The conflict in the Strait of Hormuz is messing with more than just oil prices — it’s quietly threatening our dinner plates. Sulfur, a byproduct of oil and gas production, is essential for making sulfuric acid. That acid turns phosphate rock into the fertilizers (DAP and MAP) that feed much of the world. No sulfur … Continue reading The Conflict That’s Quietly Raising Your Grocery Bill
Author: Liza Dewlar
Parenting Your Parents: A FaceTime Stock Trading Saga
I deserve the Nobel Peace Prize after today’s mission: helping my father buy shares in SPCX via FaceTime while he and my mother are relaxing at their summer house in the Stockholm archipelago. I strategically chose my mother — she’s the less chaotic of the two. My father’s bank is Nordea, whose user interface must … Continue reading Parenting Your Parents: A FaceTime Stock Trading Saga
When Summer Replacements Meet Real Money
Summer investing requires serious restraint of one’s inner hormonal hurricane. This week I’ve had the pleasure of dealing with several enthusiastic summer workers at Swedish brokerages. They’re full of confidence, probably feeling like kings of the financial world after landing a job at Avanza, Montrose, Nordea and Nordnet. The problem? Most of them lack the … Continue reading When Summer Replacements Meet Real Money
Why Sweden’s Pension System Makes Us One of the World’s Biggest Stock Market Investors
Sweden has one of the world’s most stock-market-oriented pension systems. The Swedish pension system was reformed in the late 1990s under Prime Minister Göran Persson. The old ATP system (a defined benefit pay-as-you-go model) was replaced by a combination of a pay-as-you-go income pension and the new premium pension (PPM), where a portion of contributions … Continue reading Why Sweden’s Pension System Makes Us One of the World’s Biggest Stock Market Investors
From Micromanager to Growth Mindset: How One Bad CEO Can Destroy What a Great One Built
One of my best friends works at a medium-sized company in Stockholm. Two years ago their long-time CEO retired. He was a leader who set high expectations but also empowered his department heads and employees — and they delivered brilliantly. The new CEO is a classic micromanager. In just two years she has managed to … Continue reading From Micromanager to Growth Mindset: How One Bad CEO Can Destroy What a Great One Built
One country’s pain is another country’s gain – and right now Vietnam is eating China’s lunch
The old saying “one man’s loss is another man’s treasure” has never been more true than in today’s global supply chain wars. Vietnam is booming. Export growth has frequently exceeded 15–20% year-to-date, driven largely by the China+1 strategy. Major players like Apple, Samsung, and LG have moved significant production from China to Vietnam to dodge … Continue reading One country’s pain is another country’s gain – and right now Vietnam is eating China’s lunch
The conflict in the Strait of Hormuz has the most unexpected victims: my afternoon Pepsi and my PepsiCo shares
According to PepsiCo’s latest quarterly report released July 9, 2026, the company saw softer volumes in North America. Beverage sales were flat or negative in places (down 4% in some categories). The usual suspects get the blame — inflation, tighter budgets, and weak demand at convenience stores. PepsiCo’s bread-and-butter is Walmart and Costco. But the … Continue reading The conflict in the Strait of Hormuz has the most unexpected victims: my afternoon Pepsi and my PepsiCo shares
A good deed never goes unpunished
We wanted to reward one of our former employees — a middle-aged woman with four children, the youngest still living at home. She had worked for us for more than two years, so we knew her Achilles heel well: even though she never had a penny left three days before payday, she always found ways … Continue reading A good deed never goes unpunished
Was I young and stupid, or just in love? Scholars still argue about it.
Before I met my husband, I lived with another man for a couple of years. He was 6 years older than me — which is a huge age difference when you're in your late teens. We moved into a rented apartment in a worse area because it was the only one available in 1988. What … Continue reading Was I young and stupid, or just in love? Scholars still argue about it.
My father’s ‘Golf Career’
My dad is absolutely no athlete and definitely not a golfer, but he still made a valiant attempt in the early 2000s — mainly because my mom had a romantic dream that they would have a hobby together. His golfing career both culminated and ended during a holiday trip to Thailand in 2005. On the … Continue reading My father’s ‘Golf Career’