The June hiring figure reported by the government Friday is the smallest in 2-1/2 years. But it still points to a durable labor market that has produced a historically high number of advertised openings.
Just as the American economy is struggling with high inflation and interest rates, the coming resumption of student loan payments poses yet another potential challenge.
All but two of the items—cheese and pork chops—were more expensive than last year. Cookies, hamburgers buns and lemonade were up the most.
Only 34% of U.S. adults approve of President Joe Biden’s leadership on the economy, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs.
Last month’s progress in easing overall inflation was tempered by an elevated reading of “core” prices, a category that excludes volatile food and energy costs.
Despite the big increase, the government’s third and final report on January-March economic growth still marked a deceleration from the 2.6% annual rate from October through December and the 3.2% growth from July through September.
Analysts say a “rolling recession” and what they call a “richcession” could help the economy as a whole manage to avoid a full-fledged recession.
The Conference Board said that consumers’ fears of a recession declined in June, with 69.3% of respondents saying a recession is somewhat or very likely in the next 12 months, down from 73.2% in May.
Spending increased at online retailers and at restaurants and bars. Department stores, electronic stores, and furniture stores also posted increases.
Housing costs continue to be a major driver of overall inflation. Rent rose 0.5 percent in May over the month before, only a minor improvement from a 0.6 percent increase in April. Rental costs are still up 8.7 percent over last year.
An emerging pullback should be welcome news for the Federal Reserve, which has been taking aggressive steps for more than a year to slow the economy enough to bring down inflation.
Federal student loan borrowers haven’t been required to make loan payments since March 2020. But the grace period is almost over: Some 44 million borrowers will be required to either begin or continue making payments in September.
The May jobs report reveals the 29th straight month of strong job growth that has come to define the pandemic recovery economy.
Macy’s is being swept up in a broader pullback in retail spending as consumers feel squeezed by rising prices and higher interest rates.
The hard-fought deal to avoid a default crisis pleased few, but lawmakers assessed it was better than the alternative—a major economic upheaval if Congress failed to act.
Leading Federal Reserve officials are sending out stronger signals that they will forego an increase at the central bank’s next meeting, though they indicate hikes could resume later this year.
The resilience of the American labor market continues to complicate the Federal Reserve’s efforts to fight inflation.
Consumer confidence fell in May as Americans became more pessimistic about the labor market, on top of elevated anxiety over inflation.
The bill faces a tricky path to final passage, which must happen by June 5, when the federal government will exhaust funding to pay its bills.
Friday’s report from the government showed that despite rising prices, consumers remain willing to spend.
