Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

What Young Workers Are Doing to AI-Proof Themselves (March 22, Wall Street Journal) 

AI’s workplace impact, including its potential to help careers, remains more the subject of economics papers than hard evidence. But young people, especially those just launching into long working lives ahead of them, are starting to navigate their future career choices with AI in mind.

Some are pivoting to blue-collar work or starting their own businesses that may insulate them from the impacts of AI. Others are actively embracing it to try to take advantage of an AI boom and stay ahead of the curve.

3 signals tied to severe market drops are all flashing now (March 24, MarketWatch) 

Analyst Nicholas Colas identified recession, military conflict and Federal Reserve policy shifts as the three factors causing previous S&P 500 losses of 10% or more. All three worries are present in 2026.

The S&P 500’s Shiller P/E ratio is 37.5, significantly higher than the 21.3 average seen before past recession-driven double-digit declines.

Mortgage demand drops more than 10% as rates hit the highest level since October (March 25, CNBC) 

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances increased last week to 6.43% from 6.30%. Refinance demand dropped 15% week to week. Mortgage demand from homebuyers fell 5%

Higher inflation is coming — import prices show biggest increase in four years (March 25, MarketWatch) 

Import prices leaped 1.3% in February to mark the biggest advance in almost four years. The increase was almost double the Wall Street forecast. 

By itself, a big increase in import prices might not be a big deal — they rise and fall by large amounts quite often. Yet the increase came just before the Iran war sent the global cost of oil, fertilizer and other key materials surging. Economists predict the U.S. will see a big increase in inflation in March and beyond, depending on how long the conflict lasts.

Global oil prices slide below $95 a barrel after reports of a U.S. cease-fire proposal with Iran (March 25, MarketWatch)

Oil prices pared earlier declines amid hopes for Persian Gulf de-escalation, with WTI falling 2.2% to $90.29 a barrel. Iran rejected a United States 15-point peace plan, offering counter-proposals with no common ground, despite ceasefire efforts.

Iran is allowing more ships through the Strait of Hormuz, easing supply pressures, while a United States attack pause on Iran’s energy infrastructure continues.

A Global forecasting group sees U.S. inflation at 4.2% this year, much higher than Fed estimate (March 26, CNBC):

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast all-items inflation in the U.S. to be at 4.2% for 2026.

The forecast is a sharp step up from the prior projection of 2.8%. Moreover, it is much higher than the 2.7% Fed officials estimated when they updated their own forecasts last week.

Trump Says the Energy Shock Will Be Short-Lived. CEOs Paint a Scarier Picture. (March 26, Wall Street Journal) 

Standing in front of a crowd of oil-and-gas executives this week, Energy Secretary Chris Wright reiterated that the chaos in global energy markets birthed by the U.S.-Iran war would be “short term.”

But on the stage and sidelines of a global energy conference in Houston, chief executives painted a much bleaker picture: Financial markets aren’t accurately reflecting the gravity of the crisis, the war is crippling the world’s fuel supplies, and the industry’s Middle East operations are at risk, they said.

U.S. airport chaos nearing end as Senate passes bill that funds TSA but not ICE (March 27, MarketWatch) 

U.S. airport chaos was set to end as the Senate in the early hours of Friday passed a bill that will fund the Transportation Security Administration and other key functions of the Department of Homeland Security.

The vote, by unanimous consent, will now require approval in the House as well as President Donald Trump’s signing.

Wall Street Says Stocks Are Too Cheap to Ignore as War Rages On (March 27, Bloomberg)

Despite the current market downturn, analysts point to a history of market rebounds after geopolitical shocks, and expect US corporate earnings to grow, with some recommending a slow and prudent approach to adding exposure to quality US mega-cap stocks.

Consumer sentiment drops sharply in late March as war with Iran creates more financial unease (March 27, MarketWatch)

Consumers grew more pessimistic about the economy in the wake of the war with Iran as concerns with personal finances spiked due to higher gas prices and volatile financial markets. Middle-income and higher-income Americans had particularly large declines in sentiment.

The second and final reading in March of consumer sentiment fell to 55.3 from from 55.5, the University of Michigan said Friday. It is the lowest reading of the year.

Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

Treasury yields climb as bonds sell off and fear grows that Fed rate cuts are off the table (March 20, CNBC):

The sell-off in bonds came after Iran and Israel exchanged strikes overnight, with Iran launching new attacks against energy sites in Kuwait and elsewhere in the Persian Gulf. With no end in sight to the escalation, investors are positioning for a more hawkish stance from the Fed as higher global oil prices reshape the economic backdrop.

Gold Set for Worst Week in Six Years as War Curbs Rate-Cut Bets (March 19, Bloomberg):

The precious metal — widely viewed as a haven — has dropped every week since the US and Israel attacked Iran last month. The retreat has come as Treasury yields and the US dollar gained ground, investors sold bullion to cover losses elsewhere, and gold-backed exchange-traded funds posted outflows.

US Home Insurance Prices Set to Keep Rising With Severe Weather (March 18, Bloomberg):

US home insurance premiums are set to rise for a fifth straight year in 2026 due to losses from extreme weather and high rebuilding costs.

The average annual premium is projected to increase to about $3,057 this year, with some states experiencing much higher jumps, including Florida with an average premium approaching $8,500.

Fed Holds Rates Steady as Iran War Clouds Outlook (March 18, Wall Street Journal):

The Federal Reserve held interest rates steady Wednesday and tentatively preserved a path to cutting rates this year as higher energy prices from the Iran war threaten to prolong their yearslong inflation fight.

But at a news conference after the meeting, Fed Chair Jerome Powell said little to suggest cuts were around the corner and instead emphasized how little room officials might have to ease.

See Also:

11 Essential Money Moves to Make Before You Die

Wholesale prices rose 0.7% in February, much more than expected and up 3.4% annually (March 18, CNBC):

The producer price index, a measure of pipeline costs that producers receive for their products, increased a seasonally adjusted 0.7% on the month, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday. Excluding volatile food and energy costs, the so-called core PPI increased 0.5%.

Economists surveyed by Dow Jones had been looking for increases of 0.3% for both measures.

US Pending Home Sales Climbed in February as Mortgage Rates Fell (March 17, Bloomberg):

“The slight gain in pending contracts appears to be driven by improved affordability conditions. However, those conditions could reverse if higher oil prices lead to an uptick in mortgage rates,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said in a statement.

In the first week of March, mortgage rates jumped by the most since September as war with Iran sparked concerns about inflation.

A recession will be hard to avoid if oil prices stay elevated for even a few more weeks, says Moody’s (March 17, MarketWatch):

Moody’s economist Mark Zandi anticipates the probability of a U.S. recession will exceed 50% due to the Iran conflict.

Even before the Iran conflict broke out, Moody’s machine-learning-based leading indicators had reflected a 49% chance of a recession beginning in the U.S. within the next 12 months. Weak labor numbers and 0.7% GDP growth in late 2025 contributed to a darkening outlook, compounded by new inflation threats.

Medicare premiums could double over next the decade, wrecking retirement budgets (March 16, MarketWatch):

Medicare Part B premiums, which cover doctors and hospital outpatient services, will rise to about $5,000 a year by 2035, up from about $2,440, according to a recent report by the Senate Joint Economic Committee.

“Seniors face a dramatic reduction in the affordability of Medicare Part B,” the report said. “It is therefore imperative for policymakers to act to prevent premiums from gradually eating away at seniors’ social security checks.”

The Fed Keeps Getting Hit With New Shocks in Its Yearslong Inflation Fight (March 16, Wall Street Journal):

For the fifth year running, Federal Reserve officials find themselves expecting inflation to fall back to their 2% goal only to be confronted with another disruption that complicates the path. First it was the pandemic’s aftershocks. Then, Russia’s war in Ukraine. Last year, a sweeping tariff program.

The most recent data suggested inflation progress stalled even before America’s war in the Middle East disrupted one of the world’s most important shipping routes.

Oil Industry Warns Trump Administration That Fuel Crunch Will Likely Worsen (March 16, Wall Street Journal):

In response to questions from the officials, Exxon CEO Darren Woods said that oil prices could rise past current elevated levels if speculators unexpectedly bid up prices and that markets could see a supply crunch of refined products. Chevron CEO Mike Wirth and ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance also conveyed their concerns about the scale of the disruption, these people said.

Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

G-7 scrambles emergency meeting and could deploy unprecedented oil reserves as prices soar (March 9, MarketWatch)

Group of Seven finance ministers plan to discuss a coordinated release of petroleum reserves, as an escalating Iran conflict drove oil prices above $100 a barrel.

The report helped to bring oil prices off levels that surged near $120 a barrel on Sunday. West Texas Intermediate crude was last up 11% to just over $101 a barrel after Iraq, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates all announced reductions in their output of oil amid escalating tensions in the Middle East.

See Also:

11 Essential Money Moves to Make Before You Die

JPMorgan Sees 10% Correction in S&P 500 as War Risks Build Up (March 9, Bloomberg) 

Andrew Tyler, JPMorgan’s head of global market intelligence, turned “tactically bearish” on US stocks Monday as the Middle East conflict showed no signs of abating, sending oil above $100 a barrel. A correction would mark a 10% drop in the US benchmark from its peak, implying the S&P 500 would drop to roughly 6,270 points — or roughly 7% lower from where the index closed on Friday.

Trump Says Iran War to End ‘Soon,’ Easing Oil-Shock Concerns (March 10, Bloomberg) 

Trump said the US had hit targets in Iran, reducing the country’s missile capability, and that the military objectives of the war could be described as “pretty well complete.”

Brent crude, having climbed to almost $120 a barrel early Monday, eased to about $91 in Tuesday trade. That’s still more than 50% higher than at the start of the year.

50 years of oil-price shocks have taught us that only 2 things matter to markets right now (March 10, MarketWatch) 

Based on these past experiences, the most important issues for global markets boils down to this: How long will the oil-price shock last? And how will the Federal Reserve, and other central banks, respond?

US existing home sales unexpectedly increase as mortgage rates decline (March 10, Reuters)

Home sales rose 1.7% last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.09 million units. Data for the prior month was revised up to show sales falling to a rate of 4.02 ​million units rather than the previously reported 3.91 million-unit pace.

Overall existing home sales, however, fell 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. The median existing home price last month increased 0.3% ​from a year ago to $398,000.

Inflation Held Steady in February (March 11, Wall Street Journal) 

Consumer prices rose 2.4% in February from a year earlier, the Labor Department reported Wednesday.

Core prices, which exclude volatile food and energy items, rose 2.5% from a year earlier, in line with expectations.

Oil futures edge up but stay under $100 a barrel as IEA unveils largest-ever release of reserves (March 11, MarketWatch) 

The International Energy Agency had proposed on Tuesday that its member countries release as much as 400 million barrels of oil, and its executive director, Fatih Birol, said Wednesday that was in fact going to happen.

US Jobless Claims Ticked Down to 213,000 Last Week (March 12, Bloomberg) 

“The level of claims is just very low, plain and simple,” said Carl Weinberg, chief economist at High Frequency Economics, in a note to clients. “The data show no sign of the layoffs we would expect in a weakening labor market during the early days of a hypothetical recession.”

Strait of Hormuz must remain closed as ‘tool to pressure enemy,’ Iran’s new supreme leader says (March 12, CNBC)

The closure of the Strait of Hormuz maritime passage should be continued as a “tool to pressure the enemy,” he said, in televised comments translated by Reuters. Oil prices extended gains following the comments.

US Consumer Spending Barely Rose in January, Inflation Strong (March 13, Bloomberg)

Inflation-adjusted consumer spending increased 0.1% from the prior month, according to Bureau of Economic Analysis data out Friday. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists called for no growth.

The so-called core personal consumption expenditures price index, which excludes food and energy items, rose 0.4% from December. From the prior year, the gauge — favored by the Federal Reserve — was up 3.1%.

GDP grew at a tepid 0.7% pace in the fourth quarter. The future is foggy, too. (March 13, MarketWatch)

Gross domestic product expanded at a lackluster 0.7% annual pace in the fourth quarter, the government said Friday. The original increase was put at 1.4%.

