Cost of Doing Business in an Unpredictable World

War Risk for Businesses Will Mean Higher Prices No Matter What Happens
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/15/business/economy/iran-war-inflation-supply-chains.html
Doing business in a more dangerous and unpredictable world will cost more, pushing up the price of everything from food to electronics. 

Data Centers and Business Fixed Investment

AI Data-Center Construction Is Booming—but Not Much Else Is
https://www.wsj.com/business/ai-data-center-construction-is-boomingbut-not-much-else-is-6ae37b3e
Spending on new factories, warehouses and other industrial sites has been damped by rising costs. 

Long-Term Unemployed

Two Million Workers Are Locked Out of an Improving Job Market
https://www.wsj.com/economy/jobs/unemployment-long-term-job-market-629199f9
The share of job seekers out of work for six months or longer is hovering near the highest level in five years. 

Uptick in Labor Productivity

U.S. Workers Are More Productive Than Ever. And That’s Without A.I.
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/07/14/business/worker-productivity-artificial-intelligence-economy.html
Companies have been getting more out of employees for several years. Tight labor markets, digitization and remote work are among the reasons. 

Related:

Labor Force Participation Is High If You Measure It Right
https://www.fa-mag.com/news/labor-force-participation-is-high-if-you-measure-it-right-87761.html  

The Worst Form of Trade Protectionism

The payments darling in Trump’s crosshairs
https://www.ft.com/content/efbec9a7-a3d9-45e6-8ade-c0660f31ecc7
US tariff threats against Brazil over payments platform Pix provoke a political storm ahead of elections. 

Bond Markets - Interesting Items

The Quarter-Trillion-Dollar Onslaught of AI Bonds Is Testing Investors’ Limits
https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/the-quarter-trillion-dollar-onslaught-of-ai-bonds-is-testing-investors-limits-e4cd2bda
Tech giants are borrowing even more than expected, weighing on bond prices.
 
How to Invest When the Global Crises Never Stop
https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/how-to-invest-when-the-global-crises-never-stop-3c8cc542
In a world of wars, trade wars and crop failures, bond yields need to be higher than they were because they offer so much less protection than they used to. 

Corporate Bonds Have the Best Yields in Years. They Still Aren’t Enough.
https://www.wsj.com/finance/investing/corporate-bonds-have-the-best-yields-in-years-they-still-arent-enough-aa391e8b
Higher long-term yields might not compensate for the higher risks.

Building Wealth - Equities versus Real Estate

Houses Are No Longer the Best Place for Your Money
https://www.fa-mag.com/news/houses-are-no-longer-the-best-place-for-your-money-87759.html
The median house price in Nantucket, Massachusetts, is nearly $4 million. It was just $500,000 in 1995. This sounds like a stunning increase in one of the hottest and least accessible real estate markets in the country. What’s even more stunning is the stock market: If you invested $500,000 in the S&P 500 Index in 1995, you’d have more than $8.2 million today, even more if you reinvested the dividends you earned.
Stocks have clearly been the superior investment, even as housing has moved out of reach for too many Americans. It’s no surprise then that young people are saying they would rather put their money in equities than make a down payment like people their age have done for generations.

Is Buying a Home Still the Way to Wealth? Some Young Americans Aren't Sure
https://www.fa-mag.com/news/is-buying-a-home-still-the-way-to-wealth--some-young-americans-aren-t-sure-87707.html
The fast-rising costs of owning a home have some young Americans questioning whether buying a house is still a good investment.
 
Trump makes the stock market his scoreboard, but many Americans aren't even in the game
https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/trump-makes-stock-market-his-scoreboard-many-americans-arent-even-game-2026-07-10/