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The 4 Questions You’ll Get at Holiday Parties This Year

The real question: Is there any chance I will get a second chance at locking in a higher interest rate? How about answering:  Interest rates are cyclical, but it looks like the higher rate cycle has changed direction. Interest rates and inflation have a shared relationship. The Federal reserve has wanted inflation to come down. Raising interest rates theoretically slows the economy. Then the Fed can lower rates again.  The general assumption is inflation is somewhat under control, rates are expected to decline.  If you are a fixed income investor, you should start locking in higher rates now while they are still available. 3. Is a strong U.S. dollar a good thing?  Doesn’t it sound like this makes sense? Who wants the word “weak” associated with their country?  The real question: Why should a strong dollar worry me? How about answering: We are fortunate the US dollar has long been the world’s reserve currency. OPEC’s oil is priced in dollars. When the dollar is weak, U.S. manufactured goods are more competitive in the world market. When the dollar is strong, they are more expensive in local currency. As a traveler, you want a strong dollar, because it goes further on vacation in Europe. Those European...

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These Tax Policies Are Ripe for Change in 2025

“While I’m not suggesting that we allow the 199A deduction to expire entirely, 199A was never intended to be a tax loophole for the wealthiest Americans to use as they please,” he said. “Unfortunately, that’s how it’s often been used by wealthy Americans seeking to minimize their tax liability. Change is necessary to ensure the deduction is benefiting the small businesses who need protection the most.” In the end, according to Byrnes, many small-business owners would have had to deal with the traditional corporate structure to ensure fair taxation were it not for Section 199A of the 2017 legislation. “Section 199A is important because it essentially works to level the playing field, at least from a pure tax perspective, between traditional C corporations and pass-through entities,” he argued. “The law already contains built-in income thresholds designed to prevent abuse.” The Historically High Estate Tax Exemption When it comes to the renewal of the current estate tax exemption — $13.99 million or $27.98 million per married couple) for 2025 — the professors were again split in their interpretation. As Byrnes emphasized, a larger estate tax exemption encourages Americans to save and invest in economic growth. “When transfer tax exemption amounts are...

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Supreme Court to Hear Dispute Over California Tailpipe Emissions, EV Standards

Article 0 Comments The U.S. Supreme Court agreed on Friday to hear a bid by fuel producers to challenge California’s standards for vehicle emissions and electric cars under a federal air pollution law in a major case testing the Democratic-governed state’s power to fight greenhouse gases. The justices took up an appeal by a Valero Energy subsidiary and fuel industry groups of a lower court’s rejection of their challenge to a decision by Democratic President Joe Biden’s administration allow California to set its own regulations. The dispute centers on an exception granted to California in 2022 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to national vehicle emission standards set by the agency under the landmark Clean Air Act anti-pollution law. Though states and municipalities are generally preempted from enacting their own limits, Congress allowed the EPA to waive the preemption rule to allow California to set certain regulations that are stricter than federal standards. California, the most-populous U.S. state, has received more than 75 waivers since 1967, requiring increasingly better emissions performance and EV sales. The EPA’s action in March 2022 reinstated a waiver for California to set its own tailpipe emissions limits and zero-emission vehicle mandate through 2025, reversing a...

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California Commissioner Announces Regulation to Enable the Use of Modeling in Rates

Article 1 Comment California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara on Friday announced what he’s calling “first of its kind” catastrophe modeling and ratemaking regulation that will allow carriers to use the models as a factor in setting and getting rates. The regulation is a part of his so-called Sustainable Insurance Strategy to increase coverage in wildfire-distressed areas of the state. The California Department of Insurance posted the final regulation after the Office of Administrative Law filed it with the Secretary of State, which concludes a rulemaking process. “Giving people more choices to protect themselves is how we will solve California’s insurance crisis,” stated Lara. “For the first time in history we are requiring insurance companies to expand where people need help the most. With our changing climate we can no longer look to the past. We are being innovative and forward-looking to protect Californians’ access to insurance.” Only two days before Friday’s announcement, Farmers Insurance said it will resume offering coverage for multiple lines of insurance in California to new customers. The company cited among its reasons for the decision regulatory steps taken by the state’s insurance commissioner and other stakeholders. Carriers began pulling back from the state’s homeowners market, blaming...

