Putin Says Russia to Seek Defense Cuts; How Much Depends on War
President Vladimir Putin said Russia plans to cut defense spending, acknowledging growing strains on the budget even as he insisted that reductions would depend on winning his war in Ukraine.
Russia is spending 6.3% of gross domestic product on defense this year and 'that's a lot,' Putin told reporters in Minsk, Belarus, on Friday. 'It's one of the problems, including for the budget, that we have to resolve,' and Russia paid a price in inflation from the increased expenditure, he said.
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My wife and I have $7,000 in pensions, $140,000 cash, plus $3,500 in Social Security. Can we afford to retire?
I am contemplating retiring at the end of the year. I'm married and will receive two monthly pension payments; $3,600 from military service and $1,500 from civil service. Our total projected monthly cost of living will be covered by these, making our $3,500 in joint Social Security income completely disposable for savings, travel, etc. I don't have much savings, only about $140,000 between cash savings and a Thrift Savings Plan. Our take-home total each month will be just over $7,000 and, after taxes, medical, dental, vision expenses, and life insurance, our total cost of living will be around $4,000. My wife will be 65 in January, and I'll hit that age 13 months later. My brother stole $100K from my mom to buy bitcoin. Do I convince her to sue him? Most American weddings are a lot more extravagant than the nuptials of Amazon's Jeff Bezos 'He doesn't seem to care': My secretive father, 81, added my name to a bank account. What about my mom? S&P 500 scores record high for first time in 4 months. What could push stocks higher from here? What drove stock market's record-breaking week? Don't overlook growing rate-cut expectations. My wife of 20 years is a Japanese national and lives in the U.S. as a permanent resident. She has not worked in the U.S. and did not have enough work years in Japan to qualify for her Social Security. Her only income once I retire will be the spousal benefit from my Social Security. I will enroll my wife in survivor-benefit plans for my military pension and civil service annuity. These, combined with the increase in Social Security, will give her about $5,000 per month if I predecease my wife, plus a one-time $240,000 life-insurance payment. She will also receive spousal benefits, based on my working record, while I am still alive. Due to my military service, we have Tricare to cover costs above Medicare. We are both currently reasonably healthy. I think we're good financially to retire. What is your advice? Contemplating Related: I'm 75 and have a reverse mortgage. Should I pay it off with my $200K savings — and live off Social Security instead? My answer falls on a razor's edge. Military service can take a lot more of a toll physically and mentally. You deserve this time. I have a theory on your letter. You put a lot of hard work and due diligence into your military and civilian careers, and you are putting the same consideration into your decision about whether to retire. The answer, of course, is yes, you can support yourself and your wife in retirement, given your pension and Social Security benefits, which are based, I assume, on settling for less than your full Social Security income by claiming them before the age of 70. If you can retire and delay claiming your Social Security, all the better. Ordinarily, I would urge people to hang on until they're 70 before claiming Social Security, especially if they are healthy. The rise in the cost of living will eat into your income over 30 years. What's more, you and/or your wife may require long-term care. But you and your wife have more than 40% of your total monthly income left over after all your essential expenses are paid. Your wife will benefit from Social Security spousal benefits while you are both living, and survivor benefits if you die before her. Given that you have been married for 10 years, your wife would qualify for 50% of the value of your Social Security, even if she did not work and/or only worked for a limited time. She will get 100% of her Social Security benefit at full retirement age, which is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or after, and she would receive a lesser amount if she claimed at any time from the age of 62 until full retirement age. If she waits until 70, your wife would receive roughly 8% more per year. Two years of expenses in cash are often recommended for retirees, but I'm waving an amber flag: You still may be leaving yourself a little stretched in case you need money for maintenance on your home or other unexpected expenses. Most retirees with IRAs and/or 401(k)s want to have a cash cushion to avoid drawing on their investment accounts in bear markets like those of 2000-2002 (tech bubble) and 2007-2009 (subprime mortgage crash). You won't be worrying about the ebbs and flows of the stock market like the millions of Americans nearing retirement age with a 401(k) or IRA, given that you have a guaranteed, fixed military and civil-service pension. That's a huge weight off your minds, and should give you both confidence when you finally decide to hang up your work boots and enjoy having all your time together, which I hope includes travel and discovering new hobbies. Don't miss: Should I take a $61,000 lump sum or $355 a month for life? For those who will be drawing on investments, T. Rowe Price recommends retirees have a portfolio composed of 60% stocks and 40% bonds, which recovered from the aforementioned bear markets within two years. 