Day: June 4, 2024

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Seoul, South Korea — South Korea fully suspended an agreement meant to reduce tensions with North Korea, defense officials said Tuesday, allowing Seoul to resume all military activities along the inter-Korean border.

The decision, approved by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, is part of Seoul’s response after Pyongyang sent waves of balloons filled with trash and excrement over the South.

The decision frees South Korea to resume military drills, including live-fire exercises, along the border and near frontline islands. It also allows for the resumption of loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts into the North.

Inter-Korean tensions escalated last week after hundreds of North Korean balloons dropped garbage – and reportedly feces – on busy streets, in front of residences, and in other public areas across South Korea.

North Korea says its trash balloons were retaliation after a prominent, South Korea-based human rights activist, launched balloons carrying anti-North Korea pamphlets and Korean pop culture content into the North.

South Korea’s military said it has found nearly 1,000 “filth balloons,” which were sent in two separate waves. It says North Korea has also been blocking GPS signals in border areas.

In a statement Tuesday, South Korea’s military said the North’s actions “seriously threatened the safety of our people” and vowed to “firmly punish” any future provocations.

“The government has decided to suspend all of the ‘919 military agreements’ so that our military is no longer restricted in their activities to protect the lives and property of the people,” the statement said.

“Responsibility for this situation lies entirely with the North Korean regime,” it added, without specifying which military activities would resume along the border or when.

South Korean media report that officials may resume loudspeaker broadcasts, which contain criticism of North Korea’s human rights record and forms of entertainment forbidden in the North.

North Korea is governed by a third-generation hereditary dictatorship that views virtually all outside information as an existential threat. Pyongyang has promised to halt its trash balloon launches as long as no anti-Pyongyang materials are sent northward.

But Park Sang-hak, the North Korean defector activist who heads a group called Fighters for a Free North Korea, vowed to continue sending his balloons unless North Korean leader Kim Jong Un apologizes for his “evil acts.”

“If you do not apologize, we will retaliate a thousand times – ten thousand times – more than what you have done,” Park said in a statement.

South Korean officials have at times argued that they cannot stop every individual from sending leaflets into the North. Their ability to regulate such launches was further hampered in September, when the country’s Constitutional Court struck down a law banning such launches.

The developments appear to put both Koreas on a path to escalation, said Chad O’Carroll, the Seoul-based founder of NK News, a website focused on North Korea.

According to O’Carroll, North Korea appears determined to coerce South Korea into stopping the northward launches.

“Outside information is really ideological contamination, it’s like a cancer. It’s a serious Achilles heel for Kim Jong Un,” he said. “And I think this latest action is a function of that hypersensitivity.”

If South Korea were to resume propaganda broadcasts, that could prompt an even firmer response by the North, O’Carroll said, citing a 2015 incident in which North Korea fired a projectile toward a South Korean loudspeaker.

“If they do that, we could see a greater chance for North Korea to consider some limited form of kinetic military action to stop loudspeakers or to stop the growth of this unofficial information coming into the North.”

In 2018, the two Koreas agreed to stop a wide range of border provocations, including military drills and propaganda broadcasts. However, that deal, known as the Comprehensive Military Agreement, has been eroding for years.

Most notably, North Korea in late 2022 sent five small reconnaissance drones across the border, with one making it all the way to the northern edge of the capital, Seoul.

After the North successfully placed its first spy satellite into orbit in November, South Korea stepped away from parts of the agreement. In return, Pyongyang said it would never be bound by the deal.

The CMA was perhaps the most concrete outcome of the 2018-19 diplomacy between the two Koreas, which saw three meetings between Kim and his then South Korean counterpart, President Moon Jae-in.

The conservative Yoon has expressed disdain for the agreement, slamming what he calls the “fake peace” initiative of his liberal predecessor.

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Though they spiked up near 7% last week, 30-year mortgage rates have inched down in recent days, according to Zillow data. Rates first dipped following the release of data showing that inflation slowed very slightly on a monthly basis in April. 

