I think I closed at the low of the year for my entire account today. I now have a year to date LOSS for my entire account of....(-5.08%). Last week I was at.....(-4.42%). WHATEVER.
Looks like the SP500 is ALSO at a new low of the year today. S&P 500 falls to new low for year on Iran oil crisis, posts third-straight losing week https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/12/stock-market-today-live-updates.html
Looks like house hunters are also having a hard time right now. Mortgage rates surge to highest since September, hitting spring housing market https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/13/mortgage-rates-7-month-high.html
If you are young and want something else to worry about....here you go. AI agents could easily send college grad unemployment over 30%, ServiceNow CEO says https://www.cnbc.com/2026/03/13/software-ai-agents-college-graduate-unemployment.html
My wife had to go in and get a stent put in for an artery that was impaired by 85% last week. She is now fine...no problems....she did not have a heart attack. So I decided to go in and get a heart and lung CT scan. It is amazing technology and is readily available through private business now. The cost with a promotional rate....$149. I am waiting for my report. At least it has now been 24 hours and no one has called me....to tell me to rush to the hospital....LOL. I have never had any heart or lung symptoms....but neither had my wife.
Definitely some job disruption will come from it. What will be interesting is to look back on this time frame in 10+ years and see just how right or wrong things end up.
Probably banking sector uses a similar "tool" when analising a client request for a bank loan. There is a central entity here called "Banco de Portugal" that is part of the Eurosystem, which comprises the ECB and the national central banks of the euro area. Banco de Portugal has two key roles: -> first, is the national authority responsible for supervising banks, -> second, keeps a detailed record of almost all loans through the Central Credit Register (CRC). This system records the credit history (personal loans, mortgages, credit cards, etc.) of all citizens and businesses that take out loans from financial institutions, and is updated monthly. So when you ask for a (new) loan in a bank you first give them permission to ask Banco de Portugal your current status, what is somehow similar to a FICO score.
You have to just LOVE the media. Here they are.....again....beating this old dead horse of a story. I remember this BS being pushed perhaps about 8-12 months ago. It pops up every once in a while....in the panic for clicks. Just RIDICULOUS.....there is absolutely NO indication that this might be true. It is easy to fear-monger STAGFLATION....since most people were not alive when it occurred 45 years ago. People might know that the term refers to a bad thing in the past but have no idea how or why. Stagflation risks lurked before the Iran war began https://finance.yahoo.com/news/stagflation-risks-lurked-before-the-iran-war-began-100050142.html These media people are either SHAMELESS or STUPID.....or both. What a JOKE....claiming that a TINY....MEANINGLESS...little change in inflation is.....GASP....."CONCERNING". The entire article is "UNEDUCATED" opinion masquerading as fact or news. OR....at worst....blatant INTENTIONAL media fear-mongering.
We have been seeing this for a few years now.....but...over the next ten years job cuts are goning to be a snowball rolling downhill. Meta eyes massive 20% workforce cut as AI infrastructure costs continue to soar across operations: report Potential layoffs would mark tech giant's largest restructuring since 2022-2023 rounds that eliminated 21,000 jobs https://www.foxbusiness.com/technol...-costs-continue-soar-across-operations-report Lots of job cuts in various companies cited in this article. The BIG REASON........NOT costs....but efficiency, redundant employees due to AI, and AI driven productivity. Business is not charity. if a business can increase productivity and get by just fine with 10% or 20% or 50% less employees.....they have a duty to shareholders to do so.
Looks like they are citing a couple of reasons. One, they want to cut to invest another 600 billion in data center costs and 2 billion to purchase a China AI start-up. Second reason mentioned was a bit about greater efficiency. The above article was snipped up from Reuters I believe. This had a bit more information. Exclusive: Meta planning sweeping layoffs as AI costs mount | Reuters Either case, layoffs are layoffs no matter the reason.
Speaking of that sort of thing. We still have a handful of posters left here. Is anybody here seeing anything within their own companies or work related to layoffs, cutbacks due to spending as it relates to AI? Obviously, don't identify or share too much. I have zero risk or anything to relate. I have a few friends that work in an area that I thought might see some effect from it, but they also claim zero risk. Of course, I suspect it is highly dependent on the field and work one is involved in.
Keeping with the AI theme today. A brief article touching on the subject and financial advisors. I have tinkered around a few times with some of the stuff. Inputting some general portfolio information and asking different questions related to that. Playing around with different allocations/percentages and having it figure income from investments/dividends. They can run all sorts of scenarios and simulations much, much quicker than one can do on their own. I'm not suggesting using it for solely planning your future, but it has been an interesting tool to examine and input some information into. Will AI Replace Financial Advisors? - A Wealth of Common Sense
