Happy Friday, MarketWatchers! Here are your top personal finance stories of the day.
Personal Finance
Why you may want to buy a few extra toys this holiday season
Toy prices will likely rise as a result of tariffs on Chinese goods.
Oh baby! Cribs, bassinets, diaper bags and other infant products on tariff hit list
But parents shouldn’t panic, experts say.
A brandy that’s born in the U.S.A.
Bertoux aims to appeal to the cocktail crowd.
Freezing your credit is now free
A credit freeze is free at all three major bureaus starting Sept. 21.
10 years after Lehman Brothers collapse, people are ‘deeply distrustful’ of Wall Street
A new study suggests Americans are more careful with money and ‘gun-shy’ about investing.
Amazon rolls out more Echo devices, but they could make you spend more money
On Thursday, Amazon unveiled a new slate of Echo devices, including Alexa-enabled microwaves and wall clocks.
This 90-year-old man with a Ph.D. in economics made a new will 10 days before he died—and it voided his prenup
Can a last will and testament supersede a prenuptial agreement?
This government loan forgiveness program has rejected 99% of borrowers so far
Only 96 people are included in the first cohort of borrowers of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program.
How to fight about money—without ruining the relationship
There are good and bad ways to discuss topics as emotional as money.
You don’t need to be rich to invest—just start with $5
Microinvesting makes it possible to save for both short- and long-term goals.
Elsewhere on MarketWatch
Rod Rosenstein discussed 25th Amendment to remove Trump and offered to wear a wire, report says
Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein reportedly suggested secretly recording President Donald Trump and discussed recruiting cabinet members to invoke the 25th Amendment to remove him.
Tax cuts were just ‘the cherry on top’ for earnings growth in the second quarter
Tax cuts from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act were just the “cherry on top” for corporate earnings growth.
This chart shows the haves and have-nots of the housing market, and it’s getting worse
Home equity is growing quickly — good news for those who have it — while mortgage debt is barely — a sign of not-so-good news for those who want in.
Ex-Trump lawyer Dowd tried to help pay legal fees for Manafort, Gates
A top lawyer for President Trump this year sought to help pay legal fees for Paul Manafort and Richard Gates, initially trying to divert money from the White House legal defense fund and later soliciting donors and pledging $25,000 of his own.
Outdoor recreation is a more than $400 billion industry
A new government report shows the outdoor recreation industry accounts for $412 billion in economic activity, about $40 billion more than previously estimated.
With its last easy decision, Fed will try to avoid adding fuel to the fire
The Federal Reserve is widely seen as hiking interest rates again but after that things get more dicey.
Why is the GOP fighting so hard for Kavanaugh?
This could be the last chance the Republicans have to fill a Supreme Court seat for a very long time, writes Tim Mullaney.
Ponzi scheme unraveled by feds used CLOs of consumer portfolios
Three men indicted this week for allegedly running a complex half-fake, half-real Ponzi scheme used the promise of high returns from buying, selling and collecting collateralized subprime and defaulted consumer loan portfolios to defraud doctors, lawyers, accountants and small business owners of more than $364 million.
Economy hits Florence speed bump in September but doesn’t slow much, IHS Markit finds
Parts of the economy experienced slower growth in September, perhaps a residue of Hurricane Florence, but the U.S. was still on a solid growth path, according to an IHS Markit survey.
Get a daily roundup of the top reads in personal finance delivered to your inbox. Subscribe to MarketWatch’s free Personal Finance Daily newsletter. Sign up here.