Abigail Barr

The U.S. Federal Reserve controls the money supply in the United States, and while it doesn’t actually print currency bills itself, it does determine how many bills are printed by the Treasury Department each year. Key Takeaways The U.S. Federal Reserve controls the supply of money in the U.S., and when it expands that supply…

It’s been a rocky road for gold miners in recent weeks, even though the gold futures contract is now trading just 100 points under March’s seven-year high above $1,700. A volatile mid-month shakeout dropped the yellow metal nearly 250 points in just six sessions, triggering huge gyrations in the broad family of gold mining stocks…

What Is Pull-Through Production? Pull-through production is a just-in-time (JIT) manufacturing strategy that sends an item into the production process at the point when a company receives an order for it. Pull-through production utilizes a pull system, a method for controlling the flow of resources through a system. Resources are pulled into the production pipeline only…

What Are Foreign Exchange Reserves? Foreign exchange reserves are assets held on reserve by a central bank in foreign currencies. These reserves are used to back liabilities and influence monetary policy. It includes any foreign money held by a central bank, such as the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank. Key Takeaways Foreign exchange reserves are assets…

What Is a Leverage Ratio? A leverage ratio is any one of several financial measurements that look at how much capital comes in the form of debt (loans) or assesses the ability of a company to meet its financial obligations. The leverage ratio category is important because companies rely on a mixture of equity and…

Experience Jen Smith has been a full-time personal finance writer since 2018. After growing up with no personal finance education at home or in school, Jen learned firsthand the value of increasing her income, becoming debt-free and investing for retirement. Since paying off $78,000 of debt in two years without a six-figure income she’s been teaching…