Today's Scoop:

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Hey friends, hope you had a great weekend. Did you see our breakdown on healthcare affordability?

Here's what you need to know today...

1. Inflation fell in February.

2. Consumers haven't stopped spending.

3. Oil-producing nations are trying to keep gas prices high.

S&P 500: 4,124.511Mo: +2% | 1Yr: -10% | 5Yr: +58%

The market drifted upward today without any significantly bad news. Investors got a little worried that higher oil prices might keep living costs high.

Oil-producing nations are trying to keep oil prices from falling. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) announced a surprise production cut today by 1.16 million barrels per day. The reduced supply caused a spike in oil prices. Major oil nations like Saudi Arabia, Russia, and others coordinate to control the available global oil supply and affect prices.

Living costs didn't rise that much in February. Policymakers' preferred inflation gauge, the personal consumption expenditures index, rose by a more normal 0.3% in February after spiking 0.6% in January. The Bureau of Economic Analysis reported living costs are still 5% higher than a year ago.

Consumers are still spending a lot, despite high costs and recession concerns. The Bureau of Economic Analysis report also noted spending rose 0.2% in February after a 2% surge in January. Spending declined slightly (-0.1%) when adjusting for inflation, though.

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The acquiring company may take on debt to fund the deal, trade its stock, or use its cash reserves. The acquisition can be an all-cash deal, where shareholders receive cash in their brokerage accounts, or an all-stock deal, where your shares of Company X turn into some amount of shares of Company Y, or some mixed combination of the two.