'The exact amount you want to have also depends on your risk tolerance and the amount you have saved,' it adds. 'Another advantage of taking a balanced approach is that during a bear market stocks and bonds are rarely in decline at the same time.' There's a lot to be said about the benefits of a military pension on your investing strategy and peace of mind. 'Having more guaranteed income means you won't have to withdraw as much money from your investments,' according to First Command, a broker-dealer based in Fort Worth, Texas. 'That may affect how you choose to allocate those funds, potentially allowing you to focus less on short-term liquidity and more on long-term growth.' 'Your military retirement income may also give you more options when it comes to constructing a budget,' it adds. 'One approach to consider is using guaranteed sources of income — like a military pension and Social Security — to pay for your fixed expenses, and using the income generated by your investment portfolio to pay for discretionary expenses. The idea is simple: to match fixed expenses to fixed sources of income and variable expenses to variable sources.' Of you and your wife's three main sources of income — guaranteed (pensions), variable (investments) and one-off (inheritance or lump sum payment from a former employer) — your biggest source, happily, is guaranteed. That's a nice place to be. 'If your anticipated expenses significantly exceed your anticipated income,' First Command says, 'it might be a sign that you need to make adjustments to your goals or push back your planned retirement date.' Don't miss: We're living in 'end times' when you can't retire on $1 million But here's a recap so you know what's at stake by claiming Social Security early. You get 100% of your Social Security benefit at full retirement age, which is 67 for anyone born in 1960 or after, and you receive a lesser amount if you claim at any time from the age of 62 until full retirement age. If you wait until age 70, you receive roughly 8% more per year. Some advisers say it can work out roughly the same whether you start taking your benefits at 62 or at 70. As you suggest, your wife, even if she has no work record or a low benefit entitlement on her own work record, is eligible to receive one-third to one-half of your Social Security benefit while you are both living, according to the Social Security Administration. Survivor benefits are more generous. 'A widow is eligible for between 71% (at age 60) and 100% (at full retirement age) of what the spouse was getting before they died.' You can learn more here about such benefits. The financial argument suggests people should delay their Social Security benefits as long as possible, especially if they are in good health, as you seem to be. Virtually all workers between 45 and 62 should wait until beyond 65 to collect Social Security, according to this working paper from researchers at Boston University and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta. More than 90% of people should wait until they reach the age of 70, yet only 10% appear to do so, they added. To put that in context for your retirement: Claiming Social Security early reduces household lifetime discretionary spending by $182,370 for the median worker nearing retirement, the paper concluded. 'Optimizing would produce a 10.4% increase in typical workers' lifetime spending,' the researchers wrote. 'For one in four, the lifetime spending gain exceeds 17%. For one in 10, the gain exceeds 26%.' But not everyone has a $5,100 combined pension. The longer you can wait, the better. There's no great rush to retire tomorrow. That would seem to make a powerful case for waiting to claim your Social Security benefit, but that's not necessarily true for everybody,' First Command adds. 'For those with health issues, it may make more sense to claim their benefits early. And those who need Social Security to retire may place a higher value on being able to quit working while they are still relatively young.' You both know your own lifestyle. If you feel 100% ready, go for it. Related: My friend, 83, wants to add me to his bank account to pay his bills. What could go wrong? Previous columns by Quentin Fottrell: 'She acted as a mother to me growing up': My stepmother remarried after my father died. How can I claim my inheritance? 'My wife and I are very grateful': Our son wants to pay off our mortgage before we retire. Will this backfire? 'Is this ethical?' I want to leave my home to my children from my first marriage — and not to my second husband. JPMorgan has a new way of forecasting the stock market — and there's a surprising finding My job is offering me a payout. Should I take a $61,000 lump sum or $355 a month for life? Coinbase's stock is up over 40% this month as Wall Street projects amazing profit growth There's an important market indicator that suggests investors remain wary. It's good news for stocks. 20 banks expected to increase their dividends the most following the Fed's stress tests Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
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an hour ago
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Is Amentum Holdings Stock Outperforming the S&P 500?
