Author: usaeverydaylife

 U.S. President-elect Donald Trump smiles at the crowd during the National Guard Association of the United States’ 146th General Conference & Exhibition at Huntington Place Convention Center on Aug. 26, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan.Emily Elconin | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesU.S. President-elect Donald Trump returns to the world stage on Saturday to join leaders for the reopening of the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, still a private citizen but already preparing to tackle a host of international crises. It is Trump’s first trip overseas since he won the presidential election a month ago and it could offer French President Emmanuel…

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HOMS, SYRIA – DECEMBER 06: Anti-regime armed groups advancing in Syria’s strategically important province of Homs, the gateway to the capital Damascus, on Dec. 06, 2024. Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty ImagesSyrian rebels said they seized control of the southern city of Daraa on Saturday, the birthplace of a 2011 uprising against President Bashar al-Assad and the fourth city his forces have lost in a week. Rebel sources said the military agreed to make an orderly withdrawal from Daraa under a deal giving army officials safe passage to the capital Damascus, about 100 km (60 miles) north. Social media videos showed…

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What if you could capture energy from the dance floor? It was an unconventional idea conceived and brought to life by two Scottish business leaders from completely different sectors.The result was Bodyheat, a heating and cooling system which captures the heat produced by patrons at the iconic SWG3 venue in Glasgow, Scotland – and then stores it underground until it needs to be reused. Geologist and TownRock Energy CEO David Townsend was first introduced to Andrew Fleming-Brown, the owner of the multi-disciplinary venue SWG3, in 2019.”If you have 1,200 people dancing, and you’re capturing the heat from those people dancing, you can heat about…

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Traders react after the closing bell on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, U.S., December 13, 2023. Brendan Mcdermid | ReutersHowever you feel about the world these days, you’re likely happy with the stock market.The S&P 500 is up nearly 30% this year so far.But it’s important for investors to temper their expectations and to remember that years like this one are rare, said Cathy Curtis, a certified financial planner and the founder and CEO of Curtis Financial Planning in Oakland, California.”Investors should know that the stock market has an average annualized return of…

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Job seekers talk to a recruiter at the Albany Job Fair in Latham, New York, on Oct. 2, 2024.Angus Mordant | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe unemployment rate climbed sharply for Black women in November.The overall jobless rate edged up slightly last month to 4.2% from 4.1% in October, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics on Friday. But some groups experienced more significant rises in unemployment relative to others.Black women experienced the most significant increase, with the jobless rate surging to 6% from 4.9%. In comparison, the jobless rate for white women ticked up slightly to 3.4%, compared to…

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Grace Cary | Moment | Getty ImagesAfter decades of building your nest egg, you will eventually have to start taking required minimum distributions, or RMDs, from pretax retirement accounts. The first RMD can be tricky, according to financial experts.Since 2023, most retirees must begin RMDs at age 73. The first deadline is April 1 of the year after you turn 73, and Dec. 31 for future withdrawals. This applies to tax-deferred individual retirement accounts, most 401(k) and 403(b) plans.”You want to be tactical and savvy when you take the [first] distribution,” said certified financial planner Jim Guarino, managing director at…

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Signage at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) headquarters in Washington, D.C.Andrew Kelly | ReutersThe U.S. watchdog for consumer finance on Friday announced it was ordering federal supervision of Google Payment Corp., internet giant Alphabet’s payment arm, a decision the company immediately said it was challenging in court.The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced the step saying it had determined services offered by Google Payment had posed a risk to consumers.The regulator’s step and the subsequent lawsuit marked a government tussle with a Silicon Valley behemoth in the final weeks of President Joe Biden’s administration. The regulator’s move could be reversed…

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