'Audit the Fed' was blocked in the Senate
Rand Paul's "Audit the Fed" was blocked (AP)
Republican presidential candidate Sen. Rand Paul's (R-Kentucky) "Audit the Fed" bill was blocked on the Senate floor. The bill received 53 Yes votes and 44 No votes with 3 abstaining. Presidential candidates Paul, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) all voted Yes. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was absent. The bill needed 60 Yes votes to pass, and wasn't expected to do so.
The best way to pay off credit card debt from the holidays (Cinch Financial)
Now that the holidays are over, it's time to pay the bills. According to Cinch Financial, the average consumer spends $805 on the holidays, and most of that is charged to a credit card. Cinch says when looking to consolidate debt its best to go to a local federal credit union as opposed to a big brand bank, because they allow you to minimize interest and fees. Avoid selecting a new card based on rewards since someone looking to pay down debt shouldn't be making purchases, Cinch says.
Junk bonds say there's a 44% chance of a recession in 2016 (Bloomberg)
Martin Fridson, a money manager at Lehmann, Livian, Fridson Advisors LLC, told Bloomberg, junk bonds are pricing in a 44% chance of a US recession this year. Fridson arrives at this probability by looking at monthly junk bond spreads of Bank of America Merrill Lynch index data and observing a spread of 7.39%, which is a little less than halfway between the 5.2% average for expansionary months and 10.19% average for recessionary months. "You could say that if you take out energy, the rest of the market is not indicating a particularly high recession risk, and that's also a valid comment," Fridson told Bloomberg.
Hillary Clinton wants to raise taxes on the wealthy (Business Insider) US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is calling for a 4% "surcharge" on anyone making an annual income of $5 million or more. Reuters reports the Clinton campaign says the tax hike on America's highest earners would bring in an additional $150 billion over 10 years.
Invesco is buying robo-advisor (Wealth Management)
Wealth Management reports, Invesco has purchased robo-advisor Jemstep with the hopes of providing its advisors with better digital technology for interfacing with clients. According to Martin L. Flanagan, CEO and president of Invesco, "Jemstep's proven platform enhances our ability to help advisors grow their business and by seeking to deliver superior client experiences in a rapidly evolving market environment." Terms of the deal were not disclosed.