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After two years of declines, United States greenhouse gas emissions increased in 2025a change driven by increased electricity use, due in part to data centers and cryptocurrency mining, as well as cold winter temperatures that meant homes required more heating. Emissions increased 2.4% in 2025, according to preliminary data from the research firm Rhodium Group. Thats higher than the countrys GDP growth, which increased by a projected 1.9%. That the countrys emissions grew more than its GDP is notable: Climate experts have long noted that its both possible and necessary to reduce emissions while still growing the economy. And for the past few years, the U.S. has done just that. (Multiple states have also individually reduced their emissions while growing their economies.) Now, though, 2025 has broken a three-year trend in which the economys growth outpaced our emissions growth. Heating, data centers, and crypto mining The main drivers of this emissions increase came from the buildings and power sectors. Colder temperatures meant more homes had to rely on natural gas and coal for heating. The winter of 2025 specifically led to increased direct combustion of these fuels in buildings, driving up emissions by 56 million metric tons, or 6.8%, compared to 2024, per Rhodium. Coal generation grew 13% compared to the year prior, making 2025 just the second year in the past decade in which coal generation increased. (Since its peak in 2007, coal generation has shrunk by 64%.) Coal use grew in part because natural gas prices increased. Utility companies also delayed planned retirements for coal plants in order to meet a growing demand for power, and due to Department of Energy orders. At the same time, electricity use increased. Total electricity generation grew 2.4% in 2025, mostly because of commercial buildings where data centers, cryptocurrency mining operations, and other large load customers drove electricity demand, according to Rhodium. The surge in electricity demand comes as AI has fueled a boom in data center construction. (Rhodium’s report also notes that investments in artificial intelligence infrastructure were a major source of U.S. economic growth, as well.) While transportation is responsible for the highest share of emissions, that sector only saw a 0.1% growth in greenhouse gases compared to 2024. Road traffic actually increased, but the growing share of battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids on the road meant gas consumption declined. How Trump policies could impact emissions Though U.S. emissions increased in 2025, theyre still below pre-pandemic levels6% below 2019s emissions, and 18% below 2005s emissions. But Trump administration policies could mean greenhouse gas emissions grow even more. The Trump administration has already made efforts to curtail climate progress, bolstering the use of fossil fuels, canceling clean energy products, and removing federal tax incentives that would get more people to buy EVs or other energy efficient technologies. Despite those efforts, which began as soon as Trump took office in January for his second presidential term, the emissions growth in 2025 wasnt really impacted by recent Trump or congressional policies, Rhodium says. Apart from some modest contributions to increased coal generation from Department of Energy orders to keep a few plants running, we arent yet seeing the direct effects of these policy changes in U.S. emissions, the report reads. That could change in the next year or two, though, the researchers note, particularly if data center electricity demand continues to surge and the grid responds with more output from existing fossil generators instead of new, clean resources.
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Never skip leg day sounds like something a swole gym bro with killer quads might harp on about. But doctors also sing the praises of lunges and split bench squats, and not for the reason you might think. In a recent article for Vogue, California-based physician Dr. Chris Renna said: Stronger leg muscles are linked to better cognitive function in aging mainly through their effects on blood flow, metabolic health, brain structure, and physical/social activity patterns. Muscle mass starts to decline at age 30. As the largest muscle group in the body, maintaining muscle strength in the thighs and glutes is especially important for healthy agingand apparently, brain function. Multiple studies back this up. A 2015 study of over 300 female twins, ages 43 to 73, found the more powerful their legs (measured by pushing one foot as hard and fast as possible against a pedal), the better their cognition a decade on (measured by a series of tests on memory and processing speed). Another study of 1,500 older adults, with an average age of 70, conducted in 2018, also found an association between stronger legs and better performance on tests of their cognitive function. A separate study also in 2018, this time conducted on mice, found exercising the lower extremities to be critical to brain and nervous system health. Researchers discovered that neurological health depends as much on signals sent from the leg muscles to the brain as it does the other way around. This offers an explanation for why patients with neurological diseases experience rapid decline once their movement becomes limited. It is no accident that we are meant to be active: to walk, run, crouch to sit, and use our leg muscles to lift things, the studys author, Dr. Raffaella Adami, told academic journals publisher Frontiers. Neurological health is not a one-way street with the brain telling the muscles lift, walk, and so on. The brain-leg connection can be explained by tiny proteins called myokines. When the leg muscles are exercised, they release these messenger molecules, which reach the brain via the bloodstream. Here, they support learning ability, memory, and neural adaptation, the process by which the nervous system adjusts and improves its functioning. A simple leg day session that includes weight-bearing exercises like lunges, squats, and calf raises will not only improve physical strength. By increasing blood flow, the brain floods with extra oxygen, helping to decrease harmful inflammation in the body. If youve been known to skip squats or lunges at the gym, it doesnt help that modern life is, for many, characterized by a concerning lack of movement. Commuting to work to sit at a desk for hours, before commuting home again to sit some more on the couch, means our legs often arent getting the regular exercise they need to keep our brain working optimally. So drop some squats in front of some Netflix or while listening to a podcast. Your glutes wont be the only part of your body that thanks you.