On Friday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the core personal consumption expenditures price index, the Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation, rose 0.2% in April. This is down from March’s 0.3% reading. 

But inflation is still relatively high, which means the Fed is unlikely to lower the federal funds rate any time soon. Mortgages and other consumer rates are often indirectly impacted by changes to the Fed’s benchmark rate. Once the Fed is able to start lowering rates, mortgage rates are expected to fall.

In the near term, borrowers should expect mortgage rates to remain near their current levels. If you’re currently in the market to buy a home, getting quotes from multiple mortgage lenders can help you find the lowest rate available and improve affordability, even in this high-rate environment.

Today’s mortgage rates

Today’s refinance rates

Mortgage Calculator

Use our free mortgage calculator to see how today’s interest rates will affect your monthly payments:

By clicking on “More details,” you’ll also see how much you’ll pay over the entire length of your mortgage, including how much goes toward the principal vs. interest.

Mortgage Rate Projection for 2024

Mortgage rates started ticking up from historic lows in the second half of 2021 and increased dramatically in 2022 and throughout most of 2023.

Many forecasts expect rates to fall this year now that inflation has been coming down. In the last 12 months, the Consumer Price Index rose by 3.4%. This is a significant slowdown compared when it peaked at 9.1% in 2022, but we’ll likely need to see more slowing before rates can drop substantially.

For homeowners looking to leverage their home’s value to cover a big purchase — such as a home renovation — a home equity line of credit (HELOC) may be a good option while we wait for mortgage rates to ease. Check out some of our best HELOC lenders to start your search for the right loan for you.

A HELOC is a line of credit that lets you borrow against the equity in your home. It works similarly to a credit card in that you borrow what you need rather than getting the full amount you’re borrowing in a lump sum. It also lets you tap into the money you have in your home without replacing your entire mortgage, like you’d do with a cash-out refinance.

Current HELOC rates are relatively low compared to other loan options, including credit cards and personal loans. 

When Will House Prices Come Down?

We aren’t likely to see home prices drop this year. In fact, they’ll probably rise.

Fannie Mae researchers expect prices to increase 4.8% in 2024 and 1.5% in 2025, while the Mortgage Bankers Association expects a 4.3% increase in 2024 and a 3.3% increase in 2024.

Sky high mortgage rates have pushed many hopeful buyers out of the market, slowing homebuying demand and putting downward pressure on home prices. But rates have since eased, removing some of that pressure. The current supply of homes is also historically low, which will likely push prices up.

What Happens to House Prices in a Recession?

House prices usually drop during a recession, but not always. When it does happen, it’s generally because fewer people can afford to purchase homes, and the low demand forces sellers to lower their prices.

How Much Mortgage Can I Afford?

A mortgage calculator like the one above can help you determine how much house you can afford. Play around with different home prices and down payment amounts to see how much your monthly payment could be, and think about how that fits in with your overall budget.

Typically, experts recommend spending no more than 28% of your gross monthly income on housing expenses. This means your entire monthly mortgage payment, including taxes and insurance, shouldn’t exceed 28% of your pre-tax monthly income.

The lower your rate, the more you’ll be able to borrow, so shop around and get preapproved with multiple mortgage lenders to see who can offer you the best rate. But remember not to borrow more than what your budget can comfortably handle.

For Joan Breibart what’s important is for people to find an exercise program that gets them to know their body better.

Courtesy of Joan Breibart

• Joan Breibart has been doing pilates since the 1960s.
• She’s 83, and still uses the reformer a few times a week.
• She says each person needs to grow their understanding about their body.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Joan Breibart, president and founder of The Physical Mind Institute. It has been edited for length and clarity.

When I started taking Pilates no one thought about diet or exercise. There was no talk about “wellness” or “practices.” Everyone just ate food without having heard of a calorie or a carbohydrate. Sometimes, we would smoke cigarettes in the Pilates studio and go for martinis afterward.