Chantilly, Virginia-based Amentum Holdings, Inc. (AMTM) provides engineering and technology solutions to the U.S. and allied government agencies. Valued at $5.6 billion by market cap, the company provides environment and climate sustainability, intelligence and counter threat, data fusion and analytics, engineering and integration, research and development, test and evaluation, and citizen systems solutions. Companies worth $2 billion or more are generally described as 'mid-cap stocks,' and AMTM perfectly fits that description, with its market cap exceeding this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the specialty business services industry. AMTM's significant financial recovery has improved comprehensive income, and their realignment of business segments into Digital Solutions and Global Engineering Solutions positions them well to capitalize on high-growth areas such as cybersecurity and environmental solutions, potentially leading to sustained revenue and a competitive edge in securing new contracts. Dear Nvidia Stock Fans, Watch This Event Today Closely Can Broadcom Stock Hit $400 in 2025? A $2 Billion Reason to Sell Super Micro Computer Stock Now Markets move fast. Keep up by reading our FREE midday Barchart Brief newsletter for exclusive charts, analysis, and headlines. Despite its notable strength, AMTM slipped 30.3% from its 52-week high of $34.47, achieved on Nov. 11, 2024. Over the past three months, AMTM stock gained 30.3%, outperforming the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 7.5% rise during the same time frame. In the longer term, shares of AMTM rose 14.3% on a YTD basis and climbed 16.8% over the past six months, outperforming SPX's YTD gains of 4.4% and 1.7% returns over the past six months. To confirm the bullish trend, AMTM has been trading above its 50-day and 100-day moving averages since late April, with slight fluctuations. On May 6, AMTM shares closed up more than 1% after reporting its Q2 results. Its adjusted EPS of $0.53 surpassed Wall Street expectations of $0.48. The company's revenue was $3.5 billion, topping Wall Street forecasts of $3.4 billion. AMTM expects full-year adjusted EPS in the range of $2 to $2.20, and expects revenue in the range of $13.9 billion to $14.2 billion. In the competitive arena of specialty business services, BlackSky Technology Inc. (BKSY) has taken the lead over AMTM, showing resilience with 89.8% gains on a YTD basis and 76% uptick over the past six months. Wall Street analysts are moderately bullish on AMTM's prospects. The stock has a consensus 'Moderate Buy' rating from the nine analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $25.22 suggests a potential upside of 4.9% from current price levels. On the date of publication, Neha Panjwani did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
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2 hours ago
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Robert Kiyosaki Warns That Bonds Aren't ‘Safe' — Do Experts Agree?
Recently, the writer of 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' Robert Kiyosaki posted on X that 'only chumps' would believe bonds are a safe investment. Kiyosaki went on to say that bonds come with counter-party risk and that the only truly safe investments are gold, silver and Bitcoin. Kiyosaki called everything else 'toilet paper.' Discover Next: Read Next: Is this true? GOBankingRates reached out to other financial experts to find out their takes on Kiyosaki's statements. Read on to see what the consensus is on whether bonds are a safe investment or not. Kiyosaki's statement about bonds doesn't take into account the different types of bonds. 'Not all bonds are created equal,' explained Drew Stevens, president of Wisdom to Wealth. 'Treasuries, municipal and corporate bonds serve different purposes and react differently to market stressors.' Treasury bonds are issued by the U.S. government, so their value is guaranteed so long as their government is standing, but the interest they deliver may waver if interest rates rise (which they have been doing). These are the types of bonds Kiyosaki is likely referring to in his argument. Trending Now: Municipal bonds are issued by state and local governments. They also offer appealing rates to investors. However, if the government were to go bankrupt, then the bond's value is not guaranteed. Corporate bonds are issued by businesses. The value of these, as you might have guessed, really depends on the strength of the corporation that issued them. However, because of this inherent risk, the ultimate yield can sometimes be extremely high in comparison with the other bonds. If passed in its current state, President Donald Trump's 'One Big Beautiful Bill' would add $2.4 trillion to the deficit. Financial expert and strategist David Lester said that amount of debt might cost bond investors — specifically treasury bonds. 'As U.S. debt increases, lenders — including foreign governments and institutional investors — may begin demanding higher yields to compensate for the perceived risk,' Lester said. 'Should that happen, older treasury bonds offering lower yields could lose appeal, as new issuances offer more competitive rates. So Robert is most likely correct about staying away from bonds if the bill passes.' If investors want to look into bonds, one option that would be protected against the mounting national debt is an inflation-protected bond. 'These instruments adjust both the principal and the interest with the consumer price index, so the real value of the payment stream stays intact,' explained Sami Andreani, finance expert and chief financial officer at Oppizi. 'The trade-off is a smaller starting yield, yet many households decide the shield against inflation is worth the lower current income.' The majority of experts agreed that bonds should just be one piece of your financial portfolio. 'Labeling all bonds as 'unsafe' is a sweeping generalization,' Stevens said. 'Bonds, like any asset class, require context and strategy. When used properly, they can still play a critical role in portfolio diversification and capital preservation, especially for conservative investors or those nearing retirement.' Noam Korbl is a personal finance expert in addition to co-founder and chief operating officer at PropFirms. Korbl stressed that bonds are not meant to be a some get-rich-quick scheme, but rather a tool to weather volatility in shaky markets. 'In the last decade, even through inflation and central bank shifts, treasury bonds have delivered average annual returns around 3% to 4%, depending on duration. That might not impress crypto enthusiasts, but for pension funds and people nearing retirement, that consistency matters,' Korbl explained. Korbl added that bonds come with many tax advantages as well. 'In certain states like Florida or Texas where state income tax is zero, interest from federal bonds comes in clean. Municipal bonds go even further with triple-tax-free status in the state they're issued,' Korbl said. More From GOBankingRates Mark Cuban Warns of 'Red Rural Recession' -- 4 States That Could Get Hit Hard 6 Big Shakeups Coming to Social Security in 2025 The 5 Car Brands Named the Least Reliable of 2025 This article originally appeared on Robert Kiyosaki Warns That Bonds Aren't 'Safe' — Do Experts Agree?
