28 January 2019
Question: According to MSN: Money, what are twenty (20) steps to retiring this year?
Questions grow over Giuliani’s competence – Pg. 3
– Earlier this month he opened the door to possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, telling CNN in a tetchy exchange: “I never said there was no collusion!” – denying only that the president was involved
– Months earlier, he appeared to implicate his client in a campaign finance violation when he volunteered to Fox News’ Sean Hannity that Mr Trump had reimbursed his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, for a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels that, prosecutors say, was meant to buy her silence during the campaign
– Mr Guiliani even called the pay-off “a very regular thing for lawyers to do” – …
– As Mr Giuliani, now in the midst of this third divorce, has appeared more erratic…
– But one former colleague pointed to Mr Giuliani’s age, 74, noting that after growing wealthy in the private sector he no longer had the same hunger and discipline
US coal output forecast to fall despite Trump efforts – Pg. 16
– The government’s EIA projected its latest annual outlook that US coal production would drip 21% over the next 20 years. An 18% decline was forecast two years ago under the assumption that Barack Obama’s Clean Power Plan would come into force
– Coal producers that have been through bankruptcy in the past five years, shedding debts and re-emerging on to the stock market, have fared better
– Market forces have been driving electricity generators away from coal and towards natural gas and renewable energy, however, and those trends are expected to continue
– Employment in US coal mining has risen from 51,000 two years ago to 54,000 last month, due mainly to the sector’s strong exports, which rose by 61% in 2017 and about 20% last year. They are expected to fall back this year and the longer-term outlook looks challenging
– The EIA projected this week that coal would drop from providing 29% of US electricity last year to 21% by 2035. Over this period gas is expected to rise from 30% to 37% of power generation, and renewables from 17% to 24%
Answer: (1) Know how your lifestyle expenses will change in retirement; (2) Figure out your healthcare expenditures; (3) Make sure your insurance needs are covered in early retirement; (4) Create a budget for yourself; (5) Know that Social Security may not be enough; (6) Line up part-time work if you need it; (7) Have a tax strategy for savings and investments; (8) Diversify your investments for the best return during your retirement; (9) Figure out how much you’ll be withdrawing from retirement accounts; (10) Make “catch-up” contributions to your retirement accounts if possible; (11) Keep some savings for emergencies; (12) Have a strong social network; (13) Pay down your debt; (14) Pay yourself first; (15) Update your will; (16) Use your accumulated vacation time before you retire; (17) Find some hobbies; (18) decide where you’re going to live; (19) Make an appointment with a retirement planner; (20) Be prepared to try new things