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| Subscribe to The Daily Money newsletter, our roundup of each day's top stories from USA TODAY Money. |
| Good morning and happy Wednesday, Daily Money readers. Jayme Deerwester with you once again, lamenting the fact that National Pizza Day has fallen on my low-carb day. 😓 In the immortal words of Joey Tribbiani, " Why, God, why?" |
🗞 News you should know 🗞 |
| Gas prices are continuing to surge up with no signs of slowing down, according to the American Automobile Association. The national average for gas is $3.46 per gallon as of Tuesday, slightly up from Monday's average of $3.44 and nearly a dollar more than last year's average of $2.47. That means the average person is spending about $12 more to fill up a tank of gas in a medium-sized car. |
| According to AAA, the reasons behind the higher gas prices are a combination of increased demand for heating oil in the winter months and the tension between Russia and Ukraine. Some 100,000 Russian troops deployed near Ukraine are increasing worries that an offensive could be days away, creating diplomatic tensions within Europe and among its allies like the United States. |
| Russia is a member of OPEC+, and any sanctions based on their actions toward Ukraine may cause it to withhold crude oil from the global market. The price of crude oil is a key determiner for prices at the pump. |
| "This shows how events on the other side of the globe can have a noticeable impact right here in the U.S," says AAA spokesperson Andrew Gross in a release. "And unfortunately for drivers, they are reminded of this by higher prices at the pump." |
🚨 More stories you shouldn't miss 🚨 |
| Pizza Day 2022 is here. Deals for Wednesday, plus, enter to win free pizza. |
| Samsung Galaxy S22 launches Feb. 25. Is it a better choice for you than the iPhone 13? If so, here's how to preorder one. |
| Hyundai, Kia recall 485,000 cars. Why drivers are being warned to park outside. |
| Attention, Wordle addicts. This is the best starting word, according to a math expert. |
| Shamrocks and shenanigans. McDonald's unveils Shamrock Shake release date and "secret ingredient." |
💡 Daily insight 💡 |
| For potential entry-level homebuyers, the housing market has gotten worse over the last year. Inflation rose by 7% over the past year, its fastest pace in nearly 40 years, and mortgage rates continued to climb, putting affordability further out of reach for many. |
| Indeed, homes priced between $100,000 to $250,000 saw the volume of sales decrease by 23% in December 2021 compared with December of 2020, whereas homes sold in the over $1 million bracket went up by 38% in the same time period, according to data obtained from the National Association of Realtors by USA TODAY. |
| The data once again throws into sharp relief the divergent experiences of the haves and the have-nots that have defined much of the pandemic housing market. |
| There's plenty of buyer interest but no supply," says Lawrence Yun, the chief economist for NAR. "The wealthy have enjoyed record highs in the stock market and accumulated housing wealth and can afford high-priced homes." |
💵 Today's tax tip 💵 |
| Tax-deferred retirement account contributions reduce your taxable income for the year. That means that if you put $5,000 in a traditional IRA right now for the 2021 tax year, you'll reduce your 2021 taxable income by $5,000. |
| Open an IRA with any broker that interests you, and deposit some funds into the account. You can only contribute up to $6,000 to an IRA for 2021 or $7,000 if you're 50 or older. Make sure you do all of this before you file your taxes. If you wait until afterward, you'll have to submit an amended tax return to claim your credit. And no one wants to do their taxes twice. |
🎶 Mood music 🎶 |
| Today's gasoline-themed lyric marks Metallica's Mood Music debut with a song that has been known to show up in my workout playlists from time to time: "Fuel is pumping engines, burning hard, loose and clean. And I burn, churning my direction. Quench my thirst with gasoline." (BTW, if you haven't heard it yet, check out the "classy" version performed with the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra in 1999.) |
| Listen while you work: Remember, you can listen to this song and every track I've quoted in the newsletter in the Daily Money Mood Music playlist on Spotify. |
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