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China’s trade surplus surged to a record of almost $1.2 trillion in 2025, the government said Wednesday, as exports to other countries made up for slowing shipments to the U.S. under President Donald Trump’s onslaught of higher tariffs.China’s exports rose 5.5% for the whole of last year to $3.77 trillion, customs data showed, as Chinese automakers and other manufacturers expanded into markets across the globe. Imports flatlined at $2.58 trillion. The 2024 trade surplus was over $992 billion.In December, China’s exports climbed 6.6% from the year before in dollar terms, better than economists’ estimates and higher than November’s 5.9% year-on-year increase. Imports in December were up 5.7% year-on-year, compared to November’s 1.9%.China’s trade surplus surpassed the $1 trillion mark for the first time in November, when the trade surplus reached $1.08 trillion in the first 11 months of last year.Economists expect exports will continue to support China’s economy this year, despite trade friction and geopolitical tensions.“We continue to expect exports to act as a big growth driver in 2026,” said Jacqueline Rong, chief China economist at BNP Paribas.While China’s exports to the U.S. fell sharply after Trump returned to office and escalated his trade war with the world’s second-largest economy, that decline has been largely offset by shipments to other markets in South America, Southeast Asia, Africa and Europe.For the whole of 2025, China’s exports to the U.S. fell 20%. In contrast, exports to Africa surged 26%. Those to Southeast Asian countries jumped 13%; to the European Union 8%, and to Latin America, 7%.Strong global demand for computer chips and other devices and the materials needed to make them were among categories that supported China’s exports, analysts said.Exports of electronics and electrical equipment were by far the largest export category, rising 8.4% from a year earlier.Car exports also grew last year. Auto exports surged 21% in 2025 to more than 7 million units, driven by electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, an industry group, on Wednesday.China also exported more grain and fertilizer, while its sales of furniture, shoes and other labor intensive products fell.Strong exports have helped keep China’s economy growing at an annual rate close to its official target of about 5%. That has triggered alarm in countries that fear a flood of cheap imports is damaging local industries.China faces a “severe and complex” external trade environment in 2026, Wang Jun, vice minister of China’s customs administration, told reporters in Beijing. But he said China’s “foreign trade fundamentals remain solid.”The head of the International Monetary Fund last month called for China to fix its economic imbalances and speed up its shift from reliance on exports by boosting domestic demand and investment.A prolonged property downturn in China after the authorities cracked down on excessive borrowing, triggering defaults by many developers, is still weighing on consumer confidence and domestic demand.China’s leaders have made increasing spending by consumers and businesses a focus of economic policy, but actions taken so far have had a limited impact. That included government trade-in subsidies over the past months that encouraged consumers to buy newer, more energy efficient items, such as home appliances and vehicles.“We expect domestic demand growth to stay tepid,” said Rong of BNP Paribas. “In fact, the policy boost to domestic demand looks weaker than last year — in particular the fiscal subsidy program for consumer goods.”In the case of autos, domestic sales rose 6% in 2025, but they fell back toward the end of the year as those subsidies were scaled back or phased out in some areas.Gary Ng, a senior economist at French investment bank Natixis, forecasts that China’s exports will grow about 3% in 2026, less than the 5.5% growth in 2025. With slow import growth, he expects China’s trade surplus to remain above $1 trillion this year. Chan Ho-Him, AP Business Writer
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A GoFundMe page is raising thousands to support a worker at the Ford Rouge Plant in Dearborn, Michigan, after he openly criticized President Trumpto his face. The worker, identified in media reports as TJ Sabula, heckled Trump while he was visiting the plant on January 13. In a video obtained by TMZ, Sabula can be heard calling the president a “pedophile protector.” In response, the president can be seen mouthing an expletive and telling Sabula “you’re fired” before flipping him off. Ford reportedly didnt hesitate to act, with the automotive giant immediately suspending Sabula, according to the Wall Street Journal. Fast Company reached out to Ford for comment. Predictably, and almost just as fast, a GoFundMe page was launched in support of Sabula. “TJ is a father of two young children, husband, and is a proud United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 600 line worker,” the page reads. “Funds donated will support TJ and his family to cover expenses during this time of uncertainty.” At present, the fundraising page, which has only been live for about 11 hours, has raised more than $90,000. Given that GoFundMe and other crowdfunding platforms are increasingly relied upon to help people going through financial challengessometimes spurred by political eventsit’s not the first time the site has made headlines recently. Less than a week ago, after 37-year-old Renee Good was shot by an ICE agent in her neighborhood, a fundraiser was launched to support her family. The page has amassed over $1.5 million. Additionally, a page for Jonathan Ross, the ICE agent who shot and killed Good, was also created. That page has raised $700,000 at present, including a $10,000 donation from billionaire Bill Ackman. Fast Company has reached out to GoFundMe to ask if it has verified the campaign for Sabula. Engine troubles Sabula’s suspension is not terribly surprising. While Ford Motor CEO Jim Farley and the president have had a complicated relationship at times, Farley has also expressed optimism about Trump’s second term. He joined President Trump in December when he announced a proposal to slash Biden-era fuel economy standards. Ford also donated $1 million in cash and a fleet of vehicles to the president’s January 2025 inauguration. Following his suspension, Sabula told The Washington Post that he has “no regrets whatsoever” about heckling the president. He added that Trump was only standing about 60 feet away and heard him “very, very, very clearly.”
