenever you give money to a financial institution, it’s essential to understand its business model and exactly how much they charge, but it’s not always clear how banks get paid. There are several ways for banks to earn revenue, including investing customers’ money and charging fees....

Investors pay attention to Buffett’s stock picks because he’s amassed so much wealth from them during his holding company Berkshire Hathaway’s nearly 60 years of investing. He’s known as a focused value investor who seeks securities with prices that are low based on their intrinsic worth. Most often, this worth estimated by analyzing a company’s fundamentals. Buffett has done well by looking at companies as a whole and assessing their performance, debt, and profit margins, among other factors....

Why You Need Health Insurance Health insurance is necessary for Americans to pay for the high cost of healthcare. You generally need it unless you can afford to pay for healthcare on your own or receive government assistance. The very wealthy can afford the cost of even extraordinary emergency or chronic medical care. Those over age 65 usually qualify for Medicare. Lower-income individuals and families may qualify for Medicaid. Everyone else must either purchase health insurance or risk medical bankruptcy....

Benefits for Employers Employers use this interview format when they want to assess candidates impartially. Because questions are pre-determined, and there is a ranking system, there is little chance for unfair or subjective assessment. It helps interviewers avoid any legal issues related to unfair hiring practices. A structured job interview also allows the employer to focus on the specific skills and abilities required for the position. With questions focused on specific skills, this interview style is often considered a more effective way of testing a candidate’s potential performance on the job....

my life / Getty Images So, if you are going to invest in ETFs, you need to know more about the asset that makes up many exchange-traded funds. The Basics of Futures A futures contract is an agreement between a buyer and a seller based on an underlying asset. The seller agrees to deliver the asset to the buyer at a future date, but the asset’s price is determined on the date of the actual agreement instead of the future transaction date....