Today in Markets & Money: “Stable but Still Expensive”
Ethan Teng
Published August 26, 2025
1 min read
If you’ve ever stared at market numbers and thought, “Cool, but what do I actually do?” — you’re basically describing why an AI investing app exists. (Hi 👋, that’s what we’re building with Ask Linc.) Here’s today’s quick rundown:
🏷️ Inflation & Rates
CPI is 322.13 (core 328.66). Prices are still too high, but at least they’re not spiking anymore. Inflation expectations? Right around 2% long-term — aka boring stability.
💸 What this means for your wallet:
Groceries aren’t getting cheaper, but you can stop panic-hoarding Costco chicken.
💵 Treasury Yields
- 1-year: 3.87%
- 5-year: 3.76%
- 10-year: 4.26%
Flat curve = nothing scary, nothing thrilling.
💸 What this means for your wallet:
Stop letting your “high-yield” account trick you. Treasuries and CDs are still better for short-term cash.
📈 Stocks
The S&P 500 dipped -0.44% to 642.47. Daily high 645.29, low 642.35. Basically: market shrugged.
💸 What this means for your wallet:
Your 401(k) is fine. Don’t refresh the app for the tenth time today.
🏡 Mortgages & Housing
30-year fixed mortgage? Still 6.58%. Housing is like Whole Foods: overpriced, yet people still line up.
💸 What this means for your wallet:
Homebuyers get squeezed. Homeowners get smug. Nothing new.
🎤 Fed Watch
Fed Funds Rate: 4.33%. 10-year Treasury: 4.26%. That’s the market nodding at Powell: “Fine, we’ll believe you’ll keep rates high.”
💸 What this means for your wallet:
Borrowing = still expensive. Credit cards aren’t cutting you a break.
🧾 Bottom Line
Nothing’s crashing. Nothing’s booming. We’re in the “stable but still expensive” phase of the economy.
💡 Money Move of the Day
If you’ve got cash just sitting in a savings account under 4%, you’re losing money. Move it to Treasuries or a real high-yield account while rates are still solid.
👋 And this is where an AI investing app like Ask Linc comes in: it pulls in your real finances + today’s market data and answers the actual question — “So what should I do?”
Ask Linc–style Question of the Day:
👉 “If I’m saving for a down payment, should I park the money in Treasuries now or wait in case mortgage rates drop?”
That’s the kind of call ChatGPT can’t answer. But Linc can. Try it at asklinc.com.