The salary for the Chair of the Federal Reserve is set by the U.S. Congress. For 2019, the annual salary for the Fed Chair is $203,500. The annual salary of the other Fed Governors is $183,100. The members of the Board of Governors, including the Chair, are nominated by the President of the United States

IKEA is a Swedish multinational company that was founded in 1943 by 17-year-old Ingvar Kamprad. It is one of the world’s largest privately-held companies and has been the world’s largest furniture retailer since 2008. The majority of IKEA outlets are controlled by the holding company INGKA Holding, which is owned by the Stichting INGKA Foundation. The

The 30-year mortgage average bolted higher Wednesday, adding more than two-tenths of a percentage point to reach its highest mark since mid-July. Today’s National Mortgage Rate Averages Thirty-year mortgage rates rose for a second day, with a big Wednesday bump that’s moved the 30-year average to its most expensive level in four weeks. Wednesday’s 21-basis-point

Traders play a very important role in the investment and financial industries. They are generally in charge of executing both buy and sell orders and transactions for themselves or, if they work for an investment firm, for their clients. Because they often deal with high volumes when they trade, they normally provide a great deal

Of all the asset classes online brokers typically support, options are one of the easier ones to differentiate because, unlike stocks or ETFs, many options trading platforms still charge for options trades. The growing interest in options as a way to leverage investment dollars has led to an increase in the number of brokers focusing

Dividend-paying exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been growing in popularity, especially among investors looking for high yields and more stability from their portfolios. As with stocks and many mutual funds, most ETFs pay their dividends quarterly—once every three months. However, ETFs that offer monthly dividend returns are also available. While there are many ETFs that pay

Today, the 401(k) is a standard way that Americans save for retirement. Because these plans provide tax benefits and a potential employer match, many investors aim to “max out” their contributions, or contribute up to the IRS annual limit. For 2022, the contribution limit is $20,500 per year for workers under age 50, and $27,000

While U.K. left the EU, an event known as Brexit, on January 31, 2020, the parties agreed on an 11-month transition period for the purpose of crafting a new trade deal, during which the U.K. operated under EU rules. After months of negotiation, the EU and U.K. agreed on a trade deal with just days

You can have a pension and still contribute to a 401(k)—and an IRA—to take charge of your retirement. If you have a defined benefit pension plan at work, you have nothing to worry about, right? Maybe not. While pensions used to be a staple ingredient in the recipe of retirement planning, fewer companies today offer

Square vs. Stripe: An Overview Square (SQ) and Stripe have emerged as two popular payment processing services for small and growing businesses. As the services have become widely used, their simple fixed-rate payment processing fees have drawn in big-name supporters, such as Starbucks (SBUX), to use and promote their systems. For investors and business owners, it’s

Marijuana exchange-traded funds (ETFs) provide investors with exposure to equities of companies that engage in the cultivation, distribution, and sale of marijuana and related products. Products of marijuana companies include dried flowers, oils, seeds, edibles, and more. Still prohibited as an illegal substance in many parts of the world, marijuana is gaining wider acceptance for

Medtronic (MDT) is a billion-dollar, global leader in medical technology, offering medical devices and therapies to more than 72 million people across 150+ countries. Medtronic—derived from combining terms medical electronics—was formed in a Minneapolis garage by Earl Bakken, who later created the battery-powered pacemaker, and accomplished engineer Palmer Hermundslie. As of 2021, Medtronic has a

Founded in 2003, NinjaTrader offers software and brokerage services for active traders. With a funded account, the NinjaTrader platform is free to use for charting, market analysis, and live trading (the SIM version is free even without a funded account). To access the platform’s premium features—such as advanced order types, automated trading, and backtesting—you’ll need

Large oil companies in the United States have been paying taxes at a significantly lower rate than most other corporations. The chief reason is that there are provisions in the U.S. tax code that allow energy companies to defer and avoid federal income tax payments. The 2017 Tax Cut and Jobs Act also slashed the