Finance
Students of all political views believe government should help with student loan debt
89% of Democrats and 81% of Republicans think the government should help out with student loan debt. (iStock)
Students throughout the country agree that student loan forgiveness is a must. An Axios survey founds that students on both sides of the political spectrum think the government should be doing more to help them pay off their debts.
Of the 4,168 students surveyed, 89% of the Democratic students and 81% of Republicans said the government should offer more relief options.
The general population, outside of students, doesn’t necessarily agree to the same extent — 76% of Democrats, 62% of independents and 47% of Republicans want the government to help with student loan debts, according to the Axios study. Despite this disagreement, many Americans believe that student loans should be more affordable. About four in five Americans stated that the government should make student loans available at 0% interest rates.
The exponential cost of getting an education is also a topic many Americans are thinking about. Nearly 31% of students surveyed were afraid their future earnings wouldn’t be worth the money they spent on their higher education. This fear is something the Biden Administration has brought up in its new forgiveness options.
“College is meant to lead to a better life, but too many students end up struggling due to their student debt,” Under Secretary James Kvaal said.
Refinancing to a private student loan with a lower interest rate can help you get control over your student loan debt. If you’re considering refinancing, visit Credible to compare student loan refinancing rates, so you can find a better interest rate.
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Some students would consider becoming expats if their loans aren’t forgiven
Student loan debt is a financial strain for many Americans, and many borrowers would consider leaving the U.S. altogether if their loans aren’t forgiven, a Greenback Expat Tax Services study found.
About one in 10 Americans holding student loan debt have considered becoming expats if they don’t get student loan forgiveness. Considering only 9% of the students surveyed had their loans at least partially forgiven, a potentially large number of borrowers would consider leaving the country.
Borrowers are willing to move due to the intense stress associated with student loan debt. About 50% of survey respondents associated some of their anxiety with their student loan debt.
If you can qualify for a student loan refinance at a lower rate, it could help you pay down your student loans faster. You can use Credible to compare student loan refinancing rates from multiple private lenders at once without affecting your credit score.
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Texas, California and Florida are the states that have seen the most student loan forgiveness
The Biden Administration recently released a state-by-state breakdown of how much relief borrowers have received through the SAVE plan.
The three states that have received the most forgiveness are Texas, California and Florida. This is unsurprising, since these three states also have the largest populations.
A total of 14,510 borrowers in Texas have received $116.6 million in forgiveness through the SAVE plan; in California, 13,580 borrowers have received $114.8 million in forgiveness; and in Florida, 12,790 borrowers have received $105.4 million in forgiveness. The next most populous state, New York, received $63.4 million in forgiveness for 8,190 borrowers since the SAVE plan was implemented.
The Biden Administration also released statistics on other forgiveness it has approved outside the SAVE plan. Due to fixes to Public Service Loan Forgiveness programs, $56.7 billion has been forgiven for 793,000 borrowers. Additionally, 930,500 borrowers had $45.6 billion forgiven through improvements to income-driven repayment. Plus, $11.7 billion was forgiven for students with total or permanent disabilities. Borrowers whose schools were closed or went through court cases have also seen $22.5 billion in forgiveness for 1.3 million borrowers.
If you have private student loans, federal relief doesn’t apply to you, but you can ease your debt burden by refinancing. Lock in some a low interest rate via the online marketplace Credible to see how much you could save.
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The uranium trade’s shelf life may last years.
According to Sprott Asset Management CEO John Ciampaglia, a “real shift” upward is underway due to increasing global energy demand — particularly as major tech companies look to power artificial intelligence data centers.
“We’ve been talking about uranium and nuclear energy non-stop for four years at Sprott, and we’ve been incredibly bullish on the segment,” he told CNBC’s “ETF Edge” this week.
Ciampaglia’s firm runs the Sprott Physical Uranium Trust (SRUUF), which Morningstar ranks as the world’s largest physical uranium fund. It’s up 22% over the past two months.
The firm is also behind the Sprott Uranium Miners ETF (URNM), which is up almost 38% over the past two months. The Sprott website lists Cameco and NAC Kazatomprom JSC as the top two holdings in the fund as of June 12.
“It’s [uranium] a reliable form of energy. It has zero greenhouse gases. It has a very good long-term track record,” Ciampaglia said. “It provides a lot of electricity on a large scale, and that’s right now what the grid is calling for.”
Ciampaglia finds attitudes are changing toward nuclear energy because it offers energy security with a low carbon footprint. Uranium is “incredibly energy-dense” compared to most fossil fuels, he said, which makes it a promising option to ensure energy security.
He cited the 2022 energy crisis in Europe after Russia cut its oil supply to the region and April’s grid failure in Spain and Portugal as cases for more secure energy sources.
“We think this trend is long term and secular and durable,” Ciampaglia said. “With the exception of Germany, I think every country around the world has flipped back to nuclear power, which is a very powerful signal.”
‘You need reliable power’
VanEck CEO Jan van Eck is also heavily involved in the uranium space.
“You need reliable power,” he said. “These data centers can’t go down for a fraction of a second. They need to be running all the time.”
His firm is behind the VanEck Uranium and Nuclear ETF (NLR), which is up about 42% over the past two months. According to VanEck’s website as of June 12, its top three holdings are Oklo, Nuscale Power and Constellation Energy.
But he contends there’s a potential downside to the uranium trade: Building new nuclear power plants can take years.
“What’s going to happen in the meantime?” Van Eck said. “Investors are not patient, as we know.”
Van Eck also thinks it’s possible the Trump administration’s positive attitude toward nuclear power could fast track development.
He highlighted nuclear technology company Oklo during the interview. Its shares soared on Wednesday after the company announced it was anticipating a deal with the Air Force to supply nuclear power to a base in Alaska.
The agreement came not long after President Donald Trump in May signed a series of executive orders to rework the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, expedite new reactor construction and expand the domestic uranium industry.
“Trump controls federal land, so that’s not a NIMBY [not in my backyard] kind of potential risk,” said Van Eck. “They’re going to leverage that hard to start to show the safety of these newer, smaller technologies.”
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