That was in the 1960s. I was working in publishing in a role that today would be called an executive assistant. Back then, I was called a gopher. I was mostly sent to the library to find information on whatever the editors needed since we couldn’t just look it up online.

One day in the library, I found a Life magazine article about Joseph Pilates, the man who founded the movement we’ve all tried or at least laughed about. There was something so intriguing about what he was doing that I knew I would find a way to try it.

My body transformed

Growing up, my father always told me I was related to the strong men of Europe. My ancestor, Sische Breitbart, was deemed the world’s strongest man in the 1920s and became a folk hero. But in the 1960s, most women didn’t want to sweat. I had run around in gym class or at camp but never really exercised.

I found a Pilates studio near my Manhattan home. The woman who ran it demanded we attend at least twice a week. That was quite expensive for me back then, but I enjoyed the classes. Within six weeks, my body transformed. I felt stronger and more trim.

In the 60 years since then I’ve tried all sorts of exercise, from Peloton to barre to Crossfit. I’ve learned that you can never repeat the transformation that you had at first when you were a virgin exerciser. Sure, you’ll continue to gain strength and functionality, but there’s nothing like that initial physical change. Since you can’t rely on dramatic physical changes long term, you need something else to motivate you.

People became disillusioned with exercise

I was motivated to continue with Pilates because I found it intellectually engaging. Lots of exercise bored me.

In 1987, after the stock market crash, I left New York and moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico. Back then, no one was doing that. I thought I would never see another reformer, the machine Joseph Pilates invented and on which Pilates takes place, as long as I lived. Yet, a few years later, I found a studio and was back in action.

Joan Breibart teaching a Pilates class

Courtesy of Joan Breibart

In the early 90s, the nation’s attitudes toward health and fitness had changed. People had gone through the low-fat and aerobics craze, but many of them still looked and felt the same. That’s when interest in Pilates started to take off. I began the Physical Mind Institute, then called the Institute for Pilates Certification, to train teachers and meet demand.

I think we’re at a similar moment now — with the rejection of diet culture and the fascination with Ozempic and similar drugs. These 60 years of body obsession have done nothing but make people feel guilty, which isn’t healthy.

Lots of people now are looking for a better answer. Pilates isn’t it for everyone — although it has been the answer for me through aging, cancer, and chemotherapy. Attending pilates classes you dread might make for a good comedy skit, but it won’t help you change your body. All that stress hormone flowing through your body can’t be good for anything.

What’s most important is that people find an exercise program that lets them get to know their bodies. When you are an expert on your body, you can treat it well and take care of it. I know exactly how to move when my knee gets stiff while I’m watching an opera performance or when my back feels too tight.

You’re the ultimate expert on yourself. You only get one body, and it’s yours to discover.

GameStop shares have soared and plunged ever since trader Keith Gill, known online as “Roaring Kitty,” broke his three-year-long silence on social media last month.

House Committee on Financial Services/Handout via Reuters; Joe Raedle via Getty Images

• Keith Gill, better known as Roaring Kitty, kickstarted the meme stock movement back in 2021. 
• But the 37-year-old trader vanished from the public eye abruptly three years ago.
• That was, until last month, when his sudden reemergence sent GameStop shares into a frenzy.

Memes, video clips, and Reddit posts.

That’s all it took for trader Keith Gill, known as Roaring Kitty, to send GameStop share prices soaring and plunging in the past few weeks.

Gill, 37, first grabbed headlines in 2021 when his evangelical zeal for GameStop shares triggered a short squeeze. The former CFA charter holder even had to testify to Congress in February 2021 for his role in the meme stock saga.

But Gill vanished from the public eye just months later when he posted his last YouTube video in April 2021.

That was until last month, when his sudden reemergence on X, formerly Twitter, sent GameStop share prices on a roller coaster ride.

