What Inflation Means for Social Security

Plus: Investing in the Suez Canal Blockage You are receiving this limited-time email resource as a subscriber to Kiplinger's free e-newsletters. To unsubscribe at any time, simply click the link in the footer below. MARCH 26, 2021 [View in browser]( HOW TO PROTECT AND GROW YOUR BUSINESS AND INVESTMENTS NOW With Congress passing trillions of dollars in new spending and the Federal Reserve keeping interest rates near zero, talk of inflation is heating up. The staff of The Kiplinger Letter is projecting that the headline inflation rate will finish this year around 2.5%, after coming in at only 1.4% at the end of 2020, when the pandemic kept the prices of many goods and services low. Chances are some months this year will show prices rising even faster, at 3% or more. Rising prices eat into the purchasing power of the cash in your bank account, unfortunately. But for seniors who depend heavily on Social Security, there is one small silver lining to stronger inflation: The Social Security Administration will likely grant a larger cost of living adjustment next year. The Kiplinger Letter [forecasts]( that next year’s COLA, which will be made in January of 2022, will come in at about 3%. This year’s increase, by contrast, was just 1.3%. --------------------------------------------------------------- SPONSORED CONTENT FROM DAILY PNUT [Daily News in a Nutshell]( Daily Pnut (pronounced “peanut”) is the easiest way to filter out the noise and learn more about the world news that matters. Join over 250,000 readers and get entertained and educated. [Sign up for free.]( [READ MORE]( --------------------------------------------------------------- Can you make a buck from a sideways boat? Perhaps you’ve been keeping up with one of the odder global headlines of late: A 224,000-ton container vessel turned sideways and ran aground in Egypt’s Suez Canal, [and has been stuck that way for days]( creating a logjam in a passageway that accounts for 12% of global trade. Shipping data firm Lloyd’s List says the blockage is holding up around $400 million in trade for each hour it persists. That’s difficult news for a number of markets, notably crude oil, but KBW analyst Michael Brown has found one area of opportunity for investors. “Broadly speaking, disruption to containerized trade is a net positive for the container lessors as it drives a need to add containers to global shipping fleets to address shortfalls from the disruptive event,” he says. “This is common across all forms of disruption, including weather, labor strikes, and regulatory changes (example: the shift from solvent-based paints to waterborne paints for containers).” At the moment, he is reiterating his Overweight rating on a group of prominent lessors: Triton International ([TRTN]( Textainer Group ([TGH]( and CAI International ([CAI](. Just be warned that this can be a volatile industry over time. Free download, [The Kiplinger Letter's Forecast](. No information required from you. SPONSORED CONTENT FROM SMARTASSET [Find the Right Financial Advisor for You]( Ready to kick your retirement plan into high gear? Compare fiduciary financial advisors in your area. [READ MORE]( RELATED LINKS [Best Airline Stocks to Buy as the Industry Takes Off Again]( [22 IRS Audit Red Flags]( [Medicare Basics: 11 Things You Need to Know]( [Tap Home Equity for Extra Income]( [Get Kiplinger's Free Tax Tips E-Newsletter to Claim Every Tax Break You're Entitled to on Your 2020 Return]( [Kiplinger] [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [LinkedIn]( Send this to a friend. [Click here.]( All content ©2021 The Kiplinger Washington Editors 1100 13th Street, NW, Suite 1000 Washington, D.C. 20005 Thank you for subscribing to Kiplinger's A Step Ahead, a free resource to help readers navigate the economic recovery from COVID-19. If you ever wish to stop receiving this service, please [click here to unsubscribe](.