Centre Chamber of Business & Industry joins coalition for federal research funding

July 26, 2025

STATE COLLEGE — The Chamber of Business & Industry of Centre County (CBICC) has joined the Business for Federal Research Funding (BFRF) Coalition, a growing, nonpartisan alliance of more than 70 business organizations and chambers of commerce across 33 states. Relaunched in April by the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce, the BFRF Coalition advocates for maintaining and increasing federal funding for research in the federal budget and beyond. “The Boston Chamber is proud to relaunch the Business for Federal Research Coalition, and I am thrilled that the Chamber of Business & ...

Trump’s tariff pressure pushes Asia toward American LNG, but at the cost of climate goals

July 19, 2025

HANOI, Vietnam — Asian countries are offering to buy more U.S. liquefied natural gas in negotiations with the Trump administration as a way to alleviate tensions over U.S. trade deficits and forestall higher tariffs. Analysts warn that strategy could undermine those countries’ long-term ...

Average long-term US mortgage rate rises to 6.72%, ending a five-week slide

July 12, 2025

The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage edged up this week, ending a five-week decline in borrowing costs for homebuyers. The long-term rate ticked up to 6.72% from 6.67% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.89%. Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also rose. The average rate increased to 5.86% from 5.80% last week. A year ago, it was 6.17%, Freddie Mac said. High mortgage rates can add hundreds of dollars a month in costs for borrowers and reduce their purchasing ...

US applications for jobless benefits fall to 227,000 last week, remain at historically healthy level

July 12, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. applications for unemployment benefits fell last week, remaining in the historically healthy range of the past couple years. The Labor Department reported Thursday that jobless claims for the week ending July 5 fell by 5,000 to 227,000, fewer than the 238,000 that ...

The US labor market continues to surprise and the unemployment rate, against the odds, is falling

July 5, 2025

WASHINGTON (AP) — U.S. employers added 147,000 jobs in June as the American labor market continues to show surprising resilience despite uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s economic policies. The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.1% from 4.2% in May, the Labor Department said ...

How to build a portfolio you don’t have to babysit

July 5, 2025

If you’re a do-it-yourself investor aiming to build a “no babysitter required” portfolio, here are the key steps to take. Step 1: Find your portfolio’s true north Give due consideration to your asset allocation. That decision will have the biggest impact on how your portfolio behaves in the future. The tricky part about asset allocation, even a hands-off approach, is that the “right” asset allocation is often a moving target as retirement approaches. Target-date funds elegantly address this issue by transitioning to a more conservative stance as the years go by. If ...