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If you’d like to do a thorough review of your portfolio and plan, here are the key steps to take. I recommend doing them over a series of sessions, not all at once. Step 1: Gather your documentation This could be your current investment statements, plus Social Security and pension. Pro tip: Set up a My Social Security account to get an overview of your benefits and earnings history. Step 2: Ask and answer: How am I doing? To find out if you’re on track to reach your financial goals, review your current portfolio balance, combined with your savings rate. Tally your contributions across all accounts. A decent baseline savings rate is 15%, but higher-income folks will want to aim for 20% or more.Also factor in other goals you’d like to achieve, such as college funding or a home down payment. Are they realistic? Make sure you’re not giving short shrift to retirement.If you’re retired or about to be, the key gauge of the viability of your total plan is your withdrawal rateyour planned portfolio withdrawals divided by your total portfolio balance. The 4% guideline is a good starting point, but aim for less if you can. Step 3: Check up on your long-term asset allocation Does your total portfolio’s mix of stocks, bonds, and cash match your targets? High-quality target-date series such as those from Vanguard and BlackRock’s LifePath Index Series can help benchmark asset allocation. My model portfolios can also help.A portfolio that tilts mostly or even entirely toward stocks makes sense for younger investors.If your portfolio is notably equity-heavy and you’re within 10 years of retirement, shifting to bonds and cash is more urgent. Just mind the tax consequences when you rebalance. Step 4: Assess liquid reserves Holding some cash is crucial to ensure you don’t have to tap your investments or resort to credit cards in a financial crunch.For retired people, I recommend holding six months to two years worth of portfolio withdrawals in cash investments.For those still working, holding three to six months’ worth of living expenses in cash is a good starting point. Step 5: Assess suballocations, sector positioning, and holdings Your broad asset-class exposure largely determines how your portfolio behaves. But your positioning within each asset class also deserves a look. Market strength has recently broadened, but growth stocks and funds that own them have outpaced value by a wide margin over the past decade.Finally, check up on your sector positioning, allocation to foreign stocks, and actual holdings. Step 6: Identify opportunities to streamline Why have scores of accounts and holdings if a more compact portfolio could do the job just as well?If you’ve changed jobs, you may have multiple 401(k)s and rollover IRAs. Consider consolidating into a single IRA. If you have several small cash accounts, you may be losing out on a (slightly) higher yield.Could you reduce the number of holdings in your portfolios? Index funds and ETFs provide pure asset-class exposure and a lot of diversification in a single package. I also like target-date funds for smaller accounts to provide diversification without any maintenance obligations. Step 7: Manage for tax efficiency At this point, if you think changes are in order, be sure to take tax and transaction costs into account. Focus any selling in your tax-sheltered accounts, where you won’t incur tax costs and you can usually avoid transaction costs, too. Within your taxable accounts, review the tax implications and/or get tax advice before executing trades.Also review whether you’re managing your portfolio with an eye toward tax efficiency. Are you making contributions to your tax-sheltered vehicles? Are your taxable accounts as tax-efficient as possible? For a lot of people, this is as simple as holding equity ETFs and/or municipal bonds and bond funds for their taxable accounts. Finally, think about tax-efficient withdrawal sequencing. Step 8: Troubleshoot other risk factors Uninsured long-term-care risk is a significant factor for those who are neither well off nor eligible for Medicaid. Develop a plan in case you have sizable long-term-care outlays later in life.Another common risk factor is providing help to loved ones. In this case, it’s often helpful to talk to a financial advisor and/or estate planner to figure out how you can help without jeopardizing your financial future. This article was provided to The Associated Press by Morningstar. For more personal finance content, go to https://www.morningstar.com/personal-finance.Christine Benz is director of personal finance and retirement planning for Morningstar.Related Links 5 Smart Ways to Diversify Your Portfolio for 2026https://www.morningstar.com/portfolios/5-smart-ways-diversify-your-portfolio-2026 8 Reasons You Might Need to Tweak Your Portfoliohttps://www.morningstar.com/portfolios/8-reasons-you-might-need-tweak-your-portfolio An Investing Guide for Every Life Stagehttps://www.morningstar.com/personal-finance/an-investing-guide-every-life-stage Christine Benz of Morningstar
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