OPINION: Interest rates drop as challenging economy provokes adjustments upturn

Feb 1, 2026

KEVIN KAMEN
President/CEO | Kamen & Co. Group Services LLC

As Presidents Day nears, the Federal Reserve is back to cutting interest rates and a change in direction for most business folks is in order, particularly those within the multimedia, entertainment and digital sphere. In late 2025, the Feds reduced its policy rate another 25 basis points to the range of 3.5- 3.75%.

Stocks were little changed with this announcement, as was projected. With Greenland a major topic of concern to the investment community and tariffs being contemplated by the U.S. Supreme Court in the coming months, it is now time to take decisive action as a media executive, have a winning game plan and build a sustainable organization that can stand up to lower interest rates and a challenging economy. A weakening labor and housing market helped cause this cut. Inflation is at 2.7%, stable but below forecasts projected last fall.

The topic of the day seems to be Greenland, the world’s largest island, located between the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, northeast of Canada and northwest of Iceland — technically part of North America but politically a territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. This year, the global economy will absolutely play a role in the U.S. economy. Therefore, keep an eye on your expense line and go about your daily business. Work to build advertising lineage; revenue production and hammer away at creativity; think pragmatically, dealing sensibly, realistically and focusing on practical results; be flexible.

Events, webinars, podcasts, social media and a strong circulation base will be vital as you reposition your publishing portfolio. What you produce for readership online is more consequential now than in the past. Become creative when streamlining your operational expenses and payroll. Ingenuity is always necessary in challenging times.

Heating your offices, paying your auto and housing insurance and buying food are expensive. Home heating fuel is more than $3.90 per gallon in much of the Northeast. Be smart, prudent and diligent in dealing with your operational expenses. Shop around for better print, distribution and office space pricing. In professional sports, teams are constantly adjusting rosters and eliminating expenses wherever possible, unless you are the LA Dodgers of Major League Baseball with a projected $413M payroll. Examine your staffing responsibilities and overall expenses. Eliminate excess payroll. If you own a home, consider investing in additional insulation. With your media entity, take sensible precautions to insulate your business from fraud, waste and any ridiculous spending. We can’t all be the LA Dodgers.

Mortgage rates are still too high. Israel and Hamas have recently agreed to end their war, and Ukraine and Russia are bombing one another with no end in sight, as Putin continues to be the aggressor. China and Taiwan are staring down on one another. In 2025, Pakistan and India, fortunately, agreed on ending a potentially devastating war.

The world is challenging and fragile, to say the least, and I hope that peace will be negotiated soon between all parties and life will not be destroyed across the globe. Clearly, tariffs and their threat of execution have had an impact across the universe and played havoc with the stock market, but they will eventually sort themselves out, as has been proven in the past.

As mentioned before, the U.S. Supreme Court will soon decide on the legitimacy of these presidentially mandated tariffs. Operating a publishing business remains expensive, and borrowing money to expand or upgrade a media entity is still cost-prohibitive. I shop at Walmart and other popular business establishments, and everything seems to have increased in cost. We are each being impacted by the economy with escalating price increases. Taking measures to cut expenses is required right now.

Insurance rates are too high, and property taxes are escalating. Something needs to happen in the way of an adjustment. The cost of a college education annually at Gettysburg College in Pennsylvania is $81,960; at Boston University in Massachusetts, it averages to be $86,363; at Arizona State University, it is $33,270; and at Clemson University in South Carolina, it is $35,338. This is nearly cost-prohibitive and must be addressed. Education is expensive because of several factors, and our future depends upon it. Our youth need to receive a college diploma and must become highly trained and skilled to help take us to new heights. We all must do what we can to make this world and nation a better place to live — and more cost-effective for people of all backgrounds and ages.

There is so much happening within the financial markets at present, and it will impact each of us, particularly the multimedia sector. Inflation refers to the rise in prices of goods and services over a span of time, which ultimately reduces the purchasing power of the dollar. The inflation rate is the percentage that describes how quickly these prices are rising. The U.S. nominal GDP is $31.095 T. This is an 8.24% annualized increase from the first quarter of 2025. This is the total value of all financial goods and services produced within the boundaries of the U.S., measured at current market prices.

Frankly, you might want to contemplate selling your business at this time or, at a minimum, investing your money in discovering the real value of your publication. It could be an appropriate time to have our firm independently value your media conglomerate. With 2026 here and the divergence in tone between the Fed and the Bank of England, the Bank of Japan so hopeful of U.S. growth and inflation being stronger than in other parts of the world, the silver lining is to be prudent but sensitive; don’t sit idle and put things off. Timing, as we soon enter spring 2026, is most significant at this moment.

As interest rates fall, provided you have a good credit rating, borrowing money for all will become cheaper, and investors will resume eyeing acquisitions that present both growth opportunities and strategic advantages for their multimedia conglomerates. Our office has some excellent media properties listed for sale in Kansas, Kentucky, Georgia, Nevada, Massachusetts, Ohio, Texas, Pennsylvania and in New York. We receive new listings routinely.

The dynamics at play are real; it will remain challenging when it comes to owning/operating a multimedia entity. With the current rate of inflation at 2.7% and the U.S. unemployment rate is 4.4%, it could go higher if business slows down or ownership groups eliminate staffing and downsize. The number of unemployed in December 2025 was 7.5 million. As of January 10, 2026, there were 2.6 million unemployment insurance claims, according to the U.S. Department of Labor.

The national average mortgage loan rates are around 6% for a 30-year fixed and 5.5% for a 15-year fixed in California. The average 5-year ARM is 6.5%. Although interest rates are decreasing for investors, the financial sector is charging a fortune to lend money, impacting the housing trade significantly as the colder construction building climate is here. As of January 2026, the Jumbo fixed rate is high at 6.3% nationally for 30 years.

As a publishing company executive or key partner in your ownership group, pay attention to the details and respect the present scenario by closely monitoring your print, paper stock, staffing and operational expenses across the board. This is no time to invest in real estate property acquisitions; if you want to re-sign a lease for office space, keep it limited in years. If there were to be a financial crash, although I do not see this happening, much will go up in smoke — and quickly. Never forget the October 19, 1987, stock market crash. Analytics are important to focus on.

Now is the time to harden your thoughts on taking aggressive cost-cutting measures at your media entity. Consolidate staff, lease less office space, and, if necessary, streamline your circulation penetration. Possibly cut back on printing as many editions and supplements as you generally produce. Focus on sales and generating more cash for your business. Invest in digital and think about podcasts, apps and social media platforms for ascertaining additional attention and growing your business in a challenging market. Many magazine entities are establishing more physical events for attendees to participate in, helping to encourage more face-to-face contact with potential consumers and looking to beef up ad sales.

Restructuring is required in trying times, and securing a fresh 2026 multimedia business plan and/or financial valuation will illustrate how best to economize and make your business more profitable and attractive. Slicing away sections of your editorial content is always a difficult choice to make, so I recommend taking a step back initially, calling my office in New York for independent, professional guidance and permitting our talented team to assist you with creativity and expertise. Now is not the time to look the other way. The cost of doing business will continue to soar. We can make a difference. Before we blink, it will be Memorial Day 2026!

Be proactive, sensible and efficient. We are here to assist and want to be there for you! Do not hesitate to reach out. Helping media executives is what we do best!

Kevin Kamen is proud to be the expert media financial valuation resource for the Forbes 400 List of America's richest people 10 straight years. Email info@kamengroup.com