Here’s how Gill’s bizarre social media antics have upended the stock market over the years.

“I like the stock”

Gill initially invested $53,000 of his life savings into GameStop, a video game retailer, in 2019.

Ben Gilbert/Business Insider

Gill is widely credited for sparking the meme stock craze three years ago.

The former MassMutual financial analyst started posting his bets and analyses on GameStop on Reddit’s WallStreetBets forum under the username “DeepFuckingValue” in 2019.

His online activity would later expand to YouTube, where he built an online following with his “Roaring Kitty” persona. Gill uploaded 84 videos and livestreams on his YouTube channel from July 2020 to April 2021 and has over 600,000 subscribers as of press time.

It is unclear how much money Gill made from his GameStop play.

Gill initially invested $53,000 of his life savings into GameStop in 2019. At the time, the video game retailer’s stock was hovering around $5 per share. The share price would eventually peak at $483 in January 2021.

Gill’s unabashed support for GameStop shares turned him into a hero among Reddit users, who saw him as a modern-day David going up against the Goliath-like hedge funds shorting the stock.

In February 2021, Gill testified before the House Financial Services Committee about the meme stock saga. In his testimony, Gill defended his social media activity and said he used only publicly available information to trade.

“The idea that I use social media to promote GameStop stock to unwitting investors and influence the market is preposterous,” Gill said. “My posts did not cause the movement of billions of dollars into GameStop shares.”

“As for me, I like the stock. I’m as bullish as I’ve ever been at a potential turnaround for GameStop, and I remain invested in the company,” Gill concluded.

Roaring Kitty is back

“The idea that I use social media to promote GameStop stock to unwitting investors and influence the market is preposterous,” Keith Gill told Congress in February 2021.

Roaring Kitty

Gill would retreat from public life just months after he testified to Congress. Besides ceasing his online activity, he left his job at MassMutual, per Reuters.

Gill, however, broke his three-year-long silence on social media last month when he posted a sketch of a man leaning forward in his chair on X.

The X post, published on May 12, caused GameStop share prices to skyrocket to 82% the following day.

Interestingly, Gill’s post didn’t contain a direct call for his followers to buy GameStop shares, though the man in the sketch does seem to be clutching what looks like a game controller.

Nonetheless, the post’s cryptic message was enough to galvanize Gill’s fans and supporters, who were quick to focus on his favorite stock.

“Roaringkitty is back,” the WallStreetBets subreddit said in an X post on May 12.

Memes, clips, and Reddit posts

Since coming back online, Gill has been a prolific user of X, sometimes making multiple posts daily. The trader’s posts have been coming in at a frenetic pace and seem to lack much cohesion.

For instance, Gill has posted edited clips from movies like the Wachowskis’ “The Matrix” and Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill.”

On top of clips, Gill has riffed on memes — like on May 17, when he superimposed a tired-looking Ben Affleck taking a smoke in front of a GameStop store.

Aside from drawing in retail investors, Gill’s antics caught the attention of presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

The 70-year-old revealed on May 21 that he’d bought $24,000 worth of GameStop stock to support the meme stock movement.

“We need a free and fair market. Let’s punish predatory short selling to the moon,” Kennedy wrote in his X post. “By the way, I ride with you and I’m not leaving.” 

But Gill wasn’t done just yet. On June 2, he returned to Reddit where he appeared to disclose a $116 million GameStop position.

He later made a follow-up post, saying that his stake had grown to $140 million. He then posted a picture of a Uno reverse card on X on the same day.

Gill’s recent uptick in social media activity appears to have piqued the interest of regulators and financial institutions, who may be concerned about possible market manipulation.

On Monday, The Wall Street Journal reported that Gill could get barred from Morgan Stanley’s electronic trading platform, E*Trade.

A spokeswoman for the Massachusetts securities division told The Journal that they were also investigating Gill’s activities.

Representatives for Gill and GameStop didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment from Business Insider sent outside regular business hours.