Investors Bet on Higher Rates as trade spat between U.S. and China could add to inflation pressures

By Chelsey Dulaney and Ben Eisen Investors are bracing for a period of consistently higher inflation, raising bets that the Federal Reserve will deliver a fourth interest-rate increase this year as an intensifying trade spat between the U.S. and China threatens to add to mounting price pressures.Federal-funds futures, which investors use to bet on central bank policy, on Thursday showed a roughly 60% chance that the Fed will raise rates at least four times this year, according to CME Group…

An Interesting News Week for Veterans

By Tom Philpott There were four notable news developments for military veterans in Washington DC this past week, potentially impacting: — How the Department of Veteran Affairs will be led over the next few years; — How the House will deepen it oversight role as VA fields a new electronic health record system; — Whether 90,000 “Blue Water” Navy and Marine Corps veterans of the Vietnam War gain eligibility for Agent Orange-related VA benefits, and — Whether millions more disabled…

Benefits basics: The VA loan program

Here’s some background on the VA loan program, which took shape near the end of World War II and has been used by millions of service members and veterans since then: Nearly 3 million have VA-backed loans at present, and more than 740,000 loans were taken out in fiscal 2017. What it is: The Veterans Affairs Department guarantees a percentage of an eligible beneficiaries home-purchase or home-refinance loan, allowing the lender to provide more favorable terms and often letting the…