Dear Reader,

As 2026 begins, the financial backdrop is still tight. The Federal Reserve cut rates again in December, but the minutes showed real division about how quickly officials can keep easing. That uncertainty matters because households don’t feel rate policy in theory—they feel it in monthly cash flow. In a Reuters report on the December minutes, the message was clear: future cuts are not automatic.

At the same time, everyday costs remain elevated. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported CPI running 2.7% higher than a year earlier as of November 2025, and the next CPI update arrives January 13, 2026.

So when subscriptions creep up, the squeeze is real—because they renew whether you used them or not.

I called it.

After declining EV sales and political controversies...

With Trump threatening to cancel key government contracts with Musk's companies...

And Tesla stock plunging 45% this year...

Tesla stock has just roared back to positive territory for the year.

I wasn't surprised.

In fact, I've been telling my readers for months this shocking comeback was inevitable.

Because while Wall Street panicked about car sales and political drama...

I knew Elon was quietly building something that would solve all of Tesla's “problems.”

I’m talking about a new AI breakthrough that will take artificial intelligence out of computer screens and manifest a 250x boom here in the real world.

That’s right.

Tesla's 45% rebound is just the beginning.

Because once this manifested AI breakthrough goes mainstream on January 29...

What’s coming next will mint more millionaires than we’ve ever seen before.

Click here to see why Tesla's shocking comeback is far from over.

Subscriptions are spending that hides in plain sight. One $8.99 charge is easy to ignore; ten of them become a second utility bill.

For investors, this means something practical: uncontrolled recurring spending forces bad decisions. It can push families to carry credit-card balances longer, delay saving, or dip into emergency funds—right when economic conditions are still uncertain.

And the pricing pressure is active. Investopedia tracked “streamflation” in late December, noting that multiple major services have raised prices recently and more increases are landing in early 2026.

The subscription economy isn’t just entertainment anymore. It’s software, cloud storage, delivery memberships, “premium” app tiers, and bundled packages that keep getting repackaged and repriced.

Deloitte’s 2025 Digital Media Trends findings show how quickly this adds up: surveyed U.S. consumers reported paying for about four streaming services totaling roughly $69 per month on average.

Regulators have noticed the traps, too. The FTC finalized a “click-to-cancel” rule conceptually aimed at making cancellations as easy as sign-ups, but a federal appeals court blocked it in 2025—meaning consumers still need to protect themselves the old-fashioned way: attention and discipline.

Here’s the annual subscription audit framework to run every January (and again in July):

In plain terms, subscriptions turn small decisions into permanent obligations. When money is tighter and prices are higher, the household that audits its cash flow wins—because cash flow discipline beats financial guesswork, every time.

Stay steady,

Kenneth Boyd

Author, Finance Writer, Former Investment Advisor & CPA