QuickFacts Expands Comparisons Platform with Farm Product Line 0

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QuickFacts Expands Comparisons Platform with Farm Product Line

Halifax, NS (Dec. 12, 2024) – QuickFacts is excited to announce the launch of a new Farm Product Line on its Comparisons platform, designed to assist brokers in addressing the unique insurance needs of small-scale agricultural operations and rural lifestyle enthusiasts. Unlike traditional Commercial Farm insurance, this new offering is specifically crafted for Hobby Farms—properties maintained primarily for sustainability and providing fresh, homegrown food for families rather than profit. This expansion offers comparisons for over 25 carriers nationally for livestock, equipment, structures, and more, making it easier for brokers to serve clients seeking tailored insurance solutions for their agro-business and self-sustaining lifestyle needs. Hobby Farms are distinct from Commercial Farms, as they are often family-run, smaller in scale, and not intended as a primary source of income. They reflect a growing interest in rural and agricultural lifestyles, particularly in regions like Ontario, where hobby Farming has become increasingly popular. QuickFacts’ new product line extends beyond standard Personal Lines insurance, offering customized protection that fills a crucial gap in the current insurance market. “Ontario has seen a substantial rise in Hobby Farming, and we recognized an unmet need for tailored insurance solutions in this space,” said Christy Barsalou, President and CEO...

The Global Vehicle Telematics Hardware Market: Berg Insight 0

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The Global Vehicle Telematics Hardware Market: Berg Insight

Gothenburg, Sweden (Dec. 13, 2024) – IoT analyst firm Berg Insight has published a new market report, The Global Vehicle Telematics Hardware Market – 3rd Edition, which covers both the aftermarket and OEM segments for passenger cars and commercial vehicles. This study provides you with 150 pages of unique business intelligence, including 5-year industry forecasts, expert commentary and real-life case studies on which to base your business decisions. Telematics is a broad term that may be applied to a wide range of vehicle connectivity solutions. Berg Insight’s definition of a telematics system in this report is an automatic system designed for passenger cars and commercial vehicles that incorporates some form of cellular/GNSS or RF communication technology. The connected car has been a major trend in the automotive industry for many years. All of the world’s leading carmakers have now launched mass-market connectivity services in key regions. The OEM initiatives can be seen as competition for aftermarket solutions, but there is still a growing demand for different forms of aftermarket telematics services. The addressable market for aftermarket telematics solutions is significant. At the end of 2022, an estimated 1.52 billion vehicles were registered worldwide. Berg Insight has found that 47.3 million...

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Public Nuisance Claims Denied by Ohio Supreme Court in Opioid Case

Article 0 Comments COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Ohio Supreme Court ruled last Tuesday that the state’s product liability law prohibits counties from bringing public nuisance claims against national pharmaceutical chains as they did as part of national opioid litigation, a decision that could overturn a against the pharmacies. An attorney for the counties called the decision “devastating.” Justices were largely unanimous in their interpretation of an arcane disagreement over the state law, which had emerged in a lawsuit brought by Lake and Trumbull counties outside Cleveland against CVS, Walgreens and Walmart. The counties won their initial lawsuit — and were awarded $650 million in damages by a federal judge in 2022 — but the pharmacies had disputed the court’s reading of the Ohio Product Liability Act, which they said protected them from such sanctions. In an opinion written by Justice Joseph Deters, the court found that Ohio state lawmakers intended the law to prevent “all common law product liability causes of action” — even if they don’t seek compensatory damages but merely “equitable relief” for the communities. “The plain language of the OPLA abrogates product-liability claims, including product-related public-nuisance claims seeking equitable relief,” he wrote. “We are constrained to...

