By: Dr K C Gupta, YBB Personal Finance

SENTIMENTS

AAII Bull-Bear Spread -8.2% (below average). (Thursday-Wednesday)
$NYA50R, NYSE %Above 50-dMA 67.23% (positive)
$SPXA50R, SP500 %Above 50-dMA 67.20% (positive)
Delta MSI 66.4% (positive)
ICI Fund Allocations (Cumulative), 4/30/25
OEFs & ETFs: Stocks 59.51%, Hybrids 4.20%, Bonds 18.28%, M-Mkt 18.00%

INTEREST RATES

CME FedWatch
Cycle peak 5.25-5.50%
Current 4.25-4.50%
FOMC 7/30/25+ hold
FOMC 9/17/25+ cut

Treasury

T-Bills 3-mo yield 4.39%, 1-yr 4.07%; T-Notes 2-yr 3.90%, 5-yr 3.96%, 10-yr 4.38%; T-
Bonds 30-yr 4.89%;
TIPS/Real yields 5-yr 1.59%, 10-yr 2.05%, 30-yr 2.59%
FRNs Index 4.285%
US Savings I-Bonds, rate from 5/1/25 – 10/31/25 is 3.98% (previous 3.11%); the fixed
rate is 1.10%, the semiannual inflation is 1.43%.
For current banking rates, see www.depositaccounts.com/
Stable-Value (SV) Rates, 6/1/25
TIAA Traditional Annuity (Accumulation) Rates
Restricted RC 5.50%, RA 5.25%
Flexible RCP 4.75%, SRA 4.50%, IRA-101110+ 4.75%
TSP G Fund 4.50% (previous 4.250%).
Weekly ETFs INDA -0.26%, EPI -0.84%, INDH +0.43%, SPY -0.16%
The data above are as of Sunday preceding the publication date.

MARKETS

Israel-Iran skirmishes have continued for several days (June 12- ) with missiles, drones
& aerial bombings. Many lives have been lost & military & infrastructure targets have
been damaged. The US also joined the fight on 6/21/25 by bombing 3 nuclear sites in
Iran. Global stock & oil market reactions were pending.

Indian IPO market has cooled in 2025 following a record 2024. Some companies have
postponed their IPOs despite receiving the clearances from SEBI. But this a pause &
several high-profile IPOs are coming.
Indian securities & exchange regulator SEBI will limit weekly derivative contract expiries
to Tuesdays on NSE exchange & Thursdays on BSE exchange. This will replace
multiple expiries during the week. Previously, the SEBI restricted index derivative
contracts to one benchmark per exchange.

ECONOMY

G-7, June 15-17, was in Canada. Several guests were invited including India. President
Trump left the G-7 meeting late-Monday, 6/16/25, to attend to important matters, but the
US delegation remained. The remaining G-6 & guests were left scrambling on the
issues of trade, geopolitics, energy transitions & new technologies. Instead of a joint G-
7 communique, there were several broad statements & Chair’s (Canada) Summary.

SPECIAL TOPICS

Air India AI-171 Boeing 787-8 (Dreamliner) crashed after takeoff in Ahmedabad. Some
observations: a catastrophic dual-engine & electrical/hydraulics failure occurred
because RAT (air turbine-generator) was seen & heard. The landing gear remained
extended & wing flaps may have retracted prematurely. The fully loaded plane
took extra distance for takeoff on a hot day. The takeoff initially looked normal, but soon
the plane stalled & fell on a medical college campus. There was only 1 survivor who
walked away. Both black-boxes have been found; a damaged black box may be sent to
the US NTSB (DC).

COLLEGE 529 REVISITED

Many limitations or deficiencies of State 529s have been eliminated by various
modifications. But many people aren’t familiar with these changes.
A TIMELINE of favorable changes follows:
2008: Rollover of unused 529 (for college) to 529-ABLE (for disabled) was allowed up to
the annual exclusion amount (including contributions).
2010-15: Computer equipment & accessories became qualified educational expenses.
This provision started as temporary but became permanent.
2017: $10K/yr allowed for K-12 tuition at private schools.

2019:

Limited student loan payments were allowed – lifetime max $10K for the beneficiary;
also, additional $10K for each sibling of the beneficiary.
Apprenticeship/vocational training expenses became qualified expenses.

2022:

Limited Roth Rollovers – lifetime max $35K from 15+ year old 529 & balances that are
5+ years old can be rolled over up to the Roth IRA annual contribution limit.
Employer match (taxable) allowed for 529 contributions. Some states allow state tax
credits for 529 matches.
2024: Grandparent 529 penalty was removed – withdrawals no longer count as student’s income in
FAFSA forms. (Grandparent 529 are not included in FAFSA assets, only the
Parent 529)

OTHER 529 FEATURES

Tax-deferred growth & tax-free withdrawals for qualified expenses.
State 529s may have state tax incentives for residents. People can use any state 529.
529 assets are out of the estate except for some possible clawbacks.
5 years’ worth of annual exclusions can be contributed immediately to 529 (double for
couples). The Form 709 filing will be required.
UTMA assets can be transferred to a specially titled 529 (but reverse is not allowed); its
beneficiary cannot be changed as for regular 529.
For more information, see https://ybbpersonalfinance.proboards.com/