U.S. economy unexpectedly accelerated to 2.4% growth rate in Q2
Driving last quarter’s growth was a burst of business investment, which surged at a 5.7% annual pace, the fastest rate since late 2021.
Driving last quarter’s growth was a burst of business investment, which surged at a 5.7% annual pace, the fastest rate since late 2021.
Tumbling inflation and sturdy hiring have raised hopes the Fed just might pull off a so-called soft landing—slowing the economy just enough to tame inflation without tipping the United States into recession.
Sales increased in seven out of 13 retail categories last month, including advances at non-store retailers, electronics stores and furniture outlets.
Jim Bullard has spent the last 15 years as president and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, making him the longest-serving sitting president of a Federal Reserve bank.
The government’s producer price index—which measures inflation before it reaches consumers—rose just 0.1% last month from June 2022, the smallest such increase since August 2020.
A year after inflation soared to the highest level in four decades, price increases are returning closer to normal levels.
The expected decline in overall inflation over the past 12 months would bring the figure much closer to the Fed’s 2% target and reflect the progress the central bank has made in slowing price acceleration.
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.
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.
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.