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What 4% Rule? Morningstar Has a New Number

“If a retiree is willing to adjust their spending in line with portfolio performance, that allows for higher starting withdrawals and generally higher lifetime withdrawals,” Benz observes. Ways to introduce such flexibility include forgoing inflation adjustments after the portfolio lost value in the preceding year to more complex systems such as the “guardrails” approach originally developed by financial planner Jonathan Guyton and computer scientist William Klinger. “All of these systems allowed for higher starting safe withdrawal rates than the fixed real spending rate we used as our base case,” Benz observes. The Nuts and Bolts of Alternative Methods Among the alternative spending strategies considered in the report is forgoing inflation adjustments following annual portfolio loss. The method begins with the base case of fixed real withdrawals throughout a 30-year time horizon. However, to preserve assets after down markets, the retiree skips the inflation adjustment for the year following a year in which the portfolio has declined in value. This might seem like a modest step, according to the researchers, but the small cuts in real spending are cumulative. Their effects “ripple into the future,” permanently reducing the retiree’s spending pattern. As a result, the initial spending rate can range toward...

Specialty Program Group Canada, Totten Insurance Group, Anderson-McTague & Associates Announce Strategic Amalgamation to Enhance Specialty Insurance Offerings Nationwide 0

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Specialty Program Group Canada, Totten Insurance Group, Anderson-McTague & Associates Announce Strategic Amalgamation to Enhance Specialty Insurance Offerings Nationwide

Toronto, ON (Dec. 10, 2024) – Specialty Program Group Canada Inc. (SPGC), a leader in commercial and personal property and casualty insurance solutions, is pleased to announce its intention to amalgamate with Totten Insurance Group Inc. (Totten) and Anderson McTague & Associates Ltd. (AMT), effective January 1, 2025. This strategic merger will unite three powerhouse specialty insurance organizations under one umbrella, strengthening their ability to serve brokers and clients across Canada. Upon completion of the amalgamation, SPGC will operate with 500 employees across five underwriting brands and one claims management brand. SPGC is headquartered in Vancouver and Toronto and has local underwriters across all Canadian provinces. The addition of Totten and AMT’s expertise, alongside SPGC’s trusted brands like Cansure, Beacon, and i3 Underwriting Services, will enhance the group’s ability to provide faster and more innovative solutions to brokers across the country. Cameron Copeland, President & CEO of SPGC, highlights the significance of this merger: “As we bring SPGC and Totten/AMT together, we are creating a truly national platform that will deliver greater value to our carrier and broker partners, and our policyholder customers. This amalgamation will allow us to strengthen our deep underwriting expertise, extend our capacity & capabilities, and...

Economic threats continue to overshadow climate and cyber risks: Marsh 0

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Economic threats continue to overshadow climate and cyber risks: Marsh

London, UK (Dec. 5, 2024) – Despite some signs of improvement in global economic conditions, business leaders across the majority of G20 countries[1] remain deeply concerned about the looming threats of recessions, labor shortages, and rising inflation, according to the latest Executive Opinion Survey conducted by the World Economic Forum and released by its strategic partners, Marsh McLennan and Zurich Insurance Group. The annual survey reveals the top five near-term risks identified by more than 11,000 business leaders from 121 countries. Economic downturn, labor and/or talent shortages and inflation continue to dominate the list as the top three risks cited by G20 business leaders for the next two years. This was followed by poverty and inequality, which ranked fourth. Extreme weather events featured in the G20’s top five risks, as the fifth biggest risk. This follows a year in which many G20 countries – including Brazil, Germany, Indonesia and the U.S. – experienced severe flooding, above-average rainfall, wildfires, extreme heat or elevated hurricane activity. The findings of this year’s survey also indicate growing concerns around technological risks, including adverse outcomes of artificial intelligence, such as misinformation and disinformation. These risks appear six times in the country-specific top five rankings this...