Every weekend, I recap “news you can use” from the week — a handful of quotes from major (and often expensive) financial news sources — so you can stay up to date on the news that affects your money without spending a dime and in less than a minute.

Here’s an overview of what happened this week.

Trump leaves door open for extended U.S. campaign against Iran. What that could mean for the economy. (March 2, MarketWatch)

“From the beginning, we projected four to five weeks, but we have capability to go far longer than that,” Trump said Monday at a White House ceremony. He said the operation was “ahead of schedule.”

An extended campaign could put pressure on the U.S. economy through inflation as a result of higher oil prices. A quicker operation could have less impact on markets.

US Manufacturing Grew, Input Costs Soared Before Iran Attack (March 2, Bloomberg) 

The Institute for Supply Management’s gauge of prices paid for manufacturing inputs jumped 11.5 points to 70.5, the highest level since overall inflation peaked nearly four years ago.

The figures out Monday reflected responses ahead of US and Israeli airstrikes on Iran this past weekend. The war has all but halted oil tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and pushed crude prices sharply higher.

Oil Rally Builds as ‘Staggering’ Middle East War Jolts Energy (March 3, Bloomberg)

Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has all but ground to a halt, and traders are now assessing how long the region’s oil assets can keep operating as normal without ships entering the crucial waterway.

Rising energy prices are already casting a pall over economic growth prospects and the ability of central banks to keep inflation in check.

The global economy is facing untold damage even if the Iran conflict ends tomorrow, warns this energy-industry expert (March 3, MarketWatch)

A war ending tomorrow would not stop bottlenecks that will take several days to clear from ships avoiding the Strait of Hormuz. Oil-producing countries that cut production will take time to get back online, he said.

“We never had those problems before. The Hormuz Strait never been closed before,” he said.

Oil prices turn lower as fears about energy supply shock ease (March 4, MarketWatch)

Reports that Iranian intelligence has reached out indirectly to the CIA for talks have helped to ease concerns about lasting supply disruptions. Also, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Wednesday during an interview with CNBC that the U.S. government would soon roll out a number of measures aimed at stabilizing the oil trade in the Gulf.

Private companies added 63,000 jobs in February, January revised to just 11,000 additions, ADP says (March 4, CNBC) 

Most of the hiring came in just two sectors: health services and construction. Job growth in other sectors was either flat or lower.

Pay grew 4.5% for those staying in their jobs while wage gains for job switchers moved down to 6.3%, the smallest gap since ADP began tracking the metric.

Weekly mortgage demand surged 11% higher last week, as rates sat near 4-year low (March 4, CNBC) 

The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances was unchanged at 6.09%. Applications to refinance a home loan jumped 14.3%. Applications for a mortgage to purchase a home rose 6.1%.

Jobless claims and Challenger, Gray point to declining layoffs. What about hiring plans? (March 5, MarketWatch) 

Initial jobless claims were unchanged at 213,000 in the seven days that ended Feb. 28, the government said Thursday.

A separate report from Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that announced layoffs by U.S. companies fell sharply in February. Hiring plans were also weak, though.

Big picture: The labor market appears stable, but it’s not what Americans are used to. Layoffs are low — and so is hiring.

U.S. crude oil touches highest level since June 2025 after Iran says it attacked a tanker (March 5, CNBC) 

U.S. crude briefly broke $78 per barrel earlier in the session, the highest level since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities last June. Oil prices have surged about 15% this week.

Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has come to a standstill since the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran began, as ship owners are worried about the volatile security situation. About 20% of global oil consumption is exported through the Strait.

U.S. loses 92,000 jobs and unemployment rate rises to 4.4%. Nurses’ strikes and winter storm Fern hurt labor market. (March 6, MarketWatch) 

Global oil benchmark Brent crude breaks above $90 a barrel amid Iran war, U.S. crude tops $89 (March 6, CNBC) 

“There will be no deal with Iran except UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER!,” Trump said in a social media post.

Qatar’s energy minister Saad al-Kaabi told The Financial Times Friday that crude prices could reach $150 per barrel in the coming weeks if oil tankers were unable to pass through the Strait. This could “bring down the economies of the world,” Kaabi said.